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History - Mao's China > Theme 2 > Flashcards

Theme 2 Flashcards

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1
Q

What were Mao’s aims for agriculture?

A

+ Increase food supplies

+ Enhance support for the CCP in the countryside

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2
Q

When was the Agrarian Reform Law introduced?

A

1950

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3
Q

What did the Agrarian Reform Law do?

A

It took away the legal protections of land owners so their land could be seized by the proletariat

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4
Q

What happened to landlords because of the Agrarian Reform Law?

A

They were violently deposed, sentenced to death and had their land redistributed

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5
Q

Why was the Agrarian Reform Law difficult to enforce?

A
  • Land Reform had already begun in the north
  • Some peasants were already landowners and the CCP didn’t want to lose their support
  • Landlords were much more powerful in the south
  • Land was often owned by “clans” made up of a variety of different classes so CCP rhetoric had little relevance to them
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6
Q

What were Work Teams?

A

Teams put together by the government made up of cadres, officials and youths to enforce land reform.

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7
Q

What percentage of households took part in Agrarian Land Reform?

A

88%

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8
Q

What percentage of land was redistributed during Agrarian Land Reform?

A

43%

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9
Q

How much did production grow per year between 1950 and 1952?

A

15%

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10
Q

How many died as a result of Agrarian Land Reform?

A

1 - 2 million

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11
Q

When were MATs introduced?

A

1951

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12
Q

What was an MAT?

A

Teams of up to 10 households who shared tools, fertilisers, animals and labour

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13
Q

What percentage of peasant households partook in the MAT scheme?

A

40% by 1952

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14
Q

When were APCs introduced?

A

1953

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15
Q

What were APCs?

A

Teams of 30-50 households sharing land, equipment and animals. They privately owned the land they worked on but the Party would take the harvest then redistribute it

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16
Q

How were APCs received?

A

Badly. Peasants didn’t want to give up the land they had only just received so only 14% enlisted. Richer peasants slaughtered their livestock to stop them falling into the hands of the party.

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17
Q

What was the effect of APCs on production? What had the CCP hoped it would be?

A

It only increased by 2% compared to 23% assumes by the Party

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18
Q

How did the CCP react to the failure of APCs?

A

The right of the party argued that mechanisation was required to be able to execute large scale farming; the left, including Mao, argued they had to press on with the ideological route and in July 1955 called for more APCs and an end to private property

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19
Q

What percentage of households were in Higher Level APCs by the end of 1956?

A

88%

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20
Q

What were Higher Level APCs?

A

APCs in which Land was totally nationalised and membership was compulsory

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21
Q

How big were the communes?

A

5,500 households

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22
Q

Where and when was the Sputnik Commune established?

A

Henan in July 1958

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23
Q

What was Mao’s vision for life in the communes?

A
  • Previously scarce products like rope would be produced
  • Mess halls would have food for all
  • Crèches and schools would alleviate women of having to look after their children
  • Happiness Homes would provide care for the elderly
24
Q

What was the reality of the communes for kids?

A

They were poorly organised and staffed. Illness was rife.

25
Q

What was the reality of the communal food halls?

A

They worsened diets and destroyed family meals

26
Q

What effect did the establishment of the communes have on production?

A

None

27
Q

How did Mao propose to reinvigorate production?

A

The Four Pests Campaign - sending people into fields to destroy rats, flies, mosquitoes and sparrows. This led to a rise in the locust population which destroyed the crop.

28
Q

How did the establishment of the communes affect private farming?

A

With 99% of people in a commune by the end of 1958, all private ownership and trading was abolished. Each commune had a militia to enforce this.

29
Q

What was Lysenkoism?

A

The official government agricultural policy which all farmers were obliged to follow. One of its policies was to plant all one’s seed in a hole together and they’d help each other to grow. This did not happen.

30
Q

How many are estimated to have died in the Great Famine?

A

30 - 50 million

31
Q

What happened to the remaining food supplies during the Great Famine?

A

They were looted. Anyone caught stealing food would be executed.

32
Q

What was the effect of the Great Famine on birth rates?

A

They dropped sharply as fertility decreased

33
Q

What did people often turn to eating during the Great Famine?

