This is a list of the premiers of China from 1911–1912, during the Qing dynasty, 1912 onwards of the Republic of China, and 1949 onwards of the People's Republic of China.
The first recorded instance of a monarch of China appointing a chief minister was around 1130 BC, by King Tang of the Shang dynasty. Since then, almost every monarch in China appointed a chief minister to help him or her to run the administration. This role has been known by several different names, most commonly Chancellor. With the unification of China under the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty in 221 BC, the power in the premiers' hands was reduced because of the Emperors' intentions of setting up an absolute monarchy. In 1380, the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming dynasty ordered the death of his Chancellor, and did not appoint another in his lifetime. From then until 1911, a number of people formally shared the responsibility of chief minister to the Emperor. Even when one of them dominated government, such as in the case of Li Hongzhang, they were nevertheless formally just one of several ministers of equal status. During much of the Qing dynasty, for example, the traditional role of the Chancellor was performed collectively by the Grand Council.
In mid-1911, the modern position of Premier was created, when the Qing Imperial Government created the "Princes' Cabinet" as a reform of Chinese politics, shortly before it was overthrown. When Yuan Shikai took over the premiership, the premiers of China played an influential role in Chinese politics.
The list below shows the premiers of China during the Qing dynasty. Multiple terms in office, consecutive or otherwise, are listed. The first column shows the consecutively numbered term of the premier, while the second column shows his or her chronological position amongst individual premiers.
List of prime ministers of the Qing Imperial Government (1911–12)
The Qing Imperial Government created the "Imperial Family Cabinet" in May 1911, in order to appease popular anger and calls for reform. But the formation of the Cabinet brought even more disaffection. Soon, the Wuchang Uprising forced the Qing government to abolish the cabinet, and instead summon Yuan Shikai to head the government. The imperial government collapsed soon afterward.
Zhang Xun briefly held the post during his brief attempt to restore the Qing dynasty in July 1917.
; Prime Ministers of Qing Imperial Government
- period: 8 May 1911 – 10 March 1912
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |Emperor
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| 1
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Yikuang (Prince Qing)<br /><br />
| 8 May 1911 || 1 November 1911 ||
| Non-partisan<br />(Qing dynasty)<br />
| Xuantong (Puyi)
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 2
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Yuan Shikai<br /><br />
| 2 November 1911 || 12 February 1912 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Xuantong (Puyi)
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| 3
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Zhang Xun<br /><br />
| 1 July 1917 || 12 July 1917 ||
| Non-partisan<br />(warlord)<br />
| Puyi
|-
| colspan=5|
|}
List of premiers of the ROC (since 1912)
; Premiers of Cabinet of the Republic of China
- period: 13 March 1912 – 1 May 1914
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |President
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 1
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Tang Shaoyi<br /><br />
| 13 March 1912 || 27 June 1912 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Sun Yat-sen<br />Yuan Shikai
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 2
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Lu Zhengxiang<br /><br />
| 29 June 1912 || 22 September 1912 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Yuan Shikai
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 3
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Zhao Bingjun<br /><br />
| 25 September 1912 || 16 July 1913 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Yuan Shikai
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Duan Qirui<br /><br />
| 19 July 1913 || 31 July 1913 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Yuan Shikai
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 4
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Xiong Xiling<br /><br />
| 31 July 1913 || 12 February 1914 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Yuan Shikai
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Sun Baoqi<br /><br />
| 12 February 1914 || 1 May 1914 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Yuan Shikai
|-
| colspan=5|
|}
; Secretaries of State of the Empire of China
- period: 22 December 1915 – 22 March 1916
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |Emperor
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Lu Zhengxiang<br /><br />
| 22 December 1915 || 22 March 1916 ||
| Non-partisan
| Hongxian (Yuan Shikai)
|-
| colspan=5|
|}
; Secretaries of State of the Republic of China
- period: 1 May 1914 – 22 December 1915; 22 March 1916 – 29 June 1916
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |President
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=3 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 5
| rowspan=3 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=3 align=center| Xu Shichang<br /><br />
| 1 May 1914 || 21 December 1915 ||
| rowspan=2| Beiyang clique
| rowspan=2| Yuan Shikai
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
| 22 March 1916 || 22 April 1916 ||
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 6
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Duan Qirui<br /><br />
| 22 April 1916 || 29 June 1916 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Yuan Shikai<br />Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|}
; Premiers of State Council of the Republic of China
- period: 29 June 1916 – 1 July 1917
