Everything is relative. In today’s world, no American can truly understand America without truly understanding China and vice versa. Moreover, nobody can truly understand today’s China, without understanding the Chinese Communist Revolution (1946-1949).
1. What is the Chinese Communist Revolution?
Below is an excerpt from Wikipedia – Chinese Communist Revolution.
The Chinese Communist Revolution, led by the Communist Party of China and Chairman Mao Zedong, resulted in the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China, on 1 October 1949. The revolution began in 1946 after the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) and was the second part of the Chinese Civil War (1945–49).[3] In China, the revolutionary period is known as the War of Liberation.
2. Background
At the end of WWII, China was controlled by two major parties:
- The Kuomintang (aka “Nationalist Party of China”) led the Nationalist Government. Supported by the U.S., it controlled most of China, including all the major cities.
- The Communist Party of China (or CPC), supported by the USSR, controlled a significant portion in the north, mostly countryside.
Both the U.S. and the USSR urged the two parties to reconcile, so as to form some kind of parliamentary system. But Mao wanted no part in it – He wanted to rule China, in its entirety!
The [second phase of the] Chinese Civil War ensued.
3. What is the Chinese Civil War?
Below is an excerpt from Wikipedia – Chinese Civil War.
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war in China fought between the Kuomintang (KMT)-led government of the Republic of China (ROC) and the Communist Party of China (CPC) lasting intermittently between 1927 and 1949. The war is generally divided into two phases with an interlude: from August 1927 to 1937, the KMT-CPC Alliance collapsed during the Northern Expedition, and the Nationalists controlled most of China. From 1937 to 1945, hostilities were put on hold, and the Second United Front fought the Japanese invasion of China with eventual help from the Allies of World War II. The civil war resumed with the Japanese defeat, and the CPC gained the upper hand in the final phase of the war from 1945–1949, generally referred to as the Chinese Communist Revolution.
The Communists gained control of mainland China and established the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, forcing the leadership of the Republic of China to retreat to the island of Taiwan.[7]
4. How did the CPC win the civil war?
Aside from Mao’s brilliance as a military leader, the CPC fought for the poor (and killed the rich), while the Kuomintang fought for the rich.
Chen Cheng, a leader of the Nationalist Government, said it the best:
“We fought for an ideal, but they fought for the people.”
5. Closing
The Chinese Communist Revolution was brutal, with [tens of] millions of people being killed. But China was finally unified, thus ending the century of humiliation.
For more on the subject, read History 2.0 – China’s Comeback vs. America’s Decline.
