Super Duper Secret Flashcards

Front 1

RISE TO POWER

Back 1

A communist god rises...

Front 2

Confucianism

Back 2

Ancient philosophical tradition in China that emphasized order, balance and knowing one's place in society--Mao exploited this in demanding total obedience

Front 3

Mandate of Heaven

Back 3

The idea that emperor's ruled with the blessing of the Gods--Mao coopted this concept as he developed his cult of personality

Front 4

Chaing Kai Shek

Back 4

Leader of Nationalist China, he joined forces with Mao two different times in order to expell warlords, then the Japanese, was exiled to Taiwan in 1949

Front 5

Era of the Warlords

Back 5

A time of complete chaos and civil war occuring between the fall of the Manchu dynasty in 1911 and 1927 when the Great Northern Expedition erradicated them

Front 6

Qing Dynasty

Back 6

The last ruling dynasty of China, also known as the Manchu dynasty because their line originated in Manchuria, toppled in 1911 by Sun Yat Sen's forces

Front 7

Five Relationships

Back 7

Part of Confucian thought: Emperor/People, Husband/Wife, Father/Son, Elder Brother/Younger Brother, Older Friend/Younger Friend

Front 8

Middle Kingdom

Back 8

What the Chinese call themselves, saw themselves as the center of the universe and a superior culture to the "barbarians" beyond China

Front 9

Opium Wars

Back 9

Wars fought between Great Britian and China in the 19th century in which the British forced the opium trade on the Chinese people--a great humiliation for China

Front 10

Spheres of Influence

Back 10

The US was "anti-imperialist" so they forbade the "colonialization" of China by foreign powers, instead they set up "zones of influence" among the foreign nations instead--not much different

Front 11

Open Door Policy

Back 11

This was a trade policy pushed by the US that argued that rather than letting one country colonize China, it should remain open to all western nations for trade (and exploitation)

Front 12

Taiping Rebellion

Back 12

The rebellion of a Christian warlord who claimed to be claimed to be the brother of Jesus Christ--a symbol of the weakness of the Qing dyansty's rule

Front 13

Boxer Rebellion

Back 13

A rebellion against the weak and crumbling Qing dynasty by a group that practiced martial arts and secret magical arts--motivated by a disgust with Chinese subjugation to the West

Front 14

Sun Yat-Sen

Back 14

The father of Modern China who led a democratic coalition against the Qing Dynasty in 1911. He was mentor of Chiang Kai Shek who went on to lead Nationalist China

Front 15

Three Principles

Back 15

The Nationalist program under Sun Yat Sen: Nationalism, Democracy and Social Welfare--it was not that different from Mao's stated communist principals at that time

Front 16

May Fourth Movement

Back 16

Anti-imperialist movement begining with student in Beijing, May 4, 1919, protesting the Chinese government's weak response to the Treaty of Versailles which allowed Japan to receive territories in China

Front 17

Great Northern Expedition

Back 17

Led by Chaing and Mao in 1924 to destroy the warlords once and for all, it was a success and then Chaing turned on Mao in 1927and tried to destroy the communists

Front 18

Jiangxi Soviet

Back 18

Mao hid here in the south from 1927-1934 practicing land redistribution and refining his philosophy of Maoism, an agrarian variation on Marx's Communist Theory

Front 19

The Long March

Back 19

Mao's epic march 1934-5 over mountains, deserts, swamps and rivers to escape Chiang's attempt to snuff out his communist movement --strengthened greatly Mao's cult of personality

Front 20

Yanan Period

Back 20

Mao's new base of operations after the Long March,1935-45, where he continued to use brutality to consolidate his power over the CCP and write his revolutionary philosophy

Front 21

White Terror

Back 21

This was the launching of Chiang's betrayal against the communists during the Great Northern Expedition in 1927, beginning in Shanghai and spreading from there

Front 22

Maoism

Back 22

Mao's interpretation of Marxist-Leninism in which he reiterpret communist revolution through the lens of the peasants, not industrial workers

Front 23

Barrel of a Gun

Back 23

Mao famously said, "All power comes from the power of a gun"--a philosophy he followed his entire life, stopping short of no brutality in order to secure and maintain power

Front 24

CONSOLIDATION

Back 24

Tightening his grip on China.

