Mao & The Chinese Civil War

Mao’s Ideology

● Key Idea = Ideology mattered more than anything else … REVOLUTION WAS A
CONSTANT STRUGGLE
● Mao formalized revolutionary during Yanan years
● Because Mao was a strong nationalist → he adopted communism
● Marxism-Leninism for Mao = set of principles which would give means to restore China to
‘original greatness’
○ Mao interpreted Marxism in his own way … to suit his purposes
● Mao’s central belief = revolution must come from peasants (80% of population)
○ China lacked urban proletarian - therefore unable to achieve proletarian rev.
● This was blasphemy for comintern theorists:
○ Mao ignoring key stages in ‘the dialectic’
○ Mao rejected this analysis, believed ‘Genuine revolution’ could be achieved by
peasants: ‘No power, however strong, can restrain them’
● 1940 - Mao published reflections called ‘On New Democracy’
○ Defined reevolution not as class movement, but as a national one
● After Japanese occupation of China in 1937 - Mao declared aim of CCP: ‘the long term
cooperation with all those classes, strata, political groups, and individuals who were willing to
fight Japan to the end’
9.1 Rise to Power
General: What political conditions/circumstances enabled a single party ruler to come to power?
May 2015: “Popular support, rather than the use of force, was vital to the establishment of single-party
states.” With reference to two states, each chosen from a different region, to what extent do you agree
with this statement?
May 2016: To what extent did the weakness of his opponents contribute to the rise to power of either Mao
or Stalin?

Essay Outline: Mao’s Rise to Power

Introduction
● Came to Beijing during May fourth movement (anti-gov/foreigner protests, after humiliation at
Paris Peace 1919… didn’t receive German territories, they went to Japan)
● Mao = ‘intensely patriotic’
● Impressed by revolutionary ideas of Sun Yat Sen
● Between 1912-19, Mao witnessed rival factions violent fights for power in Hunan
○ This experience made Mao believe that ‘to gain success politically or militarily required
total commitment and a willingness to use extreme methods’
● In Beijing - Mao drawn to Marxism … began to believe in political/social revolution
● 1921 - Mao became one of the founders of the CCP

P1 - Emerging as a leader during the First United Front (1923) & Long March (1934-35)
● Mao played key role in forming alliance between GMD + CCP to beat warlords in 1924-27
○ Alliance ended in 1927 when Jiang Jieshi (leader of GMD) turned on CCP
○ Jiang commenced an extermination campaign vs. communists
● After Shanghai massacre 1927, Mao moved CCP forces to Jiangxi
○ Already during Jiangxi years, Mao became a ruthless leader
○ 1930 ‘Futian Incident’ Mao ordered torture/execution of 4,000 Red Army troops (he
accused them for plotting against him)
○ kept getting attacked by GMD forces → 1934 forced to leave on the ‘long march’
● Mao emerged as important organizer, eg: argued they should go North into Shaanxi, this was a
good decision … enhanced his reputation/authority
● CCP reached Yanan (in Shaanxi) in 1935

P2 - Yanan years
● Mao claimed leadership of CCP in Yanan… Yanan became the CCP base where they sheltered
from GMD raids
● In Yan'an - Mao ‘gave practical form to his concept of revolution’
○ Sent out Red Army units to occupy neighbouring territories
○ Plan = infiltrate a village/region, drive out/execute landowners, declare the area
‘liberated’, land reallocated to peasants
● How did Mao win Peasant support?
○ created ‘code of conduct’ for his troops (be courteous … etc) … which gained support
amongst peasants… who were used to being treated brutally by armies
○ Red army seized land from landlords + reallocation to peasants (brutal process)
○ created local peasant associations … (CCP members had veto power)
○ Promised literacy/education programmes + basic medical services
○ (if village didn’t conform to CCP demands… wd/ be penalized, eg: confiscating crops)
○ Gaining peasant support = KEY
● CCP members rose from 40,000 in 1937 → 1 million in 1945

P3 - Survival of Internal Opposition

 ● Other orthodox communists, eg: Li Lisan - didn’t agree w/ Mao’s interpretation of dialectic -
believed communist activities should be concentrated on Urban areas
● During 1930s - Mao had to fight to assert authority within CCP party
● Mao’s main opponent = Wang Ming, leader of ‘the 28 Bolsheviks’ faction, trained in Moscow
○ Agreed w/ Li Lisan - accused Mao of not following comintern instructions
● How did Mao survive criticism?
○ Selection of correct Northern route in 1934 Long March gave him superiority over
pro-Moscow faction (they had argued to go West towards USSR)
○ Due to his own research/intellect - Mao had incredible knowledge on Chinese peasantry,
giving him an edge when discussing Party peasant policy
○ His determination allowed him to silence his opponents
○ He was a valuable military planner
● Mao’s ideological victory over internal opponents gave him tighter control over CCP

P4 - The ‘Rectification of Conduct’ Campaign, 1942-44

● Communism Mao had developed in Yanan was oppressive
● Mao advanced notion of revolutionary correctness
○ if party wasn’t at constant struggle vs. wrong thinking, it wd/ be betrayed from within
● To prevent this… Mao launched ‘rectification of conduct’ campaign 1942-44
○ Party members engaged in public self-criticism
○ Party members had to study prescribed texts (many of which Mao wrote)
● Mao believed the party had been infected by revisionist ideas - 1000 party members tortured to
extract confessions … 60 members committed suicide instead of public confessions
● Mao didn’t see it as too harsh… was in line w/ Democratic Centralism, a notion advanced by
Lenin that true democracy lies in party members’ obedience to enlightened leadership
● Rectification Movement consolidated Mao’s authority over CCP + eliminated opposition
○ Chinese communism so linked to Mao that it became Maoism … (Cult of personality)
● Mao was elected Chairman of CCP in 1943
● By 1945 when WWII ended - Mao was referred to as ‘the great helmsman’
9.2 The Chinese Civil War
May 2010: Analyse the reasons for, and the results of, either the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) or the
Chinese Civil War (1946–1949).
May 2012: Analyse the reasons for, and importance of, foreign intervention in the Chinese Civil War
(1927–1949).
May 2013: Account for the use of guerrilla warfare in the Chinese Civil War (1927–1949) and estimate its
contribution to Communist victory.
Nov 2015: With reference to either the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) or one of the Chinese Civil Wars
(1927–1937 or 1946–1949), to what extent was ideology the major cause of conflict?
May 2016 TZ2: To what extent did the Nationalists’ failure to resolve economic crises contribute to their
defeat in the Chinese Civil War (1946–1949)?

