1. Communist China
SS7H3d Describe the impact of Communism in China in terms of Mao Zedong, the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and Tiananmen Square.

3. Chiang Kai-shek
leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s
attempted to wipe out the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1934
improved transportation, education, and industry, but failed to improve the lives of peasants in China-this led to the resurgence of the CCP

4. Communism
an economic and political system in which property is owned collectively and labor is organized in a way that is supposed to benefit all people; the government controls all resources (natural, capital, and human)

5. Mao Zedong established China as a communist state in 1949
attempted to strengthen China economically by instituting the Great Leap forward in 1958
his programs backfired and production in farms and factories actually decreased
20 million Chinese starved to death as a result

6. Long March
Mao Zedong’s Red Army marched 6,000 miles through swampland and over mountains to escape Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist (KMT) forces;
Less than 20,000 of the 100, 000 that started the journey survived; the communists gained peasant support along the way

7. Communist Revolution
Chiang Kai-shek joined forces with Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party following the Japanese invasion of China at the start of World War II
When World War II ended the two sides turned on each other again
Communists defeated the Nationalists (Kuomintang) in 1949 and Mao declared China a Communist state called the People’s Republic of China;
Chiang Kai-shek and the Nationalists fled to what most people call Taiwan
Great Leap Forward Video Segment

8. Great Leap Forward
Series of policies that Mao Zedong thought would help China to become equal to the West in agricultural and industrial production
Established “Collectives”: government-owned farms that employed large numbers of workers
Shattered China’s economy; poor agricultural production, droughts, and floods caused famine and 20 million Chinese starved in less than 2 years

9. 1958: The Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward took place in The Great Leap Forward was Mao’s attempt to modernize China’s economy so that by 1988, China would have an economy that rivaled America.

10. 1958: The Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward planned to develop agriculture and industry. Mao believed that both had to grow to allow the other to grow. To allow for this, China was reformed into a series of communes.

11. 1958: The Great Leap Forward
The geographical size of a commune varied but most contained about 5000 families. The life of an individual was controlled by the commune. Schools, nurseries, and “Houses of Happiness” were provided by the communes so that all adults could work.

12. Great Leap Backwards???
By the end of 1958, 700 million people had been placed into 26,578 communes.
In 1959, things started to go wrong. Political decisions/beliefs took precedence over common sense and communes faced the task of doing things which they were not able to accomplish. Commune leaders, who knew what their commune was capable of doing or not, could be charged with being a "bourgeois reactionary" if he complained. Such a charge would lead to prison.

13. Great Leap Backwards???
Quickly produced farm machinery made in factories fell to pieces when used. Many thousands of workers were injured after working long hours and falling asleep at their jobs.

14. Great Leap Backwards???
The excellent growing weather of 1958 was followed by a very poor growing year in Some parts of China were hit by floods. In other growing areas, drought was a major problem.

15. Great Leap Backwards???
1960 had even worse weather than Nine million people are thought to have starved to death in 1960 alone. The government had to introduce rationing. This put people on the most minimal amount of food and between 1959 and 1962, it is thought that 20 million people died of starvation or diseases related to starvation.

16. Great Leap Backwards???
Some party members put the blame of the failure of the Great Leap Forward on Mao. He was popular with the people but he still had to resign from his position as Head of State (though he remained in the powerful Party Chairman position).

17. What to do next?
The day-to-day running of China was left to three men. In late 1960, they abandoned the Great Leap Forward. Ownership of land was given back to individuals and communes were cut down to a manageable size.

18. What to do next?
These three leaders had cut down on Mao’s power but his reputation among the ordinary Chinese people was still great because he was seen as the leader of the revolution. He was to use this popularity with the people to gain back his authority at the expense of the new leaders. This was in the so-called Cultural Revolution.

19. Cultural Revolution
Mao Zedong launched programs to wipe out past culture and history as well as foreign influence
Red Guards - high school students were encouraged to form groups called Red Guards-these groups had the government’s permission to smash books, artwork, religious temples, or anything else that showed connections to China’s past
Cultural Revolution Video

20. 1966-1976: The Chinese Cultural Revolution
In 1966, after spending years studying political economy and the classics of Chinese history, Mao was ready to act.

21. 1966-1976: The Chinese Cultural Revolution
Mao launched the Cultural Revolution in August of 1966 in front of the Central Committee when he called for Red Guards to challenge Communist Party officials for their lack of revolutionary vision.
Mao and his group of radicals were still in control of the government.

22. The Changing of the Guard
After years of turmoil and power struggle within the country involving offshoots of Mao’s revolutionary group—including the radical group led by Mao’s wife, Jiang Qing, Mao died in September of 1976.

23. The Changing of the Guard
A coalition of army and political leaders united and arrested Jiang Qing and her radical supporters called the Gang of Four.
In 1977, Deng Xiaoping emerges as the supreme leader of the People's Republic of China.

24. Mao Dies 1980 Deng Xiaoping was named the leader of China
He had been with Mao since the Long March but was more moderate
Began to allow farmers to own some of their own land
Allowed some private business to organize
Opened China to foreign investment and technological advances

25. 1989
When communism was under attack around the world, there were protests in China
Tiananmen Square: over 10,000 students gathered to protest what they felt was corruption in the Chinese government
They called for a move toward democracy
Deng Xiaoping ordered government troops to end the protest.
Goddess of Democracy: a statue raised by the student protestors that was modeled on the US Statue of Liberty
Tiananmen Square