Chinese Civil War

Economic Causes

• Land ownership inequality

• Rural Poverty

• Urban Economic Crisis

Land Ownership Inequality

• Over 70% of peasants owned no land or only tiny plots

• Wealthy landlords exploited peasants through high rents (up to 50-70% of the harvest).

Rural Poverty:

In the 1920s, rural China suffered from famines (e.g., the 1928–30 famine) and high debt levels.

Urban Economic Crisis

• inflation after WWI and during the 1930s (especially after the Japanese invasion) severely hit cities.

• By 1945, hyperinflation made basic goods unaffordable (e.g., prices doubled every few weeks).

Political Causes

• Warlord Era (1916–1928):

• KMT-CCP Alliance and Split:

• Weakness of the KMT Government:

• Weakness of the KMT Government:

Warlord Era (1916–1928):

• After the death of Yuan Shikai (1916), China broke into warlord-controlled regions.

• Lack of centralized control weakened national unity.

KMT-CCP Alliance and Split:

• First United Front (1924–1927) between Kuomintang (KMT) and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aimed to end warlordism.

• April 1927: Chiang Kai-shek ordered the Shanghai Massacre (purging communists), ending the alliance.This event marked the start of the Chinese Civil War, as the KMT and CCP became bitter rivals.

Weakness of the KMT Government:

• Corruption and authoritarianism under Chiang Kai-shek alienated many Chinese citizens.

• Failed to implement effective reforms despite governing from Nanjing (1927–1937).

Foreign Influence and Humiliation:

• Century of humiliation (Opium Wars, unequal treaties) created nationalistic resentment.

• Japanese occupation (Manchuria in 1931, broader invasion 1937) further exposed KMT weakness.Foreign intervention and exploitation in China that resulted in widespread resentment and a desire for reform.

Social Causes

• Peasant Grievances:

• Urban Intellectual Movements:

• Appeal of the CCP:

Social Causes

• Peasant Grievances:

• Urban Intellectual Movements:

• Appeal of the CCP:

Peasant Grievances:

Desire for land reform and social justice.

Urban Intellectual Movements:

Rise of Marxist and nationalist ideas after the May Fourth Movement (1919).

Appeal of the CCP

• Promised land redistribution, women’s rights, and an end to exploitation.

• CCP organized peasants through Soviets (e.g., Jiangxi Soviet, founded 1931).

Phases of the War

• Phase 1: 1927–1937 ("First Civil War")

• Phase 2: 1937–1945 (Pause during the Second Sino-Japanese War)

• Phase 3: 1946–1950 ("Resumption of Civil War")

Phase 1: 1927–1937 ("First Civil War")

• KMT launches the Encirclement Campaigns (1930–34) to destroy CCP rural bases.

• CCP counters with Guerrilla Warfare.

Phase 2: 1937–1945 (Pause during Second Sino-Japanese War)

• Second United Front forms against Japan.

• CCP uses this time to expand influence in rural areas (membership rose from 40,000 in 1937 to 1.2 million in 1945).

Phase 3: 1946–1950 ("Resumption of Civil War")

• full-scale war resumes after Japan's defeat.

• CCP adopts mobile warfare, exploiting KMT weaknesses.

Manchurian Campaign (1946–1948)

CCP wins control over the northeast.

Huaihai Campaign (Nov 1948 – Jan 1949)

decisive; KMT lost 500,000 troops.

Crossing the Yangtze River Campaign (April 1949)

Crossing the Yangtze River Campaign (April 1949)

CCP Military Strategies

• Guerrilla warfare, mobile tactics, winning "hearts and minds" of peasants.

Guerrilla warfare tactics

• hit and run attacks on Japanese supply lines

• ambushes and sabotage

• building underground bases (“Liberated Areas”)

Battle of Pingxingguan (September 1937):

A significant battle in the Second Sino-Japanese War where Chinese forces achieved a major victory against the Japanese, showcasing effective use of guerrilla tactics.

• Eighth Route Army ambushed a Japanese supply column.

• Important early morale booster (first CCP victory in open combat).

Outcome

• Demonstrated CCP military competence.

• Built peasant support by protecting them from Japanese atrocities.

Liberated Areas

• Land reforms were moderately introduced (rent and tax reduction — not full land confiscation yet)

• local elections were held to involve peasants in governace

• “Mass Line” approach — CCP claimed to listen and act on peasant concerns

Liberated Areas Outcomes

• By 1945, CCP controlled over 90 million people (out of China's 500 million total population).

• Liberated territory was about one-third of China's landmass.

Political Practices

The strategies employed by the CCP to engage with peasants and gain support, including collectivization and local governance.

Rural Women’s Associations

Local grassroots organizations promoting women’s participation in community defense, land reform debates, and education.

Rural Women’s Associations Outcomes

Mobilized women into political and economic life. Prepared women for postwar campaigns (e.g., Marriage Law 1950).

Double Support Movement" (1943):

• Women were encouraged to both support the army and production efforts.

• This movement originated partly through these women’s groups.

