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Long-term causes of the Chinese Civil War
Socio-economic factors In 1900, China was ruled by the imperial Manchu dynasty. The majority of the population were peasants, that they had to work the land, and most were extremely
poor. It was the peasants who paid the taxes that in turn paid for the great Manchu imperial, and it also the peasants who faced dificult situations. -
Political weakness and the influence of foreign powers
Britain had defeated China in the mid 19th century in the OpWars, and
subsequently the great Chinese Empire was carved up into spheres of influence by the
Europeans, Americans and, at the end of the 19th century, by Japan.
The rebellion, which
lasted until 1864, was part religious movement, and part political reform movement. It was
only put down after the death of millions of Chinese by regional armies. -
The overthrow of the Manchu dynasty
with the death of the emperor and the succession of his two year old brother Pu Yi in 1980 the dynasty Manchu dynasty intensified .The former Emperor’s brother, Prince Chun, ruled as regent, but was not capable.In November 1911, delegates from the ‘independent’ provinces gathered in Nanjing to declare the creation of a Chinese Republic. A political exile, who had been in the USA during the revolution, was invited to be China’s
first President – Dr Sun Yixian. -
The rule of Yuan Shikai
although Yuan ruled China as a military dictator from 1912 until 1915, which led to the revolution of 1911 stayed without resolving, besides that his government became a great obstacle for a united China, in 1912, and declared itself a parliamentary party. -
Short-term causes of the Chinese Civil War
Political weakness: regionalism – the warlords
1916–28. Something important to take into account is that one cause was the little unity within the country during the second decade of the 20th century. With the death of Yuan, China lost the little figure that China had. The warlord period increased the sense of humiliation felt by many Chinese and, coupled
with their desire to get rid of foreign influence, led to an increase in nationalism during the
decade of warlord rule. -
The May Fourth Movement
During this period, two political movements developed in response to both the warlords
and foreign influence in China.began in 1919 and Students led
a mass demonstration in Beijing against the warlords, traditional Chinese culture and the
Japanese And The Bolshevik revolution
of 1917 provided a practical example. -
Communists and nationalists
when Sun died in 1925, the GMD had made little progress towards fulfilling their
‘Three Principles’.General Jiang Jieshi.
Jiang was a committed nationalist, and had joined the GMD.As well as the GMD,
another revolutionary party emerged during the warlord period, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This communist party was officially set up in 1921. -
Attempt to unify China: the First United Front
the GMD and the CCP wanted a unified China and They agreed that the first step to this was to get rid of the warlords, and in 1922 they formed the First United Front. and Sun Yixian’s decided to keep the communists on his side to eliminate his obstacles. and by 1927, the GMD and the communists had captured Hangzhou, Shanghai and Nanjing. They took Beijing in 1928. -
Immediate cause of the Chinese Civil War: the GMD attacks the CCP
The communists also had support from the industrial workers.
Jiang now expelled all communists from the GMD and in 1927 using informants from the underworld of triads and gangsters – 5,000 communists were shot. Ignoring the orders of the Comintern to retain the United Front, the CCP decided that its only hope of survival was to flee into the mountains of Jiangsi. The GMD pursued them,determined to destroy the communists. The civil war had begun.
