The Manzuxiehui was founded in September 1917 by Zhao Guangping, a Manchu warlord who controlled large swarthes of north east China following the start of the Warlord period in China after he declared the independence of the First Manchu Republic. The party functioned in the framework of a single-party state, cementing Manchurian nationalism into Manchu society, being responsible for the ethnic cleansing of Han Chinese in the region whilst promoting traditional Manchu shamanism and culture.