Key Figures and Events in Early 20th Century Chinese History

Flashcards about key figures and events in Chinese history from the early 20th century

Yuan Shikai

Former Qing general and first President of the Republic of China who declared himself emperor in 1915.

Guomindang (GMD)

Chinese Nationalist Party founded by Sun Yat-sen, seeking to unify and modernize China.

Zhang Zuolin

Warlord of Manchuria who controlled northeast China with Japanese support.

Mao Zedong

Leader of the CCP and Chairman of the PRC who led the communist revolution and promoted Marxist-Leninist-Maoist ideology.

Chinese Communist Party (CCP)

Political party founded by Marxist revolutionaries that led the revolution and established the PRC.

Chiang Kai-shek

Leader of the GMD after Sun Yat-sen who fought the CCP and led China during WWII. He was an anti-communist nationalist leader.

Zhou Enlai

Longtime premier of the PRC and a diplomat who helped stabilize the CCP's global image.

GMD-CCP Alliance

Brief alliance between the Guomindang and Communist Party to defeat warlords and Japan.

May Thirtieth Movement

Anti-imperialist protest movement by Chinese students and workers after shooting of demonstrators.

Northern Expedition

GMD-led army campaign to unify China by defeating warlords and consolidating power.

Encirclement Campaigns

Military campaigns by the GMD to surround and crush communists.

Long March

Military retreat of the CCP Red Army to evade the GMD, ensuring the CCP's strategic survival.

Communist base in Yan'an

Political and military base of the CCP, serving as a safe zone to regroup and grow.

Mukden Incident

Staged railway explosion by the Japanese military blamed on Chinese as an excuse for invading Manchuria.

Manchukuo

Puppet state under Japanese control declared independent from China to justify Japanese occupation of Manchuria.

Japanese invasion of China

Full-scale war between Japan and China, part of Japan's imperial expansion.