Essay Outline: Causes of the Chinese Civil War, 1927-36

P1 - External Problems
● China suffered military defeats in the 19th and early 20th centuries (eg: Sino Jap War 1894)
● Throughout the 19th century, foreign powers had begun to increase their influence in China.
○ Began when Britain went to war w/ China in the Opium Wars 1838
○ China was exploited economically by foreign powers, eg: by controlling ports/trade
○ Foreign exploitation UNDERMINED the rule of Qing dynasty (2000+ year rule)
○ Foreign exploitation encouraged nationalist movements:
■ Eg: Sun Yat Sen's Revolutionary Alliance established in 1905

P2 - Internal Problems
● Imperial gov attempted to introduce reforms, eg: National assembly 1910 → failed
● China’s pop grew rapidly. By 1850, 400 million Chinese
○ Peasants suffered from land shortages
● Tax evasion by rich meant growing poverty amongst peasants
● Imperial Overstretch: Imperial gov had hard time controlling all its provinces
● The 1911 revolution
○ revolt vs. Beijing gov…. caused by mutinies in army + growing hostility
○ Qinq abdicated… but Sun Yatsen ‘outmaneuvered’ by Yuan Shikai
○ Chinese Republic 1912 led by Shikai, who borrowed money from abroad, gave into
Japanese demands… etc ← just as incapable of defending China’s interests as Qing
● The Warlord Era 1916-1927
○ During this period, Beijing gov barely controlled China… 8 regional warlords ran different
areas of the country… they defied the gov/imposed their own laws
○ Demonstrated the WEAKNESS of the central gov.
● The May Fourth Movement: May 1919 = anti gov/anti foreigner protests
○ Public found out that China had been ‘humiliated’ at Paris Peace Conf. 1919
○ Did not re-receive territories previously taken by Germany … went to Japan
○ May Fourth movement strengthened support for GMD (Sun Yatsen renamed
Revolutionary alliance Guomindang after 1912)
○ Movement gave rise to CCP … founded in 1921 by group of Uni lecturers

P3 - The First United Front, 1923 & the beginning of the civil war
● Until 1926, GMD not strong enough to make bid for control over China (only controlled South)
● Sun Yatsen died 1925 … Jiang rose the ranks + became leader soon
● 1923, GMD formed alliance w/ small CCP party (Russia’s Comintern helped org)
○ Despite dif. Aims… both wanted to be freed from foreign control
● 1926-27, GMD launched Northern Expedition organized by Jiang
○ Aim = defeat warlords + create effective national gov. aimed at defeating the warlords
and creating an effective national government for the whole of China.
 ○ During north campaign - United Front had become divided CCP/GMD
■ Jiang resented success of CCP military units
○ April 1927, before Jiang’s forces reached Shanghai - communist-led rebellion broke out +
CCP had taken over control over the city
■ ‘Shanghai Massacre’ → Jiang rounded up + massacred 5,000 communists
■ He had also been concerned by growing peasant/proletariat supp. for CCP
● they gained support because of marxist ideas/land reform
■ 50,000 CCP members by 1927
● Jiang’s actions in Shanghai started a civil war… (1927-1949)
Course of the Civil War (Part I: 1927-36)

P1 - The Chinese Soviet Republic

● Communists who survived Shanghai massacre 1927 fled to Jiangxi province
○ Established ‘Chinese Soviet Republic’ led by Mao w/ Red Army
● Communists gained widespread support
○ Especially from peasants via land reform programmes + building of schools
● Jiang saw CCP as biggest threat (even after Japan had occupied Manchuria)

P2 - Second Northern Campaign, 1928

● Aim = capture Beijing + establish GMD control over North
● Campaign was successful → defeated warlords, took over Beijing, established National gov w/
Jiang Chairman/Ruler of China
● Moved Capital from Beijing to Nanjing

P2 - Jiang’s Extermination Campaigns

● 1930-34, Jiang conducted ‘extermination campaigns’ to rid communist
○ 1 million + Chinese killed/starved to death
● Jiang prioritised campaigns against communists over threat of Japan
○ ‘Golden opportunity’ for Japan to expand into China
● CCP eventually forced to retreat to remote north province of Shaanxi
● End of 1936 - Jap. forces occupied Chahaer and Suiyuan provinces + 2 key ports

P3 - The Second United Front

● Despite Japanese occupations… Jiang continued w/ extermination camps
○ 1936 extermination campaign vs. communists in the North
● Ordinary Chinese wanted to stop internal fighting + form a united front vs. Japan
○ Jiang ignored - saw communists as bigger threat
○ CCP slogan was ‘Chinese do not fight Chinese’
● Even Zhang Xueliang, commander of Jiang’s main forces, asked Jiang to turn forces to Japan
● 12 Dec 1936 - Jiang taken prisoner … eventually agreed to United Front in return for being
recognized as commander in Chief of Chinese forces
● Stalin provided Jiang’s forces w/ Soviet Weapons
● Japan launched a full-scale invasion in July 1937
○ ‘Formation of the second united front ironically acted as a spur to further Japanese
attacks on China’
Essay Outline: Causes of the Chinese Civil War, 1946-49

Introduction
● The Collapse of the Qing dynasty in 1911 left a power vacuum, eventually filled by civil war
between GMD and CCP
● The Civil war was halted when the Second United Front was formed 1936, to fight Japan
● Once WWII ended, the civil war resumed

