Long March
(1934-1935)
This event saved the communists from extinction. It was a 6,000 mile
journey from Jiangxi to Shaanxi.
Even though they had
retreated from the
mountains, Communists
were heroes with Mao as
their leader
Forced to evacuate their camps and homes, Communist soldiers, government
and party leaders numbering about 100,000 (including only 35 women, the
spouses of high leaders) set out on a winding, dangerous retreat through 11
provinces, 18 mountain ranges, and 24 rivers in southwest and northwest
China. During this journey, Mao finally gained unchallenged command of the
CCP, ousting his rivals and reasserting guerrilla strategy.
Of the nearly 80,000 marchers who started the journey only 6,000 finished.
Of the 200,000 who participated in the march—with many joining the march
after it began—40,000 lived. Among the survivors were nearly all the high
ranking Communist officials in Chinese government for the next 40 years—
Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Lin Biao and Deng Xiaoping. On their way north, the
Communist redistributed land to the peasants, organized guerilla groups and
armed the peasants with enemy weapons.
Great Leap Forward
(1949-1959)
This was Mao’s
plan to develop
agriculture and
industry.
During this time, the figures for steel, coal, chemicals, timber, and cement
all showed huge rises though the beginning figures were very low. Grain and
cotton production also showed major increases in production.
Mao’s plan failed:
1. Quickly produced farm machinery produced in factories fell to pieces
when used.
2. Many thousands of workers were injured after working long hours and
falling asleep at their jobs.
3. Steel produced by the backyard furnaces was frequently too weak to be
of any use and could not be used in construction – its original purpose.
4. Buildings constructed by this substandard steel did not last long.
5. Some parts of China were hit by floods. In other growing areas, drought
was a major problem.
It is estimated that 20 million people died of starvation or diseases related
to starvation.
Cultural Revolution
(1966-1969)
This was a period of great political and social turmoil within 20th Century.
Mao was worried that some of the Communist Party leaders wanted to
change his communist plans. Mao needed to keep Communist Party authority
while overthrowing some of its leaders.
Mao wanted to regain authority, so he
used his followers to do so. Red Guards
were formed. These were teenage
volunteers summoned by Mao to defend
Chinese socialism from 'evil forces'.
Mao called for Red Guards to challenge
Communist Party officials, business
owners, and teachers. Mao wanted only
one class system and education created a
higher class. This was unacceptable.
Schools were closed to free students to
join the Red Guards.
Officials, business, owners, and teachers
were accused. Then they were
imprisoned, beaten, and either worked to
death or left to die in solitary prison.
“One August afternoon in 1966, Youqin Wang watched in shock as her 10th-grade
classmates began torturing five of their school administrators. On the playground
of the elite Girls Middle School, attached to Beijing Teachers University, she saw
these students, who had declared themselves among Mao Tse Tung’s Red Guards,
splash black ink on the adults and hang large wooden boards scrawled with
‘counterrevolutionary’ around their necks.
Ms. Wang, who was 13 at the time, slipped out of the crowd as soon as she could and
returned to her dormitory. In the dining room that night, she overheard some Red
Guards giggling about how they had poured boiling water over their victims. They
had also beaten the teachers with nail-spiked clubs and forced them to eat dirt.
That evening, the first vice principal, a 50-year-old woman who had worked at the
school for 17 years, died after losing consciousness three hours into the torment.
Zhongyun Bian became the first educator beaten to death by students in Beijing.”
Tiananmen Square Massacre
In April, protesters of all ages across China began leading demonstrations
which criticized the Chinese government. Students were mostly involved in
these protests across China. This was the site of several protests during
this period, including a student hunger strike. The protests grew larger as
word spread. Many people suspected that these mass protests would mark a
new era in Chinese history.
By May 20th, the Chinese government had difficulty forcing the protests to
stop due to the thousands of protesters.
One of the most enduring
images from the Tiananmen
Square massacre is a
photograph of a lone man
standing in front of a line of
tanks as they attempt to enter
the Square. The fate of “tank
man,” sometimes called the
“unknown rebel,” is unknown.
When the troops entered this place, they opened fire on the protesters who
were gathered there. Troops even fired at each other in the confusion, as
protesters tried to find shelter and news agencies looked on in horror.
Within hours, photo and video of the event had been sent to the outside
world, and to this day, no one knows how many civilians died as the Chinese
government has sealed that information like it never happened.
Long March
(1934-1935)
Great Leap Forward
(1949-1959)
Cultural Revolution
(1966-1969)
Tiananmen Square
Massacre
(1989)