Chinese Communist Revolution - Coursework Example

Chinese Communist Revolution The Communist ideology deeply influenced the world nations during the first half of the 20th century. Within this scenario, its influence on China and Russia are most important because both these nations accepted this ideology with ease. One can see that Communist ideology flourished in Russian context, but failed to sustain its influence in the society. On the other side, the masterminds behind the implementation of Communist ideology in China were ready to change and this helped Communism to survive in Chinese context. Besides, China was ready to correct the minor errors within Communism, but did not try to develop a communist bloc in Asia. Similarly, one can see that Chinese Communist Revolution in 1940s (exact year, 1949) determined the future of Communism in China. Before this revolution, China underwent a critical situation, where Civil war, military despotism, and external invasions limited the scope of development and prosperity. In addition, the Civil war helped the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to dethrone Chiang Kai-shek, and eventually led to the revolution, generally known as the Chinese Communist Revolution. Thesis statement: The close examination of the situation in china before Chinese Communist Revolution proves that self-rule, civil war, nationalism, military uprisings, and internal problems haunted the Chinese society, but the situation after Chinese Communist Revolution proves that Communist ideology helped China to inculcate basic elements of communism in the form of constitutional reforms, economic and social reorganization, cultural reforms, and economic reforms, but it results in the ultimate influence of communism within the society, culture, politics, and economy of China. Chinese Communist Revolution: First of all, the Chinese Communist Revolution can be evaluated as the end result of the effort undertaken by the CCP to liberate the people from the military despotism by Chiang Kai-shek. To be specific, the CCP was trying to gain political and military dominance in China since 1921. At that time, the CCP was known as CPC (say, Communist Party of China) and the alliance between the CPC and the KMT (say, Chinese Nationalist Party), during the Second Sino-Japanese War did not hinder the CCP from continuing its fight against the KMT. On the other side, Stalinist Russia decided to help the CPC because their aim was to spread Communist ideology. Clarence Martin Wilbur stated that, “In March 1923, the Russian leadership had decided to assist Dr. Sun’s movement with advisers and financial aid” (80). The end result of all these internal and external problems resulted in the Civil War in the year 1946. But during the Civil War, the nationalists (KMT) enjoyed dominance over the communists (CCP or CPC) because the Chinese society was totally under their control. Besides, the western nations supported them because the spread of Communist ideology was an important problem. Still, Stalin decided to provide arms and ammunition to the revolutionaries. On the other side, economic problems during the Civil War period forced the people of China to think that Communism can solve their problems. But John E. Schrecker argued that, “After all, the Chinese did not have a hereditary aristocracy, and they also had an open market, civilian ideals, and a humanistic philosophy” (94). Gradually, the nationalists began to lose public support and the same was visible in the battlefront. So, the end result was critical for the nationalists because the communists under the leadership of Mao, established a central government in the year 1946, and the same came to be known as the Peoples Republic of China. This section is broadly divided as: the situation in China before the revolution and after the revolution. The situation in China before the revolution: Self-rule: The situation in China, before the revolution was so critical because the imperialists tried to maintain their domination and the revolutionists tried to go beyond imperialism. Unlike other Asian nations, external aggression did not affect the Chinese society. To be specific, at that time some Asian nations were under the direct control of European nations. China did not face this problem, but Qing Dynasty dominated the political context and military forces within this nation. So, one can see that the self-rule propaganda aimed to end the supremacy of Qing Dynasty. In the year 1912, the revolutionaries were able to free the nation from Qing Dynasty and formed people’s own government, named as the Republic of China. Hong Liu made clear that, “On 1 January 1912 the Republic of China (ROC) was founded and on 12 February 1912 the Qing emperor issued the imperial abdication edict, under whose terms the new Republic officially replaced the last dynasty and brought to an end over two millennia of imperial rule in China” (21). Similarly, the protest against the Qing Dynasty was undertaken by a Chinese leader known as Sun Yat-sen. Still, only some among the provinces supported this leader and other provinces were under Yuan Shikai, and Yat-sen decided to transfer the political power to him. One can see that this limited the scope of a civil war in Chinese context, but eventually led to the formation of National Protection Army. After the death of this ruler in 1916, the Chinese warlords began to fight each other to gain political domination. John K. Chang stated that, “Despite the founding of the Republic of China with its republican form of central government, the country was still far from political unity and stability” (7). Within this scenario, Yat-sen once more came to the limelight with his party, known as Kuomintang Party. Eventually, this led to the problems between Yat-sen’s party and the revolutionary party, known as the Communist Party. So, one can see that the effort to create self-rule in China before the revolution resulted in internal problems. Civil War: The Chinese society under the Kuomintang Party did not prosper because the same resulted in the civil war. For instance, China was forced to undergo a violent uprising initiated by the CPC, generally known as the Chinese Civil War. To be specific, the problems between Kuomintang government and the CPC eventually led to the Civil War, which was commenced in the year 1927. Joseph Cummins stated that, “Fought in two lengthy phases over twenty years, this struggle between the forces of Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong resulted in the creation of the People’s Republic of China” (282). Besides, this war resulted in long-lasting after-effects in China because the same helped the nation to be free from unending political problems. One can easily identify that this war is symbolic of the ideological differences between the Kuomintang government (partially imperial) and the CPC (revolutionary). But this war came to an end in 1930s because both the rival parties were against external interference/aggression. To be specific, the Japanese invasion in 1930 forced both the rival parties to fight against the Japanese forces. Still, this can be considered as a momentary ceasefire between the Kuomintang forces and the CPC because the civil war transformed into a violent confrontation in 1940s. Nationalism: The internal problems in China before the revolution resulted in the rapid spread of nationalistic feeling among the people. For instance, some leaders like Chiang Kai-shek began to think that the central government must represent the nationalistic feeling of the people. To be specific, the partial imperial government and the communist government never represent nationalism because the former represents imperialism and the latter represents communism. So, he took control over the city of Nanjing and declared the same as the capital city. Linsun Cheng stated that, “Throughout the Nanjing decade, wars between the Nationalists and regional militarists continued” (67). This initiative helped the society to be free from warlords and people began to feel the importance of a stable government in the centre. One can see that this decade of prosperity in Chinese history begins in the year 1927 and ended after ten years. First of all, the central authority provided ample importance to single party rule, entirely different from warlord rule. Similarly, the government under Kuomintang Party or KMT decided to provide importance to military unification of the nation under a centralized government. Besides, the KMT leadership knew that that political education can help the people to be aware of their responsibilities towards their unified nation. Similarly, the KMT leadership did not ignore the importance of stable government under new constitution. So, one can see that these efforts helped to ignite the feeling of nationalism among the people of China. Military uprising: The Long March, undertaken by the military wing of the Communist party, known as the Red Army, was a planned attempt to wash out the KMT from the national politics of China. Odd Arne Westad stated that, “It was during the Long March that Mao Zedong began to emerge as the leader of the Communist movement throughout China” (26). The masterminds behind the Long March added with military activity can help them to gain importance within the political context of China. But one need to misunderstand that the Long March was single march, aiming to fight against the KMT. Instead, a number of marches were conducted by the communists in the year 1934 to display their military capability. Still, the Long March proves that the communists did not have much military experience to fight with well trained army under the KMT. For instance, Mao was forced to flee from the warfront to save his life. But this initial failure was temporary because the revolutionary army regained their courage and continued their fight against the KMT army. From a different angle of view, the Communist leadership in China, especially Mao, benefited from the Long March. For instance, the Long March helped Mao to have deeper knowledge in military tactics. Later, he made use of this knowledge to combine military capability and political superiority within the context of Chinese national politics. So, one can see that military uprising was not a rare phenomenon before the revolution in China. Instead, military uprisings in the form of Long March helped the communists to divert the people’s fury against the ruling class. Internal problems: Still, the self-rule, civil wars, aggressive nationalism, and military uprising created internal problems within the Chinese society and eventually led to the second civil war and the revolution. To be specific, the second civil war in the year 1946 was the continuation of the first civil war. Michael Lynch stated that, “The lines between Communists and Nationalists were often blurred by the interplay of local activists” (9). Still, the communists were aware of the fact that it is difficult to defeat the Nationalists under Chiang’s leadership. For instance, the Nationalists enjoyed military supremacy because they were supported by the government. On the other side, the Communists knew that the civil war is the best possible way to gain political domination by igniting the spirit of revolution among the people. Besides, they sought help from Stalin because he was ever ready to help the Chinese Communists. The Communists decided to adopt conventional warfare technique to fight against the Nationalist forces. This military tactics used during the Civil War proved to be successful because the Chinese Communists became victorious in the end. The situation in China after the revolution The situation in China after the revolution was comparatively different because communism resulted in constitutional reforms, economic and social reorganization, cultural reforms, and economic reforms. Communism: As pointed out, the revolution resulted in the influence of communism within the Chinese society. For instance, the Peoples Republic of China under communist ideology was established in the year 1949. Michael Lynch stated that, “On 1 October 1949, Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, stood on a balcony of the old imperial palace in Beijing to proclaim the formal establishment of the People’s Republic of China” (1877). The most important figure during the initial stages of the establishment of the communist government is Mao. Besides, this historical juncture within Chinese history is generally termed as the beginning of Mao Era. The establishment of a stable government with centralized authority helped the people to be away from further invasions and internal insurgencies. Besides, the government decided to follow the footsteps of the neighboring communist nation, i.e. the Soviet Union. Gradually, the government decided to end private ownership and the main industries were forced to undergo nationalization. In addition, the Chinese government decided to undertake the responsibility