P1 - Ideological Divide
● Both wanted to unify China, but according to their respective ideologies
● CCP: Communist ideology, aim = classless society. Mao adapted his own version of Soviet
communism; eg: he wanted peasants to lead the revolution. Wanted to eradicate rural poverty via
collective ownership, and abolish modern influence
● GMD: Nationalist.
● Jiang’s shift to the right after 1927 led to the ‘White Terror’, eg: Shanghai Massacre +
extermination campaigns

P2 - Failure of GMD to secure a single party state during the ‘Nanjing Decade’
● The failure of Jiang Jieshi to secure single-party state meant Civil war = inevitable
● Failed to defeat CCP in 1927… force to join united front 1936
○ GMD only controlled 66% of China’s pop by 1936
○ Jiang hadn’t defeated all the warlords
○ GMD didn’t resist the Manchurian invasion in 1931
○ Mainly represented interests of landlords/businessmen… lacked popular support
● White Terror/Shanghai Massacre didn’t fully eliminate the CCP
○ CCP had survived + fled to Jianxi to rebuild their base … gained peasant support
○ 1930-1934, Jiang organized 5 extermination campaigns… 5th one was a success
○ Mao led CCP on Long March to Yunan. Only 20,000 of 100,000 survived.
○ A new base was created there in 1935.
● Most Historians agree that the roots of Nationalist defeat + communist victory in 1949 lie in
failings of GMD during Nanjing decade (1927-37)
○ “the Guomindang had begun to lose the political struggle during the Nanjing era, when it
had failed to live up to the expectations of a modernizing government.”

P3 - End of WW2 and failure of US diplomacy

● Failure of US to secure peace in 1946 meant that civil war broke out w/ CCP and GMD
○ As Japanese withdrew… both parties wanted to secure land
● As the cold war emerged in Europe, the US sought to stall a Communist victory in China.
○ General Marshall intervened to promote a coalition between the GMD and CCP.
○ Both parties agreed but did not honour the agreement in practice.
○ By Feb 1946 the civil war had broken out again as troops clashed in Manchuria.
● Therefore, failure of diplomacy contributed to the civil war.
Essay Outline: Reasons for Communist Victory in the Chinese Civil War

P1 - Weakness of the GMD Nationalist Government

● Jiang wanted to preserve a monopoly of power for the GMD, so refused the suggestion of a
coalition gov w/ the CCP by the US
● Dec 1946 saw widespread student demonstrations in Beijing/Shanghai vs. GMD gov
● The way in which GMD behaved in reoccupied areas held by Japanese lost them supp.
● GMD failed to punish those who collaborated w/ the Japanese
● GMD officials who took control over Taiwan were corrupt → provoked rebellion 1947
● GMD appointed non-Manchurian officials + commanders to run the region
● GMD was REPRESSIVE (lack of popularity led to Jiang using brutal methods)
○ Led to numerous party members leaving
○ GMD assassinated a popular poet: Wen Yiduo
○ In 1948, GMD secret police killed many GMD opponents in cold blood
● GMD failed to control inflation
○ In August 1938, Gold Yuan note was introduced to replace national currency
○ People were encouraged to convert gold + foreign currency into gold yuan
○ In November, Gold Yuan collapsed, and w/ it… many lost savings

P2 - Jiang’s Miscalculations about the US

● Jiang miscalculated how the war in Asia wd/ end
○ Assumed there wd/ be large-scale intervention from US to drive out Japanese
■ Once this had happened… he hoped to use US troops vs CCP
○ Instead, war ended abruptly
● US only provided limited support to GMD
○ Marshall Mission 1945-46, Marshall sent to China to have peace between GMD/CCP
○ Truman administration disappointed when Marshall Mission failed
○ US restricted aid to Jiang… due to reports of corruption in his regime
○ By 1948… US realized that Jiang was losing… too late to increase aid

P3 - Weaknesses of GMD Army

● Key mistake = committing most of his troops to occupation/retention of Manchuria
● GMD forces vulnerable to counter-offensives by CCP
● Jiang often interfered in military decision-making… which had disastrous effects
● GMD army had LOW MORALE
○ Despite having more men than CCP… discipline was brutal
○ Many deserters… 70% desertion rate a year for some units
● Failed to make effective use of US weaponry

P4 - Mao’s Leadership
● CCP emerged in 1921, made up of mostly intellectuals… soon grew in support
● By 1927, 58,000 CCP members… many recruited from factories
● White terror = huge blow … but survivors established CCP base in Jianxi
● In Long March 1934, Mao emerged as leader
○ He advocated for guerilla tactics, ousted his rivals, and made smart tactical decisions
○ Long March = inspiring legend for propaganda purposes
● The Communists set up their headquarters in Yunan
● Mao advocated for moderate approach… gained him supp. vs. extremist comintern members
● Mao also eliminated opponents by force:
○ Futian incident 1930 - 1931 → thousands of ‘rival’ CCP members tortured/executed
● Mao chosen as Chairman of CCP by Politburo in Jan 1935 during the Long March.
● During the 1946-49 Civil war:
 ○ Mao’s mixture of opportunism + determination, eg: at first, Mao’s aim = preserve
northern bases. When he realized that Nationalists could be beaten → adopted an
offensive strategy forcing Chiang out of Mainland China
○ Mao’s military leadership was most significant → Under Mao, CCP fighters transitioned
from rural guerilla fighters to a modern army
○ Mao’s self-confidence + power of command → He pressed for three key campaigns in
winter of 1948-49, despite doubt from his generals (they were a success)

P5 - Strengths during the Yunan Era (1935-46)

