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Asia
Most of these events in Asia revolve around violent activities. Many people were killed during these struggles, including innocent ones. The soldiers and leaders all fought for what they believed was best for their countries. Most of the events are related in some way. For example, Tiananmen Square still impacts the US and PRC today. Our country still expects the Chinese to hold to higher standards in regards to human rights. This connects to Gandhi's teachings of non-violence. -
Long March
The Long March was an epic retreat by the three Red Armies of China between 1934 and 1936. It took place during the Chinese Civil War.The Chinese Communist forces were partially surrounded and trapped by the Nationalist Kuomintang. Threatened with extermination by the better-led and more out numbering Kuomintang. They fled north and west. This lasted from 1934 to 1935. In the distance they fled they traveled over 6,000 miles. -
India's Independence From Britain
India had been under British control since the 18th century. The East India Company took control of the country. Their government was known as the Raj. Beginning in the early 1920s, nationalist leader Mahatma Gandhi started the anti-British civil disobedience campaign. In 1942, he led the Quit India Movement ordering the British out of the country. Many Indians were arrested. On August 15, 1947, Britain withdrew its control. India and Pakistan became two separate, independent nations. -
Gandhi's Assasination
On January 30th, 1948, Gandhi, a leader in the fight for India's independence from Britain, was slowly leaving his home to attend a prayer meeting. A hindu named Nathuram Godse shot him. The gun used by Godse was a Beretta M1934 semi-automatic pistol in .380 ACP caliber.His last words were" Oh no". Godse felt that Gandhi was sacrificing Hindu interests in an effort to appease minority groups. Godes had worked for a group called the Mahasabha. -
Korean War
The Korean War lasted from June 25, 1950 to July 27, 1953. The Korean War was a conventional war between North Korea and South Korea. North Korea wanted South Korea to become communist like them. North Korea was supported by the People's Republic of China. The Soviet Union aided North Korea in the war. South Korea was aided by the U.N. and the USA. America's armed forces suffered several years during the war. -
Vietnam's Independence From France
Vietnam's Independence Day is celebrated on Sept. 2. In 1945, Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam's independence in a speech. He proclaimed it the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The French did not give up their former colony without a fight. The West recognized French claims. The first Indo-China War was fought with the French from 1946 to 1954 and resulted in the division of Vietnam into South and North. French control ended on May 7, 1954, when Vietnamese forces defeated the French at Dien Bien Phu. -
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was fought in Vietnam. It lasted from November 1,1955 to the fall of Saigon on April 30,1975. One side of this war was fought by North Vietnam with the help of its communist allies. The other side was fought by South Vietnam and was supported by the US and other anti-communist nations. In late 1961 President John F. Kennedy ordered more help for the South Vietnamese government in its war against the Vietcong guerrillas. Guerrillas were a group of soldiers that ambushed enemies. -
Mao Dezong's Great Leap Forward
Mao Dezong was a Chinese leader who wanted to build a new China. He did not trust the educated, upper class people. He relied on the "rank and file." Industrialization and a “technical revolution” were his goals. In 1958, he started the Great Leap Forward. He started "people's communes" but did not have a good plan for the thousands of families in the new social units. His goals for agriculture and industry were too high. They brought a nationwide collapse of Chinese agriculture. -
China's Cultural Revolution
Mao Dezong organized thousands of Chinese youth together to prevent the Soviet style of Communism. He closed schools and encouraged the kids to join Red Guard units. The units burned books, imprisoned teachers, and supported Mao Dezong. It was a violent time. Over one million people died. The economy in China also suffered. The movement started in 1966 and ended in October of 1976. A key slogan of the time was “Fight selfishness, criticize revisionism.” -
People's Republic of China and US Relations
The PRC and US established diplomatic relations in January of 1979. The US government does not recognize the People's Republic of China as friends or enemies. They are major trade partners. Both have common interests in the areas of nuclear weapons and terrorism. After Tiananmen Square, the US spoke out against the PRCs treatment of its people. It impacted the relations of the two countries. Since then they have continued to have both postive and negative influences upon each other. -
Tiananmen Square
Several hundred civilians were shot dead by the Chinese army. a bloody military operation to crush a democratic protest in Peking's Beijing. Tanks rumbled through the capital's streets randomly firing on unarmed protesters. Demonstrators had occupied the square for seven weeks. They refused to move until their demands for democratic reform were met. The protests began with a march by students in memory of former party leader Hu Yaobang, He had died a week before the bloody massacre.
