10VA History Assessment Task 2 Notes PDF

10VA - History Assessment Task II Notes Explain why the Cold War Began in 1945 (it ended in 1989-1991): Origins: - Despite the US, Soviet Union, and Britain fighting together as allies against Nazi Germany, disputes came up between them as the Soviets had suffered the most in WWII (losi...

10VA - History Assessment Task II Notes Explain why the Cold War Began in 1945 (it ended in 1989-1991): Origins: - Despite the US, Soviet Union, and Britain fighting together as allies against Nazi Germany, disputes came up between them as the Soviets had suffered the most in WWII (losing 10-13M civilians). - The Soviets felt that they had been left alone to fight against Nazi Germany for most of the war as it took the US and Britain took a long time to open a second ‘front’ in Western Europe to help relieve pressure from the Soviet Union. - The front was finally opened in 1944 in fears the the Soviet Union would do a separate peace deal with Germany - Stalin suspected that the allies did this deliberately to weaken both sides - At the conclusion of WWII, the Soviet Union was extremely weak and afraid of further war/invasion. As a result, they tried to establish friendly connections with governments in Eastern Europe so that it wouldn’t be easy to invade the Soviet Union (a buffer zone) - The Soviets accomplished this by trying to support (and pressure) the establishment of communist governments in those countries. The US and Britain thought that these countries should be free to choose for themselves what government they would have. - The Soviet and US leaders disagreed completely, and were convinced that they were right and that countries around the world should follow their lead. - This led to a division between the Western Bloc (capitalism) and the Eastern Bloc (communism). This division was known as the ‘Iron Curtain’ - Most of the communist countries were controlled by the Soviet Union and the capitalist countries were receiving financial assistance from the US. - Eastern Bloc: Poland, Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and East Germany - Western Bloc: countries led by the Capitalist United States. Its aim was to stop the spread of communist power - 1939: Stalin allies himself with Hitler through the Nazi-Soviet Pact. This results in mistrust between the Soviet Union and the allies. - 1946: Soviet leader Stalin makes a speech that declared capitalism and communism were incompatible. The Americans took this as a threat and became scared that Stalin would try to spread communism right across Europe and the World. - March 1947: US President H. Truman made a speech giving support to any countries resisting communism. This resistance to the spread of communism was known as the ‘Truman Doctrine’ (originally a policy of containment) after realising that it could not be eradicated. - This marked the clear US policy which would fight against communism - This involved the introduction of Marshall Aid (delivering economic aid, food, machinery, building materials, expertise, and sometimes money) - Oct 27: an American U-2 spy plane was shot down by the Soviets. Its pilot, Rudolf Anderson was killed. The following day, a Soviet submarine was hit by a small depth-charge sent by an American ship to force the submarine to rise, almost leading to the Soviets launching a nuclear torpedo. But Vasili Arkhipov’s refusal to support the launch stopped this. - The US military set its alert to DefCon 2 (one level before nuclear war) Ideological Differences: - There was mutual fear of each other. The Soviets were afraid of the West because Great Britain, USA, Japan, France, etc… invaded Russia in 1919 and tried to restore the monarchy or more conservative revolutionaries - The Americans were afraid of the Russians spreading communism. The Communist International was formed to spread communism - Capitalism: countries like the US and Britain used this system where society is more focused on individualistic benefits and rewards those who work hard and invest in their future. Supports of this system believe this leads to competition and efficiency, but it also depends upon classes in society with some people being the owers (upper and middle classes) and the working class - The economy is largely free from state control, while the government is democratically elected and freedom of speech is cherished - Communism: founded by Karl Marx, this ideology is built on the belief that the working class people throughout the world would rise up in rebellion against ‘unjust governments’. Communists also believed that society should be focused on benefiting the general public (for the good of everybody) and that wealth should be more evenly distributed. The working class supported this as they saw it as a more equal society, the wealthy and middle class were threatened by this ideology as they already owned wealth. - Administered from the centre, with the government strictly controlling the economy and society  - 