Marxism in China

Hi Friend! 

You must be wondering why I write so many historical blog posts. The truth is, I am studying Humanities in A Levels and have opted for International History as my major. Presenting it in an interesting manner is my forte´. Happy reading!

Communism was undoubtedly extremely popular in the 20^th century. As several countries were left economically and militarily devastated, revolution broke out, governments were overthrown, and power was now in the hands of the common people. However, China was the country most unlikely to embrace communism; Marx’s vision of a godless society based on equality was poles apart from China’s hierarchical social structure. The Kuomintag was rapidly losing popularity; it had promised much but delivered little, and the laymen saw in communism the hope of a better life. The key figure in the growth of communism in China was Mao Zedong. Mao had been present at the meeting that established the Chinese Communist Party [CCP] in 1921. Within a decade, he gained an influential post in the CCP. However, despite having gained a number of followers, he controlled a very small region. Jiang Jieshi’s determination to “purge” the nation of communists gravely endangered Mao’s precarious position. He was forced to retreat to the mountains and carry out guerrilla warfare against the more efficient armies of the Kuomintag. His dream of a national revolution had not materialized. Realizing that he had to escape and seek a safer power base, Mao, along with 1,001,000 communists, broke through the KMT lines and embarked on the Long March. The poor communists faced several obstacles; they were forced to fight against the armies of the KMT, Tibetan tribals, and warlords; they had to pass through 24 rivers and 18 mountain ranges; they endured hunger and cold. These people had proved, by their dedication and fearlessness, that they were the true advocates of the common man. Support for them rapidly began to grow, though their control of China was far from complete. Ironically, the aggressive actions of Japan helped them gain complete control of China.

When the Japanese attacked, Jieshi adopted a policy of non resistance. This made him lose the complete support of the people. The communists, on the other hand, fought and won the battle against the Japanese. This made them heroes in the eyes of the laymen, and communism took china under its wing.

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