Han Dynasty after Qing

[Frrf]

Would it have been possible for a Han Chinese dynasty to replace the Qing in the late 19th or early 20th Century? If so, what might it be called? Could it have more luck modernising?
Related, would it be possible for a North/South split to occur at the same time? With the new dynasty in the south and the Qing in the north, perhaps propped up by competing outside powers?

 

[Kaze]

There was much call for the descendants of the Ming or Confucius to take power before the establishment of the Republic. It would take some doing, but it might be possible to have one of these to be put in power - you might have to have Yuan Shikai (or Sun Yat-Sen) made Prime Minister to ensure a peaceful transition.

Ming Prince title of dynasty -- I would go for the "Later Ming" so to split from their previous rulers.

Confucius title --- I would either go with "Kong", "Yansheng" after his ducal title, or "Qifu" after his birthplace.

 

[GauchoBadger]

Confucius title --- I would either go with "Kong", "Yansheng" after his ducal title, or "Qifu" after his birthplace.

Wiki (PBUH) claims that the Yansheng dukes were also known as "Holy Dukes of Yen", could the name "Yen dynasty" be another option?

 

[RousseauX]

Would it have been possible for a Han Chinese dynasty to replace the Qing in the late 19th or early 20th Century? If so, what might it be called? Could it have more luck modernising?
Related, would it be possible for a North/South split to occur at the same time? With the new dynasty in the south and the Qing in the north, perhaps propped up by competing outside powers?

Yes, that was basically Yuan Shikai's attempt to establish himself as a new emperor but in otl was rejected by the Beiyang generals: I suspect a somewhat more favorable political environment might have allowed the establishment of a new monarchy. Maybe there would be the facet of a parliament and constitution to look good to the west and give some pretense of modernity.

The effects would be pretty big: China avoids the era of the warlords entirely and with a stronger Chinese central government the Japanese might never have seized Manchuria. Avoiding the Japanese invasion probably means the Communists never take power. Over time the fake parliament and constitution might have gained real teeth. China might very well have lasted into today as a constittuional monarchy having avoided the worst of the horrors of the 20th century like the Japanese invasion, mass famine of the late 50s and the cultural revolution.

 

[Max Sinister]

Hendryk's Superpower China TL has this. The Cornwallis TL from Gurps AE 2 also does, with either Liu Shaoqi or Lin Biao (I forgot) becoming the new emperor.