Tsengian independence movement

The Tsengian independence movement (Chinese: 曾國獨立運動; pinyin: Zēngguó Dúlì Yùndòng) was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending the European rule in Tseng. The movement spanned from 1894 to 1946, culminating in the independence of Tseng on July 17, 1946. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Tsengian independence emerged from St. Joseph, Georgeville. The early part of the 20th century saw a more radical approach towards political self-rule proposed by leaders such as Chengtseng, Claude Hsu, Bo Junming, and the Gang of Five.

The Tsengian self-rule movement was a mass-based movement that encompassed various sections of society. It also underwent a process of constant ideological evolution. Although the underlying ideology of the campaign was anti-colonial, it was supported by a vision of independent capitalist economic development coupled with a secular, democratic, republican, and civil-libertarian political structure. After the Japanese annexed Tseng in 1938, the movement covered Japanese rule. Tseng was liberated in 1944 as AFJAT, under suzerainty of the United Kingdom and France. The work of these various movements ultimately led to the Tsengian Independence Act 1946, which ended European rule in Tseng. Unlike most other former British colonies and overseas territories, it did not become a member of the.

Early European colonialism in Tseng
European traders first reached Tsengian shores with the arrival of the English explorer Charles Sterling in 1593 at Tseng City, in search of a sea route on the Pacific coast. He greeted the indigenous and Chinese warmly, however they looked at Sterling and company with hesitation and unease. The British established settlements on Tseng Island, with the first English settlement called Fort Elizabeth set up at Tseng City in 1593. On the night of November 18, 1597, the natives sacked and burned Fort Elizabeth. Sterling and 8 other men tried to escape but were ambushed and killed. However, the British returned with a new settlement, by the name of Port Elizabeth.

Realizing that the British settled in Tseng Island, France arrived in 1616, building a settlement (Louis-Ville) on the southeast end of the island. The Dutch came in 1635, and for the next few centuries the four nations along with the native tribes clashed. In 1765, the Yuzo Treaty was signed in the French colony of Tseng, dividing the island into English, French, Dutch, Qing, and indigenous sections. Due to the increasing civil unrest in the Qing Dynasty, Britain was able to assert its sovereignty over Qing Tseng in 1894. According to the Treaty of Caoning, ratified by China on March 19, 1894, the Qing Dynasty would cede its territory in Tseng Island (Georgeville) to Britain. France would establish the Talasides on June 28.

1895 St. Joseph riots
On August 25, 1895, townspeople in St. Joseph, who were loyal to the Qing Dynasty, rebelled against British due to the forced annexation of Georgeville State by the British. It is considered the first major rebellion in Tseng. The rebellion posed a considerable threat to British power in that region, and was contained with the rebels' defeat on September 29. 19 people died in the revolt.

1907 Zhugang uprising
As a response to the extremely poor treatment of non-Europeans in the Talasides, an uprising in Chartres (Zhugang), French Talasides, occured on September 20, 1907, attempting to undermine French rule in Tseng. The French saw this as a big blow to its empire, and the uprising was suppressed a week later.

Rise of Tsengian nationalism (1923-1938)
After World War I, Tsengian nationalism was on the rise, due to heavy involvement in the war. On April 20, 1923, a pro-independence student named Claude Hsu and supporters of him raided the Talasides administrative building in Bonaparte and declared the unrecognized Republic of Hsu, covering all of the French Talasides. It only lasted for a few hours before the police arrived and arrested the people that raided the building and declared the independence of Hsu.

The militant group known as Chengtseng (成曾), led by Lu Huacheng, Harold Huang, and Noah Bai, was formed in July 1925. The ultimate goal of the group was to loot and burn any European businesses until Tseng's independence. However, the members were arrested on March 9, 1926. Lu and Huang were executed a year after their arrest, and Bai was assassinated on July 21, 1929.

The NPP's predecessor, the Partie National, was founded on October 21, 1932 in Bonaparte-Meriot, French Talasides, by an pro-Tseng independence student called Daniel Lévard, and it quickly gained massive popularity. The sole policy of the Partie National was Tsengian self-rule and independence.

In 1934, Japan invaded Tseng. Quickly the territories and native land merged with the consent of the European colonial governments and became one country, the United States of Tseng (UST). The United States of Tseng was a temporary state created by the Europeans in order to defend against Japan without any diplomatic incidents. It was a predecessor of the current Tseng Republic but only lasted two years before the Japanese took over. The UST managed to fight off Japan two more times before it was overwhelmed and on April 30, 1938, Tseng became a colony of Japan.

Japanese rule (1938-1944)
"See also: List of rebellions in Japanese Tseng"The Japanese brought in more stricter measures against the Tsengians and the Europeans. This caused many revolts and rebellions in Japanese-ruled Tseng. The Tsengians (and even some Europeans) protested for Tseng to be an independent country, and to be free from Japanese and European rule. In 1944, with the help of the Allies, Tseng was liberated from Japanese rule. However, Tseng still fell under the suzerainty of European colonial powers until 1946, due to British and French refusal of soverignty, which angered the Tsengians.

Tsengian Revolution (1944-1946)
"Main article: Tsengian Revolution" The years from 1944 to 1946 were very violent. Nationalists like Pierre Huang-li, Nathan Chang, Bo Junming (who was assassinated), and Antonio Tzeng led rallies and ordered the people to loot and destroy any European businesses, like Chengtseng. The authorities responded with excessive use of force, using guns and gas bombs to attack the rioters.

Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle were concerned about Tseng declaring independence with the protests and riots that happened during Japanese rule. If that happened, it would be a crushing blow to the British and French Empires. The AFJAT was politically and socially weak. Corruption was widespread, with Joseph Rouxtien in the AFJAT legislature declaring support for the movement in a session on December 28, 1945, which resulted in him being shot (and causing a brawl in the legislature) in an event known as the Rouxtien Incident.

The Gang of Five, the most powerful political faction that pushed for independence, ordered the European governments to recognize Tseng in February 1946. Eventually, the Europeans relented, and started to engage in talks a month later. As the movement intensified, AFJAT descended into further anarchy in June 1946, and eventually Dave Saladoch, the governor, relented and, with the consent of the UK and France, AFJAT dissolved.

Sovereignty of Tseng
The last governors of colonial Tseng, Dave Saladoch from AFJAT and Aleid Xuzhi from Dutch Tseng, met with leaders of the movement on June 5, 1946. They discussed independence. On July 2, both Saladoch and Xuzhi announced the sovereignty of Tseng from European rule, with Dutch Tseng severing all ties to the Dutch monarchy. At 10:03 on July 17, Pierre Huang-li signed the Declaration of Independence of Tseng, and Tseng became an independent nation. Eventually, July 17 became National Day, commemorating the end of European rule in Tseng. Also on July 17, Tseng had the right to remain in or withdraw from the British Commonwealth. The National State Assembly unanimously decided to leave the Commonwealth on July 22 due to pervasive opposition to British rule, and Tseng became a republic.