● At Yenan Mao asserted his dominance over the CCP:
● Rectification of Conduct Campaign of 1942 made Mao’s ideas as official CCP ideology
● Members wd/ report anti-Maoist behaviour (this would then reflect better on them)
● A leadership cult of Mao developed from 1943.
● Mao was talented → he adapted the Marxist theory to fit China
○ Made peasants the revolutionary class
○ ^ This was opposed by Bolshevik comintern members + many CCP leaders
● CCP broadened its support base + appealed beyond peasantry to other classes (mid class)

P6 - CCP Popular Policies

● During early years… CCP developed POPULAR SUPPORT
● Mao in charge of Peasant Institute … had attracted 2 million peasants by 1927
● Offered solutions to poverty + promised to end foreign domination in China
● Land reform/education reform = popular
● Mao advocated for the Mass Line → CCP officials wd/ live w/ and learn from peasants
● Mao advocated for fair treatment of peasants (Mao’s Eight Rules of Conduct)
● Mao advocated that peasants hold local gov positions
● BUT… Mao was also FLEXIBLE in terms of land policy:
○ 1946-47 CCP pursued radical land policy that involved total expropriation of landlords
○ Mao moderated this from 1948 when clear that middle peasants were being alienated

P7 - CCP Military advantages

● At the start… GMD much bigger than PLA → 4.8 million compared to 1.2 million
○ BUT… PLA assisted by Peasant militias (2+ million)
● CCP able to take control over lots of N. China due to withdrawal of Japanese + GMD spread out
too thinly
● CCP PLA better disciplined than GMD forces + morale was higher (they were well fed)
○ Mao had peasant support… access to food for soldiers
● CCP PLA played more active role in expelling Japanese than GMD… gained support
○ Eg: Soviet troops handed Japanese weapons over to PLA
● Red army used guerrilla tactics + were aided by peasants behind enemy lines
● PLA captured all of Manchuria by Nov 1948 → most decisive campaign
● CCP had capable generals, eg: Lin Biao
● Mao didn’t unnecessarily interfere w/ decision making
Essay Outline: Foreign Intervention in the Chinese Civil War

P1 - Foreign Intervention 1927-36

● League of Nations didn’t act when Japan invaded
● The Japanese began to push from south of Great Wall into Northern China/Coastal region
● Chinese were furious at the Japanese … but also at GMD who were more concerned/ w
defeating Communists than the Japanese

P2 - Foreign Intervention from the USSR

● Soviet troops entered Manchuria to help kick the final Japanese out. This contributed to Civil War
as the Soviet troops left Japanese weaponry for the CCP/PLA to use.
● Soviets DID NOT aid CPP much after…
● Although Stalin gave minor military support to Communists - he didn’t want a strong neighbour,
therefore pressured Mao into compromising with the nationalists
○ Mao resisted Stalin’s pressure
● 1945, China emerged from WWII as a military power… but was on the brink of civil war
● Poor conditions:
○ High inflation (facilitated by wartime squeeze + failures of GMD gov.)
○ Starvation and floods wreaked havoc.

P3 - Foreign Intervention from the USA

● From 1941, the USA lent military and financial aid to the Nationalist government.
● From 1943, the USA began to send troops to “support the common war effort against Japan.”
● The USA permitted heightened Chinese migration to the USA.
● US Aim = establish China as a strong power + strong ally in East Asia.
● As political conflict in China grew… USA unsuccessfully brought rival forces together (Marshall
Mission)
○ military truce arranged in 1946, but battles between the GMD/PLA soon broke out
● USA withdrew… provided financial aid but NO military aid… to GMD
○ Helped the GMD fund their war… but their weaknesses were too great
9.3 Consolidation/Maintenance of Power
General: To what extent was the use of force the most important factor in the maintenance of power of a
single-party ruler?
General: What methods were used by a single-party ruler to consolidate power and with what success?
General: Methods used to deal with opposition
May 2012: Evaluate the importance of the Cult of personality in Castro, Mao or Stalin maintenance of
power.
General: In what ways/with what success OR to what extent was a totalitarian state achieved?
May 2013: By what methods, and with what success, did one single-party leader try to eliminate domestic
opposition?
Nov 2010: In what ways, and with what success, did either Castro or Mao attempt to establish a
totalitarian state after coming to power?
May 2013 TZ2: With reference to one totalitarian state, analyse the nature and extent of domestic
opposition and the methods used to deal with such opposition.
May 2011: With reference to one authoritarian or single-party state, to what extent do you agree that the
media was dominated by propaganda?
May 2016: Evaluate the methods used by either Mao or Castro to establish his regime.

Essay Outline: How did Mao (Immediately) Consolidate Power?

Introduction (Context)
● Beijing, October 1st 1949 - People’s Republic of China formally declared by Mao
● 1949, China’s economy = poor after years of conflict w/ Japan (food shortages/low prod.)
● GMD took China’s foreign currency reserves when they fled to Taiwan.
● Communist victory isolated China… only source of assistance = USSR
● China = big... Mao still had to establish control in semi-autonomous provinces of China.
● Mao’s aim = secure control + INSTILL COMMUNISM

P1 - Organized Structure of Government

● Country divided into 6 regions - each governed by bureau of 4 officials: Chairman, Party
Secretary, Military Commander (filled by officers of PLA), Political Commissar (filled by officers of
PLA)
● Since last 2 posts filled by PLA - China effectively under military control
● Mao believed military control = key to stabilizing China + ensuring continued rule of CCP
● Comm party stated that all power rested with people
○ Party officials + government = servants of the nation
● Workers + Peasants exercised authority via bodies eg: local gov + regional branches of CCP
● CCP claimed that all party officials were elected
○ … failed to tell people that only one position stood for election
● Government carried out by Politburo (core 20 leading members of CCP)
● Politburo under authority of Mao - policies always needed Mao’s approval