Mass Literacy Movement

Began in Liberated Areas during WWII to teach basic reading and writing to peasants and soldiers.

Mass Literacy Movement Outcome

Raised literacy rates significantly among rural populations; used literacy to spread CCP ideology.

• In some CCP areas, adult literacy rates rose from 10–15% to 50–60% by 1945.

• Northern Shaanxi, parts of Gansu and Ningxia

• Literacy enabled peasants to read party newspapers, posters, and propaganda, deepening loyalty.

Hundred Regiments Offensive (1940)

• Led by Peng Dehuai.

• Over 400 regiments, about 400,000 troops, attacked Japanese positions in North China.

• Damaged or destroyed:

  • 3,000 km of railway.

  • 2,000 bridges and stations.

Hundred Regiments Offensive Outcomes (1940)

• Initially successful — damaged Japanese supply routes.

• But Japan responded with the Three Alls Policy: "Kill All, Burn All, Loot All", leading to mass civilian suffering.

• Mao later criticized the offensive as "too risky", preferring more cautious guerrilla tactics.

Practice (1946-1947)

• Strategic Defensive

• Avoid full-scale confrontation initially; focus on mobile defense and preserving forces.

• CCP fought a war of movement: retreat when necessary, ambush when possible.

Battle of Siping (May 1946):

CCP tried to hold Siping (Manchuria) but retreated after heavy KMT assaults.

First Phase of the Huaihai Campaign (1946)

guerrilla attacks to weaken KMT control.

Outcome of Strategic defensive

• Preserved main Communist armies.

• Wore down KMT forces through attrition.

• Allowed time for CCP forces to regroup and rearm.

Practices (Mid-1947)

"Strategic Stalemate"

• Start counter-offensives and shift from guerrilla warfare to conventional battles; destroy isolated KMT units.

• Larger, more coordinated Communist attacks using conventional infantry tactics, often after encirclement.

Battle of Changchun (May–Oct 1948):

A pivotal battle during the Chinese Civil War where Communist forces besieged the KMT-held city, resulting in a decisive victory for the CCP and significant losses for the KMT.

• prolonged siege starved out KMT garrison.This battle demonstrated the effectiveness of the Communist strategy of encirclement and siege, leading to a significant shift in control over Northeast China.

Battle of Changchun Outcome (May–Oct 1948):

• Broke KMT hold over Manchuria.

• Captured tens of thousands of KMT troops.

• Massive morale collapse in KMT ranks.

Practices (Late 1947–1949)

• "Strategic Offensive"

• Total conventional war: launch massive offensives to destroy KMT in central and eastern China.

• Full-field battles using massive Communist armies (well-trained, Soviet-supplied) to surround and annihilate KMT forces.

Huaihai Campaign (Nov 1948–Jan 1949):

A major military campaign during the Chinese Civil War, where Communist forces launched a series of offensives against KMT troops in central China, resulting in a significant Communist victory and leading to the eventual collapse of KMT control in the region.

• ½ million troops wiped out

Pingjin Campaign Nov 1948–Jan 1949

A decisive military campaign in the Chinese Civil War where Communist forces aimed to capture Beijing, leading to significant KMT losses and the eventual fall of the city to Communist control.

Crossing of the Yangtze April 1949

Final blow — Nanjing captured, KMT fled

Outcome of the Strategies

• KMT forces were worn down, surrounded, and annihilated step by step.

• CCP forces evolved from guerrillas to a fully conventional, professional army.

• CCP seized the political and military initiative completely by mid-1949.

• The People’s Republic of China was declared on October 1, 1949.

Economic Effects

• Collapse of KMT Economy

• Destruction of Infrastructure:

• CCP Economic Reforms:

Collapse of KMT Economy

Hyperinflation reached 85,000% in 1948.

National currency (fabi) became worthless; gold and silver re-emerged for trade.

Destruction of Infrastructure:

Widespread damage to roads, railways, and cities during the conflict, severely hindering transportation and economic activities.

Destruction of Infrastructure:

After 1949, introduced agrarian reforms — redistribution of 47% of farmland.

Political Effects

• Establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC):

• KMT Retreat to Taiwan:

• One-party Rule:

• Beginning of Cold War Division in Asia:

Establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC):

• October 1, 1949, Mao Zedong declared the founding of the PRC

KMT Retreat to Taiwan:

Chiang Kai-shek and around 2 million KMT members fled to Taiwan (December 1949).

One-party Rule:

• CCP established a centralized, authoritarian regime.

• Opponents ("counter-revolutionaries") persecuted.

Beginning of Cold War Division in Asia:

U.S. backs Taiwan (Republic of China, ROC); USSR recognizes PRC.Tensions rise between superpowers over influence in Asia.

Social Effects

• Massive Social Upheaval:

• Social Reforms:

• Rise in Nationalism:

Massive Social Upheaval:

• Landlords and perceived class enemies often executed or re-educated.

Social Reforms:

Abolishment of arranged marriages and promotion of women's rights

Rise in Nationalism:

PRC embarked on campaigns to "restore" China's national pride after "century of humiliation".