1917: The Russian Revolution (Russian Civil War) occurred where the Communists took control. Many other governments (including Britain and France) were scared that the same thing would happen to them so they helped fight against the Communists in the Russian Civil War. The Communists won in Russia and the country became known as the Soviet Union. (Bolshevik Revolution) - 1930s: The idea of communism becomes extremely popular as many countries suffered from the Great Depression - This resulted in mistrust between communist and capitalist countries (namely US, Britain, and the Soviet Union), and was a primary influence in starting and continuing the Cold War - The idea of communism was soon associated with dictatorships and loss of individual freedoms when Stalin became the Dictator of the Soviet Union to keep control. The US was extremely critical of of political freedom and thus resisted further to communism - Both sides wanted countries to follow their adopted ideologies for their own gains Wartime Alliance Tensions: - The USSR refusing to support the Polish army during the Warsaw Uprising, the delaying of the second front (in 1944), as well as the USA and Britain excluding the Soviets from secret talks with the Germans to secure the surrender of their troops in Italy also threatened the alliance of the US and the Soviet Union through WWII - Stalin was also not aware that the US had planned to deploy nuclear weapons (though he knew about them for months through spies). This resulted in the American victory ‘without’ Soviet help and thus the Soviets were denied any share of occupation in that area - The Americans were alarmed by the Soviet’s tricks and espionages to steal their nuclear technology - Oct 1917: Bolshevik Revolution - replaced Russia’s Provisional Government with a “dictatorship of the proletariat”, and the establishment of the communist state. The White Army (Tsarist supporters who fought the Bolsheviks during the Russian Civil War) were supported by the Western Powers (USA and Britain) - 1949: The formation of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) was to counter the threat of communist expansion into Western Europe - 1955: The Warsaw Pact was established by Stalin as a counter for what he regarded as an “aggressive alliance” Disagreements over Germany: - July 1945: Potsdam Conference - The USA, USSR, and Britain agreed to divide Germany into 4 zones until the country was secure to be re-unified - 1 zone per victorious ally: the USA, the USSR, Britain, and France - Stalin wanted to destroy the German economy to ensure that it would never rise again, however, the Western Allies wanted Germany to be strong enough that it could contribute to world trade - Stalin treated the Russian zone of Germany (East Germany) harshly, and he didn’t allow trade with any other zones. All other zones remained free to trade with reconstruction starting. Stalin confiscated a lot of what was produced, as well as a great deal of infrastructure and raw materials back to the Soviet Union. - 1947: Bizona was created as a combination and economic unification of the British and American zones and a new currency, the Deutschmark and this was implemented in Western Germany - Stalin feared these ideas would spread to the Soviet zone, and in response, introduced a new East German currency, the Ostmark - June 1948: Stalin closed all land routes into Berlin, blocking the Western Allies. He refused to allow Marshall Aid to reach the Soviet zone and West Berlin was cut off. He hoped that this would make the Allies give up their control of Berlin. - This resulted in supplies (food, fuel, and other supplies) being provided through the Berlin airlift operation. This continued for 11 months where British and American cargo planes flew from Allied zones into the city at a rate of one every 2 mins. - Stalin lifted the blockade 322 days later, on May 12 1949 - Disagreements over how to deal with the German questions resulted in tension and arguments that led to the Cold War. - Stalin never liked Truman and was always provoking The Crisis over Korea: - 1949: Communism was growing in the Far East and had taken power in China - The ‘Domino Theory’: developed by the US, this idea was that if one country fell to communism, others would follow like a row of dominoes  - 1950: report by the American National Security Council recommended that the US stop containment and start to roll back communism - 1950: Kim Il Sung (Leader of North Korea - North Korean People’s Army (NKPA)), with support from Russia and China, invaded South Korea (Republic of Korea’s Army (ROKs). By September, NKPA had conquered almost the whole of South Korea. - September 1950: UN troops led by US General MacArthur, landed in Korea and drove the NKPA back. - October 1950: UN troops had almost conquered all of North Korea - November 1950: Chinese People’s Volunteers attacked and drove the Americans back. They recaptured North Korea and advanced into South Korea - The Americans landed more troops and drove the Chinese back, the war went on until 1953. Nature of the Cold War considering the Arms Race and the Cuban Missile Crisis: The Nature of the War: - Intense geopolitical tensions between different ideologies. Little direct military conflict but lots of nuclear tensions marked by events. - Called the ‘Cold’ War as the tensions never erupted into direct hot war between the two superpowers (due to nuclear deterrent MAD) The Arms Race (Timeline and details): - A race to develop the most sophisticated weapons, planes, and submarines (bombers & nuclear) between the US and USSR - 6 Aug 1945: The US dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. 