China Unit - Macleans College Year 10 2026

What were the Three Principles of the Guomindang?

Nationalism, Democracy, and Social advance.

What was the Long March?

A march that started in October 1934 which was led by Mao Zedong. The march lasted a year and covered about 4000 miles. The Communists saw Mao Zedong as their leader after the march.

What was the Rape of Nanjing?

Appalling war crimes committed by Japanese troops after capturing Nanjing in December 1937.

What tactics did Mao's Red Army use against the Japanese?

Guerrilla tactics, ambushes, cutting telegraph wires, and blowing up railways.

When was the first Five-Year Plan carried out?

1953-1957, focusing on heavy industries like steel, coal, and chemicals.

What social reforms were introduced during the 1950s?

Free health care, city clean-up campaigns, a literacy drive, and banning arranged marriages.

What was the Great Leap Forward?

A 1958 campaign combining co-operatives into communes with industrial and farming targets.

What was a major consequence of the Great Leap Forward between 1958 and 1962?

A serious famine causing at least 30 million Chinese people to starve to death.

What was Mao's Little Red Book?

Quotations of Chairman Mao printed and distributed free during the Cultural Revolution.

Who were the Red Guards?

Young student groups formed during the Cultural Revolution to purge anti-Communist elements.

When did Mao Zedong die?

1976.

Who is Puyi?

Puyi was the last emperor in Imperial China

When was Puyi put into power?

When he was 3 years old

What is the Boxer Rebellion?

They aimed at getting rid of foreigners and Chinese Christians to protect the country and killed over 10,000 Christians and foreigners.

When was the End of Emperors?

1908

What was the End of Emperors

In 1911, Puyi gets arrested by police for war crimes. After Puyi is arrested, Sun Yatsen's supporters (rebels) took over Southern China.

What happened after the End of Emperors?

Sun Yatsen comes back from his studies to cheers from the rebels. He was then elected Provisional President of the Republic of China by the rebels.

Who is Sun Yatsen?

He was a leader of the Nationalist Party of China (GMD or Guomingdang)

Who is Yuan Shikai?

He was a Chinese army leader during and a reformist minister during the Qing Dynasty. He later became the first President of the Republic of China

What did Yuan Shikai do before becoming President?

He betrayed the government army and created a truce with Sun Yatsen to abdicate Puyi.

When did Yuan Shikai become President?

1912, Febuary

Who are the Warlords?

There were 1300 warlords who governed provinces throughout China. They fought over 140 local and regional wars.

Who created a treaty to defeat the Warlords?

The GMD and Communist Part (CPC)

Who were the Communists?

The Communists were people who wanted a classless society based their ideals off of Karl Marx. The party was founded in 1921

What happened after Yuan Shikai abdicated (1920)?

The GMD leadership passed to Chiang Kai-Shek .who wanted to gain power. In 1927, Chiang Kai-shek betrayed the Communists

Who Excaped from the Bloody Purge of Communists?

Mao Zedong :)

What happened during World War 2?

In 1937, The Japanese invaded mainland China and against Chiang Kai-shek's will, he worked with the Communists (he got kidnapped by his own generals)

How did Chiang Kai-shek see the Japanese?

He saw them as an outside threat and didn't matter as much as the Communists

When was the People's Republic of China established?

1st of October, 1949

What symbolism is used in this flag?

The big star represented the Common Program of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the smaller stars represented the workers, peasants and lower middle-class citizens

What was the Land Reform (Agrarian Land Reform)?

It was a mass land reform that destroyed the landlord class and focused on fair land ownership, improving social connections and reforming China's economy

What is the "Speak Bitterness Campaign"?

These were trials where landlords were accused of things like mistreating tenants and ect. CCP workers helped set up "People's Courts", but peasants ran them.

What are Cooperatives (1953)?

It was a system that allowed one large crop to be grown efficiently. By 1957, over 90% of peasants were in Cooperatives

What is the Great Leap Forward (1958-1959)?

The Great Leap Forward (or the second 5 Year Plan) was a massive steel and farming campaign. Communes would separate tasks among people (farming, steel production, house-keeping)

What are Communes?

Previous Cooperatives were enlarged to create Communes which had 600-1000 people in one. There were over 4000 Communes

What are the Bitter Years (1959-1961)?

When production during the Great Leap Forward increased, more wear on equipment led to malfunction and accidents. Because of this, there wasn't enough food to go around and Mao pulled back on expectations and production

Who was in control after the Great Leap Forward?

Deng Xiaoping and Liu Shao-qi

What was the Cultural Revolution (1966)?

During 1966, there had been growing dissatisfaction and Mao became a recluse. There was fear of a Bourgeois (middle class/business class) rise and because of this, Mao came out again and called to the youth.

What was the Tiananmen Square Protest (1989)?

This was several protests protesting about having more freedom and less censorship. People were divided by urging change and maintaining strict control. During these protests, over 1 million people participated. In response to this, the government sent out troops

Who are the Capitalist Roaders?

The Capitalist Roaders was a Maoist term used for describing Communist Party officials who were trying to go towards Capitalism

What is the 100 Flowers Campaign (1956-1957)?

This was a period in time where the Communist Party encouraged criticism on government policies which later resulted in harsh criticism

What is the One Child Policy (1980)?

This policy was introduced to lower the national birth rates and those who resisted would force abortions and sterilisations on mothers.

What happened after Mao's death?

After Mao's death, China slowly began to modernize and focused on building success for China