P2 - The Imposition of Military Control + Reunification Campaigns

● CCP feared national/religious elements wd/ weaken China … by fueling resistance to centralized
authority
● In 1950, 3 PLA armies dispatched West + South in a series of ‘reunification’ campaigns to
annex outlying parts of China
○ ‘Publically’ sent to improve local conditions (eg: road building)
○ Main purpose = impose martial law/repress independence movements
● 1 Army sent to Tibet, 1 sent to Xinjiang, 1 went to Guangdong
● Beginning of decades of rivalry between Tibetan Buddhists/Xinjiang muslims + PRC
P3 - Anti-Campaigns
● Gov. purposefully created atmosphere of fear via ‘anti-movements’
 ○ Launched vs. leftovers of Bourgeois class + anyone who CCP suspected
● Chinese people informed to notify gov. about anyone unwilling to accept new regime
● Special gov. created a dagnan (aka file) on all suspected Chinese people
○ If someone’s file was bad -- they probably wouldn’t get a job/housing
● 1951 → ‘Three-Anti Campaign’
○ Targets = waste/corruption/inefficiency
● 1952 → extended into ‘Five-Anti Campaign’
○ Targets = industrial sabotage/tax evasion/bribery/fraud/theft of government property
● In mobilizing the campaign: Mao declared reactionaries/counter-rev’s as enemies of the state
● Restrictive atmosphere cont. when Mao decided to join 1950 Korean war on side of N. Korea
○ This allowed Mao to demand solidarity/loyalty from Chinese people
● English = language of foreign exploitation
○ Streets renamed in Shanghai if they had previously had foreign names
● Religion/traditional customs also came under attack
How did Mao maintain control?
(Organized Structure of Gov/imposition of military control/anti-campaigns also should be considered)
Method Key Points

Censorship/ ● By Feb 1949 - most newspapers out of business

Propaganda ● All news now printed the same news
● Journalists/editors had to go through re-education
● Communist rallies/songs/slogans widely advertised the success of the
revolution

Thought ● Workers in gov offices, factories, workshops, schools, universities →

Reform ‘re-educated’
● Thought reform meant that they had to learn the Comm. party’s doctrine
+ transform themselves into ‘new people’
● Many forced to write confessions in public
● Frank Dikotter: “By the end of 1952 virtually every student or teacher
was a loyal servant of the state”

Ensuring ● Household registration labeled each house as good/bad based on loyalty

Loyalty ○ Children wd/ inherit the same status
● Local party officials turned China into ‘nation of informers’
○ Neighbours denounced each other hoping for a reward
○ Children reported their parents, and friends reported each other
○ Each street had appointed ‘watchers’ who kept CCP informed
● Vulnerable classes = threats to revolution
○ These included poor people, beggars, pickpockets, prostitutes,
refugees, and unemployed
○ Many were sent to reeducation
■ Eg: by 1949, 4,600 homeless had been sent to
reeducation

Anti-Landlord ● Property of Landlords confiscated/redistributed among former tenants

Campaign ● Some landlords allowed to keep some land if they chose to become
1950s peasants
● Many landlords were put on public trial + denounced as ‘enemies of the
people’
● 1 million landlords killed during this campaign

The ‘100 ● Members of CCP suspected of not being fully supportive of Mao =
Flowers’ rightists/revisionists/capitalist roaders
campaign ● 1957- Mao used slogan: ‘Let a hundred flowers bloom, let a hundred
1957 schools of thought contend’
● Mao Invited criticism/encouraged CCP members to debate issues facing
China
● Initially, only mild opinions expressed … then denunciations became
bitter + attacked Mao personally
● Mao ‘appalled’ by response → ended the campaign
● Those who spoke out too strongly condemned as ‘anti-socialists’ or
‘rightists’ + imprisoned
● Historiography: Jung Chang thinks it was a trap, Lee Feigon thinks he
was genuinely seeking criticism
The Cultural Revolution
(Extent of opposition to Mao/ways he dealt w/ opposition essay could be written with this info)

The Beginning
● Deng Xiaoping + Liu Shaoqi had succeeded in ending the famine … collectivization was
abandoned and they allowed peasants to return to private farming
○ ^ Mao saw this as an ‘undermining’ of socialist principles
● Worried that he was losing control - Mao returned in 1966 w/ goal of reasserting his authority
● He would do so by the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution
○ Massive purge of party, gov, and people
○ Aim = remove ALL elements of opposition (real or imagined)

Mao’s Motives
● Fear of Opposition from within the CCP
● Age… in 1966 he was 73, afraid of dying and the revolution dying with him
● Paranoia → the more powerful he became… the more paranoid. He constantly thought
opposition was growing/convinced factions were growing + wanted to overthrow him
● Resentment → Angry that his reputation had been damaged by the Great Leap Forward
○ He remained in background of political scene since 1959 - leaving Liu Shaoqi + Deng
Xiaoping w/ task of ending famine … Liu + Deng gained prestige - Mao resented this
● Ideology → Mao believed revolution = CONSTANT STRUGGLE
● Bureaucracy Mao believed that CCP officials had lost ‘revolutionary fervour’
○ Mao wanted to destroy reactionaries (CCP members who had lost faith)
● International Rivalry → Mao didn't want to follow the USSR’s path… after Stalin’s death, believed
USSR had become too liberal/too capitalist-friendly… aka REVISIONIST
● Nationalism → Wanted to get rid of any remaining foreign influence

The end of the Cultural revolution

● Fully ended w/ Mao’s death in 1976
● By early 1970s - lost momentum
● Behind the scenes… doubt was growing (no one expressed doubt as they were too scared)
● Suspicion grew when Lin Biao died in 1971 from a plane crash
○ He was flying to flee from China, for having tried to plan a plot to assassinate Mao
○ Since Lin was head of PLA, minister of defense, & Mao’s nominated successor … people
were doubtful of this claim/lost faith in the system
How did Mao maintain control during the Cultural Revolution?
Method Key Points

Propaganda: ● Despite short leave from politics, by 1960s, Mao = God to Chinese public
The Cult of ● ^ Result of Lin Biao’s propaganda
Mao ○ Lin Biao = head of PLA
○ painted Mao as ‘saviour of the nation’
○ Mao’s picture everywhere
● Mao had ‘The Little Red Book’ published in 1964
○ First 4 years - 750 million sold, everyone carried one
○ ‘Readings from it settled every dispute and preceded every
organized public event

