Abstract: The secret society was an influential civil force in modern Yunnan, which played multiple roles in the changes of times. The secret society in Yunnan was introduced from neighboring provinces. After entering modern times, it took root in the soil of semi-colonial and semi-feudal society and developed rapidly. In order to resist the oppression of the government, the Yunnan secret society launched several uprisings and shook the rule of the Qing government in Yunnan; In order to establish a democratic political system, the Revolutionary Party headed by Sun Yat-sen noticed the great power contained in the secret society and the special geographical location of Yunnan. They used the secret society to launch numerous armed uprisings and accelerated the collapse of the Qing government. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, the Yunnan secret society also expanded its forces in the old and new armies and served as one of the main forces in the movement of uniting the bourgeois revolutionaries to overthrow the Qing government. However, due to its own defects and the completion of the "anti-Qing Dynasty" goal, the Yunnan secret society was suppressed by the military governor just after the Xinhai Revolution of 1911.

Key words: Yunnan Province, the secret society, armed uprising, the Xinhai Revolution