A

Frogs, tree bark and each other

34
Q

How did many men make money during the Great Famine?

A

They sold their wives as prostitutes

35
Q

What are the arguments in favour of Mao having been responsible for the Great Famine?

A

+ He ordered grain requisitioning and collectivisation

+ He continued to send food gifts abroad during the famine

+ He created the atmosphere of terror

36
Q

Who/what else could be blamed for the Great Famine?

A

+ Cadres lied about how much food had been produced and set unrealistic production targets for themselves

+ There were terrible floods in the South and there was a drought in Shangdong

37
Q

How did Liu and Deng restore the economy?

A

+ Tneh replaced Walking On Two Legs with Agriculture as the Foundation of the Economy

+ The communes were downsized and small private plots were legalised

+ What to grow and how to grow it was left to the peasants

+ Trade at local markets was introduced

38
Q

How long did it take for agricultural production to return to pre-Great Leap Forward levels?

A

Until 1965

39
Q

What is the name of the treaty that ensured that the USSR would help China with its industry?

A

The Mutual Assistance Treaty of February 1950

40
Q

In what ways did the USSR help with the First Five Year Plan?

A

+ They loaned $300 million over five years

+ They provided 11,000 advisors to train workers and offer technical support

41
Q

What were Mao’s aims for the First Five Year Plan?

A

+ Increase heavy industry

+ Achieve self sufficiency

+Prepare the PLA for potential attacks from the West or Taiwan

42
Q

What were the successes of the First Five Year Plan?

A

+ Growth of over 9% a year

+ Great engineering feats, such as the Yangtze bridge

+ Living standards and jobs secured

+ The urban population doubled to over 100 million

+ Solidified the CCP’s control of the population

43
Q

What were the shortcomings of the First Five Year Plan?

A
  • Many factories lied about their production or sacrificed quality for quantity
  • Lack of literacy and basic skills stunted long term growth
  • Lack of co-operation between industries and central planners
44
Q

Why did Mao launch the Great Leap Forward?

A

+ To “overtake Britain in fifteen more years” after Khrushchev promised to “bury” the US

+ Replicate in agriculture the industrial growth of 18.3% a year

+ Victory in the Cold War seemed highly likely in 1957

+ To achieve his long term goal of Walking on Two Legs

45
Q

What were the (limited) successes of the Great Leap Forward?

A

+ Small scale irrigation projects were good

+ Raw oil production went from 2.3 million tonnes to 5.3 million tonnes

+ Tiananmen Square construction was bigger than the Red Square, providing a major propaganda opportunity

+ Communes and ban on private property brought China ideologically closer to pure communism

46
Q

How did Mao propose to raise the steel output during the GLF?

A

He said that every household should have a backyard furnace alight 24/7, melting down their household metal items to make new steel

47
Q

How did people fuel their Backyard Furnaces?

A

Chairs, doors, roofs…

48
Q

What was the problem with the steel produced by the Backyard Furnaces?

A

It was of a much lower quality than the metal it was made with. Up to half was deemed unusable.

49
Q

What was the effect of the Backyard Furnaces on agriculture?

A

Fields were neglected because people were busy tending to their furnaces, meaning many crops failed

50
Q

What was the impact of the Backyard Furnaces on steel production?

A

It fell from 18.66 million tons to 6.67 million tons

51
Q

What happened to factories during the Great Leap Forward?

A

They were forced to close due to lack of materials and workers being preoccupied with their furnaces. Production fell by 60% as a result

52
Q

What was the problem with the Three Gate Gorge Damn?

A

It was just one of the huge projects which failed and caused environmental damage which made farming harder

53
Q

When was the Lushan Conference?

A

July 1959

54
Q

Why was the Lushan Conference called?

A

To review the GLF’s progress and potentially adjust targets.

55
Q

What two events caused Peng Dehuai to write to Mao expressing his concern about the GLF?

A

+ He had recently visited his native Hunan province where he saw first hand the destruction being caused by the GLF

+ It was announced at the conference that a record crop of 375 million tons had been produced which seemed too good to be true

56
Q

How did Mao react to Peng’s letter?

A

He removed him and replaced him with Lin Biao. The GLF was further intensified rather than scaled back as had been originally intended.

History - Mao's China (1 decks)

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