ABSTRACT
Observing the weakness of China in the face of foreign exploitation, Sun Yat-sen (Sun Yixian) dedicated his intelligence and nationalist fervor to transforming his country from a conservative empire to a progressive republic. His brother paid Suns tuition at a Christian boarding school, where he was a good student and converted to Christianity. In 1883, Sun returned to China and spent much of his time railing against the backwardness of the Chinese government. In 1884, Sun began his higher education in Hong Kong, then a British colony, and in 1887 began medical school. Following a particularly shameful attack on China by Japan in 1895, Sun organized his first failed uprising, in Shanghai. Sun knew that Yuan might fail and had refused to fully support him. As a legacy, Sun Yat-sen laid the foundation for a modern Chinese state and for national politics in China.
