Communist China Flashcards
What were the two political parties in China in the 1920s? Give details
- Chinese Communist Party (CCP), led by Mao Zedong.
- Guomindang (GMD), led by Chiang Kai-shek
Give details about the lead up to the Civil War
In the 1920s, the CCP and the GMD joined forces to gain political control over China from the various warlords that had split the land since the fall of the Qing Dynasty
In 1927, Chiang turned the warlords he had defeated against the Communist Party, and the Civil War began
Describe 2 main differences in CCP and GMD ideology
The CCP was communist - Mao wanted to build a Communist state that would then become socialist
The GMD focused little on the rural population, instead aiming towards modernisation,
What tactics did the GMD and the CCP use? What effect did these have on the population?
GMD - Scorched Earth Policy: Burning or destroying crops that the enemy could use to their advantage. This policy led to unhappiness in the population, as well as food shortages and dislike
CCP - Low technology guerrilla warfare: Didn’t extensively harm the population, instead led to a closeness between them and the population, rather than the alienation that the GMD encouraged.
The Japanese Threat
During the Civil War, the Japanese were struggling economically. The Great Depression had hit them hard, and they could not sell anything - prices were down by half. Eventually the country became a military dictatorship, and the leaders decided that they needed more land to bring in more money. They claimed that China had attacked the Manchuria railway, so they invaded Manchuria in 1931, invading further in 1933.
Key events leading up to Mao Zedong coming into power
1912 downfall of Qing Dynasty
1921 CCP and GMD allied against warlords
1927 Chiang turns conquered war lords against CCP
1931 Chiang launches full scale attack on CCP, civil war begins, Japan invades Manchuria
1933 Japan advances further into China
1934 ‘Long March’ - 100,000 men from the red army march 3,000 miles to evade troops, losing 90% of forces, spreading the communist message around China, gaining propaganda victory.
1949 Mao Zedong leader of PRC, People’s Republic of China
Consolidation of control / purges
Oct 1950 Suppression of counter-revolutionaries: stopping non-political offenses. Punishments incl. public executions to increase fear and discourage criminal activity.
1951 Three Antis Campaign: solidified state control of the individual - combating corruption, waste and delay by targeting party members and state officials.
1952 Five Antis Campaign: continued state control of the individual - ended general economic and monetary crime, generally improved conditions.
Mass Meetings: chances for denunciations and confessions - fear inducing.
From Oct 1950 Reunification Campaigns: targeted cultural and identity elimination, focused on northwest Muslims and Tibetian people, method to get land and increase population. Again used terror.
What was the hundred flowers campaign?
A campaign in which Mao encouraged various groups to speak out and suggest ways in which the communist party could improve their methods. When too many people spoke out, the campaign was stopped and those who had spoken out were condemned as rightists.
Why did Mao introduce the hundred flowers campaign?
- Believed his party would become more popular if people could see their feedback represented in the party.
- It was a trick to begin another purge.
- Wanted to prevent any comparisons between his methods and Stalin’s methods during a time of global de-Stalinisation.
- Genuinely wanted to population to expose corruption and bureaucracy.
The First Campaign
Freedom of speech offered to officials. They were too scared to do anything due to his terror reign.
The extended campaign
Freedom extended to intellectuals, who were initially wary due to the 1955 purge of the intellectuals, but overcame their fear and began to heavily criticise the party on a wide range of topics. Mao came under pressure from the government to shut the movement down. The anti-rightist movement quickly followed, which denounced all who had spoken out. This was the next purge.
Changes to women’s rights
Before Mao, women were treated with no rights - they were drowned as babies, sold off into marriage, and had to go through foot binding.
Mao saw women to be essential to the development of China, and brought in laws around their treatment - moved their focus from producing for the home to producing for the state (encouraged to get jobs); banned foot binding and changed marriage laws so both parties had to agree.
Education under Mao
Before Mao, education levels varied in China, but the majority of the population was illiterate.
Mao believed education was the only way to create a socialist society, and skilled specialists were needed to further development in all areas. Additionally, political indoctrination could only be achieved through literacy.
1950s literacy campaign meant peasants had to learn to read and write to go to market. By the 1960s 90% of the population was literate.
Religion reform
Mao regarded religion as harmful to society, and condemned all types of worship, including Christianity, Buddhism and ancestor worship.
Healthcare reform
Cities were cleaned up by the residents, who formed committees to tidy the streets. Some places had a campaign against rodents, and had to produce a set number of tails each week.
Healthcare became free, and the use of traditional herb remedies was discouraged, while methods of prevention were encouraged. e.g. addiction was prevented by destroying poppy fields and drug dealers.
