Early Life
- Mao was the eldest child to survive childbirth
- His father was a farmer and was fairly well off
- Mao was expelled from or asked to leave from at least three schools for being headstrong and disobedient
- He was widowed at 16
- After being widowed, Mao went to a teacher college in 1911
- It was there that Mao got caught up on issues through newspapers
- Manchu rule was “foreign” domination because the Manchus were not Han Chinese (the group that formed 94% of the population)
- After college, Mao worked as a part-time history teacher in a primary school
Becoming Communist
- Mao’s home province was Hunan, with its capital and trading port being Changsha
- There were a number of foreign interests in Changsha, so much so that Japan, the U.S., and Britain opened consulates there
- Radical students, including Mao, wanted to oust the provincial warlord and went to Peking to unsuccessfully lobby the government
- On his way back to Hunan, he encountered Professor Chen Tu-hsiu, China’s foremost Marxist
- He was in the middle of forming a Chinese Communist Party (CCP)
- In 1920, he gave him the assignment of opening a bookshop in Changsha to sell Party literature
- In 1921, Mao became provincial Party leader
- Mao did not inspire a passionate following through his oratory, or ideological appeal
- He simply sought willing recruits among his immediate circle; people who would take orders
Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Gains Power
- In 1923, under pressure from the USSR, the CCP joined with the GMD
- Sun Yat-sen wanted Soviet aid so that he could conquer China
- The Soviets wanted Outer Mongolia and the province of Xinjiang
- Since most Communists hated the GMD and didn’t want to work with them, Mao saw opportunity
- Mao worked hard for the GMD and rose in power in the Communist party
- In 1925, Sun Yat-sen died. A friend of Mao’s, Wang Ching-wei, led the Nationalists
- Under Wang Ching-wei, 1/3 of the congress were Communists, although there were far more Nationalists
Split of the GMD and CCP
- In the CCP, mob violence was condoned by Moscow and practiced by grassroots peasant associations. The Nationalists didn’t like the violence
- In April 1927, the Peking authorities raided Russian premises and seized documents that revealed Moscow trying to overthrow the Peking government and there were Soviet links with the Chinese communists
- The Nationalists needed to take decisive action to dissociate themselves with the Russians and CCP or else they could be seen as part of the conspiracy to turn China into a Soviet satellite
- Chiang Kai-shek, the Nationalist Party #2 member and leader of the Nationalist army, took over the Nationalist party
- He began organizing massacres of left-wing members of the GMD, especially those who were also members of the CCP
Truce
- Mao fled to the countryside (Hunan and Jiangxi), where he established independent soviets and the Red Army
- From 1930-1936, Chiang Kai-shek led military campaigns against the Communists, while the communists defended themselves with guerilla tactics
- Long March – 1934-35
- Red Army retreated using twisting, unpredictable patterns
- Split into smaller units that were harder to find
- Out of 87,000 men, less than 10,000 survived the 9,000 km march
- In December 1936:
- The communists settled in Yan’an in Shanxi
- A truce occurred to help protect the country against the Japanese
Sino-Japanese War and the CCP Build-Up
- From 1937-1945, the communists:
- Expanded their military forces from 500,000 to 1 million
- Established political control over as many as 90 million people
- Were given weapons by the U.S. to help fight the Japanese
- Nonetheless, the Nationalists did most of the fighting
Relationship Between Leadership and the Masses
- Mao developed a program of contact with the masses that became known as the “mass line”
- Trained communists were sent in groups into the communities, where they said they had come to listen to the desires and ideas of the people
- On their return, the party would then learn what measures would appeal and adapt to their own policies which would be presented to the people
- It was a powerful tool of propaganda
- By 1945, the communists had reached 100 million people and the mass line was carried to the people by 1 million members
Chiang and the Nationalists
- Chiang and the Nationalists were set back by:
- Corruption
- Brutality
- Incompetence
- Inefficiency
- Hyperinflation
