Transcript Soviet Union and Red China

Soviet Union and Red China
Major Communist Revolutions of
the Early 20th Century
Review: Socialism
• Socialism
– Political movement promote greater equality in society
through the redistribution of wealth from the upper to the
lower classes
• Social Democrats
– Form political parties to work within political system to
advocate policies to help the lower class
• Progressive taxation, social welfare legislation, unemployment
insurance, Government pensions
• Marxists
– Overthrow the existing government through revolution
and replace it with direct rule by representatives of the
workers (the leaders of the Marxist party)
• Nationalize all major industries (trains, telegraph, etc.);
Confiscate property of the wealthiest citizens
Critical Terms
• Bolshevik
– Russian Marxist party led by Lenin
– Used as a derogatory term by Western powers to refer
to radical elements in their own countries
• Communist
– Person who wishes to abolish private property and
have society share everything “communally”
– Marxist groups were often called communists by friends
and foes, due to the title of Marx’s 1848 manifesto, so
the terms are basically interchangeable
• Red
– Official color of Marxist revolutionaries
– Used frequently as an adjective for anything Marxist
(Red Scare, Red China, “reds” = Communists)
Critical Terms
• Soviet
– Local union of urban workers in major Russian
cities with Marxist sympathies that help drive
Russian Revolution
– Communist Russia takes the name “Union of
Soviet Socialist Republics” (USSR) as a
propaganda technique to suggest these local
workers are actually now in charge
• Totalitarianism
– Political system in which only one party is allowed,
and regulates all aspects of life, especially
forbidding dissent through control all press and
speech
– Every Marxist revolution this unit is followed by the
establishment of a totalitarian state
Russian Revolution
The Rise of the USSR
Russian Revolution: Review
• World War I
– Russia is fighting on the side of the Allies Why?
– Russia is experiencing massive defeats in
the fight against the Germans - Why?
– Russia people are suffering greatly (like
most other countries) during the war Why?
Russian Revolution
• March Revolution (1917)
– Due to a mutiny by the army, the tsar is
forced to abdicate and a provisional
government led by the Duma is formed to
oversee a transition to democracy
• Problem
– What do the people of Russia want? Why?
– Why is the provisional government unable
to achieve this goal?
Russian Revolution
• October Revolution (1917)
– Lenin leads the soviets in a
revolt against the Provisional
Government
– Declares a new national
government under the slogan
“Peace and Bread”
– Lenin signs Treaty of BrestLitovsk with Germany,
removing Russia from WWI
• Significance
– Why is Lenin’s revolt
successful? (Hint: Where is
he?)
Russian Civil War
• Russian Civil War
– Fighting immediately breaks out between
Bolsheviks and coalition of anti-Communist groups
supported by Western powers
• War Communism
– Lenin takes steps to transform Russian society
and maintain power
– Examples: State control of industry, crop seizures,
Cheka and the “Red Terror”, Red Army
• Result
– Communists are victorious, reestablishing control
of most of old Russian Empire and renaming it the
USSR
Lenin’s Russia
• NEP (1921)
– After the Communist victory, Lenin advocates a retreat
from strict communist economic policies
• Peasants can sell products in open market, pay taxes, and
small businesses allowed to remain private
• However, government still runs major industries
• Comintern
– International organization led by Soviets to support
Communist parties in other countries and encourage
the further spread of Marxist revolution
– Importance: Leads to “Red Scare”, harsh persecutions
of socialist groups in Western countries because of
real or perceived ties to the Soviet Union
Leadership Changes
• Rise of Stalin (1924)
– Lenin dies, leaving a struggle for control of leadership
of the party
– In the end, the favorite (a guy named Leon Trotsky) is
beaten out by a guy named Josef Stalin - Why?
