World Civilizations
The World After 1945
China After World War II
The Long March- Mao Zedong mobilized millions of
peasants in the north who swept down and drove the
nationalists out of power.
Chinese Civil War- Nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek
fight a civil war with communists led by Mao Zedong-By 1949 Communists win & proclaim People’s Republic
of China (Beijing as capital)-- Nationalists retreat to
Taiwan and proclaim Republic of China (Taipei as
capital
Chinese Views-Opposed the United States and other
capitalist countries-U.S. recognized the Taiwanese
government since 1949-Supported North Korea in
Korean War- Late 1950s – Chinese-Soviet relations
soured (ideological & border dispute)
Mao Zedong- Had promised land reform; won over
peasants-Confiscated land & property; distributed to
peasants-Wanted to improve living conditions &
transform China into a modern industrial and
agricultural nation
The Chinese Five Year Plans-(Based on Soviet Union 5
Year Plans) Launched in 1953-Private industries
brought under government control-Peasants merged
individual landholdings into large cooperatives- With
Soviet help built roads, factories, & canals
The Great Leap Forward- An Economic and Social
campaign of the Communist Party of China-Launched
in 1958-Cooperatives merged into larger government
controlled units called communes-Stressed human labor
over technology-Was a disaster – food shortages,
mismanagement, & peasant resistance- Was halted –
20-40 million died of starvation-The failure was in part
due to the Soviet withdrawal of aid to China. The
Soviets wanted to be the lead in world communism.
Without Soviet military aid, Mao turned his attention to
building up his military. Thus occupied, moderates
began to reform the economy. A measure of capitalism
was introduced and the gains were immediate. China
created an atom bomb. Production increased.
Culture Revolution of 1966- To purge China of all
Western intellectual influence to destroy the growing
elite class that had followed the economic gains of
recent years- Universities were shut down, lawyers,
professors and intellectuals were sent to collective farms
to get “cultural retraining.” Dissidents were rounded
up and massacred
Deng Xiaoping- Following the death of Mao (1976)Deng quickly changed the educational and economic
policies of Mao. China adopted many aspects of freemarket capitalism and has been one of the fastest
growing economies in modern times. However, its
government remains authoritarian.
Tiananmen Square Rally- 1989-As communism was
disintegrating in Europe and Russia, 1 million students
protested their government in Tiananmen Square,
Beijing. It was ruthlessly put down; hundreds of
students were gunned down.
Israeli/Arab Conflict
36. Theodor Herzl ••• Theodor Herzl, b., 1860, d., 1904,
was a Hungarian Jew who founded modern political
Zionism. He was shocked by the anti‐Semitism he
observed and became convinced that Jewish
assimilation was impossible. He expressed his views in
Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State) (1896), in which he
outlined the creation of a Jewish State
38. Balfour Declaration of 1917 (dated 2 November
1917) was a formal statement of policy by the British
government stating that : His Majesty's government
view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a
national home for the Jewish people, and will use their
best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this
object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be
done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights
of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the
rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other
country."
39. The Churchill White Paper (also known as The
British White Paper of 1922) of June 3 1922 clarified
how Britain viewed the Balfour Declaration, 1917. That
Declaration announced the British intent to aid the
"establishment in Palestine of a national home for the
Jewish people", wording which eventually became very
controversial
40. The White Paper 1939- (also known as the
MacDonald White Paper) was in favour of creating an
independent Palestine governed by Palestinian Arabs
and Jews in proportion to their numbers in the
population by 1949 (section I). A limit of 75,000 Jewish
immigrants was set for the five-year period 1940-1944,
consisting of a regular yearly quota of 10,000, and a
supplementary quota of 25,000, spread out over the
same period, to cover refugee emergencies. After this
cut-off date, further immigration would depend on the
permission of the Arab majority. Restrictions were also
placed on the rights of Jews to buy land from Arabs
42. On 14 May 1948, at the end of the British mandate,
the Jewish Agency, led by David Ben-Gurion, declared
the creation of the State of Israel, and the same day the
armies of seven Arab countries invaded Israel.
1948 Arab-Israeli WarYom Kippur War-
1. The White Paper- 1939- Promised an end to Jewish
Immigration and an independent Palestinian State.
2. Following the Holocaust displaced Jews moved to
Palestine.
3. 1946- Menachem Begin blows up the King David
Hotel in Jerusalem- Started unstable war between
Zionist, British, and Palestinians
4. British troops left Palestine in 1948, Zionist leaders
proclaimed the Republic of Israel
5. From 1948 to 1970, Israel had 1.3 million Jewish
immigrants become citizens.
6. Kibbutz- Productive farms produced by the Israelis
to turn desert land into productive farm land.
7. In 1956- Israel launched a sudden invasion that
seized the Gaza Strip an Egyptian controlled coastal
district adjoining Israel’s southern border.
8. Suez Crisis- British, French, and Israeli forces tried
to take over the Suez Canal. America was worried
about the Russians, so they made the British remove
their ships. Egyptians believed this to be a victory.
9. Six-Day War- 1967- Israel defeated Egypt, Syria,
Jordan, and Palestine to capture the (Occupied Lands)
Golan Heights, Gaza Strip, West Bank, and the rest of
Jerusalem
10. Palestine Liberation Organization- (PLO)- Led by
Yasir Arafat- Guerrilla Organization
11. Camp David Accords- Peace Treaty between Egypt
and Israel- Anwar Sadat- was assassinated because of
his peace with Israel.
12. Intifada- “Shaking”- Palestinians tried to fight off
Israeli soldiers with rocks. Many Palestinians died.
Soviet Jews were placed in the occupied zones of Israel.
Oil
13. Petrodollars- Money from Oil- Laid the foundation
for social welfare systems and giant economic
development projects throughout the Persian Gulf.
14. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC)-Oil countries that control the regulation of oil
Latin America
15. Latin America- Printed out large amounts of money
to pay back debts. (Hyperinflation)- The rise of prices
to extremely high rates
16. North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)Free trade agreement between Central America,
Mexico, Canada, and United States
17.Cuban Dissidents- People that disagreed with Cuban
Communist Government- Left country and came to
United States- Total of 125,000
18. Medellin Cartel- Cartel of Drug Smugglers led by
Pablo Escobar- Caused many deaths in Columbia and
the major distribution of cocaine in America
American Interests and Complications
19. Watergate Scandal- Burglars broke into Democratic
National Committee Headquarters to steal party
secrets- Connected to President Nixon
20. Carter Doctrine- Declared that any outside forces
trying to gain control of the Persian Gulf region would
be an assault on the vital interest of the United States
Europe
21. Irish Republican Army- (IRA)- Tried to drive
British out of the North and unite all of Ireland.
22. Perestroika- The restructuring of Russia under
more democratic principles- Lead by Mikhail
Gorbachev
23. Helsinki Accords- Endorsed peaceful means rather
than force to settle disputes between nations.
24. Maastricht Treaty- Created European UnionDropping trade barriers among themselves, accepted
idea of common currency, and pursued close
cooperation of defense and foreign relations
Africa
25. Rwanda- Tutsi and Hutu- 1994- An estimated
200,000 or more people mainly Tutsis died.
26. Darfur Conflict- Sudan - The Janjaweed are trying
to cleanse the rest of the groups from existence. They
are committing genocide daily.
27. Somalia- The battle for Somalia involved two
Warlord Groups- America became involved because of
the Islamic Court Union’s support of Al-Qaeda and
genocide of people