9 Aug 1945: A plutonium bomb was dropped on Nagasaki - This was known as the Manhattan Project (and was as a response to the possibility of the development of bombs in Germany - At this time, the US had a nuclear weapon monopoly - 1948: The US had a stockpile of about 100 atomic bombs. They were all stored within the US - 1949: The USSR tested its first atomic bomb. This resulted in a race between the US and USSR to create the most powerful nuclear weapons with the most effective delivery systems. - 1953: USA and the USSR were both testing hydrogen bombs and it appeared to the Americans that the Soviets had caught up technologically, resulting in both sides having the fear that they would fall behind in research and production - Jan 1954: The US showed its first nuclear powered submarine, the Nautilus. The US also developed its intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). They were capable of reachilmm ng targets on the other side of the world. The long-range Atlas model had a 6000 km range. Missiles based in Turkey (Thor and Jupiter) had shorter ranges of 2400 km. - 1954: The adoption of the US policy ‘massive retaliation’. Any attack on the US by the USSR would result in a strong nuclear counter - Deterring the Soviets from starting direct military conflict - 1955: To deal with the inequality, the Soviets tried to make the west feel nervous about the USSR’s strength through its increasing economy and events (Moscow Air Show) - This propaganda worked well as it created the impression that the Soviet did have strength to rival the US - Mid 1950s: The US had potential to directly threaten the USSR, but the USSR could only directly threaten Europe. There was a big push by both sides to stockpile weapons and develop effective long distance delivery systems - The US increased its production of warheads and pursued the development of long range bombers. They began to build bases in friendly countries around the Soviet Union (Turkey) to strengthen their attack on the Soviets - The USSR responded by building up its land based missiles. The Soviets developed the intermediate SS-33 missile in large numbers. They were aimed at Europe, and if threatened by the US, the USSR would be able to threaten US allies in Europe - Late 1950s: The US had developed the Minuteman Missile. This missile stored fuel in its own engines. They were smaller than the other missiles and could be activated within a minute. Due to their size they would be stored underground and be protected from an attack - 1960s: The US had the Polaris submarine which was capable of launching missiles while still underwater. These became known as submarine launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) - Early 1960s: The US had developed a nuclear ‘triad’ system of long-range bombers, ICBMs and SLBMs - The US was driven by its economy and fear of communism to develop more powerful and sophisticated weapons - Truman’s original aim of intimidating the USSR into compliance over Eastern Europe backfired, and tension was greatly increased as a result of the developing arms race which served to militarise both sides and bring the war closer (to fulfil the ‘first strike’) - In terms of the sophistication of weaponry, the Soviet Union was never able to match the Americans - The term ‘missile gap’ was the mistaken belief that the Soviets had more missiles than the US and posed a danger to them. This was a result of USSR propaganda. This started the MAD theory. However, by the 1960s, the Soviet nuclear forces had grown and could inflict damage upon the US  - MAD: Mutually Assured Destruction. Nuclear weapons became a deterrent rather than a weapon for use in warfare. The MAD theory means that a country won’t fire its nuclear weapons as the other side would do the same. This theory relies on the fact that neither side has potential for a ‘first strike’ (where they could destroy the other side before they reacted) - This belief was the sole reason a full on nuclear war started - 1966: The US introduced the Multiple Re-entry Vehicle (MRV). The Soviets responded a year later - 1967: The US began development of the antiballistic missile system (ABM) which was meant to stop enemy missiles before they could reach the target. - 1968: The Soviets developed their own SLBMs - 1970: The US developed