Front 25

First Five Year Plan

Back 25

Aim was to develop the state directed growth of heavy industry. Areas targeted were coal, steel and petrochemicals. Statistics collected show it was a great success.

Front 26

Sino-Soviet Treaty 1950

Back 26

USSR Agreed to provide china with Economic assistance, but it favored the soviet union. (the Chinese had to pay for aid through commercial concessions)

Front 27

Registration

Back 27

The party controlled a person’s right to employment, housing, pension and it depended on contents of his dossier. Mao used it as a political weapon

Front 28

Gao and Rao

Back 28

The affair 1954. The Korean War and the First Five year plan placed additional burdens on the PRC. Mao claimed many officials were only half-hearted in their efforts to promote it. (He claimed they were establishing independent kingdoms with their power) then he dismissed them.

Front 29

Confiscation

Back 29

Mao confiscated land from the landlords and in 1951 the confiscated land was redistributed to the peasants. This was done to consolidate Mao's power by fullfilling his promises to the peasants.

Front 30

Zhou Enlai

Back 30

A veteran of the Jiangxi and Yanan years who became an outstanding international statesman by being Mao’s foreign secretary. He was the one who condemned the UN flag in Korea as an imperialist invasion.

Front 31

Deng Xioping

Back 31

The dominant force in Chinese politics from 1978 to 1997. He reversed many of Mao’s policies.

Front 32

Reunification Campaign

Back 32

Used by the Chinese government for forcibly bringing the invaded provinces into line in the 1950’s.

Front 33

Anti-Movements

Back 33

Started in 1951 and were targeted waste, corruption and inefficiency. They were remodeled in 1952 to target five new things: industrial sabotagge, tax evasion, bribery, fraud, and theft.

Front 34

Bourgeoisie

Back 34

Mao's aim was to destroy the remnants of what he called the ‘bureaucratic capitalist class'

Front 35

Democratic Centralism

Back 35

Democratic centralism is a method of leadership in which political decisions reached by the party (through its democratically elected bodies) are binding upon all members of the party

Front 36

Korean War: Benefits/Costs

Back 36

Dispute that started when the US crossed the 38th parallel. Due to this Mao was seen as a hero for chinese people as he had defeated the U.S only two years after rising to power.

Front 37

Kulaks

Back 37

These people owned the land where the peasants worked and expolited them. Mao took their land to fulfill his promises to the peasants (Word taken from Soviet Union)

Front 38

Hundred Flowers

Back 38

This happened in 1956. The aim of this Campaign was to let the chinese people to freely express their views about the party. However, when it did not turn out as Mao wanted to the campaign was completely changed to chase the people who had criticised the party.

Front 39

GREAT LEAP FORWARD

Back 39

More like Great Leap backward!

Front 40

Great Leap Forward

Back 40

This happened in 1958-62 and is also known as the Second Five Year Plan. The purpose of this was to attain a modern industrial state and catch up to the other Western nations.

Front 41

Blue Ants

Back 41

The name given to the massive workforce all dressed in identical uniforms as Mao planned to industrialize the country by using manual labour made possible by China's population.

Front 42

Backyard Furnaces

Back 42

These were set up by families to reach quotas of production, most notably for steel. Ultimately, these failed because what was produced here ended up to be useless.

Front 43

General Steel and Grain

Back 43

Figurative language used to describe the two main goals of the Great Leap Forward (similar to Guns vs. Butter).

Front 44

Industrial Production

Back 44

This went down during the Great Leap Forward as there was no solid economic plan in terms of targets and quotas. Although Mao wanted to improve this, the policies he implemented were detrimental to its progress.

