Post on 26-Dec-2015
Asia in the 20th Century
Asia in the 20th CenturyChina Becomes a Republic
China remained a weak, divided nation in the late 19th and early 20th century
The Qing Dynasty finally fell in 1912 when the Emperor Puyi was forced to abdicate by revolutionaries under Sun Yat-sen
After the establishment of the Republic, China dissolved into an era of warlords controlling various parts of the country, while many of China’s ports essentially were under foreign control
Finally in the mid-1920s, Sun’s protégé, Chiang Kai-shek consolidated rule, although rivals such as the Communists under Mao remained a problem
Sun Yat-sen
Chiang Kai-shek
Asia in the 20th CenturyWorld War II in China
WWII arguably started in China Japan seized Manchuria in 1931 It invaded the rest of China in 1937
Responding to Japanese aggression distracted Chiang from badly need reform efforts
It also forced him to put aside his war against the Communists to ally with them against the Japanese
The wartime alliance benefited the Communists more than Chiang’s Kuomintang
The communists emerged as heroes in the eyes of China’s peasants
Chiang lost 3 million troops and was so weakened when the civil war resumed after WWII he was forced in 1949 to flee to Taiwan
Asia in the 20th CenturyThe People’s Republic
China under the Communists was dominated until 1976 by Mao Zedong
Mao soon collectivized Chinese agriculture and launched a campaign against “class enemies”
The Great Leap Forward (1950s) Tried to create industrial workshops
among peasants Disastrous policy leading to millions
of deaths from famine
Cultural Revolution (1960s) Mao sought to recapture the fervor of
the era of guerilla struggle Encouraged the young to form units
of “Red Guards” Mao set the Red Guards against
enemies real and perceived
Mao Zedong
Asia in the 20th CenturyChina after Mao
Mao died in 1976, power passed to a formal rival of Mao, Deng Xiaoping
New policies Collectivization of agriculture ends Private enterprise legalized, foreign
investment allowed and encouraged The state remained very involved in
economic activity
The Communist Party retained its monopoly on power, ruthlessly crushing a student-led pro-democracy movement protesting in Tiananmen Square in 1989
Since then China’s wealth and international power have continued to expand greatly
Deng Xiaoping
Asia in the 20th CenturyJapan: Embracing Defeat
After its surrender, Japan came under American occupation
The military governor of Japan was Gen. Douglas MacArthur
MacArthur implemented basic reforms in Japan
These reforms kept the emperor in place, but successfully suppressed Japanese militarism and planted the seeds of Japanese democracy and made the nation a staunch U.S. ally in the Cold War
Stripped of its military power, Japan applied its creative energy to business, becoming an economic powerhouse in international industry and trade
Asia in the 20th CenturyIndia (1)
During the prewar period a powerful movement had emerged seeking independence from Britain
It was centered in the Indian National Congress, but its spiritual leader was Mahatma Gandhi
Gandhi encouraged non-violent resistance to British rule
He was alternately ignored, jailed, and courted by the British
His biggest frustration was violent extremist elements in the independence movement
Independence (1947) The Labour Party government that
took power after WWII in Britain decided to grant India independence
Its biggest problem was the Muslim refusal to join India, necessitating the creation of Pakistan
MahatmaGandhi
Asia in the 20th CenturyIndia (2)
India-Pakistan relations Since independence, both India and
Pakistan repeatedly went to war The flashpoints have varied: the
province of Kashmir, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), and old religious hatreds
During the Cold War, Pakistan allied itself with the U.S., India with the USSR
The conflict has become especially worrisome since the 1990s when both countries successfully tested nuclear weapons
India has emerged from its Cold War protectionist economy to become a major high tech player, particularly in software development and in service outsourcing