multiple independently targeted reentry vehicles (MIRV). These were missiles that could carry multiple nuclear warheads, where each warhead could be fired at separate targets. - 1972: The Soviets developed ABMs. This was a frightening development as the belief of a nuclear war being won started to grow - 1975: The Soviets developed their own MIRVs - Late 1970s: MX ICBMs were developed. These were missiles on mobile launchers which could be constantly moved around and thus avoid being able to be pinpointed in an attack. The Cuban Missile Crisis (Start Oct 1962): - Both the US and the USSR possessed nuclear weapons powerful enough to destroy each other - Cuba is an island country 90 miles off the Florida coast - Jan 1959: Castro (a socialist leader of Cuba) took control of Cuba and the Soviets started showing cautious interest - The US responded with an oil blockade due to Castro’s Nationalistic programs - Castro turns to the Soviets for support - 1961: Cuba formally sided with the USSR and aligned with communism - Apr 1961: The Bay of Pigs Invasion - The US unsuccessfully tried to overthrow Cuba’s new communist government (Fidel Castro) - Khrushchev (the Soviet leader) deployed nuclear weapons to Cuba as they seeked help from the USSR after the US tried to overthrow their government as well as to counteract the threat from US missiles in Italy and Turkey - The Soviets saw this as a strategic asset and sent weapons, technicians, and advisors to Cuba, including nuclear ballistic missiles. This meant that they could destroy most cities in the US within minutes - Operation Mongoose: destabilise Castro using economic blockades, sabotage, and military exercises - 14 Oct 1962: The Americans spot the nuclear ballistic missiles which they found out about through U-2 spy planes - 16 Oct 1962: An emergency meeting was held by the US. President John F. Kennedy was told to aim an airstrike on the missile sites & an invasion of the Island. - 22 Oct 1962: Kennedy announced that the US Navy would intercept all Soviet shipments to Cuba - This is known as a quarantine. The US Navy blocks off all supplies of essential goods, and it is considered to be an act of war. The US didn’t block off any essential goods, however, the Soviets didn’t appreciate the distinction (they called it an act of aggression whereas the US called it a medium-aggressive response) - The US demanded the removal of missiles in Cuba. The USSR and Cuba responded by labelling the missiles ‘for defence only’ - 27 Oct 1962: A US spy plane piloted by MAJ Rudolph Dnerson was shot down by a Soviet missile. Additionally, a nuclear armed Soviet submarine was hit with a small depth charge from US (intended to signal for the Soviet submarine to come up) - 28 Oct 1962: The crisis ended with the dismantling of Soviet missile sites in Cuba - Attorney General Robert Kennedy secretly met with Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin. The proposal was for the US to remove all missiles from Italy and Turkey (secret agreement) as well as never invade Cuba again. The Soviets would remove missiles from Cuba under UN inspection Survey the Century of Humiliation, Communist Victory, Founding of RPC, and the Great Leap Forward: Century of Humiliation: - A period of history in China from the mid 19th Century (1839) to the mid 20th Century (1949). China faced extreme internal turmoil as well as external aggression (First Opium War - Communist Revolution) - This was caused by China’s internal weakness and corruption (governance corruption, ineffective governance, and an inability to modernise), economic decline (old fashioned economic system led to instability and poverty), and foreign imperialism and trade imbalance (Western Powers (Britain) sought to balance their trade deficit with China by exporting opium, leading to social and economic problems) - As a result, China lost its sovereignty (power to govern itself) & self respect. It also lost land and overthrew its Emperor and the monarchy in 1911. It decided that it needed to modernise and needed technology (military tech) for protection against the West. Developed a strong nationalism to liberate China from foreign domination - The First Opium War (1839 - 1842) - Cause: British trade imbalance with China, leading to Britain’s illegal opium trade to balance it - Outcome: Treaty of Nanking (1842) forced China to ceded Hong Kong, open 5 treaty ports to British trade, and grant extraterritorial rights to British citizens - The Second Opium War (1856 - 1860) - Cause: Ongoing tensions and disputes over the Treaty of Nanking from the First Opium War - Outcome: Treaty of Tientsin (1858) and Convention of Peking (1860) allowed more ports to open, legalised opium trade, and gave foreign powers more control - The Chinese civilisation quickly became addicted to opium and it was integrated within their society as a cultural norm. Opium was expensive at the time. - Taiping Rebellion (1850 - 1864) - Cause: Internal strife due to corruption, economic