 The New Culture Movement (1915) and its immediate successor the May Fourth Movement (1919) initially were strongly liberal in character, with key figures like Hu Shih (1891–1962) as the preeminent exponent of liberal values.Other important liberals were Zhang Dongsun (1886–1973) and Zhang Junmai (1887–1969).Liberalism was to suffer in the wake of the immense challenges China faced from Japanese militarism and the impact of the Communist movement.