• Significance
– Stalin rules the USSR and the Communist Party with
an iron fist through WWII
Stalinist Russia
• Collectivization of agriculture
– Replace peasant farms with large cooperatives
run by the state
– Result: Peasants resist government, resulting in
famine and disease killing millions
• Industrialization
– Series of Five-Year-Plans designed to help
Soviets catch up to the West
– Industry focuses on heavy industry (steel, military)
– Result: Clothing and furniture are ignored, further
reducing an already low standard of living, but
military gap with West begins to close
Stalinist Russia
• Great Purge
– Communist officials who had opposed Stalin were accused,
confessed, and executed or sent to prison camps
• Totalitarianism
– Gulags: Dissenters against Stalin’s government are sent to
Siberia, much like in the days of the Tsar
– Propaganda used to glorify the greatness of Russia and
encourage the worship of its leader, Stalin
• Significance
– USSR becomes a totalitarian dictatorship with all power
concentrated in the hands of the Communist Party leader,
who is Stalin
– CCOT: Although the name of the government has changed,
the absolute rule of the Communists is essentially the same
as the tsar’s government
Red China
The Rise of Communist China
Chinese Revolution: Review
• Chinese Revolution (1911)
– Imperial government is overthrown and replaced
by a weak republic that is essentially ruled by a
military general (Yuan Shikai)
– Most powerful group in this movement was the
Kuomintang (AKA KMT or Guomindang or
Chinese Nationalists) led by Sun Yixian (AKA Sun
Yat-sen)
• World War I
– Chinese government joins in on the side of the
Allies - Why?
Chinese Marxism
• May 4th Movement
(1919)
– Widespread protests
break out in Beijing to
protest betrayal by Allies
at peace conference
• Significance
– Distrust of the west leads
some Chinese to turn to
Marxism as a solution to
its problems, especially a
young librarian named
Mao Zedong
New Leadership
• KMT
– Jiang Jieshi (AKA Chiang
Kai-Shek): Seeks
industrialization and
greater ties to West
• Communists
– Mao Zedong (AKA Mao
Tse-tung): Promotes idea
of a Marxist revolution
led by the peasants
rather than industrial
workers
Chinese Civil War
• Shanghai Massacre (1927)
– Jiang orders the mass killing of all Communists in the
city in order to check their rising power
• Civil War
– Guerilla warfare breaks out in the countryside between
KMT and Communist forces (“Red Army”)
• Long March (1934)
– Outnumbered 6 to 1, Mao leads Communists on a
massive forced march to avoid destruction by the KMT
• Discussion
– Where are the power bases for each of the two
groups? Where do they get their support?
World War II
• Japanese Invasion (1937)
– Invasion of Manchuria by Japan leads the KMT to
focus their efforts on Japan
– Communists given time to rebuild, while also
fighting against Japanese
• Resumption of Civil War
– After Japan’s defeat, the KMT turn their attentions
to eliminating the Communists yet again
– Western powers pump millions into military aid for
KMT in order to avoid a repeat of Russia
– Soviet Union also provides aid to Chinese
Communists, but it is not as substantial
Red China
• Communist Victory (1949)
– Corruption among KMT generals and severe
economic problems lead to the loss of popular
support for the KMT and gains for the Communists
– Communists overthrow Jiang’s government, who
flees to Taiwain and sets up a rival Chinese
government there, and set up a new government
led by Mao
• Communist China
– Communists establish control over not simply the
“Middle Kingdom” but add Tibet and frontier
regions in the west to a new Chinese empire
Mao’s China
• Five-Year Plan (1953)
– Mao encourages the rapid, state-sponsored
industrialization of China to close the gap with the West
– Result: China finally experiences significant
industrialization, although all industry is either partially
or fully owned by the state
• Great Leap Forward (1958)
– Mao’s radical program of collectivization of agriculture,
peasants move to massive communes - “Hard work for
a few years, happiness for a thousand”
– Result: Collectivization is a massive failure – millions die
of starvation in resulting famine and program is
abandoned
Mao’s China
• Cultural Revolution (1966)
– Mao believes revolutionary spirit is lacking – encourages
Red Guards, makeshift army of youths, to purify Chinese
society of people perceived to be pro-Western or capitalist
– Result: Thousands of teachers, intellectuals, business
leaders were imprisoned tortured or even killed over the
span of ten years
• Significance
– China establishes a totalitarian state just like Russia that
was even more absolutist than the imperial government
that preceded it
– CCOT: What are the changes and continuities between
the government of a Chinese emperor and the Communist
government?
Compare and Contrast
• Similarities
– Minority movements
(Success in gaining
popular support)
– Unsuccessful
intervention by Western
powers (Funding
opposition groups in civil
wars)
– Move to totalitarianism
(Purge and Cultural
Revolution?)
– Rule of Mao and Stalin
(Industrial and
agricultural policies?)
• Differences
– Chronology
– Lenin and Mao’s
view of the Marxist
struggle
– Role of the
peasantry
Coach Lerch’s Final Thoughts
• The Communist revolutions in Russia
and China had, and still have, an
enormous impact on contemporary
history
• Although they inspire various other
“communist” movements that have
significant historical import, these are
the most critical