difficulties, and social issues (mainly as a result of opium) - Outcome: A civil war resulting in millions of deaths and weaken the Qing Dynasty significantly - The First Sino-Japanese War (1894 - 1895) - Cause: Conflict over influence in Korea and the Japanese wanting to show the West that they were powerful and shouldn’t be invaded - Outcome: Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895) forced China to recognise Korean independence, cede Taiwan and the Pescadores Islands to Japan, and pay a large indemnity - Boxer Rebellion (1899 - 1901) - Cause: Anti-foreign sentiment and resistance against imperialism and Christianity in China - Outcome: Eight-Nation Alliance intervention; Boxer Protocol (1901) imposed heavy indemnities and further concessions on China - Fall of the Qing Dynasty (1911) - Cause: Continued internal instability, corruption, and failure to modernise - Outcome: The Xinhai Revolution led to the establishment of the Republic of China, ending over 2 thousand years of imperial rule - Warlord Era (1916 - 1928) - Cause: Power vacuum and political fragmentation after Yuan Shikai’s death - Outcome: China was divided among regional warlords, leading to further instability and foreign exploitation - May Fourth Movement (1919) - Cause: Outrage over the Treaty of Versailles, which transferred German-held territories in China to Japan - Outcome: A significant cultural and political movement advocating for modernisation, nationalism, and reform - The Second Sino-Japanese War (1916 - 1928) - Japanese Invasion and Occupation - Cause: Japan’s imperial ambitions and desire for resources - Outcome: The invasion of Manchuria (1931) and full-scale invasion of China (1937), resulting in the Second Sino-Japanese War and immense suffering and destruction - Chinese Civil War (1927x - 1949) - Cause: Power struggle between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Communist Party of China (CPC) - Outcome: Communist victory and establishment of the PRC in 1949. The Nationalists retreated to Taiwan. - There are many impacts of the Century of Humiliation, such as: - Loss of Sovereignty: Foreign powers controlled many aspects of China’s economy and territory - Economic Exploitation: China was subjected to unfair treaties, indemnities, and economic control - Social and Political Upheaval: Numerous rebellions, uprisings, and wars caused massive loss of life and suffering - Modernisation Efforts: The humiliation spurred movements for modernisation, reform, and national rejuvenation, eventually leading to the rise of the Communist Party and the establishment of the PRC, as well as the Great Leap Forward Communist Victory: - The Communist Party of China (CPC) beat the Kuomintang (KMT) in the Chinese Civil War which began in 1927. It was briefly interrupted by the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937 - 1945), and the power vacuum in China after the end of Japanese occupation had the 2 parties fighting - Factors of the Communist Victory: - Strategic Leadership: Mao Zedong was the leader of the CPC, and his strategies focused on guerrilla warfare and winning the support of the rural population. Zhu De was a prominent military leader who played a crucial role in the Communist military strategies - Mao was an exceptional leader - military minded (won battles against the KMT). He was ruthless & independant (willing to follow his own path) - Popular Support: The CPC had land reform policies, and the redistribution of land from landlords to peasants was welcomed by the rural population. Promises of social reforms, including improving the status of women and implementing education and health programs also attracted support - KMT Weaknesses: There were many weaknesses of the KMT, such as corruption within the government (loss of public support, Chiang would appoint commanders loyal to him rather than the most skilled), economic mismanagement (hyperinflation and economic hardships weakened the KMT’s position) as well as military failures (poor military decisions and strategies resulted in significant defeats) - Little achievements: - Unable to remove foreigners, unable to stop the Japanese invasion (1937), 800 000 deaths at the flooding of the Yellow River (1938), people disliked the KMT policy of enforced conscription (rounding up peasants) and people hated inflation (rising prices were prevalent under the control of the KMT - Foreign Influence: The USSR provided strategic support to the CPC, especially in the later stages of the civil war. The US initially supported the KMT but eventually limited its support, partly due to the KMT’s failure to effectively utilise the aid - The KMT led by Chiang Kai-shek: - Nationalism: get rid of foreign domination - Democracy: democratic struggle for national freedom - People’s Welfare: desires for national enterprises to benefit the people as opposed to foreign enterprises - 1928 - 1945: The KMT was in power over most of China - KMT (Chinese Nationalists): originally