We tell you who Mao Zedong was and how he became the main communist leader in China. In addition, the characteristics of your government.
Who was Mao Zedong?
Mao Zedong was a Chinese communist revolutionary politician who ruled the People's Republic of China from 1954 until his death in 1976. Led the Chinese Communist Party (PCCH) during the Chinese Revolution (1949) and established a communist regime that, although with deep modifications, remains in force until today.
Mao is recognized for his struggle and leadership during the Chinese revolution and civil war. He headed the “Great March” (1934-1935), a fact that allowed the flight of communist troops during the Civil War against the nationalist forces, in addition, established as a regime a popular democratic dictatorship when the revolution triumphed.
His Chinese government was marked by the implementation of reforms that transformed the country. Established the basis of communismand for this, it carried out a series of measures known as the “great leap forward” that sought industrialization for the production of goods, the reorganization of land ownership and investment in large infrastructure works for public services, with the aim of improving the quality of life of the population.
However, Economic restructuring had negative consequences And his economic plan was frustrated by problems in industrialization, bad harvests and uprooting generated by the forced relocation of entire populations.
On the other hand, he ruled the “reeducation” of the population, which implied the reproduction of a new social model. In turn, His government was marked by the continuous repression of the dissidents and censorship of the media To maintain control. He carried out different political purges that eliminated the opposition and allowed the party to achieve total control of the device and the state administration. It is estimated that, During his government, more than 23 million people died for hunger, political persecution and poverty.
See also: Chinese Revolution of 1949
Mao Zedong's private life
Mao Zedong was born on December 26, 1986 in Shaoshana rural town in the province of Hunan in China. His family belonged to the middle peasantry and Mao was the oldest of four brothers. His parents possessed properties and means to work the land, but the whole family had to work and Mao had to integrate their primary and secondary education with the work on the family farm.
In 1911, served in the Hunan Army during the Xinhai revolutionwhich led to the fall of the Qing dynasty and the proclamation of the Republic of China. Then, he continued his studies in Changshá, where he met Yang Changj, who became his mentor.
A few years later, he moved to Beijing, where he got work as a library assistant at the university. There he came into contact for the first time with the ideas of the left, both anarchists and communists. It was integrated into different reading groups and study of social thought.
In 1919, he moved to Changsha, where he founded a study society with other collaborators; And then to Shanghai, one of the largest cities in the country. There he met different political activists. In 1920, he married Yang Kaihui (daughter of his mentor Yang Changj), who would be executed by the Kuomintang forces in 1930, during the Chinese civil war. Then, he married on two other occasions with He Zizhen (1930-1937) and with Jiang Qing (1939-1976).
In July 1921, he participated in the Foundation of the Chinese Communist Party (PCCH), organized by Chen Duxiu and Li Dizhao (who was his boss in the Library of the University of Beijing).
Mao Zedong's political life
Militancy and growth in the PCCH
Although Mao participated in the foundation of the Chinese Communist Party (PCCH) in 1921, it did not take a central place in the dynamics of the party until the mid -1930s.
During the first years, the PCCH's leadership was linked to the influence of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union that ruled Russia and the rest of the constituent republics since the end of the Russian civil war. In turn, Mao's militancy was marked by the development of political events in China.
Between 1922 and 1926, He worked for the United Front, a political alliance between the PPCH and the Kuonmitang (The Chinese Nationalist Party, the main agent of the 1911 revolution that overthrew the Qing dynasty and founded modern China).
The Chinese revolution
Between 1927 and 1937, along with other PPCH leaders, led the communist reaction against the advances of the Kuomintang during the first stage of the Chinese civil war. During those years, Mao led strikes and armed demonstrations in Shanghai, Nanchang, Canton and other important cities.
Given the continuous repression, Mao sought refuge in the mountainous region of Hunan and Jiangxi, where organized communist resistance as a guerrilla war. From there, Mao directed the peasant base revolution, organized the communist army and founded a revolutionary government in the Hunan region. However, it is defeated by Chiang Kai-Shek.
Mao ordered the withdrawal of communist troops, in what was called The “Great March”, which implied a flight for more than a year and the 12,500 kilometers route through the mountainous region, to the province of Shanxi. During this hard period Mao was consolidated as the fundamental leader of the PCCH.
