China Under Communism World War II to Present World History Mr. Meester

Vocabulary Mao Zedong Great Leap Forward Cultural Revolution Tiananmen Square Deng Xiaoping

Two Chinas struggle for control after WWII A Nationalist government run by Jiang Jieshi ruled south and central China A Communist government led by Mao Zedong flourished in the north. They tried to form a cooperative government It failed, a full-scale civil war began in 1946

Chinese Civil War Mao’s overwhelming support Millions of peasants joined him due to promises of land The middle class due to corruption in Jiang’s government By 1948 Jiang and 2 million of his followers fled to Taiwan. In 1949, Mao Zedong made his victory speech in the capital city of Beijing.

Red China & the World The USSR and China becomes uneasy allies during the 1950’s The United States refused to recognize Mao as the legitimate leader of China They support Jiang and Taiwan as the “Real” China.

The Great Leap Forward 1958 Mao began the Great Leap Forward An attempt to rapidly industrialize both industry & agriculture Private farms were combined into huge people’s communes More than 30,000 farmers on each Bad weather & hatred of the new system caused it to fail Millions died due to starvation In 1960 the communes closed

The Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution was another radical Mao program It eliminated the “four olds”; old ideas, old culture, old customs, & old habits He wanted to purify China of capitalism The country was shut down for 6 months of cleansing Schools, businesses, & the government were the main focus

The Red Guards Anyone who questioned Mao’s ideas saw their property destroyed and/or were viciously attacked by Mao’s Red Guards. Mao formed the Red Guards out of young desperate men and boys They were urged to take to the streets to cleanse Chinese society Only Mao’s death in 1976 would bring change

Red Guards & Mao Little Red Book

USSR and China By the 1960’s border disputes and clashes over communist ideology caused the USSR to withdraw aid and advisors to China. After the split the US allowed China to join the UN to further isolate USSR This began the period of détente Tensions eased between the US, USSR, & China

China after Mao A group of radical reformers led by Deng Xiaoping took control of China after Mao Ended the Cultural Revolution Deng’s government began a policy known as the “Four Modernizations” Improved industry, agriculture, technology, & national defense

Reforms Continue Deng brought back capitalism Foreign investors were invited to China They invested heavily Income levels rose and improvements were made in housing, education, agriculture, and industry Thousands of students were sent to the U.S. to study science and technology

China’s Biggest Failure Deng’s changes still did little to stop the oppressive ways of the Communist government. As more information about the west reached educated Chinese, protests occurred. The largest demonstration took place in Tiananmen Square where student protestors were crushed by the Communist led army. Democracy still remains a dream in China today.

Tiananmen Square