-
1900
By 1900, Britain, Germany, Japan, and other countries exerted control over
parts of China, and the imperial government continued the tradition of subjugating the
peasant population -
1912
In 1912, China entered what historians refer to as the Modern Era,
after a military uprising overthrew the Qing Dynasty that had been in power since 1644
and established the Republic of China. Although it seemed that power would finally
rest with the people, in fact the country was politically unstable, and warlords fought to
capture control of regions across China. -
1921
Life for the peasants remained largely unchanged in the first decades of the twentieth
century. However, it was also a period of intellectual freedom and debate that led to
the emergence of various political movements, including the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP). Founded in 1921, the Chinese Communist Party’s idyllic vision of a classless
and egalitarian society was particularly appealing to the vast majority of Chinese who
had traditionally lacked any hope for social mobility -
1921 continued
The CCP platform was fervently
anti-Western, which appealed to Chinese who resented foreign influence over China.
Still, the Communist Party struggled to gain power from local warlords. -
1924
To unite China and defeat local warlords, in 1924, the Communists joined forces with the NationalistParty, which was led by Sun Yat-sen and, later, Chiang Kai-shek. Chiang Kai-shek turned against the Communists and nearly wiped them out in a bloody purge in April 1927.
Most of the surviving Communists retreated to safety in the countryside. In 1928, civil
war ended -
1924 continued
as Chiang Kai-shek declared victory for the Nationalists. Chiang and the
Nationalist Party took control of the government of the Republic of China and continued
efforts to exterminate the Communist Party. Mao Zedong emerged as one of the top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party when he led the CCP and its Red Army on what became known as the “Long March,” a 6,000-mile retreat from the Nationalist Army to set up a strong base in the northwestern region of China -
1934
Thousands died along the way during this grueling trek, which started in 1934 and ended one year later. It was at this northwest base that Mao consolidated his power within the CCP and was elected chairman of the party -
1937
Japan launched a full-scale invasion of China as part of military activity in the Asian arena
shortly before World War II in 1937. The Japanese quickly took over the eastern part of
the country, including major cities such as Beijing and Nanjing. To defeat the Japanese,
the Nationalists and the Communists once again agreed to join forces. -
1937 continued
From their base
in the northwest, the Communists gained popular support because of their strong
resistance to the Japanese and their social and economic programs, including land
reform -
1945
Shortly after Japan surrendered in 1945, civil war between the Communists and
the Nationalists broke out. The Communists won an unexpectedly rapid and decisive
victory, driving Chiang Kai-shek off the Chinese mainland to the island of Taiwan -
1949
On
October 1, 1949, Chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed the founding of the People’s
Republic of China (PRC). Since then, the Chinese Communist Party has functioned as
the only significant political party in the PRC and has controlled government policies,
both foreign and domestic