China before communism Flashcards

Question

Jiangxi Soviet

Answer 1

- Mao developed his version of communism that relied on the peasants as the force for revolution - By October 1934, it was clear that Chiang's approach meant the Communists could not survive if they remained in the Jiangxi Soviet - Night of 16 Octover, 80,000-100,000 Communists broke out of the Jiangxi Soviet and Began to march north

Answer 2

- Followed by the GMD army - Safety in Yanan - First led by Comintern adviser Otto Braun - After meeting at Zunyi in Janurary 1935, Mao Zedong and Zhu De, took control of the party - Dveloped new tactic which led the armyt in a series of suprising directions and involved dividng the forces and regrouping in order to escape the GMD - Crossed the Yangtze River and then the Dadu river - Became a tale of outstanding bravery and success - Thousands died of hunger, drowned, or froze to death - Only 10,000 marchers survived

Answer 3

- Turned into a brave myth of survival by the CCP - In reality it was an act of desperation - Nationalist ocntrl of China was secure as GMD was officially recognised - Provided excellent propaganda and createed martyrs for the communist clause - Promoted the idea of comradeship and self sacrifice - Encouraged support for the Red Army from the peasants who had been treated well by the soldiers as they marched through villages - Established Mao as leader and allowed CCP to develop theory of communism in practice at Yanan

Answer 4

- Invaded Manchuria in 1931 and turned it into a puppet state - 1931-37, Japanese strengthened their position in China in the areas that they ha doccupied - 1936, began to expand into new territories - Chiang intitially allowed the Japanese to take land as he was convinced they could never occupy a large country as hina - Made Chiang unpopular and could not be continued once the Japanese began a full scale occupation policy - July 1937, Chiang declared war with Japan

Answer 5

- Chiang considered Communists as a greater threat and therefore accepted the Japanese occupation - Chiang had relied on deals with the warlords to keep control of the ocuntry - Warlords wanted Chiang to focus removing the Japanese rather than fighting with the Communists - Warlords pressured Chiang to work with the Communists to force the Japanese out

Answer 6

- First 4 years, the war went bad - Japan captured major cities forcing Chiang's government to flee to Chongqing - USA, USSR, and Brtian supplied China with resources and funding to defeat Japan

Answer 7

- CCP was a powerful force - Memebership expanded rapidly - 40,000 in 1937 to 1.2 millino 1945 - Mao won land lords over by applying rent controls rather than trying to wipe them out as a class enemy - Peasants informed Red Armyt about the position of the Japanese and provided them with food and shelter - Many peasants were recruited to the red army - '100 Regiments Offensive" - Red Army's success - 400,000 Communists attacked the Japanese - Communists appeared to be much more determined to defeat Japan than the GMD - Guerrilla tactics - Propaganda that Communists saved China

Answer 8

- Poor performance in war - Chiang persisted in seeing Communists as the real enemy - Wasted resources to fight with Communists - GMD areas suffereed heavy bombing - GMD guerrilla warfare had little impact - GMD army often lacked the will to fight and tended to break down under pressure - GMD forces were recruited by force and displine which meant they lacked loyalty - GMD government was dishonest - GMD was unpopular with peasants - economic policies imposed high taxes and allowed some to get richer throgh storing up goods for their own personal use and then buying and selling goods on the black market - GMD unpopular beacuse of the way they treated the peasants and the methods used to conscript them

Answer 9

- GMD and CCP were not ready to take control of China - As Japanese troops retreated from occupied territories, both sides tried to occupy as much territory - USSSR send its army into Manchuria trying to take control - Chiang was in the stronger position - USA persuaded the Natioanlists and Communists to stop fighting

Answer 10

- First stage between July 1946 to May 1947 - the GMD was initially successful, capturing cities, and establishing a route to Manchuria - However, CCP developed successful guerilla tactics and by May 1947, controled northern Manturia - Second stage between May 1947 to November 1948 - PLA launched full scale attacks on the GMD and switched to conventional ewarfare - GMD became cut off from the rest of China in its shrining territory - Final stage Dec 1948 to October 1949 - Communists enjoyed tremendous success

Answer 11

- Most decisive battle - Men abandoned Chiang's NRA to join PLA - NRA lacked aircraft - Nationalists did not have enough food as Mao destoryed the area surrounding Xuzhou - Chiang reefused to allow leaders of his army units to retreat resulting in 200,000 men lost - Surreneded on 10 Janurary 1949 - Broke the strength of the NRA and opened China to the Communnists - USA did not give anymore funding to the GMD - Chiang fled to Taiwan and set up an alternative government

Answer 12

- Mao was a skilled leader - Lin Biao was an outstanding military general and was skilled at guerrilla warfare - Chiang was a poor military leader who could not ige authority to those with the necessary skills - PLA used a wide range tactics adpated to the situation - GMD made tactical errors - sending troops into Manchuria before they coiintroleld the rest oif North eastern China - GMD could not supply its troops and lost 500,000 men - PLA was disciplined that was motivated by communism - treated villages with respect gaining support and men to join the army - NRA was a conscript army that was pporly supplied and cruelly treated

Answer 13

- Mao's leadership was unchallenged, creating a secure chain of command, preventing disputed during the war - Local populations in committees to discuss reforms in areas under communist control created a positive impression in which government would be seen as acitng for the benefit of the masses - Propaganda - Political position of GMD weakening - GGMD was corrupt and unskilled - No implementation of three principles - Chiang set up a dictatorship and favoured bankers, landlords, and merchants - GMD was never able to raise enough taxes to fund the government

Answer 14

- Support from peasants - Introduction of land reform in the country side - Peasants who used violence on landlords hgad much to fear from a return of the GMD and were committed to supporting the CCP - Support of middle classes - Won support of middle classes as a result of its loyalty to China during the Japanese war which differd from the GMD - Chiang had printed more money to finance his government leading to inflation - Chiang introduced reforms to repair this damage but was too little and too late -