Front 45

Lysenkoism

Back 45

Originating from a Soviet Researcher, these were a compilation of wrong theories regarding agricultural techniques that ended up being completely wrong. Thus, the implementation of these resulted in the famine worsening.

Front 46

Sparrowcide

Back 46

Mao's solution to what he thought was reducing the amount of grain in China. The result was people running around and killing these "pests", who were later found out to be beneficial for the protection of their harvest.

Front 47

Famine

Back 47

The result of the Great Leap Forward that left upwards of 40,000,000 dead.

Front 48

Applied Communism

Back 48

The common belief that there would be an effective system of production and fair shares. However, politics interfered and the real economic problems were not addressed.

Front 49

Ming Tombs

Back 49

A reservoir project located in Beijing that Mao visited, and there was even a film that featured this. This was considered one of the greatest projects of the Great Leap Forward.

Front 50

Mao's Limitations

Back 50

Mao did not believe that he was at fault for the failures of the Great Leap Forward. He continued to enact policies despite the failures that piled up. Eventually, the negative consequences were too overwhelming that he had to lay low for Liu and Deng to try and boost the economy.

Front 51

SOEs

Back 51

Firms that were under total government direction and had to comply with whatever the government declared. Production fell under the implementation of these.

Front 52

Collectivization

Back 52

Peasants were forced to stay together in communes, where the system was completely controlled by the PRC. Here, there was public everything and private farming was abolished. The state became the ultimate landlord.

Front 53

Lushan Conference

Back 53

This happened in 1959 where officials were complimenting the success of the Great Leap Forward. Although one person said he saw many dead, everyone else did not support his claim because everyone wanted to impress Mao. No one dared offend Mao's wisdom, which was why people made speeches about the advancements made rather than the inherent disadvantages of the campaign.

Front 54

Shanghai Wing

Back 54

Jiang Qing, Mao's wife, had influence in this sector, which was why Mao brought her to the Lushan Conference as he was expecting some trouble.

Front 55

Gulags

Back 55

Camps for those who disobeyed or were thought to have disobeyed Mao's policies. Like any other torture camp, millions died mostly from starvation.

Front 56

Tibet Famine

Back 56

Labeled as a man-made genocide, Mao destroyed the ways of life in Tibet. He applied his failing policies here as well, ultimately causing a reduction in food production and harvest. Combined with the influx of migrants, resources were simply not enough to sustain the Tibetan population.

Front 57

Collectivist Principal

Back 57

The concept that characterized communes as a way of increasing production. Private ownership went against this principle as it promotes competition as the incentive factor.

Front 58

CULTURAL REVOLUTION

Back 58

Cultural devolution, maybe...

Front 59

Cultural Revolution

Back 59

Broadened from an internal party purge to national movement with a poster campaign, where

Front 60

Liu Shaoqi

Back 60

Although he was prominent in Chinese government and going to become Mao's successor, he was also named a traitor in 1968 and died in 1969 from harsh treatment

Front 61

Krushev

Back 61

a politician who led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War, he was also part of the revisionism going on in the USSR to partly erase Stalin.

Front 62

Lin Biao

Back 62

The 'main man' of the Cultural Revolution. He wrote the Little Red Book, organised many of the rallies with Jiang Qing and was going to become Mao's successor until he was named a 'traitor'.

Front 63

Little Red Book

Back 63

Considered the secular bible of China, included many of Mao's quotes and sayings. It quickly became a book to live by in China, taught in schools.

Front 64

Wu Han

Back 64

A former playwright known for writing about emperors, old Chinese culture, etc. He was banned from writing further and subjected to harsh treatment leading him to commit suicide.

