from war to civil war in china 1945-46 Flashcards
What did Mao agree to do shortly after ww2
-Meet Jiang jieshi
-He agreed to this under soviet pressure as both the USA and the Soviet Union wanted to avoid civil war In China.
Where and when was the talk between Mao and Jiang ?
-28 August 1945
-Mao personally escorted by American ambassador Patrick Hurley to chongqing.
-ceasefire supposed to happen during this talk however it did not happen
the division of china at the end of ww2
jiang claimed to be in control of the whole of china; only controlled a fraction of the countries territories
-japan still occupied north and a fraction of the centre of china, chinese coast line
-GMD controlled a large area of the south and west china from Chongqing (the capital
-CCP controlled much of countryside in northern + northeastern china from Yan’an their base
-Red army (USSR) moved into Manchuria on 8 August 1945
Clashes existed between territories and GMD was recognised by international powers but were weaker than the CCP
What agreement did Mao and Jiang achieve after numerous talks ?
Both sides committed to
-a democratic political system with free elections and guarantees of personal freedoms
-the release of political prisoners
-a unified military force
-elections for a National Assembly
the marshall mission
December 1945 President Truman (USA) sent General George Marshall to China to mediate the two sides
-CEASEFIRE Jan 1946
-pressured jiang to call political conference to discuss the future government of china
-outlines an agreement; fell apart as soon as it was signed
-jiang tried to change the agreement (autocratic gov headed by him) communists withdrew
The attack on Manchuria of 1946
-fighting had flared up in Manchuria
-key battle for control of Harbin (last Manchurian city in communist hands)
-June 1946 Marshall (threatened no American aid) got Jiang to agree to a ceasefire
-the ceasefire only lasted 15 days
-CCP had time to recover
Were these policies easy to follow , or what’s there continuing conflicts ?
These policies were very broad and general therefore easy to follow
However there were still areas of conflict
-who would control military forces and local governments in communist areas
-Jiang wanted to expand GMD control and Mao did not want to give up areas under CCP rule.
-when they signed the treaty Jiang sent forces into north Manchuria
——-Stalin ordered CCP to hand cities in Manchuria to the GMD
——ordered ammunition confiscated from the Japanese by the red army to be given to the CCP in machuria
——delayed removal of soviet forces in Manchuria until April 1946 to give time for the CCP to develop a strong presence that would last
——Stalin giving CCP strengths to fight but not enough to win
american policy over china
-USA wanted dominant power in east asia and pacific
-jiang would allow this to happen but since 1941 but USA commanders disliked him
-Some american diplomats looked to alliances with Mao
-they did not want civil war as to avoid USSR influence spreading
-due to cold war they were forced to aid the GMD
-military aid was provided if jiang instituted democratic political reform but that did not take place and supply of arms stopped sept 1946-july1947
What was Stalin’s policies toward China ?
-14th August 1945 Stalin signs a sino-soviet friendship treaty with GMD government (granted rights to soviets in Manchuria)
-Mao regarded this as a betrayal
-Stalin had no faith the CCP would win- did not want to get involved in the civil war as he was trying to expand his influence in Western Europe
-As long as CCP and GMD conflict remained foreign intervention was very likely which could be turned to stalins advantage
how many nationalist troops were there in august 1945?
4,300,000
how many artillery weapons did the nationalists have in august 1945
6000
how many communist troops were there in august 1945?
880,000
how much artillery weapons did the communists have in august 1945?
600
what were the GMD military strengths
-experienced in conventional warfare
-large well equipped force with aircraft and heavy artillery weapons
-controlled large areas
what were gmd military weaknesses
-gmd troops were ill-disciplined poorly trained and many lacked the will to fight
-gmd commanders were very weak tactically