Wang Yitang (; October 17, 1877 – September 10, 1948) was a politician and military leader in the Qing Dynasty and Republic of China. He belonged to the Anhui clique and formed the Anfu Club (). Later he became an important politician in the Provisional Government of the Republic of China and the Reorganized National Government of the Republic of China (Wang Jingwei regime). His former name was Zhiyang () and his courtesy names were Shenwu () and Shengong (). Later, his name was changed to Geng () while his courtesy name was changed to Yitang (). He was also known by his art name Yitang (). He was born in Hefei, Anhui. Biography In the end of the Qing Dynasty A native of Hefei in Anhui Province, Wang Yitang passed the imperial examination in 1904 for the highest degree jinshi; however, he hoped to study about the military. In September he was sent on a government scholarship to Japan, where he attended the Tokyo Shimbu Academy, a military preparatory school. After graduating he entered the Imperial Japanese Army’s 9th Artillery Regiment based in Kanazawa; however, he found that military life was not to his liking, so he transferred to Hosei University. He returned to China in 1907. After that he successively held the positions of Director of the Department for Military Affairs (), Military Counselor to the office for the Viceroy of Three Northeast Provinces (on that time, the Viceroy was Xu Shichang), Commander of the 1st Brigade of the Jilin Army () and Councilor to the Training Office of the Jilin. From 1909 he visited the Empire of Russia and the United States as a military attaché. In the Anhui clique After the Xinhai Revolution broke out, Wang--through the introduction of Xu Shichang--joined the secretariat of Yuan Shikai. In 1912 he successively belonged to several political parties: Minshe (), Gonghe Cujinhui (), Unity Party (Tongyidang; ) and Republican Party (Gonghedang; ). In 1913 he was elected to the National Assembly as the representative for Tibet. In May the United Party, Democratic Party (Minzhudang; ) and Republican Party merged, becoming the Progressive Party and Wang was appointed Director. In May 1914 he was appointed a member of the State Council. In August 1915 he was appointed Civil Governor of Jilin. In April 1916 he became Minister of the Interior, and held that post until the end of June. Following