- Sino-Japanese War
- Arms that the U.S. gave to the Nationalists, but the Red Army captured them
- People lost confidence and longed for an end to famine, death, and civil war
Controlling the Newcomers
- CCP newcomers enrolled in “schools” to be trained and indoctrinated. These schools were in poor conditions, had little food, and no medicine
- Leaving the school would be considered desertion, with execution likely
Yenan Terror
- Mao used a Chinese KGB to seek out and execute anyone determined to be a spy
- Mao asserted that Communist organizations in the Nationalist areas were spy rings. Most of the newcomers came from these areas
- Thousands were arrested and thrown into prison-caves
- The imprisoned came under pressure to confess being spies and to denounce others
- Sleep deprivation, whipping, hanging by the wrists, and other forms of torture became the norm
- At mass rallies, newcomers were forced to confess being spies and name others in front of large crowds
- All forms of relaxation, like singing, dancing, and even humor were stopped
- Thought examination required you to write everything down that wasn’t good for the Party and write down information about other people as well
- No outside press was available, no radio, no letters
- There was no room for outside thought – everyone was turned into a robot
From Hero to Enemy
- Chiang wasn’t hated until the Yenan Terror:
- Chiang got America and Britain to concede their territorial concessions
- He did away with the warlords and unified the country against the war with Japan
- He got China’s permanent seat and veto on the UN Security Council
Mao Becomes Supreme Party Leader
- In early 1945, Mao convened the Party congress
- He had delayed the meeting to make sure he had absolute control
- Most of the delegates at the meeting had been terrorized or were new appointments
- Mao declared himself the supreme leader
Post Sino-Japanese War
- The USSR launched Operation August Storm in the last month of the war against Japan
- This was a successful invasion of Manchuria, which the Soviets occupied until the end of the war
- Once the war was over, Manchuria was turned over to the CCP, and there was nothing Chiang Kai-shek could do
- With the dropping of the atomic bombs, Japan unconditionally surrendered
- Japanese troops were ordered to surrender only to the Nationalists
- However, the Nationalists didn’t occupy some of the areas – the CCP did
- When the Japanese withdrew, the CCP were able to take over large areas
The Marshall Mission
- After WWII, Secretary of State George Marshall negotiated a cease-fire between the KMT and CCP
- The Nationalists demilitarized 1.5 million troops, most of which belonged to warlords
- Nothing was done to help them integrate back into civilian life
- As a result, many joined the communists
- They used their knowledge of where former Japanese weapon depots were located to stockpile weapons
- Nationalist forces ignored these stockpiles because American weapons were better and they thought the warlord troops were too uneducated and illiterate to operate them
- Many warlord troops actually collaborated with the Japanese so they knew exactly where the depots were and how to operate the weapons
- They showed the communists how to work them
Civil War Again
- In April 1946, serious fighting broke out again between the armies of the GMD and CCP
- By mid-1947, the Nationalist army was overstretched in occupying all the areas gained, and a successful Communist counter-offensive began in Manchuria and swept the country
End of the GMD
- In Jan. 1949, Chiang resigned from the presidency and asked the U.S. to mediate with the CCP, hoping to retain the south
- The CCP, sensing victory, was no longer interested in an armistice. Their advance continued
- On October 1, 1949, the People’s Republic of China was proclaimed by Mao in Beijing
Results of the Chinese Civil War
- 25% of the world’s population just became communist
- U.S. aided the Nationalists, so this foreign influence helped this group to lose support
- The CCP used guerilla tactics effectively, which demoralized the KMT
- 600,000 troops and 2 million refugees fled to Taiwan
- Many Chinese experts (“China Hands”) in the U.S. government were blamed for the loss of China and consequently had their careers destroyed by McCarthy
- This caused there to be less Asian advisors in government, possibly causing Kennedy to develop a faulty policy in Vietnam
