China part 1 - to 1949
Cards (61)
- China in early 1900s- growing trade of natural resources eg tea, sugar, silk, opium which could easily travel through country in natural rivers- Shanghai had become major port for import and export of good- ruled by emperor since 2000BC who had the Mandate of Heaven- imperial system based on Confucius
- population of China 1900300 million divided into four ethnic groups:- Han (90%)- Manchu (ruled China)- Mongol- Tibetanmost people were peasants
- how was the emperor beginning to lose the Mandate of Heaven by the early 20th century?China was repeatedly humiliated by foreign powers who wanted to extend power and wealth in China, so authority of emperor weakened- Britain gained wealth after opium trade and victory in opium wars- Japan defeated China in war in 1894 and took control of Korea- France seized territory in the South
- causes of Boxer Uprising- 1898 Emperor Guangxu put in 100 Days Reform to modernise gov and end criticism of Qing but Empress Dowager Cixi opposed this so seized control of gov and ended the reforms- hatred of 'foreign devils'- Cixi encouraged attacks on foreigners to avoid criticism of imperial rule
- why did the Chinese hate the 'foreign devils'?- hatred of religion (missionaries tried to convert them from traditional Confucianism and Buddhism to Christianity)- fear of technology eg railways (disturbed dragons) and telegraph wires ('poisonous')- Qing had given foreign powers right to exploit China's economic resources
- events of Boxer Uprising- late 1890s, Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists (Boxers) carried out attacks on foreigners and Chinese Christians- Boxers were mostly peasants who suffered after famine, flooding and believed concessions to foreigners made their lives harder- Boxers attacked Christian missionaries, burned their churches and schools and killed them- spread to Beijing and German ambassador shot- Western pop. retreated to British legation and surrounded by siege for 55 days- Cixi supported Boxers- Cixi declared war on foreigners but couldn't defeat defences of legation- Westerns raised international force and broke siege and executed Boxers on street- Cixi and emperor fled to Xian
- impact of Boxer Uprising- severe financial penalty (Western powers demanded £67 million to be paid over 39 years)- Westerners insisted on destruction of China's military fortifications and arsenals of weapons- ten officials executed- foreign soldiers placed permanently in Beijing- authority of Cixi damaged upon 1902 return- Cixi started reforms but was not enough- ultimately lead to 1911 revolution and fall of Qing
- self strengthening and reform 1902-11- 1902 abolition of foot binding- 1905 reform of civil service (removals of traditional exam which had led to Mandarin domination of civil service)- 1908 establishment of 'new Army' under Manchu control- 1909 intro of provincial assemblies with limited right to vote- 1910-11 establishment of National Consultative Council to advise gov- nationalism of railways for greater control by Qing gov- educational reforms with establishment of new naval and military academies and intro of scholarships for students to study abroad
- causes of 1911 revolution: weak gov- 1908 Emperor Guangxu and Empress Cixi died- new emperor Puyi two years old- Prince Chun ruled as regent to save dynasty by continuing Cixi's reform but too inexperienced
- causes of 1911 revolution: failure of political reforms- 1909-11 reforms too little and too late- Manchu domination in councils increased Han resentment of gov- only 0.4% had right to vote- led to calls for faster reform but gov failed to do so
- causes of 1911 revolution: consequences of army reform- Chun increased taxes on tea, wine, salt and land to pay for army reform- on top of taxes to pay for reparations after Boxer Uprising- Prince Chun dismissed General Yuan Shikai (too powerful) so he declared he would get revenge, creating powerful enemy to regime
- causes of 1911 revolution: spread of revolutionary ideas- Sun Yat-sen (educated in West) brought ideas of nationalism and republicanism to China- believed that Qing had to be overthrown for China to modernise- forced in exile 1895-1911 but ideas spread- popular among young Chinese men who had been educated in Japan after scholarship reform
- causes of 1911 revolution: growing resentment over the control of China's railways- nationalisation (takeover by state of private companies and businesses) increased Manchu control of provinces- owners angry that they did not receive full compensation after giving up ownership- Qing borrowed money from Western powers for expansion of railways- granted further concessions to foreign companies to build lines- looked as though they were partners
- events of 1911 revolution- 9 Oct 1911 young revolutionaries exploded a bomb they were preparing for later use- accident but provided signal for wider revolt- next day, 'Double Tenth' soldiers in Wuhan began muting (rebellion against commanders)- all but three provinces in Beijing revolted and declared themselves independent from gov- Han soldiers massacred Manchu troops- Yuan Shikai agreed to put down rebellion for gov but instead supported rebels when reaching Wuhan- he returned to Beijing to form Han government