Attacking ● Prelude to Cultural Revolution = April 1966 announcement:

Revisionism ○ Chinese communist party had been ‘infected’ by revisionism
○ PLA had been instructed to root out ‘anti-socialist’ weeds
● Party asked people of China to join in attacking those against the CCP
● Officials wd/ rush to declare their loyalty to Mao
● By Summer 1966, every suspect of Mao had been removed/demoted
● Next step: terror campaign

The Young ● The August Rally, 1966: Tiananmen Square in Beijing filled w/ 1 mil.
young people → shouted w/ joy when Mao came out onto the balcony
● Mao didn’t address crowds, Lin Biao did
○ Lin spoke about how Mao was a genius
○ Lin spoke of destroying revisionism by attacking ‘Four Olds’
■ Old thoughts/old habits/old culture/old customs
● Mao wanted young people to be ‘instruments of the Cultural Revolution’
● called on them to help destroy the ‘four olds’/bureaucrats/revisionism
● Young people didn’t question Mao… they worshipped Mao
● Youth movements (such as the Youth League and the Young Pioneers)

The Red ● Many young responded to Mao’s appeals by enlisting as Red Guards
Guards ● Red guards were in every major area
● Could attack people/destroy property at free will w/ out consent of Police
● Goal = destroy ‘four olds’
○ Target 1 = education system → Teachers taken from schools +
denounced as reactionaries for spreading myths of the past.
○ Target 2 = Transport/Media → They commanded public transport
+ took over radio/tv stations
○ Target 3 = Homes → broke into homes to make sure no one was
showing ‘decadent tendencies’ (eg: western clothes/makeup) or
owned non-revolutionary books
○ Target 4 = Religion → people w/ private altars/religious shrines =
enemies.
○ Target 5 = Intellectuals → Red terror especially terrorized
intellectuals. Writers/artists = ‘bad elements’ or ‘class enemies’.
They were forced to publically confess their crimes.
● Soon, after 1966-67 → clear that revolution had gone too far
○ Industry had halted, Schools/universities closed, etc
● Regional red guard groups clashed w/ each other
● PLA ordered to take over work of Red Guards
Removal of ● The Removal of Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping
Opponents ● Mao removed Deng and Liu from positions, accusing them of having
taken a ‘bourgeois reactionary line’ and for supporting ‘soviet revisionism’
● Posters accused them of betraying Mao … Liu died in prison
● Deng abused by Red guards… sent to labour camp in Jiangxi
● There was also the purging of opponents within the leadership, such as
Gao Gang, Rao Shushi, and Peng Dehuai.

The ‘up to the ● To rid urban areas of troublesome youth → Mao called on young people
mountains to ‘go up the mountains and down to the villages’ to live w/ peasants
and down to ○ This would deepen their understanding of the revolution
the villages’ ● Mao wanted city intellectuals to experience tough life of peasants
campaign ● Mao’s ideology = people of privilege should learn ‘dignity of labour’
1967-72 ● Most youth became homesick or starved … began questioning Mao

The ● After cultural rev underway, Mao left Beijing: Lin Biao + CCRG in charge
‘cleansing the ● CCRG (Central Cultural Revolution Group) included Gang of Four
class ranks’ ● They created the ‘cleansing the class ranks’ campaign
campaign, ○ Committees established in each region in China to eradicate all
1968-71 signs of capitalism
● Result of campaign = mass killings/torture/cleansings… ‘suicides’

The Laogai ● Laogai = ‘re-education through labour’

● Anyone who opposed Mao or was suspect… went to Laogai
● Camps had economic value → provided constant supply of slave labour
● Camps in inhospitable areas… prisoners had to confess made-up crimes
to obtain food. Often prisoners subject to solitary confinement.
● During Mao’s rule, 25 million prisoners died (executed/starved/suicide)
● By 1976 - 1,000 labour camps across China
Essay Outline: To what extent was Mao a Totalitarian leader?

Introduction
● Mao himself did not think he had total control … which is why even at his height he believed he
was surrounded by enemies
● Many historians agree that he was a totalitarian leader
○ He had failures such as the great leap forward… but his leadership never questioned
● In an essay like this, talk about propaganda, control over culture, elimination of opposition, control
over education, work camps… etc

Historians Perspectives
○ Lin Biao: ‘The thoughts of Chairman Mao are always correct … Every time Chairman Mao’s ideas
were not sufficiently respected there have been problems’
● Philip Short: ‘He was the unquestionable leader of almost a quarter of mankind … he wielded
powers equalled only by the most awesome of Chinese emperors. Mao had an extraordinary mix
of talents: he was a visionary, statesman, political and military strategist of genius.’
○ He had charisma + cleverness
○ The killing of opponents was ‘an unavoidable ingredient of broader political campaigns’
● Some suggest that Mao was not in full control, because he would often withdraw from politics +
let others handle affairs of the state, eg: during famine + parts of cultural revolution
○ Jonathan Fenby refutes this: ‘From time to time, Mao might choose to take a back seat
and let others handle party and state business. But when he wanted to assert himself,
nobody could resist him … each directive he issued was regarded as gospel … the idea
that Mao was ever seriously constrained holds little water. The ultimate proof of his
dominance was how many things he got wrong, on a massive scale observable to all -
and how he survived with the mantle of the great leader.’
● By subordinating the CCP to his will … Mao deprived himself of an effective ‘check’ on his
policies
○ Resulted in the failure of Great Leap forward + Cultural Revolution
● Jack Gray: ‘that Mao was an authoritarian ruler, prepared to be ruthless towards those he
believed to be conspiring against the revolution, is NOT a question’
○ Grey does however see the ‘authoritarian, totally unaccountable party hierarchy which
Mao himself had created - was a totally useless instrument’
● Lee Feigon accepts Mao as authoritarian but argued that he was creative not destructive
○ Feigon: ‘the movements for which Mao is almost universally condemned today - the GLF
and the CR - were in many ways beneficial for the Chinese people; they forced China to
break with its Stalinist past and paved the way for its great economic and political strides’
● Jung Chang, who had been a red guard, fiercely rejected Feigon’s approach
○ She had a strong hatred of Mao due to the way her family had been treated during the
cultural revolution
○ Chang: ‘what Mao had in mind, was a completely arid society, devoid of civilization,
deprived of representation of human feelings, inhabited by a herd with no sensibility
which would automatically obey his orders. He wanted the nation to be brain dead in
order to carry out his big purge - and to live in this state permanently.’
○ Other historians pointed out how her claims rely too heavily on anti-Mao sources
9.4 Domestic Policies
General: Economic Policies outline
General: Social Policies outline
General: Cultural Policies outline
May 2015: To what extent did the economic policies of a single-party ruler contribute to the maintenance
of their power?
November 2012: Compare and contrast the treatment of minorities in two authoritarian or single-party
states, each chosen from a different region.
May 2013: In what ways, and with what results, was the status of women affected by the policies of either
Hitler or Mao?
May 2014: Compare and contrast the economic and social policies of Stalin and Mao.
May 2015: To what extent did the economic policies of either Mao or Castro contribute to the
maintenance of his power?