founded as a group to overthrow the monarchy and tended to represent the middle class (urban merchants and businessmen) - Received support from the USA (despite not everyone supporting this) - Lost the civil war and fled to Taiwan, taking lots of gold/wealth - The CCP led by Mao Zedong: - Founded around 1920, inspired by the Russian communist revolution - Tended to represent rural peasants (the majority of China) - Worked in an alliance with the KMT to break the power of the warlords after the monarchy collapsed - 1927: The KMT ruthlessly turned against the Communists and came down to destroying them - there after the two groups were suspicious of each other (despite working together against the Japanese) - Oct 1 1949 - Tiananmen Square, Mao declared the creation of the People's Republic of China (PRC) Founding of the People’s Republic of China (RPC): - The PRC had multiple social and cultural developments - 1949: The Chinese Civil War between the Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang or KMT) and the Communist Party of China (CPC) culminated in the CPC’s victory - Mao Zedong became the paramount leader of the CPC and played a crucial role in its military and ideological strategies - The military wing of the CPC, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) decisively defeated the KMT forces - Oct 1 1949: Mao Zedong officially proclaimed the establishment of the PRC in Tiananmen Square, Beijing - The KMT retreated to Taiwan, where they continued to claim legitimacy as the government of China - The PRC established a land reform (redistributing land from landlords to peasants to eliminate feudal land ownership) and the establishment of the one-party state (PRC) under the leadership of the CPC which centralised power and control over everything  - Sought to create a communist culture which would involve the politicisation of the arts. - 1949: Culture and Education Management Committees were set up consisting of various bureaus to control things such as broadcasting, print media, theatre and film (China Federation of Literary Art Circles) - The Ministry of Culture and the Central Propaganda department enforced the idea that the purpose of culture was to demonise party enemies and praise the goals of the regime while idealising workers and peasants. Promoting ‘revolutionary romanticism’ - The PRC viewed religion as backward, feudal, and counterrevolutionary and thus religious activities were restricted and were organised into ‘patriotic associations’. - Religious leaders who refused to cooperate were imprisoned. Societies such as the Millenarian sects, cults, and redemptive were treated more harshly (executing the leaders) - Propaganda campaigns exposed the ‘crimes of the sects’ - 13 Apr 1950: The Marriage Law was introduced. The party sought to end ‘feudal’ marriage. Arranged marriages, the use of dowries, the taking of concubines, and the betrothal of very young children were outlawed. - The PRC declared that free choice of partners, monogamy and the principles of equal rights for men and women was the law - It became illegal to stop widows from remarrying. This new law was a serious challenge to the authority of the immediate and extended family. - There was a major campaign to expand education and increase the rate of literacy - 1955: The introduction of Pinyin, a simplified form of writing - 1960: Almost a million students at university, however, education had to be ideologically correct. Campaigns were launched to discover ‘inappropriate bourgeois thinking’ - Students often checked teachers and professors for false ideas. This marked a start of the disappearance of creative and intellectual freedom as educators were expected to deliver the correct socialist message - 1956: Lu Dingyi (Director of the Propaganda Department) issued a call for “let a hundred flowers bloom”, alluding to an earlier period of Chinese philosophy during the Zhou Dynasty. - This was intended to lead to more intellectual freedom and allow criticism of the bureaucracy and the party policies - 2 May 1956: Mao delivered a speech supporting the call. - Within a year, there were a lot of attacks against the party figures and the role of the CCP. This led to a touch backlash against those who dared criticise the system (The Anti-Rightist Campaign) - Those who spoke back were called ‘rightists’ and were publicly denounced and forced to undergo ‘thought reform’ and ‘reform through labour’. - Over half a million people were sacked and forced into the countryside or into industrial plants. Thousands of other people from non-academic/educational walks of life were rounded up. The Great Leap Forward: - The GLF took place from 1958 - 1962, and was the term that Mao used to describe the second Five Year Plan (modelled after the USSR 5-year plan) - The aim was to turn the PRC into a modern, industrial state in the shortest possible time. Mao believed that revolutionising China’s agriculture and industry the PRC could build an economy that