- Truman and his Democratic party lost political support, so it caused Lyndon Johnson to be determined to uphold South Vietnam at all costs
- Relations between the People’s Republic of China (China) and the Republic of China (Taiwan) were tense and often drew the United States into defending Taiwan
Initial Problems
- During the Civil War:
- There was only a primitive system of communications, transportation, factories, and canals
- Modern industrial production was concentrated in a few centers which had come under foreign influence
- Unemployment was widespread
- Inflation was staggering
- The position of women in society led to the depression of half of the workforce
- In many areas, opponents outnumbered supporters
- Many unsympathetic civil servants had to remain in office
- The hostile forces of the Nationalists remained on the island of Taiwan where they could not be pursued because the CCP had no amphibious forces
- Hostility from abroad, particularly from the U.S., made the regime defensive
Period of Reconstruction (1949-53)
- Political Reforms
- There were 10 political parties in China in 1949, by 1952, they were all gone
- A campaign was launched against counter-revolutionaries and enemies of the state
- Churches were closed; Christianity, Buddhism, and Confucianism were denounced
- Period of Reconstruction (1949-53)
- Family Reforms
- Marriage Law (1950):
- Made marriage free and consensual
- Gave equality to women
- Women were allowed to inherit property
- Many widespread practices were forbidden
- Child marriage
- Polygamy
- Killing or selling of children
- Binding the feet of girls
- Family Reforms
- Women were taken into the workforce
- Positions of importance in the state and party were opened to women
- Health Reforms
- Clinics and child-care centers were set up
- There were campaigns to improve hygiene and health
- The opium addiction problem was solved by:
- Drastic penalties for major suppliers and dealers
- Amnesty for petty dealers
- Rehabilitation for addicts
- Public education campaigns
- Economic Reforms
- The aim was to control capitalism:
- Businesses were confiscated from the landlords, GMD, and the Japanese
- Most businesses became owned by the state
- Inflation was controlled by:
- Fixing wages and prices
- Slashing public spending
- Increasing taxes
- Private banks were closed and a new state bank was established
- Agricultural Reforms
- Agrarian Reform Law (1950):
- Feudal services and forced labor were abolished
- Landlords had to refund rent deposits
- The property of the rich landlords was divided up by the poor and middle peasants
- 1 million ex-landlords were executed
- The peasants gained self-confidence and agricultural productivity increased
- By May 1956, 90% of farmers were members of cooperatives
- Industrial Reforms
- The CCP had little contact with or knowledge of industry because they evicted foreign control
- National Capitalism – state owned large industry, while there was private ownership of smaller ones until 1955/56
- Maintaining Control
- Three-Antis (1951)
- Aimed at removing corrupt officials
- Corruption, waste, and bureaucratism
- 10% of officials were fired and or executed
- Five-Antis (1952)
- Aimed at businesses
- Bribery, tax evasion, fraud, theft of government property, theft of government secrets
- 75% of businesses were fined and were now subjected to tighter control
First Five Year Plan – 1953-1957
- Soviet Union assisted with $300 million and 10,000 Russian engineers
- Targeted the development of heavy industry: coal, steel, chemicals, automobile, and transport
- Failure to meet the targets established by The National Resource Committee was the equivalent of failing China
Effects of the First Five Year Plan
- Overall industrial output increased 15.5% per year (faster than the target of 14.7%)
- Agriculture was constricted to pay for industrial expansion, so food production increased at an average of 2% per year, compared to 14% from 1949-52
Great Leap Forward – Second Five Year Plan (1958-1962)
- Collectivization became the official policy in 1958 and was universally enforced
- China’s land was divided into 70,000 communes
- Mao wanted China to “walk on two legs” – develop both agriculture and industry at the same time
- He hoped that it would help unemployment, cause a genuine communal culture, and create militia that could be used in place of a regular army
- He accused peasants of hiding grain and used force against them
