Agriculture and Industry - The Communes Flashcards
How did Mao build communism in the countryside?
• Establishment of Communes in rural areas
• Mao said that “Without Socialisation of agriculture, there can be no complete, consolidated socialism.”
Why did Mao establish the communes?
- Disappointing agricultural output figures from co-operatives - only risen 3.8% previous year
- Best way to increase production was larger scale communes
- APC and MAT showed peasants had support for full communism
- walking on two legs
Abolition of private farming
- First commune established in Henan Province July 1958
- named ‘Sputnik commune’
- end of the year 740,000 co operatives reorganised into 26,000 communes
- party claimed 99% peasants population in communes
Organisation/features of the communes
- Around 5500 households
- Organised healthcare, education, and agricultural and industrial output
- Abolished private markets and land
- Communes would be self-reliant and there would be efficient pooling of resources
Vision of communes
- Perfect communist society
- Develop revolutionary fervour
- Liberalisation of women - ‘iron women’
- Creches and boarding schools provided
- grandparents - ‘happiness homes’
Reality of communes
- Family life was destroyed
- Poor quality food
- Women were forced to carry out harsh physical labour
- Production didn’t rise
- Commune militias established - all able bodied citizens between 15 and 50
Four pests campaign
• 1958, campaign to ridding China of sparrows which are grain
• Villagers focused on sparrows rather then crops, which died
• ‘Sparrowcide’ increased caterpillars and other insects which ruined the harvest
Lysenkoism
• Agricultural theories developed by Trofim Lysenko
• Theories were fraudulent
• Led to a drop in agricultural production
• Cadres would falsify figures leading to more ambitious quotas
Conclusion of communes
• Were the start of the Great Leap Forward
• Would collapse during the Great Famine
• Disaster for social life as-well as industry and agriculture in rural areas
