After World War II, Chinese
Communists defeat Nationalist forces
and two separate Chinas emerge.
• World War II in China
•Mao Zedong—leads Chinese Communists
against Japanese invaders
•Jiang Jieshi (a.k.a. Chiang Kai-shek)—
leads of Chinese Nationalists in WWII
•Nationalist and Communist Chinese resume
civil war after WWII ends
Mao Zedong
Jiang Jieshi (a.k.a. Chiang
Kai-shek)
• Civil War Resumes
•Economic problems cause Nationalist
soldiers to desert to Communists
•Mao’s troops take control of China’s major
cities
•In 1949, People’s Republic of China is
created
•Nationalists flee to Taiwan
• The Superpowers React
•U.S. supports Nationalist state in Taiwan,
called Republic of China
•Soviets and China agree to help each other
in event of attack
•U.S. tries to stop Soviet expansion and
spread of communism in China
• China Expands under the Communists
•China takes control of Tibet and southern
Mongolia
•India welcomes Tibetan refugees fleeing
revolt against Chinese
•China and India clash over border; fighting
stops but tensions remain
• Communists Claim a New “Mandate of
Heaven”
•Chinese Communists organize national
government and Communist Party
• Mao’s Brand of Marxist Socialism
•Mao takes property from landowners and
divides it among peasants
•Government seizes private companies and
plans production increase
• The Great Leap Forward
•Communes—large collective farms often
supporting over 25,000 people
•Program is ended after inefficiency leads to
crop failures and famines
• New Policies and Mao’s Response
•China and Soviet Union clash over
leadership of communist movement
•Strict socialist ideas are moderated, Mao
reduces his role in government
•Red Guards—militia units formed to enforce
strict communism in China
The Red
Guards:
China’s
Teenage
Police Force
Between 1966
and 1976,
students in
China’s Red
Guard waged a
Cultural
Revolution on
teachers and
professionals
that left a
million people
dead and the
country in
chaos.
Red Guards holding
Mao’s “Little Red
Book” of his sayings
during the cultural
revolution.
• The Cultural Revolution
• Cultural Revolution—movement to build society of
peasants and workers
• Red Guards—groups of violent and radical
youth—close schools and execute or imprison
many intellectuals
• In 1968, Chinese army imprisons, executes, or
exiles most Red Guards who have been labeled
by the government “Counter Revolutionary.”
• However, the Cultural Revolution continues until
Mao’s death in 1976.
• After Mao’s death, the Gang of Four—the
radical group that controlled the power
organs of the Chinese Communist Party
throughout the Cultural Revolution—is
arrested and judged responsible for the
excesses and chaos that occurred in China as
a result of this revolution.
35-5 China: Reform
and Reaction
In response to contact with the West,
China’s government has experimented
with capitalism but has rejected calls for
democracy.
The Legacy of Mao
• Problems of Mao’s Rule
• Mao Zedong wants to improve China’s economy,
but cannot
• Mao’s policies, a lack of modern technology
prevent economic growth
• He launches Cultural Revolution in 1960s to
revive Communist split.
• Its excesses turn many people against
communism.
• Zhou Enlai-leader in early 1970s-pursues
moderate policies.
China and the West
• China Opened Its Doors
•Zhou worries that China is too isolated
from rest of world
•In 1971, U.S. and China begin closer
relations
• Economic Reform
•In 1976, Mao and Zhou die; moderates take
control of Communist Party
•Deng Xiaoping-becomes leader of China by
1980
•Four Modernization-Deng’s plan for
economic progress
•This policy reverses strict Communist
policies long backed by Mao
Four Modernizations
Massacre in Tiananmen Square
• Unforeseen Problems
•Reforms lead to some unrest over privileges
of Communist leaders
•Western political ideas enter China,
encouraging democracy
• Students Demand Democracy
•In 1989, students protest in Tiananmen
Square-public area in Beijing
• Deng Orders a Crackdown
•Deng orders army to surround square,
attack protestors
•Attack leaves hundreds dead, thousands
wounded
•Government begins large-scale campaign to
end dissent
China Enters New Millennium
• China Under Jiang
•In 1997, Deng dies; Jiang Zemin takes
power
•Hard liners want Jiang to move away from
Deng’s reforms
•In 2002, Jiang steps down in favor of Zhu
Rongji
•Both Jiang and Zhu favor continued reforms
Jiang Zemin
Zhu Rongji
Hu Jintao
• Transfer of Hong Kong
•Hong Kong-former British colony, city in
China, major economic power
•In 1997, Britain hands Hong Kong back to
China
China Beyond 2000
• Economics and Politics
•Economic reforms reduce poverty in China
•Though many countries have economic
problems, China’s economy grows
•Many in China want political reforms
•China is becoming more involved with
other countries