The clique received support from Japan in exchange for protecting Japanese military and economic interests in Manchuria.

During the late Qing Dynasty, Manchuria was organized as the Viceroyalty of the Three Northeastern Provinces, consisting of Jilin, Fengtian, and Heilongjiang.

[5] (Previously, Manchuria had been the location of the Russo-Japanese War fought inside Qing territory, while the Three Northeastern Provinces hosted the politically tense Chinese Eastern Railway, a Russian concession, whose southern half had been ceded to Japan in 1905.

)[6] In a conference between the Manchurian revolutionaries, provincial assembly, Zhao Erxun, and officials, constitutionalist Wu Jinglian proposed that the Revolution was irresistible, but that Chinese people in Manchuria should not blindly join in the fight, and instead stand guard against Japan and Russia.

When Yuan Shikai was declared President, Zhao pledged the Three Northeastern Provinces' loyalty to the Republic of China.

When Yuan died in 1916, Zhang seized the opportunity to expel the military governor of Manchuria, Duan Zhigui.

Zhang exploited anti-tax protests to strengthen his local civil authority and his position to the Central Government.

While the Fengtian clique contributed little to the victory of the coalition, Zhang Zuolin did notably attack Shanhai Pass in the Great Wall.

Shortly after, the Washington Naval Conference was held, leading to the Nine-Power Treaty and agreements that the foreign powers hoped would dictate the new order in East Asia and the Pacific.

After the First Zhili–Fengtian War in 1922, Zhang distanced himself heavily from the Zhili clique who dominated Beijing and the National Government, creating the Three Northeastern Provinces Defense Headquarters (Dongsansheng Baoan Silingbu), merging the position of Inspector-General and the Fengtian Military Governor.

In 1924, Guo was given no posts in China proper, and rebelled in November 1925, causing the Shikan Clique to take control of military affairs and Manchurian politics until the execution of Yang Yuting and Chang Yinhuai.

In June 1927, Zhang Zuolin was appointed Grand Marshal (Generalissimo) of the Republic of China (not to be confused with Chiang Kai-shek).

Many business leaders came from the bureaucratic group that participated in the provincial assembly, so their interests were represented through Zhang Zuolin.

Manchuria, during the Xinhai Revolution, was looked upon by foreign powers as an easy target for its industry, land, and economic benefits.

[20] However, the director of the Mantetsu, Nakamura Yoshikoto, believed that encouraging the revolutionaries would directly lead to an easy full occupation of Manchuria by Japan.

Throughout the revolution, Zhao Erxun and Zhang Zuolin managed to preserve order in the provinces, avoiding a Japanese invasion.

In order to cement their control over Manchuria during the Republican era, Russia and Japan continued to invest in railroads.

Japan forced the Twenty-One Demands (shortened to thirteen after initial negotiations) as an ultimatum to President Yuan Shikai, extending their territorial lease, allowing subjects to have land loaned to them, and giving them the rights to the Jilin–Changchun Railway.

Sir Charles Elliot, British ambassador to Japan, noted that the Japanese, "while anxious to keep on good terms with [Zhang Zuolin], thought it unwise to commit themselves unreservedly to the support of any one Chinese party.”[24] An ally and commander of the Fengtian clique, Zhang Zongchang recruited Russian White (tsarist) emigres for a detachment that he was forming in anticipation of the Second Zhili-Fengtian War.

By 1927, the enemy, the "southern" Chinese groups, also learned to fight thanks to the Soviet instructors, and the importance of the Russian White Detachment became small.

In 1928–1929, the Russian detachment of General Nechaev was disbanded, the losses amounted to over 1800 people, most of whom were buried in the cemetery in Jinan.

[26] The Soviet Union, determined to retake the Chinese Eastern Railway and recover their influence in China, threatened Zhang Zuolin that they would recognize other warlords.