- The food would be traded for money for weapons or used for fuel
Great Leap Forward
- Mao ordered huge drives to build irrigation systems using poor equipment. Some of these projects are still unstable today
- Forests were stripped of trees to be used as fuel
- Anything that peasants could melt down into steel was put in backyard furnaces, but the steel was poor
- Mao also wanted to raise output in factories, so common sense and rules went to the wayside in the name of speed. Accidents frequently caused tens of thousands of deaths
- Agriculture failed because:
- Unscientific agricultural methods were used
- There was a shortage of agricultural labor because of peasants working on industrial projects
- The peasants disliked losing their private lots
- Natural disasters – droughts and floods
Results of the Great Leap Forward
- 38 million died of:
- Being worked to death
- Others were killed, tortured, or imprisoned
- Famine (the average daily calorie intake was 1,534.8 for men and 1,200 for women – Aushwitz got between 1,300-1,700 calories per day)
- Heavy industry developed (although it was still behind most large industrial countries)
- Agriculture lagged behind
Maintaining Control
- Foreigners were:
- Made to register
- Had their businesses confiscated and nationalized
- Expelled
- Thought Reform Campaign
- Intended to unify the people and indoctrinize them with Communism
- Intensive study of the writings of Mao
- Little Red Book was published in 1963 and people were encouraged to read it as their “Bible”
Maintaining Control – Hundred Flowers Campaign (1957)
- Mao indicated his supposed willingness to consider different opinions about how China should be governed
- Given the freedom to express themselves, liberal and intellectual Chinese began opposing the Communist Party and questioning its leadership
- This was initially tolerated and even encouraged. However, after a few months, Mao’s government reversed its policy and persecuted those who criticized, and were merely alleged to have criticized, the Party in what is called The Anti-Rightist Campaign
Maintaining Control – Anti-Rightist Campaign
- Were two waves (1957 & 1959)
- 700,000 intellectuals were thrown out of their positions and professions
- In every factory, 5% of the workers had to be denounced as “rightists”
- All were sent to the countryside for reform – many died of malnutrition, illness, cold, overwork, and accidents doing unfamiliar jobs
- Some were executed or committed suicide
Maintaining Control – Hundred Flowers/Anti-Rightist Campaigns
- Two Opinions on the Hundred Flowers Campaign:
- #1
- Some have alleged that the Hundred Flowers Campaign was merely a ruse to root out “dangerous” thinking
- #2
- Others have suggested that Mao wanted to weaken those within his party who opposed him by having them bicker between themselves
- However, he was surprised by the extent of criticism and the fact that it began to be directed at his own leadership
- It was only then that he used it as a method of identifying and subsequently persecuting those critical of his regime
Maintaining Control – Cultural Revolution (1966-67)
- Upheaval launched by Mao Zedong to:
- Renew the spirit of revolution in China
- Destroy the rise of differentiation between the proletariat and bourgeois
- Restore his power and control
- Society was inundated with Mao’s face, quotes, and other forms of propaganda
Maintaining Control – Cultural Revolution
- Young people in schools and universities were told to condemn their teachers for poisoning their heads with “bourgeois ideas”
- Their role was to “safeguard” Mao
- Taking part in politics was something no one had been allowed to do under Mao, so they were excited
- They were given goods and allowed to be violent
- The youth were eventually called the “Red Guards”
Maintaining Control – Cultural Revolution
- Eventually the terror turned to anything cultural, including art and artists. Culture was wiped out
- The Red Guards confiscated tons of valuables, which was then sold
- Then the terror turned to Party officials, his real target
- Real schooling wouldn’t return until after Mao’s death
Mao Consolidates Power
- Everyone had a file on them, many were tortured or killed (500,000), humiliated in public, committed suicide, or sent to labor camps
- Housing space increased
- An entire generation lost much of its schooling
- Intellectuals suffered most
- There was a loss of cultural heritage