THE CULTURAL REVOLUTION

Conflicting Interpretations? The Cultural Revolution was an effort to fulfill the

radical promise of the 1949 revolution and rid the nation of class inequalities.

The Cultural Revolution was an intergenerational civil war in which young people expressed their anger and frustration through violence.

The Cultural Revolution was a power struggle among the nation’s leaders following the failure of the Great Leap Forward.

Major Players in the CCP, 1965

Mao Zedong Jiang Qing, former

actress and Mao’s wife, ardent supporter of Cultural Revolution

Lin Biao, Defense Minister, supervised de-russification and Maoist indoctrination in the PLA

Liu Shaoqi, CCP Deputy Chairman, presided over the right turn after the Great Leap Forward

Deng Xiaoping, General Secretary, emphasized economic pragmatism

Zhou Enlai, Premier, moderate, well-regarded diplomat who was careful not to criticize Mao

Results of the Great Leap Forward

38 million died of: Being worked to death Others were killed, tortured, or

imprisoned Famine (the average daily

calorie intake was 1,534.8 for men and 1,200 for women – Aushwitz got between 1,300-1,700 calories per day)

Heavy industry developed (although it was still behind most large industrial countries)

Agriculture lagged behind

Results of the Great Leap Forward

As a result of the failure on the Great Leap Forward, Mao retired from the post of chairman of the People's Republic of China

His place as head of state was taken by Liu Shaoqi, but Mao remained important in determining overall policy

Growing Division (1962-1965) Mao Zedong vs. Deng Xiaoping/Liu

Shaoqi charismatic leadership vs. bureaucracy

Deng Xiaoping

Cultural Revolution (1966-1976)

Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution commitment to revolution and “class

struggle” power struggle to succeed Mao

Phase I: the rise and fall of “red guards” Phase II: the rise and fall of Lin Biao Phase III: the rise and fall of the “Gang of

Four”

Phase I: Red Guards (1966-69)

Red Guards In August 1966 Mao

called on young people to defend the revolution against bourgeois intellectuals and “capitalist roaders.”

Young people heeded the call, striking out with a violent rage that Mao and the CCP were unable to control.

“Smash the old world, establish a new world”

“Let the new socialist performing arts occupy every stage.”- Jiang Qing

Quotations from Chairman Mao

First distributed to soldiers in the PLA, the “little red book” became ubiquitous during the Cultural Revolution, in part because anyone found not to be carrying a copy risked being beaten.

A Campaign Against the “FOUR OLDS”

► Old Thoughts

► Old Culture

► Old Customs

► Old HabitsTo Rebel Is Good!

Phase I: Red Guards (1966-69) Purge of party cadres

Deng Xiaoping Purge of intellectuals

Killing China’s Reformer Lin Baio replaced Liu

Shaoqi as Deputy Chairman of the CCP in July 1966.

Liu Shaoqi was under house arrest the following year and dead two years after that.

Deng Xiaoping survived, but Red Guards tortured and crippled his son. “The renegade, traitor, and scab Liu

Shaoqi must forever be expelled from the Party.”

Red Guard Methods:•The Red Guards humiliated and tortured thousands of intellectuals, including teachers, party leaders, the elderly, and their own parents. •Red Guards ransacked

monasteries and destroyed symbols of Chinese traditions.

•For a few months the PLA stood aside and let the students rampage. However, Red Guards in the summer of 1967 began to challenge the PLA and even Mao himself.

Phase II: Lin Biao (1969-71) The assumed successor to

Mao Zedong Lin Biao, head of the PLA, rose

in prominence as the PLA suppressed the Red Guards.

In 1971 Lin allegedly tried, but failed to assassinate Mao had to flee to Soviet Union

His departure eroded the credibility of the entire

leadership

Phase III: the “Gang of Four”

1972 – 1976 power struggle

between the radical “Gang of

Four”, led by Jiang Qing, Mao’s wife

Goal continue Cultural revolution…failed when Mao dies and his power is gone…gang of 4 put on trial and convicted….Deng Xiaoping takes power

The Fall of Jiang Qing Power struggles

continued as Jiang Qing led the leftist Gang of Four against the moderate Zhou Enlai and his protégé, the rehabilitated Deng Xiaoping.

After both Zhou and Mao died in 1976, Deng maneuvered his way into power and the Gang of Four were branded as traitors.

“Up to the Mountains, Down to the Villages”