- results of 1911 revolution- November, Sun Yat-sen offered position as president- Yuan Shikai persuaded him to step down and allow Yuan to be president- in return, he would persuade Manchus to abdicate & replace imperial with republic system- Yuan was not republican, wanted to be emperor- Sun Yat-sen agreed because he did not have military support- Yuan abdicated 5 year old Puyi
- Yuan Shikai as leader- ruled as dictator with military support from 1912-16- 1915 wanted to make himself emperor but this was unpopular with Sun's Guomindang party- military governors in provinces feared they would lose authority if Yuan had more power- Yuan accepted most of Japan's Twenty-One Demands so army revolted against him in Dec- forced to abandon plan as emperor and died of stroke in June 1916
- Japan's Twenty-One Demands- issued by Japan to strengthen position in WW1- eg control China's factories, railway lines, ports, force China to appoint Japanese political and military advisors etc- would result in loss of independence
- warlord era1916-1927- after Yuan's death, no military general to rule so central government (decentralisation)- hundreds of warlords (powerful local generals) ruled own provinces- ran own legal and financial systems, collected taxes and terrorised populations (cruel rulers)- none of them prepared to give up private armies or submit to outside authority- made agreements with foreign powers who wanted to protect their economic interests in China- when drought struck in 1918 and fooding 1923-25, no central gov to organise relief
- examples of warlords- Feng Yuxiang: 'Christian General' baptised troops, believed in moral values and refused troops to fight with one another- Zang Zongzhang: violent, 'splitting melons'- Zhang Zuolin: cruel punishments so soldiers didn't attempt mutiny; once beheaded two soldiers for entering theatre without paying
- May the Fourth Movement- Treaty of Versailles stated that Japan would be given German possessions in Shandong province- 4 May 1919 3,000 students from Beijing University led protest at Tiananmen Square- rebelling against gov not resisting humiliating treatment of China, and warlords- strikes and protests spread to other cities- as a result, China gov refused to sign treaty- brought New Tide (rejection of old-fashioned ideas, adoption of modern beliefs such as freedom, democracy and equal rights)
- causes of May the Fourth Movement (8)One of the causes of the May the Fourth Movements was that after the First World War ended, Japan was given German possessions in the Chinese Shangdong province as a repayment for helping the Allies (due to the Treaty of Versailles). China had also expected repayment (since China had been involved in the war by helping to construct trenches etc for the Allies), so they were angered by the fact that they had lost land that was rightfully theirs instead of gaining anything from their participation. This especially outraged the youth, leading to protests which eventually evolved into the May the Fourth Movement. Another cause of this movement was the increase of warlordism. After the fall of a central government due to the death of Yuan Shikai, warlords ruled their own provinces of China. This meant that China was not united and it caused suffering for the population; the warlords were cruel and after natural disasters such as droughts and floods struck China, no relief or help for the people was put in place. Because of this, the people of China turned to revolutionary ideas, which helped to inspire the May the Fourth Movement.
- Guomindang (GMD)- when Sun Yat-sen returned to China in 1917, he set up nationalist party GMD in Guangzhou- 'Three Principles of the People' emphasised people as whole rather than rights & freedoms of individual- 1924 established Whampoa Military Academy to train GMD soldiers (to overthrow warlords to take control of China)- GMD became military organisation, army known as New Republican Academy (NRA)- Bolshevik advisers: Alfred Joffre organised negotiations, Mikhail Borodin helped acquire arms and approved Chiang Kai-Shek as head commander of army- Sun Yat-Sen died in 1925 and Chiang succeeded and led Northern Campaign(relied on businessmen for financial support who wouldn't accept communism and its aim to overthrow capitalism)
- Three Principles of the Peoplenational livelihood- to remove foreigners and restore China's nationalismdemocracy principle- Chinese people to control their own gov through electionspeople's welfare- to solve problem of poverty in China by developing gov-owned industries and protecting native industry from foreign power
- Chinese Communist Party (CCP)- May 4th spread ideas eg communism- Chinese communists believed they could achieve a successful revolution in China like Russia in 1917 (both countries were politically and economically old-fashioned)- CCP founded in secret in girls' school in Shanghai in June 1921- Chen Duxui from May 4th was general secretary, Mao part of 12 leaders- only 50 members when founded
- influence of Soviet Union- Bolsheviks wanted to encourage spread of revolution and protect border with China- to achieve this best, they worked with GMD- CCP was too small for revolution, conditions in China not ready for Marxist revolution (mostly peasants) and GMD's three principles similar to communist ideas- through Comintern, Soviet gov encouraged CCP to work with GMD to overthrow warlords- 1923 CCP co-operated with and became group within GMD (they received 5000 USD per year)
