Practicing 1a The solution lies in enlarging

the agricultural units . . . and in changing the agricultural base of our national economy. . . .the Socialist way, which is to set up collective farms and state farms which leads to the joining together of the small peasant farms into large collective farms, technically and scientifically equipped, and to the squeezing out of the capitalist elements from agriculture. . . . Now we are able to carry on a determined offensive against the kulaks, to break their resistance, to eliminate them as a class and substitute for their output the output of the collective farms and state farms.

- Stalin, 1929

What are some messages of this source?

Practicing 1B What are some

messages of this cartoon?

Background Deep political and

cultural history

Often dealing with divisions, manifested in the Civil War

Reasons why influence of Europeans was easily felt

Political chaos for the first half of the 20th century

Long-Term Causes

Socio-economic Factors 1900, China ruled by the

imperial Manchu dynasty

Population was mostly peasant Hard life, most extremely

poor, subsistence farmers Paid the taxes for imperial

court Faced starvation through

floods Population grew by 8 percent

in second half of 1800s, land cultivated only by 1 percent Famines more frequent

Land reduced, rents increased Some driven to the cities

where there was already high unemployment Improved technology and

western imports

Political Weakness and Influence of Foreign

Powers Century before the Civil War

Europeans had humiliated and exploited China

Totally destabilized the rile Manchu regime

Britain had defeated China in the mid 19th century Opium Wars

China had been carved up into spheres of influence America and Japan joined

in China forced to sign unequal

treaties over trade, territory, sovereignty

Foreigners established their own courts after not abiding Chinese laws

Missionaries attempted to spread Christianity

Inflation and corruption amongst local officials

Political Weakness and Influence of Foreign

Powers 1850 Taiping Rebellion throughout

southern China

Lasted until 1864, was both religious and political

Put down by regional armies A sign of loss of central control Moving towards an era of warlords

Attempts to resist Western control by sections of educated elite in China Self-strengthening movement divided Manchus did not support reform Defeated by Japan in 1895 Lost more territory after Russo-

Japanese War in 1905

Boxer Rebellion in 1899 Doomed to fail without modern

weapons

Overthrow of the Manchu Dynasty

China in such a desperate condition that there had been talk of overthrowing the Manchus as early as 1900s China could be

Westernized

Political weakness was intensified with the death of the Emperor Pu-Yi was the successor,

two years old Prince Chun ruled as

regent, his Uncle, incapable of reform

Dismissed all opposition, increased taxation and frustrated the business classes

Overthrow of the Manchu Dynasty

October 1911, Double Tenth Revolution, republic created

Government lost control of the military, soldiers revolted and rebellion spread

Most provinces declared themselves independent of Beijing

Impact of imperialism, anti-foreignism and political weakness, cause of the rebellion, will be cause of the Civil War

November 1911, delegates from independent provinces gathered in Nanjing to declare the creation of a Chinese Republic, Dr Sun Yixian asked to lead, had been in exile in US

Overthrow of the Manchu Dynasty

Imperial government attempted to use a leading general, Yuan Shikai to suppress the rebellion Double-crossed them, arranging

a deal with Sun Yixian Sun agreed to allow Yuan to be

President of the new republic in exchange for end of the Manchu rule

February 12, 1912 Pu Yi abdicated

Revolution was incomplete No real introduction of

democracy Officials kept their positions Had not been led by the middle

classes Military first, then radicals Revolt of the provinces

towards the center Central autocracy vs. local

autonomy

Rule of Yuan Shikai Ruled China as a military

dictator from 1912 until 1915

Regionalism continued

Sun’s party reformed as the Guomindang in 1912 and declared itself a parliamentary party

Three guiding principles Nationalism Democracy People’s Livelihood, land

reform and economic development

Rule of Yuan Shikai Sun agreed to Yuan’s rule in order to

avert the possibility of Chinese Civil War Republicans not powerful enough at

this stage to take on the military Lesson that both the GMD and Chinese

communists would learn – needed military power

Sun attempted to undermine Yuan’s power by moving him from Beijing to Nanjing to set up a new government

At this point, the GMD only a regional power in the southern provinces, republicans were not organized enough to resist Yuan Second revolution failed and Sun fled

to Japan in 1913

Yuan took himself down Abolished regional assemblies, tax

revenues were strictly controlled, proclaimed himself Emperor in 1916 and lost the support of the military, stood down, died three months later

Short-term Causes

Political Weakness: The Warlords 1916 - 28

Lack of unity in the country by the second decade of the 20th century, regionalism a major factor

Death of Yuan meant China lost the only figure of unity

Broke up into small states and provinces, each controlled by a warlord and private army Ran territories independently,

organizing and taxing, own laws and currencies

Sought to expand power, peasants who suffered in continuous wars

None of the warlords was willing to relinquish his armies or power to central government

This period increased Chinese humiliation, coupled with desire to get rid of foreign influence, led to increased nationalism

May Fourth Movement Two political movements developed in

response

May Fourth Movement in 1919 Students led a mass demonstration in

Beijing against the warlords, traditional Chinese culture and the Japanese

Hostility had been ignited by the Versailles settlement, which had given Japan the Shandong province

China like Italy in that sense

Movement was dedicated to change and rebirth Inspired by the Bolsheviks

Stage that led to Chinese communism

Also inspired by the GMD nationalist party, which had grown much stronger during the warlord period

Two groups, communists and nationalists, were to come together in an alliance in 1922

Communists and Nationalists

Sun died in 1925, GMD had made little progress towards fulfilling Three Principles

Limited by lack of power beyond the south, fact they had to rely on alliances with warlords due to to weakness of military power

General Jiang Jieshi took over the GMD, committed nationalists Military training in Japan and

USSR Soviets had begun to invest in

GMD

Other revolutionary party emerged, Chinese Communist Party Mostly intellectuals, no military

strength Reasons the GMD and CCP would

cooperate together Also suggested by the USSR

Attempts to Unify: The First United Front

Both the GMD and CCP wanted a united China Agreed they must get rid of warlords,

formed the First United Front Also to get rid of foreign imperialist

powers

Jiang was not a communist, removed a lot of them from the GMD Did not break the alliance, needed the

CCP at first

First United Front set out on Northern Expedition in 1926 to crush the warlords of central and northern China, great success 1927, had captured Hangzhou,

Shanghai, Nanjing 1928, Beijing Took two years, GMD declared itself

the legitimate government and new capital was at Nanjing

Immediate Causes

GMD Attacks the CCP Had only been a friendship of

convenience

War against warlords was over, ideological differences remained

Communists had promised land to peasants along Northern Expedition Gave them support, also had

it front industrial workers

Their popular support made Jiang decide he could no longer tolerate them in the GMD Jiang was far more to the

right than Sun had been CCP needed to be crushed

before China could be unified

GMD Attacks the CCP Jiang expelled all communists,

implemented “White Terror” in April 1927 Employed triads and

gangsters, 5,000 killed Became known as the

purification movement Victims were

communists, trade unionists, peasant leaders

Attempts to resist were futile, CCP was nearly crushed by the end od 1927

Comintern asked the CCP to retain United Front CCP instead flees to the

mountains of Jiangsi GMD pursued them, civil war

had begun