Front 65

CCRG

Back 65

The Central Cultural Revolution Group consisted mainly of radical supporters of Mao (including his wife) and was to guide the Cultural Revolution

Front 66

Diary of Lei Feng

Back 66

Diary of a former Chinese soldier who died in the war. The diary was used as a symbol for the revolution, but sources are unsure if it was really written by the soldier or simply another propaganda technique

Front 67

Group of Five

Back 67

A set of moderate party officials led by Peng Zhen, the mayor of Beijing. Their role was to 'explore the potential of the Cultural Revolution'

Front 68

Yangzi Swim

Back 68

Mao's first public reappearance, great symbolic gesture, the site of his return had been carefully chosen and displayed on every medium.

Front 69

Tiananmen Rally

Back 69

The August rally 1966, over 1 million people, mostly young, packed into Tiananmen Square in Beijing, waving Little Red Books, screamed in veneration to their idol Mao. Demonstration lasted a whole day, evidence of the organising skill of Lin Biao. This was the first marking event of the Cultural Revolution.

Front 70

Four Olds

Back 70

Old ideas, old customs, old culture, old habits these were seen as targets for the young to attack (speech by Lib Biao discussed introduced these)

Front 71

Permanent Revolution

Back 71

The notion that revolutions are not a single historic event, but a continuous process

Front 72

Red Guards

Back 72

Students who began taking the streets as 'Red Guards', intent on creating a reign of terror, attacking teachers and causing unrest.

Front 73

Kang Sheng

Back 73

Mao's secret polic chief who took pleasure in terrifying and persecuting people

Front 74

Vandalism

Back 74

The violence that ensued from the Red Guard led to the vandalism of paintings, sculptures, etc. Anything that represented Chinese culture from the past would be destroyed or nearly)

Front 75

PLA

Back 75

The Chinese People's Liberation Army is the armed forces of the Communist Party of China and the armed forces of the People's Republic of China. Mao used them to carry out his Cultural Revolution after Red Guards went crazy

Front 76

Up Mountain

Back 76

"Up the Mountain down the Villages" campaign sent out all former Red Guards (students) to the peasant areas to 'live as a peasant' (mostly a way to get rid of the red guards to avoid more violence). Many of the red guard died from starvation, others suffering incredibly. This is where they began to doubt Mao.

Front 77

Great Helmsman

Back 77

A nickname for Mao, meant a person who steers a ship or boat (the boat being China).

Front 78

Jiang Qing

Back 78

Film actress until 1937 when she left her husband to join Communists in Yanan, where she met Mao and married him in 1939. Initially, Mao restricted her from politics, but this changed after 1959. She led the Cultural Revolution and dictated what should be destroyed. She was much more radical than Mao.

Front 79

MAO'S FOREIGN POLICY

Back 79

Love and hate with US and USSR

Front 80

Clash of Personality

Back 80

Mao and Stalin dislikes each other intensly. Stalin saw Mao as a peasant who was not a true Communist and treated him with disdain. Mao felt disrespected in return.

Front 81

Border Disputes

Back 81

These had always been a source of tension between the USSR and China. In WWI, the Bolsheviks seized outer Mongolia. In WWII, Soviet troops in Manchuria stole Chinese machinery. Even after PRC was established, there were continuous border disputes, especially over land that China claimed the USSR had stolen throughout the years. In 1969, border disputes almost led to war

Front 82

Sino-Centric Marxism

Back 82

Mao's version of Communism. This difference in ideology was an important source of tension between China and the USSR. Mao believed that the Marxism needed to be interpreted to fit each country's own needs, and thus justified his peasant-led revolution. Stalin, who was more traditionalist in his beliefs, rejected Sino-centric Marxism.

Front 83

Sino-Soviet Treaty 1950

Back 83

Treaty between China and USSR that made it seem like China and USSR would help each other. China had hoped that USSR would provide help to them to get them started (ie. $300 million, advisors etc.). In reality, Stalin intended to use the treaty to exploit China for his own benefit ($300 million was a loan that needed to be paid back with interest, the advisors would be paid for by the Chinese). Khrushchev later admitted that this treaty was an insult to the Chinese.

