events of the chinese civil war - part 1

What was the name of the Conference where Otto lost power and Mao gained it?

Zunyi Conference

What was the Zunyi Conference?

A communist leadership meeting from January 15th to 17th 1935 that resulted in Otto Braun losing influence and Mao gaining much greater control.

Why did they have this Communist discipline?

To gain and maintain peasant support.

Why was Communist discipline important?

The Red Army was expected to treat peasants respectfully, pay for goods and avoid damaging property.

What was important about the second Northern Campaign?

It allowed the KMT to establish much greater territorial control over China and capture Beijing.

Why was Mao’s approach different from Marxism?

Mao placed much greater emphasis on the peasantry as the revolutionary force rather than relying primarily on an industrial working class.

Why was the Jiangxi Soviet important?

It allowed the CCP to establish its own political and military organisation and develop support among peasants.

During the Nanjing Decade, there was economic growth and modernisation of…

9%, however there were many problems.

The period of KMT rule from 1927/8 to 1937 was known as…

The Nanjing Decade

After arriving in Yang in Shaanxi, what did the CCP introduce there?

Land reform, where estates of the richest landlords were redistributed and interest free loans were given to peasants.

What was one of the major moments during the Long March?

The crossing of Dadu River, where soldiers had to swing across the river gorge on chains. This became a specific moment of propaganda for the CCP afterwards.

When the party reached Yunan province, who was the undisputed leader of the CCP?

Mao Zedong as Otto Braun was suspended.

How long did the Long March last?

368 days, from October 16th 1934 to October 22nd 1935

Describe the events of The Long March.

On October 16th 1934, some 87,000 soldiers of the Red Army retreated. It took the Red Army six weeks to break through the blockhouse rings encircling Jiangxi. Soon after they broken through they were forced to fight a major battle at the Xiang River from November 25th to December 3rd 1934. They lost 45,000 men.

What took place because the CCP were forced to flee?

The Long March

However, Otto Braun’s tactics of staying and fighting were…

Unsuccessful and the CCP were forced to flee.

Furthermore, the CCP also had a change in strategy. Who was their new strategist?

Otto Braun, a german man that insisted that Mao’s guerrilla tactics were wrong. He suggested that the Red Army should defend their borders and fight.

What was the ‘blockhouse strategy’?

To surround the Jianxi soviet and advance very slowly, building blockhouses, digging trenches, and putting up barbed wire fences as they went.

For the fifth campaign, what did the KMT turn to to beat the CCP?

General Seeckt’s ‘blockhouse strategy’

When did the KMT begin their fifth and final campaign against the soviets?

September 25th 1933

Many members of the Communist Party _________ Mao’s tactics, saying that they were no only politically wrong but cowardly.

Criticised

In the four years of extermination campaigns, how many peasants were killed or starved to death as a result?

A million peasants

What was the drawback to these guerrilla tactics?

It allowed the Kuomintang units to capture Communist villages as they advanced.

What are the four slogans that Mao used to sum up guerrilla tactics?

When the enemy advances, we retreat! When the enemy halts and encamps, we trouble them! When the enemy seeks to avoid battle we attack! When the enemy retreats we pursue!

What did the four CCP victories in the first campaign show?

That the CCP were competent leaders whilst the KMT lost to peasants and farmers. This allowed the CCP to win the hearts and minds of the people.

Although the KMT forces outnumbered the Communists, who won the first four campaigns and why?

The Communists and they won because of the Red Army’s use of guerrilla tactics

How many extermination campaigns were there?

Five, and they each got bigger than the last.

What occurred between 1930 and 1934?

The Extermination Campaigns

The CCP, in Jiangxi, gave the peasants their…

Own land

Who was the Red Army leader by the time of Jiangxi Soviet?

Zhu De

Who was the political leader by the time of the Jiangxi Soviet?

Mao Zedong

Why was Jianxi the place the CCP fled to?

The KMT did not control it

Why was the move to the countryside vital in CCP expansion?

Communism’s target class were the working class so it allowed them to gain support within the peasantry.

The CCP, at this time, also formed the…

Red Army

What does soviet mean?

A counsel run by soldiers or workers

What’s an important example of one of the key communist held areas?

Jianxi soviet

What did the CCP establish in the countryside?

Independent communist held areas

What happened following the Shanghai Massacre?

The CCP fled to the countryside around Hunan and Jiangxi.