20TH CENTURY: THE REVOLUTION IN CHINA

Order Description

20th Century: Chinese Revolution (1911-1949)
Outline
Background of the Revolution: The Underlying Causes
The research question that guides the whole paper is: what were the underlying causes of the Chinese revolution that occurred between 1911 and 1949. The research
question will be answered as outlined in the subtopics below.

Political factors
Poor leadership from the Manchus- After conquering China, the Manchus enjoyed great political influence; however, by the late 19th century and early 20th century,
Manchu leadership was generally lacking (Dreyer 24).
Spread of administrative inefficiency in the ruling government from the top to the bottom levels of leadership- Without an emperor with outstanding leadership
capabilities, government officials became overly incompetent (Dreyer 24). In turn, these officials filled government positions under their jurisdictions with
incompetent public officials. Eventually, the adverse effects of incompetence spread in the entire structure of national governance.
Social Economic Factors
Growing population and increasing social poverty- After enjoying extended periods of peace in the early- and mid-Ch’ing periods, the Chinese population increased
exponentially. However, the country had limited lands available for cultivation as the much of the land was owned by powerful landlords (Pepper 106).
Poor economic condition in the country- The government faced severe economic hard times, partly due to lack of taxable populations, and the presence of endemic
corruption among government officials, who swindled the little taxes collected (Yeh 3).
Ideological Factors
Even though the rulers of the Ch’ing Dynasty had tried to eliminate anti-Manchu attitudes and sentiments in China, they were failed to achieve this objective at the
lowest levels of society, particular in the villages (Dreyer 27). Notably, the influence and control of the central government in the villages was weak.

The Stages of the Revolution
Stage 1: 1911
The revolution began with the fall of the Manchu Dynasty, which had failed to initiate reforms, had weak structures of governance, and attracted revolts from the
citizenry (Paine 32). In the wake of this downfall, Sun Yat-sen assumed the presidency with a goal of executing the philosophies of democracy, nationalism, and
people’s livelihood. Moreover, he aimed at establishing a republic that would westernize; that is, bring democracy and equality in the modernizing China. As such, he
formed the KMT (the Chinese Nationalist Party) in 1912 to serve as his political vehicle.

Stage 2: 1916
The period running from 1916 to 1926 was the Warlord Decade; it saw the establishment of military zones in most parts, where military leaders ruled with impunity
(Paine 36). Additionally, the peasantry, who were the low-class Chinese citizens, faced increased oppression even as cultivatable land became scarce. This situation
created the grounds for the rapid spread of Western artistic, social, and political ideas, particularly in the emerging urban centers.

Stage 3: 1919
Immediately WWI was completed, the Treaty of Versailles was signed, thereby acknowledging Japanese territory in China. This angered the Chinese who refused to append
to the Treaty. The signing of the Treaty led to the May 4th Movement, where about 5,000 students from Peking University took to the streets in opposition to the
development. A major sentiment of the demonstrators was that China needed to modernize and therefore Confucianism and imperialism had to give way (Gong 39).

Stage 4: 1921
The year 1921 saw Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao form the Chinese Communist Party (CPP), where Mao Zedong had been a member (Karl 9). The party was born out of Marxist ideas
and argued that capitalism was an ideology that supported aggression in society. Later, Mao Zedong became the leader of the party and adopted the revolutionary stance
of Russian revolutionary leader, Lenin (Karl 9).

Stage 5: 1923
The year 1923 saw the KMT, and the CPP joined forces to form the First United Front in an attempt to overthrow the warlords (Leutner et al., 12). Their attempts to
spread communism through the National Revolutionary Army was Lenin send in supplies to help in the cause.

Stage 6: 1927
In the year 1927, the KMT, after the successful defeat of the warlords (Gillin 17), ended its alliance with CPP and, in fact, began executing CPP leaders and
followers. Many went into hiding for fear of the KMT-led purge. This period saw Chiang Kai-shek consolidate his position within KMT.

Stage 7: 1928
In 1928, Chiang Kai-shek assumed the Chinese presidency as his Northern Expedition successfully overthrew CPP from power (Leutner et al., 14). Kai-shek rejected
vehemently Western philosophies, most notably democracy, and, instead, promoted the traditional Chinese culture of conservatism.

Stage 8: 1928-1937
The period between 1928 and 1937 can be referred as the Nanjing decade. This is because it is during this period that Kai-shek made Nanjing the capital of the newly
formed Nationalist Republic of China. Indeed, both the governments of the United States and Britain recognized the new republic. However, after pursuing Confucian and
Fascist philosophies, the KMT ignored completely the plight of the peasants, whose quality of life continued to deteriorate rapidly.

Stage 9: 1934
The year 1934 is best described as the year of the long march; it saw the nationalists create a blockade on the Communists, forcing Mao Zedong to flee to the
northwest, where he established his base (Karl 9). Approximately 100,000 Chinese men trekked through the mountainous terrains, where they encountered major hardships.
Many died, and only about 30,000 survived this harsh mountain terrain.

Stage 10: 1949
The year 1949 saw the era of communism begin in earnest in China. Mao Zedong’s Red Army defeated the KMT in the Chinese Civil War of 1946-1949 and took control of
major cities. After assuming the presidency, Mao brought stability thereby marking the end of the revolutionary era. Leaders of the KMT, including Chiang Kai-shek,
fled the country and sought refuge in Taiwan.

Works Cited
Dreyer, Edward L. China at War 1901-1949. New York, NY: Routledge, 2014. Print.
Gillin, Donald G. Warlord: Yen Hsi-shan in Shansi Province, 1911-1949. Princeton, NJ:
?Princeton University Press, 2015. Print.
Gong, H. “Music, nationalism and the search for modernity in China-1911-1949.” New
?Zealand Journal of Asian Studies 10.2 (2008): 38-69. Print.
Karl, Rebecca E. Mao Zedong and China in the twentieth-century world: a concise history.
?London, UK: Duke University Press, 2010. Print.
Leutner, Mechthild, Roland Felber, Mikhail L. Titarenko, and Alexander M. Grigoriev. The
Chinese revolution in the 1920s: between triumph and disaster. New York, NY: RoutledgeCurzon, 2002. Print.
Paine, Sarah CM. The Wars for Asia, 1911–1949. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University
?Press, 2012. Print.
Pepper, Suzanne. “The Political Odyssey of an Intellectual Construct: Peasant Nationalism
and the Study of China’s Revolutionary History—A Review Essay.” The Journal of Asian Studies 63.01 (2004): 105-125. Print.
Yeh, Wen-hsin. Shanghai Splendor: Economic Sentiments and the making of modern China,
?1843-1949. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2007. Print.