to lead the whole nation towards the realm of industrialization. Similarly, all the major decisions within governance were based upon the basic principles of communist ideology. So, one can see that the influence of communism is evident in the formation and functioning of the Peoples Republic of China after the civil war and the revolution. Constitutional reforms: The communist government expected that constitutional reforms can help the people to be aware of the scope of an innovative constitution based upon communist ideology. Earlier, the constitutional system within China was based upon feudalism and imperialistic interests. To be specific, the basic rights of the commoners were totally ignored because feudalism was a social structure to maintain the authority of imperialism over the mass. But the Chinese Revolution resulted in constitutional reforms in China. To be specific, the Common Program aimed to put forth a futuristic constitution for the people of China. The communist leaders knew that a written constitution can ensure the representation of the suppressed classes within governance. On the other side, the constitutional reforms, including new constitution in the year 1954, aimed to ensure the supremacy of the communist party over the government. Xiaobing Li stated that, “The 1954 Constitution included the president as the chief executive, the State Council as the executive body, the NPC as the main legislative body (a unicameral parliament), and the courts and procurates as the judicial branch” (8). So, the new constitution is the foundation of the communist party’s supremacy in the Chinese society. But initially, the new constitution was projected as an intermediary adjustment. To be specific, the masterminds behind this new constitution expected that the same can accelerate social development in the Chinese society. Still, single party system limits the scope of the constitution and democracy within the Chinese society. Economic and social reorganization: The communist government provided ample importance to economic and social reorganization of the Chinese society. The communist leaders including Mao knew that it is important to help the people to learn the basics of communism by reorganizing the society. To be specific, the success of Soviet Russia helped the Chinese leaders to be hopeful about the future of communist ideology in Chinese context. So, the government undertook the responsibility to educate the people through campaigning. Besides, this campaign is generally known as Great Leap Forward, or the effort to transform the whole nation from agrarianism to industrialism. Mobo C. F. Gao stated that, “However, the Great Leap Forward itself was in full swing only from 1958 to 1959 and did not last much longer than a year before Mao himself started to call for adjustments” (122). The communist leaders were aware of the fact that a society based agricultural economy cannot attain rapid progress. So, the leadership decided to provide utmost importance to industrialization and visualized an economy based upon industries. But the Chinese government’s effort to accelerate industrialization without any planning resulted in severe economic problems in the society. For instance, the peasants who involved in private farming were not allowed to continue the same. When the government decided to take over the farmlands, the rural peasant considered it as injustice and they were forced to undergo forced labor. Besides, policy of Great Leap Forward to transform the Chinese society proved to be an utter failure because it resulted in famine and deaths. The government expected that this policy can reorganize the society from agrarianism to rapid industrialization. But the end result proves that the society was not ready to go through rapid industrialization, totally ignoring agriculture. Cultural reforms: The most important happening within China to reform the cultural aspects of the society- initiated by the Chinese government- was the Cultural Revolution. Besides, this reformatory movement was implemented in the year 1966 and came to an official end in the year 1976. The mastermind behind this movement is Mao, the supreme leadership of the Chinese communists. Richard Curt Kraus stated that, “The Cultural Revolution erupted when Chairman Mao felt shut out by more conservative comrades, and fought to re-impose his influence” (14). This movement aimed to wash out the traditional cultural aspects of the society, related to capitalism. During and after the implementation of the policy of Great Leap Forward, Mao’s ideas attracted criticism. So, he decided to overcome this problem by implementing more strict regulations on the people. From a different angle of view, Mao tried to install his personal ideology (say, known as Maoism) beyond the traditional mode of communism. But this movement affected the political scenario of the Chinese society because Mao proclaimed that class struggle is not over in the Chinese society. Besides, those who protested against the authorities became the victims of suppression. Thousands of people were declared as revisionists and were forced to undergo capital punishment. Besides, the government decided to destroy the traditional symbols of Chinese culture. This infuriated the people, but protest ended up in arrests and unexpected capital punishments. So, one can see that the Cultural Revolution destroyed the traditional cultural characteristics of the Chinese society to an extent. Economic reforms: After the revolution, communism began to exert pressure upon the Chinese economy because the communist leaders like Mao knew that the measures to reform the economy can result in social change. Besides, the communist party decided to follow the economic policies implemented by the Soviet Union. One can see that the implementation of communism in Soviet Union was based upon experimentation purpose and the leaders were aware of the problems related to the same. But the Chinese leadership tried to make use of the revolution as a tool to transform the society without planning. To be specific, the ideas like Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution proved to be unsuccessful because the government was in need of a giant leap from agrarianism to economic prosperity. On the other side, the Chinese policy aiming to attain economic reform was implemented in the year 1978. Bin Liang stated that, “After 1978, China initiated economic reform and practiced the “open door” policy” (17). One can see