would catch up with those of the major nations (e.g Europe) and then overtake them - Many of the endeavours created excitement but the plan did not reach its objective as a whole - Mid 1960s: Mao became more concerned about the direction of China; middle-class experts and townspeople again were getting wealthy at the expense of the peasants and ordinary people - Communes were a fundamental element of the GLF. This idea was meant to unite all aspects (agriculture, industry, trade & military) and achieve a level of cooperation within the communes which would be the key to solving China’s problems - Communes varied in size (up to 5000 families) and by 1963, there were around 74 000 communes. This fell to 53 000 in 1978. Urban communes were also created, located around a major factory - Households were put into teams which were then placed into brigades. The brigades made up the commune and were responsible for various activities such as small workshops or elementary schools. They were expected to provide for the people - Massive militarised dining halls were set up with communal kitchens. Many of these had dormitories separated into men’s and women’s areas. This assisted the aim of living communally and breaking down differences between social classes - Communes were designated for certain infrastructure projects (roads, irrigation schemes, dams & bridges. The main input into these activities was mass labour - Communes were able to set production targets locally, meaning there was no coordination and therefore problems grew - 1958 - 1960: China’s economy operated without either free markets or state planning - The GLF resulted in a severe famine (which was covered up by the Chinese leadership) which caused at least 30M through starvation between 1958 - 1962 - Shandong: 7.5M - Anhui: 8M - Henan: 7.9M - Sichuan: 9M - Qinghai: 1M - Tibet: 1M (in relations to population size, Tibet was affected the most with 25% of its population dying) - This damaged and humiliated Mao, edging him out of control in China (he resigned in 1959) but remained Chairman of the Communist Party. - This was a tragic famine from the GLF and was caused by multiple reasons: - The process was distorted by politicisation, with many local officials distorting the figures. Inaccurately high output numbers were reported which were obviously fake. As a result, Mao demanded greater grain requisitions, increased food procurements, combined with continuing grain exports to the Soviet Union (in exchange for foreign currency) meant that there were no food supplies for the rural regions - The naive belief that the mobilisation of the masses would lead to inevitable progress remained persistent - At one stage Mao blamed low grain production on sparrows who were eating the grains and ordered a nationwide campaign to kill sparrows. Despite millions of birds being killed, it led to an insect infestation the following year (no birds to eat the insects) - The situation inside the Communist Party meant that it was impossible to change course before it was too late. There was a lot of criticism towards Mao, and when Pend Dehuai highlighted problems, he and his allies were attacked as “a right-leaning, deviating, opportunist anti-party clique.” This created fear meaning nobody was willing to criticise Mao - There was a massive transfer of manpower from agriculture to non-agricultural rural work and urban work - up to 90M people. They all had to be fed, leaving rural areas without the food to survive - Climatic factors - a warming trend affecting western and northern China, mostly in winter: - 1950s: annual rainfall in the north was decreasing, causing more spring and summer droughts. - 1959 - 1961: irregular rainfall and erratic storms and floods in the south worsened the famine. Despite this, China exported almost 5 tonnes of grain in 1959 - Collectivisation - banned private farming and forced farmers off their land and into communities where they hoped they would be so efficient that they would produce surpluses of food that could be sold abroad to enable an expansion of industry - Socialist sciences - Lysenkoism (method for creating super abundant crops by using new breeds of seeds, planting them closely, ploughing deeply, increased fertilisation, new farm tools, controlling pests, increasing irritation, etc… (this failed) - State owned enterprises - no more private industry, but government directed industry - Encouraged workers to create with their own means an industrial economy - The ‘Backyard Furnace’ (over 500 000) was the solution to Mao’s call to double steel production in a year. Steel needs fuel, so houses, railway tracks and shops were pulled down to provide it. Useful iron and steel products were smelted in these backyard furnaces to produce low-quality iron. Whole areas were deforested to provide furnace fuel. Despite this, the quality of steel was so low that it was considered useless - It did however push steel production from 5.3M tonnes to 10.7M tonnes per year