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of Office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |President
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#FCC200; color:black;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Duan Qirui<br /><br />
| 29 June 1916 || 23 May 1917 ||
| Progressive
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#FCC200; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wu Tingfang<br /><br />
| 23 May 1917 || 12 June 1917 ||
| Progressive
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#FCC200; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Jiang Chaozong<br /><br />
| 12 June 1917 || 24 June 1917 ||
| Progressive
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#FCC200; color:black;"| 7
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Li Jingxi<br /><br />
| 25 June 1917 || 2 July 1917 ||
| Progressive
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|}
; Premiers of State Council of the Republic of China
- period: 14 July 1917 – 24 November 1924
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |President
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Duan Qirui<br /><br />
| 14 July 1917 || 22 November 1917 ||
| Anhui clique
| Feng Guozhang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wang Daxie<br /><br />
| 22 November 1917 || 30 November 1917 ||
| Zhili clique
| Feng Guozhang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 8
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wang Shizhen<br /><br />
| 30 November 1917 || 20 February 1918 ||
| Anhui clique
| Feng Guozhang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Qian Nengxun<br /><br />
| 20 February 1918 || 23 March 1918 ||
| Anhui clique
| Feng Guozhang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Duan Qirui<br /><br />
| 23 March 1918 || 10 October 1918 ||
| Anhui clique
| Feng Guozhang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 9
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Qian Nengxun<br /><br />
| 10 October 1918 || 13 June 1919 ||
| Anhui clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Gong Xinzhan<br /><br />
| 13 June 1919 || 24 September 1919 ||
| Anhui Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 10
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Jin Yunpeng<br /><br />
| 24 September 1919 || 14 May 1920 ||
| Anhui Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Sa Zhenbing<br /><br />
| 14 May 1920 || 9 August 1920 ||
| Anhui Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Jin Yunpeng<br /><br />
| 9 August 1920 || 18 December 1921 ||
| Anhui Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| W. W. Yan<br /><br /><br />
| 18 December 1921 || 24 December 1921 ||
| Zhili Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 11
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Liang Shiyi<br /><br />
| 24 December 1921 || 25 January 1922 ||
| Communications Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| W. W. Yan<br /><br /><br />
| 25 January 1922 || 8 April 1922 ||
| Zhili Clique
| Xu Shichang
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Zhou Ziqi<br /><br />
| 8 April 1922 || 11 June 1922 ||
| Anhui Clique
| Xu Shichang<br />Zhou Ziqi
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 12
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| W. W. Yan<br /><br /><br />
| 12 June 1922 || 5 August 1922 ||
| Zhili Clique
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Tang Shaoyi<br /><br />
| 5 August 1922 || 19 September 1922 ||
| Non-partisan
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| 13
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wang Chonghui<br /><br />
| 19 September 1922 || 29 November 1922 ||
| Non-partisan
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 14
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wang Daxie<br /><br />
| 29 November 1922 || 11 December 1922 ||
| Zhili clique
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wang Zhengting<br /><br />
| 11 December 1922 || 4 January 1923 ||
| Non-partisan
| Li Yuanhong
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 15
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Zhang Shaozeng<br /><br />
| 4 January 1923 || 13 June 1923 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Li Yuanhong<br />Gao Lingwei
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Gao Lingwei<br /><br />
| 14 June 1923 || 12 January 1924 ||
| Non-partisan
| Gao Lingwei<br />Cao Kun
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"| 16
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Sun Baoqi<br /><br />
| 12 January 1924 || 2 July 1924 ||
| Beiyang clique
| Cao Kun
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Wellington Koo<br /><br /><br />
| 2 July 1924 || 14 September 1924 ||
| Non-partisan
| Cao Kun
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:#CD853F; color:white;"|
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| W. W. Yan<br /><br /><br />
| 14 September 1924 || 31 October 1924 ||
| Zhili Clique
| Cao Kun
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Huang Fu<br /><br />
| 31 October 1924 || 24 November 1924 ||
| Non-partisan
| Cao Kun<br />Huang Fu
|-
| colspan=5|
|}
; Premiers of State Council of the Republic of China
- period: 24 November 1924 – 2 June 1928
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!
! Portrait
! width=25% |Name<br />
! colspan=2 width=30% |Term of office
! Days
! width=20% |Political party
! width=35% |President
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| 17
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Xu Shiying<br /><br />
| 26 December 1925 || 4 March 1926 ||
| Non-partisan
| Duan Qirui
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| 18
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Jia Deyao<br /><br />
| 4 March 1926 || 20 April 1926 ||
| Non-partisan
| Duan Qirui
|-
| colspan=5|
|- bgcolor=#EEEEEE
! rowspan=2 style="background:; color:black;"| —
| rowspan=2 align=center| 100px
| rowspan=2 align=center| Hu Weide<br />