What was the Cultural Revolution in China?

Answer 1

The Cultural Revolution is not a really revolution. It's just an excuse to make sure communism can be built smoothly.The chairman, Mao Zedong thought that some people were not in favour of communism, and they may even want to restore the Qing Dynasty.So the Cultural Revolution was exactly for killing the people who did not obey the government.

Pretty much all of the people were people who had western ties, or were educated with western practices, like Doctors, Artists, and authors. Many educated people were killed by the Red Guard, which was a large group of youth who were influenced by the communist government

Also the reason why this all started (the CR) is, because Mao had been less than a dynamic leader from the late 1950's on, and feared others in the party might be taking on a leading role that weakened his power within the party and the country. This probably explains the Cultural Revolution - it was an attempt by Mao to re-impose his authority on the party and therefore the country.

Answer 2

In 1959 Mao had resigned as Chairman of the PRC, maintaining power as Chairman of the Central Committee and Military affairs commission. However, by 1961, Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping had become de facto leaders of China. Liu had taken over from Mao in 1959, and was named as his successor in 1961. The Great Leap Forward had resulted in disaster, both for Mao and for China. Estimates of those lost in the famines that had ensued number around 30,000,000, and the national output had fallen by 29%. Liu and Deng decided that the only way for China to recover was to retreat from the Maoist ideals that had been the cause of the GLF. They abolished the communes in favour of Agricultural Producers' Cooperatives that had been introduced in 1953, and under the guidance of Chen Yun (who had masterminded the 5 yr plans in China), some private enterprise was allowed again, including unrestricted markets. The changes that were introduced were comparable to the NEP that was introduced in the USSR after the 1920s civil war.

Mao watched these changes with Horror. It seemed to him as if all the work that he had put into reforming China to the Communist model was being undone. However, he had surrendered so much of his power that he could do nothing but wait for the right moment to strike. Mao wanted to make sure that after his death the PRC stayed as a Communist country, but it seemed as if this was unravelling before his very eyes. Mao genuinely appeared to believe that revolution should be a continual process, and that any moment of lethargy could lead to a resurgence of the bourgeoisie. He believed that the education system fostered non-communist ideaologies by its very nature, and had a deep-seated mistrust of intellectuals (as can be seen from the 1957 Hundred Flowers Campaign). The Cultural Revolution was another way in which he could make sure that non-Maoist elements didn't creep back into China. In his 1956 secret speech, Khrushchev had called for de-Stalinisation, which had worried Mao. Then the Soviet leader went on to call for 'peaceful coexistence' and in 1959 even had a summit meeting with Eisenhower. Mao was concerned that the USSR was veering away from the hardline communism that had been known under Stalin, and into something that was more concilliatory with the west, and so in Mao's opinion weaker. He feared for the same thing to happen in China, and the Cultural Revolution can be seen as his way of trying to stop this from happening.

Another reason for Mao launching the revolution was the less altruistic desire for power that he had. Having been in charge of the PRC for so long, he resented being treated like a "dead ancestor", and wanted to reasert his power partly to prove that he could do so, and that Liu and Deng were wrong to sideline him. However, he could not just use blunt force to overthrow Liu and Deng, as they had the support of a lot of the CCP behind them. At the 1962 Conference of 7,000 Men, Liu had attracted wide spread support with his conclusion that 70% of the problems caused by the GLF had been caused by human error (which was taken to be code for Mao). Only Lin Biao and a few others had stood up for Mao, so Mao had to make use of this small power base in order to rebuild his control in China. In light of this, Mao's calls for continual revolution can be viewed rather differently. In true Marxist Communism, there is no need for a totalitarian leade like Mao. Mao was aware that in a state of communist idyll his role would be fulfilled, and he would not longer be necessary. So, by creating a state of perpetual revolution, Mao also created a permanent role for himself as the man who managed the people during the revolution. This way, there was a constant need for a strong figure to lead people out of the crisis. There is some evidence to support this idea within the Cultural Revolution. In early 1967, there were calls from leading figures in the PLA to stop the revolution, which was threatening to turn violent. However, Mao did not let Lin interfer until September, and by this time the Red Guard units in the cities had consolidated their position to the extent that there was rioting in the streets when the PLA tried to remove them. In Wuhan, around 1,000 were killed when fighting broke out between the PLA and various RG factions. By leaving it to so late, real force was needed to rectify the situation. Mao therefore had an opportunity to prove himself as a strong leader to the people. This desire to be seen as strong can also be seen from things such as his 1966 swimming of the Yangtsze River, and impressive feat for a 73 year old. So one reason for Mao creating the cultural revolution was that he was aware that it was only through constant strife that his position of hegemony could be held. Other people instrumental in the revolution had similar motives. Lin Biao, head of the PLA, was eager for power and to replace Liu as Mao's successor, something that he achieved in 1966. Jiang Qing, Mao's wife, was hungry for power too, and also eager to cover up her somewhat shady past as an actress in Shanghai. During the revolution it is clear that she used the opportunity to arrest many of those who had known her during this part of her life, and had them silenced. Men such as Kang Shek and Chen Boda believed that Mao would eventually rise again, and thought that it would be better for them to support him, hoping to gain favours when he came to power again.

So, the reasons for Mao launching the revolution were:

1) a worry that the spirit of communism was vanishing under Liu and Deng

2) a fear that the Soviet example of de-Stalinisation might be followed

3) a belief that revolution was a continual process

4) a concern about his loss of power and influence NOTE: others also had their own reasons for supporting him.

Answer 3

The Collapse of the Qing Dynasty in 1911. The enormity of China and the inabilty of the Kuomintang to control it. The Japanese invasion and the opportunity it gave Mao to use his army.

Answer 4

I and II