- Common aims of United Front- destroy warlords- expel foreigners from China- improve lives of ordinary Chinese people
- what encouraged the formation of a United Front 1924-27?- 30 May Incident 1925: Shanghai protest of workers stopped when British commander shot into crowd, killing 12- confirmed that internal and external enemies could only be removed by force- United Front formed- 1926 Chiang called on members to destroy warlords, launching Northern Expedition
- Northern Expedition (1926-1928)- military strategy: surround each warlord's army cut off supply lines to steadily destroy it- Soviet adviser Galen made NRA effective force- troops taught to treat local peasants with respect and pay for food to win their support- by summer 1927, controlled central China and by 1928 controlled east with 250,000 army men- April 1928 drove out Zhang Zuolin and declared that GMD was legal gov of China
- reasons for victory of United Front- strength and tactics of United Front compared to private armies of warlords- role of Communists in gaining support of peasants for the United Front- deals made by Chiang with the warlords; he bribed individual warlords, allowing them to keep private armies if they submitted to GMD control
- Shanghai Massacres (1927)- GMD could take control of Shanghai since Communists had built strong trade union there- 2 weeks after, Chiang turned on Communists- supported by industrialists and traders who opposed trade unions, and by foreigners who were afraid of losing economic interests- 'White Terror' - began frenzy of killing, supported by violent secret societies and gangs- 5,000 Communists killed- spread to eg Hunan where a quarter million were killed
- Autumn Harvest UprisingAug-Sept 1927- Mao and Communists didn't follow Comintern orders to continue United Front- staged Autumn Harvest Uprising but army too small to take on NRA- forced to flee up Jiangxi mountains- set up Chinese Soviet Republic (Jiangxi Soviet) to govern province and remained for 7 years
- First Extermination Campaign- Chiang believed Communists were bigger threat than warlords- Oct 1930, 44,000 NRA troops directed at Communists in Jiangxi- intended to surround and destroy Communists but they tricked NRA to enter territory of traps- Communists captured commander of first army unit, cut out his tongue and beheaded him- Communists used Guerilla tactics
- Second Extermination Campaign- Chiang directed 100,000 troops in July 1931- caught Reds by surprise but cautious strategy of moving slowly to avoid ambush meant that smaller communist forces escaped- NRA opposition from peasants, not enough food and caught dysentery- troops reacted violently by burning villages, massacring inhabitants and seizing crops- lack of peasants was key reason for failure
- extermination campaigns continued...- over a million peasants killed by GMD from 1930-34- larger numbers of GMD began to wear down communist forced
- 5th Extermination Campaign- autumn 1933, GMD launched 5th campaign- Nationalists established blockade around soviet to deprive them of food- built 11,000km roads into soviet for faster movement of troops- General Hans von Seeckt (Chiang's new adviser) advised blockhouse tactics and defences to force back Communists so NRA had shelter- scorched earth policy used so Reds had to fight a static war- Otto Braun advised Communists abandon Guerilla, instead pitched battles but surrounded by four lines of blockhouses & no food- Oct 1934, Reds had to abandoned Jiangxi Soviet after losing 60,000 soldiers and half of territory
- causes of Long March- extermination campaigns weakened CCP- GMD tactics eg blockade-like tactics and scorched earth policy
- Long March 1934- no plan of final destination- 6 weeks to break out of blockhouses- followed by GMD army and fought battles against them until safety in Yanan- led by Comintern adviser Otto Braun who encouraged Red Army to fight with GMD forced in urban areas, but lead to heavy losses- Xiang river lost half troops fighting against GMD- after Zunyi meeting in Jan 1935, developed new tactic leading army in surprising directions, dividing & regrouping forces, across mountains, rivers and deserts- crossed Yangtze River and Dadu river (22 soldiers swung across river on chains while enemy shot at them)- arrived at Yanan in Oct 1935- 10,000 of 80,000 survived- at this time, Chiang's gov was officially recognised by the West and USSR, and Nationalist control of China was secure
- Zunyi meeting- Zunyi meeting in Jan 1935, Mao Zedong and Zhu De (ex-warlord) became leaders of party- Braun blamed for the defeat at Xiang river- (he let them carry too much equipment and the retreat was in a straight line, which helped the GMD predict where the CCP were headed)
- positive impacts of Long March- Mao's position as leader confirmed- propaganda and provided martyrs- promoted comradeship and self-sacrifice- new base at Yanan to develop Chinese Communism- Red Army won support of peasants as they march through villages
- negative impacts of Long March- 10,000 of 80,000 survived- Nationalist control of China was certain whilst CCP struggled to survive- GMD called it the Great Retreat- no certainty that Yanan Soviet would survive