that the government provided ample importance to socialism within the scenario of economic reforms. Besides, the leaders came to realize that they must not copy or follow the economic policies of other communist nations because the grass-root level reason behind the economic problems faced by China is different. So, the government allowed foreign investors to start their firms in China. Besides, the government provided importance to privatization because the party leaders realized that it is difficult to survive without innovative economic policies in a globalized world. So, innovative economic policies within the control of the central government helped China to play the leading role in the global economy. In short, the Chinese mode of economic reform helped China to continue with communist ideology, but within the direct control of the communist government. Communist China The influence of communism before and after the Chinese Communist Revolution is different because communism can be considered as a medium that altered the Chinese society, culture, politics, economy etc. Before the revolution, the Chinese society felt communism as the urge to agitate against injustice. Besides, Chinese communism was in the stage of experimentation. Joseph K. S. Yick stated that, “In the early stages of the Civil War, the Communists were indeed on the defensive as Nationalists pursued their advantage, but by late 1948 the situation had reversed itself” (xv). The leadership did not have any specific idea on the successful implementation of communist ideology. The Chinese communist leaders expected that the society is ready for a change. Before the revolution, communism was powerless to exert any pressure upon the traditional culture in China. In addition, the society was totally under the influence of imperialism and social structure supported the same. The Chinese leadership accepted the main ideas of communism from Soviet Russia. Similarly, Soviet Russia was ready to help the Chinese leadership. On the other side, the Chinese politics was totally under imperialist interest and the economy supported the same. In short, one can see that communist ideology filled the Chinese society with revolutionary spirit and self-rule. On the other side, the influence of communism after the revolution resulted in rapid social change. For instance, the structure of the society under imperialism was totally restructured and the communist party became the most influential element in the society. Richard McGregor stated that, “Since installing itself as the sole legitimate governing authority of a unified China in 1949, the Party and its leaders have placed its members in key positions in every arm, and at each level, of the state” (n.pag). But the society was not yet ready to undergo rapid social change without any planning or political education. Besides, the policies to restructure the culture and economy proved to be futile. But the political restructuring related to communist ideology proved to be successful within Chinese context because it helped China to have a stable central authority. Still, the Chinese culture faced marginalization and economy faced severe problems. To be specific, the policies adopted immediately after the revolution, to sustain the supremacy of the communist party proved to be ineffective. Within this scenario, Mao’s ideas to implement certain policies and plans led the society towards internal problems. The economic reform during the end of 1970s provided a new direction and hope to Chinese communism in general. In short, Chinese communism learned from its mistakes because the communist leadership was ready to connect the basic aspects of communism with market economy. Summing, it is evident that the situation in china before Chinese Communist Revolution was problematic because the society was totally under the influence of imperialism. Still, the urge to gain independence from imperialism ignited the revolutionary spirit of the Chinese leaders. Still, the common people did now know the importance on self-rule because internal problems haunted the Chinese society as a whole. But the revolutionary leaders made use of the Civil War as an important tool to ignite the spirit of nationalism among the people. To be specific, the central imperial authority was less influential in the Chinese society and this ended up in military uprisings. Gradually, the people began to realize that imperialism cannot help them to attain economic security. So, the people of China co-operated with the revolutionaries. Within this scenario, Soviet Russia’s influence is noteworthy because the Chinese leaders considered Soviet Russia’s prosperity as the end result of communism. On the other side, it is evident that the situation in china after the Chinese Communist Revolution was entirely different because communism deeply influenced the Chinese society as a whole. The constitutional reforms resulted in the restructuring of the society from the commoners to the supreme authority (say, the communist party). In addition, the cultural reforms affected the traditional cultural characteristics of the mainstream society. Similarly, the economic reforms affected the peasants because the government was totally against private ownership. In the beginning, the people hesitated to co-operate, but the government suppressed the protest by making use of the armed forces. During this time, Maoism became an important political ideology within Chinese communism. This created confusion among the people because Mao tried to implement his own ideas and policies related to social reorganization and cultural reforms. But his followers provided ample importance to the basics of communist ideology and amalgamated the same with market economy. This innovative measure helped the whole nation to leap towards prosperity and rapid economic development. In short, the prosperity and development in the current situation in China is deeply indebted to the decision to connect the basic aspects of communist ideology with market economy, not Maoism or similar political ideologies. Works Cited Chang, John K. Industrial Development in Pre-Communist China: 1912-1949. New Jersey: AldineTransaction, 1971. Print. Cummins, Joseph. The War Chronicles: From Flintlocks to Machine Guns. Beverly: Fair Winds, 2009. Print. Cheng, Linsun. Banking in Modern China: Entrepreneurs, Professional Managers, and the Development of Chinese Banks, 1897-1937. 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