Front 84

Visits

Back 84

On Mao's 1949 visit to Moscow, Stalin barely acknowledged him and did not have the celebrations that Mao expected to greet him. The Chinese were left in a shabby villa outside of Moscow with only a broken ping-pong table. The Soviets made no attempt to entertain or honor the Chinese, and Mao felt disrespected. Mao got his revenge when Khrushchev visited Beijing: he humiliated Khrushchev by making him swim (K was a fat guy who didn't know how to swim). Mao also put the Soviets in a hotel with no air conditioning.

Front 85

De-Stalinization

Back 85

Khrushchev's denunciation of Stalin's dictatorship and cult of personality. This made Mao nervous because he ruled in China in a similar manner. He saw de-Stalinization as an attack on his own rule. De-Stalinization also encouraged Eastern bloc nations to rebel against the USSR. Mao saw this weakening of the USSR's grasp on other Communist nations and became worried for the fate of international Communism

Front 86

Albania

Back 86

One of the places the Sino-Soviet rivalry played out. In 1961, Moscow withdrew financial aid to Albania after they refeused to follow orders. China stepped in and took USSR's place, undermining Soviet influence.

Front 87

Detente

Back 87

The policy of the USSR and the West to try and de-escalate the Cold War and seek closer relations. Mao saw this as a betrayal of Communist ideals. He calimed the the USSR was sucking up to the capitalists and disapproved. He also believed that the USSR was seeking closer relations in order to isolate China internationally.

Front 88

Taiwan

Back 88

In 1958, the PRC had planned an invasion of Taiwan. It was eventually called off because the US was prepared to defend Taiwan, but Mao was angry that the USSR hadn't taken his side or even offered moral support. Khrushchev answered by saying that he was not willing to put the USSR at risk for China's recklessness. Another example of the divide in the Sino-Soviet alliance

Front 89

Walk-Out

Back 89

At the 1961 Moscow Congress, the Chinese delegation staged a dramatic walk-out after a speech they felt attacked them. This was the climax to a decade of worsening relations. From this point on, China and USSR made almost no effort to be friends and only resorted to name calling.

Front 90

Sino-Soviet Split

Back 90

The breakdown in relations between the USSR and China as a result of ideological differences, clash of personality, border disputes. Although it was originally expected the China and the USSR wold be close Communist allies, they ended up becoming fierce enemies.

Front 91

Rivalry

Back 91

China and USSR were locked in a rivalry about who should be the leader of international Communism. China encouraged Communist nations to break off from the USSR and use their own interpretation of Communism.

Front 92

Paper Tigers

Back 92

Mao called believed that nuclear weapons were like "paper tigers" and was willing to use them in war. He thought that in the case of a nuclear war, China's enormous population would give him the advantage. Both the West and the USSR was this as an example of Mao's craziness.

Front 93

Test Ban Treaty

Back 93

Treaty that banned the USSR and the West from conducting nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere. Mao saw this agreement as another example of the USSR's betrayal of international Communism.

Front 94

Vietnam

Back 94

During the Vietnam war, Mao had supported his fellow Communists in North Vietnam. This led to tensions with the US, who supported South Vietnam.

Front 95

Third Line

Back 95

A major line of bombing fortifications built by Mao on mainland China. Inspired by the constant fear that the US might invade the mainland.

Front 96

Ping Pong Diplomacy

Back 96

Exchanges between the national ping-pong teams of China and the US was the beginning of a thaw in relations between China and the US. When the US ping-pong team visited China, they were the first Americans to visit in 30 years

Front 97

Kissinger-Nixon

Back 97

Kissinger's initial talks with Zhou Enlai halped pave the way for an opening of relations between China and the US. In 1972, Nixon visited China and met with Mao. Ths visit was a complete success and led to full diplomatic contact in 1979.

Front 98

Bamboo Curtain

Back 98

China had been cut off from the US for 30 years. Thanks to ping-pong diplomacy and Nixon's visit, the bamboo curtain was parted and China and the US were able to talk.