Essay Outline: Mao’s Economic Policies

Introduction
● Main aim after 1949 = develop China as an industrial power
● Initially, he attempted to establish the economy via a Five-Year Plan in 1952
○ Failed → PRC lacked resources/relied on aid from USSR
○ Mao unhappy about how much USSR had charged for its loans

P1 - ‘The Great Leap Forward’ 1958 - 1962

● By 1958 - Mao wanted to break Soviet Grip
● Mao believed industrial growth could be achieved via ‘communal endeavor of Chinese people’
● Key to this strategy = Second Five Year Plan introduced in 1958 called, ‘The Great Leap
Forward’, based on two assumptions:
○ Peasants would produce surplus of food to be sold abroad to raise money for industrial
expansion
○ Workers would produce steel - this would create a modern industrial economy + enable
China to compete w/ USSR + West
● ‘Leap’ because Mao believed China could skip other stages that lead to industrialization
○ He wanted China to go from rural/agricultural economy → urban/industrial
● Mao encouraged families to produce steel in homemade kilns
○ … but this does not produce good steel
● By rejecting modern technology + setting high quotas, Mao created ‘unattainable’ targets
● Great Leap was an Economic Failure + resulted in MASSIVE famine

P2 - Collectivization & China’s Great Famine

● Step 1 of Great Leap forward = mass collectivization programme:
○ China’s 500 mil. peasants forced to live/work in communes (70,000 new ones built)
○ Individual peasants/families were no longer to farm to make a profit
○ All surpluses = property of state → invested in industrial growth
● Mao thought collectivization wd/ lead to increase in food production (the opp. happened)
● Peasants unable to adapt to new system (didn’t know how to farm on a communal scale
○ Crop yields fell greatly + hunger was widespread
● Mao blamed shortfalls on poor local management & grain hoarding by Rich peasants
● Mao continued w/ collectivization … rigged/exaggerated production figures
● CCP launched propaganda campaign → showed pics of happy peasants w/ lots of rice
○ Any officials who opposed the campaign were replaced
○ Peasants who protested were forced into labour camps
● 1958-1962, 40 million Chinese starved to death
● ‘By his adherence to collectivization, Mao turned China’s rural provinces into killing fields.’
P3 - Lack of Opposition to Collectivization
● Onset of famine = prime time for any of Mao’s opponents to have attacked
● Party gathering in Lushan 1959
○ Peng Dehuai, PRC minister of defence, told of horrors caused by famine in his province
of Anhui → asked for action to be taken
○ PRIME MOMENT for other delegates to have backed him … but none did
○ As sign of obedience to Mao, other delegates denounced Peng’s ‘lies’
● Irony of situation: Mao had expected trouble & feared that members would use this occasion to
attack his economic policies
● Response: Mao gave an angry speech - ridiculing Peng Dehuai
● Announced he wd/ use PLA vs. anyone who tried ‘to lead the peasants to overthrow the gov.’
○ No party members dared oppose (esp. w/ memories of 100 flowers 1957 in mind)
● Mao had established a fierce reputation as leader - so that no one wd/ challenge him
Essay Outline: Mao’s Social Policies

P1 - Religion
● Religion/worship viewed as ‘superstitions’ created by exploiting classes to suppress people
● 1950 major campaign vs. religion began
○ Justification = now that workers in power, religion served no purpose - escapism not
needed
● Religious worship replaced w/ loyalty to Communist party
● Traditional Chinese beliefs of Buddhism, Confucianism, Christianity, Islam = forbidden
● Priests/monks/nuns couldn’t wear religious dress → if they did, arrested
● Churches/mosques closed, property seized, clergy physically abused
● customs + rituals which had shaped peasantry life also prohibited, eg:
○ songs/dances performed at weddings
○ Chants that were sung work in the fields
○ sagas/stories of wandering poets that used to entertain villages
● Groups of agitprop (propaganda perpetuating) performers put on shows/showed films that
peasants were required to attend, these films portrayed landlord's/religious figures as evil

P2 - The Patriotic churches & Religion during the Cultural Revolution

● Illusion of toleration created by keeping some churches open
● These Churches became state controlled → ‘patriotic churches’
○ Clergy had show allegiance to comm. regime
● Led to conflict between PRC + Vatican → they didn’t accept these ‘patriotic churches’
● By allowing some religion to remain… this showed that the PRC recognized that religion = too
deeply rooted in Chinese society to eradicate
● Persecution still continued during Cultural rev.
○ Religion denounced as it belonged to ‘four olds’
○ Clergy who had survived earlier persecutions were rounded up/imprisoned
● Confucianism denounced → it represented ‘the worst of China’s past’
● ‘Confucianism and Co’ = derogatory term
○ Eg: when Lin Biao denounced, slogan to attack him = ‘criticize Lin Biao and Confucius’