After a truce with the Kuomintang to face the Japanese invaders (1937-1945), Mao directed the communist army to the Civil War against the nationalists of Chiang-Kai-Chek. The communist revolution triumphed in front of the nationalist forces and on October 1, 1949, the People's Republic of China was proclaimed. In that context, Mao was appointed as president of the Council of Ministers and, in 1954, He achieved the Presidency of the Republic.
Government of the People's Republic of China
When assuming the government, Mao headed the political and economic restructuring of China. In relation to the political system, it established a regime called “popular democratic dictatorship.” Through this regime, the PCCH consolidated the control of all aspects of government.
The rest of the matches were prohibited and Political participation was monopolized by the PCCH. To make its control, it carried out a political cleaning inside and outside the party, in order to eliminate the opposition and the dissidents. He also established the censorship of the press and carried out “reeducation” programs of the population, with the aim of providing a new model of society.
The new government established central planning as an economic system and headed a series of reforms to restructure the national economy. In 1958, he launched the economic program known as the “Great Leap forward.” The plan implied a series of investments in infrastructure in works of communication, transport, hygiene and health, with the aim of improving the quality of life of the population.
On the other hand, he nationalized some branches of the industry and made a series of key investments to promote country industrialization and generate a goods production economy. In addition, it carried out different rural initiatives to improve the living conditions of the poor peasantry and increase the performance of agricultural production.
However, the economic program ended up having negative effects. Many peasants were sent to work as workers in the steel industry, which implied the relocation and uprooting of entire populations.
There were serious problems with crops and agricultural production, which led to a food shortage, and the population had to cross serious famine. Given this situation, The strikes and demonstrations multiplied and the Maoist government responded with a hard repression.
This situation led to Mao's power to weaken within the PCCH and other leaders begin to question their leadership. In response, in 1966 Mao carried out an initiative called “Cultural Revolution”, which implied a second purge within the rows of the party and in the Bureaucracy of the Government to try to restore its control. Mao called his faithful militants and the Red Army to clean those elements they considered were a disruption and, therefore, a danger to their government.
The consequences of the Maoist economic program and repressive policies were very hard for the Chinese population. It is estimated that About 23 million people died during the Maoist government Due to famines, repression during army manifestations and purges during the “cultural revolution.”
International policy during the Mao government
Regarding international relations, the People's Republic of China He aligned with the USSR at the beginning of the Cold War, with the signing of the Chinese-Soviet alliance on February 14, 1950. He supported the communist forces in Korea and Vietnam. At the death of Stalin (leader of the Soviet Union), Mao supported Jrushchov before the problem of the Hungarian revolution (1956).
However, Mao distanced himself from the Soviet policies implemented by Jrushchov and the Chinese-Soviet relations were stressed. He criticized the deestalination and the initiative to approach with the United States (called “Pacific coexistence). Finally, between 1960 and 1962, after the growth of tensions, the rupture of Chinese-Soviet relations became official.
In that context, Mao began An open struggle policy against American imperialism. However, towards the end of his government (especially with the resurgence of relations between the Soviet Union and the United States) he modified this policy and, on the other hand, proposed an approach to the American power.
In 1972, President Richard Nixon visited China and this approach allowed him to make the country a permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Last years of Mao Zedong
Although Mao's “cultural revolution” had the objective of restoring his control within the communist state bureaucracy, since the early 1970s, Mao's power was increasingly weakened.
His state of health began to deteriorate and different leaders of the PCCH began to compete for power within the party. Finally, on September 9, 1976 Mao Zedong died after a third heart attack. His body embalmed and exhibited in the great town hall, where he received the visit of more than one million people.
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References
- FUSI, JP (2020). Mao Zedong. In Ideas and power: 30 biographies of the twentieth century. Turner
- Schram, Stuart Reynolds (2022). “Mao Zedong”. Britannica Encyclopedia.
https://www.britannica.com/ - Van Dijk, R., Gray, WG, Savranskaya, S., Suri, J., & Zhai, Q. (eds.). (2013). “Mao Zedong.” Encyclopedia of the Cold War. Routledge.
