early changes in agriculture, 1949-57 (theme 2)

Question 1

what was the agrarian reform law? (1950)

Answer 1

its main aim was to destroy the gentry landlord class by any means necessary

Question 2

what was the impact of land reform?

Answer 2

landlords had been wiped out and the land was redistributed evenly amongst the peasants

Question 3

how many landlords were killed under land reform?

Answer 3

1-2 million

Question 4

at what rate did agriculture production increase between 1950-52?

Answer 4

15% per year

Question 5

how many households took part in land reform?

Answer 5

88%

Question 6

what were MATs?

Answer 6

these were teams where peasants shared tools, knowledge and labour which acted as the foundations for communes and were enthusiastically recieved by the peasants

Question 7

what were APCs?

Answer 7

larger scale MATs and the next step towards collectivisation. all land was shared and made up of 50 households

Question 8

why were APCs less popular than MATs?

Answer 8

peasants did not want to give up their newly owned land and some peasants even slaughtered their livestock in protest

Question 9

who disagreed with Mao over the pace of collectivisation and why?

Answer 9

Liu Shaoqi and Zhou Enlai - they claimed China lacked the modern machinery to rapidly improve agriculture

Question 10

how many peasants were part of an APC by 1956?

Answer 10

96%