P3 - Tibet and Xinjiang

● Mao feared that religion wd/ cause provinces to breakaway
● 1950 - PLA sent to tibet, Xinjiang, Guangdong to enforce authority
○ Strength of PRC demanded total unity and central control
● Tibetan buddhism inspired Tibetan nationalism
● Similarly in Xinjiang - large population of muslims → PRC feared increased nationalism
○ Strategically, it bordered Pakistan/Turkistan/Kazakhstan … PCR thought that these
nations wd/ support Xinjiang in a separatist movement
● Mao’s fear = religion wd/ infiltrate politics
● To prevent this … PRC condemned all independence orgs.
● To dilute buddhist and muslim populations of Tibet and Xinjiang → PRC sent Chinese Han (80%
of population was Han) to settle in these areas
○ Only partially successful… in 1976 Muslims still majority in Xinjiang

P4 - The Status of Women

● Imperial China = patriarchal (dominated by men)
● Confucius taught that a harmonious society must follow san gan rules:
○ Obedience of wives to their husbands
● ^ as a result… women filled subordinate roles
● Chinese communists = advocates of female equality
● 1950 - new marriage law introduced in PRC:
 ○ Men couldn’t keep women as mistresses
○ Arranged marriages wd/ be discounted
○ Women who were forced to marry now entitled to divorce
○ New laws saw many women marrying/divorcing many times
■ ^ became disruptive … new law introduced allowing PLA soldiers to legal right to
overrule wives plea for divorce

P5 - Impact of Collectivization on Women

● More laws in 1950s → granted women right to own/sell land + property
● During land redistribution programs, women gained land in their own name
○ ^ this achievement was undermined by Great leap forward which abolished private
property
● Life on communes meant that women ate in halls w/ men → didn't have the task of preparing food
for family
● Life on communes also involved difficult physical labour

P6 - Traditional prejudice against Women

● For each gain … accompanying disadvantage
● Because women = equal to men … they now could do the same work as men
○ Heavy physical labour … difficult for them
● 1946-76 → number of women in workforce quadrupled (8% → 32 %)
● ‘Entrenched values and attitudes are hard to change in any country’
○ Because China traditionally male dominated … women still competed with deep-rooted
notions of female inferiority
○ Evident in prejudice vs. babies
■ Boys = source of income
■ Girls = drain of resources
● Peasants complained that new marriage laws interfered w/ established ways of life
○ Female subordination = norm in Chinese rural areas, esp. Muslim areas in Xinjiang
● Despite CCP public advocacy for women's rights … feminists observed that CCP =
male-dominated system
○ Women rarely granted government party posts
○ Women made up 13% of communist party

P7 - Family Values
● Collectivization entailed ‘direct and deliberate assault on traditional Chinese family’
○ Mao said: ‘It is necessary to destroy the peasant family; women going to the factories and
joining the army are part of the big destruction of the family’
● Part of undermining communes = separating men and women into dif. Quarters
○ Visited each other during conjugal visits
● Enforced social change happened too suddenly → disrupted family life + caused many mothers
to be unhappy
● During the cultural rev, devaluing of family values continued/re-emphasized:
○ Ownership of private property = crime against communism
○ In traditional china, extended families would provide support in difficult times. Now this
role taken over by the state
○ Social welfare (eg: social welfare, education, medicare) organized by comm. party
● Traditional ‘nuclear family’ (two parents + children) = ‘four olds’
● Mothers urged to teach children that Mao + CCP = true parents
○ Regular family affect replaced w/ love for CCP
Essay Outline: Mao’s Cultural Policies

Introduction
● How did Mao define culture?
○ Culture was the means by which rulers imposed their control over their people
○ Because chinese culture was proletariat, culture was also proletarian
○ All traces of bourgeois//feudal culture must be eradicated
● Mao was ruthless in replacing China’s ‘dated’ culture w/ a ‘proletariat’ one
● All creative artists (writers/musicians/filmmakers/painters) had to accept their duty as serving the
people … and their works would incite revolution
● For Mao, Art NOT a means for self-expression

P1 - The role of Mao’s wife, Jiang Qing

● Mao’s wife, Jiang Qing = creator-in-chief of new Chinese culture
● She was in charge of turning the denunciation ‘four olds’ into a program for suppression of
traditional chinese society
● Jiang Qing = ‘cultural purifier of the nation’
● Jiang’s actions:
○ Imposed rigid censorship
■ any performance/work which did not meet her requirements of ‘revolutionary
purity’ = banned
■ Only art which was relevant to contemporary Chinese themes was permitted
○ Western, classical, and pop music = banned
○ Traditional chinese opera replaced by contemporary works - all concerned w/ triumph of
proletariats
● Only theme that could be expressed in culture = the struggle of the heroic masses
● Jiang aimed to undermine all sense of tradition
● Line of thought = ‘The more brutal, the more revolutionary’
● Children encouraged to cut off flower heads - as this was a form of bourgeois beauty

P2 - Consequences of Jiang’s Policies

● By 1970s, Jiang’s ‘assault on traditional culture’ destroyed all forms of creative expression
● Artists unwilling/reluctant to embrace new culture → sent to ‘re-educational’ labour camps
○ At camps… some musicians denied tools so they had to dig w/ hands - ruining their
fingers for playing their instruments
● It was rare for anyone to question Jiang’s policies
● KEY feature of Mao’s China = failure of intellectuals/natural leaders to protest vs. crimes of
regime
○ … due to moral cowardice + understandable fear
● Jiang's control over arts lasted between 1966-1976 (Mao’s death)
● Her attempts did not create a new culture… simply paralysed the old
● Writers/artists frightened into inaction or into producing politically correct rubbish