Mao's Consolidation of Power

Question 1

Repression And Terror

Answer 1

1. Anti-Movements → created atmosphere of fear and uncertainty
2. Targeted bourgeois class → accused them of crimes such as waste, corruption and tax evasion
3. Anti-landlord campaign → Property of landlords was confiscated and redistributed. Nearly 1 million were killed in the early 1950s.

Question 2

R&T: 3 Antis

Answer 2

1. Waste
2. Corruption
3. “Too much red tape”=Too difficult to access government

Question 3

R&T: 5 Antis

Answer 3

1. Bribery
2. Spying
3. Tax Evasion
4. Fraud
5. Theft

Question 4

Collectivization (1953-57)

Answer 4

1. Feared private ownership would lead to class divide, capitalist tendencies → Anti Mao
2. Allowed Mao to control over richer and poorer portions of the population

Question 5

100 Flowers Campaign (Thought Reform 1956)

Answer 5

1. Invited people to speak and criticise the government → Mao got too much criticism, so killed/jailed those against him
2. Purged intellectuals (artists, professors, etc) as he felt they valued freedom of speech too much
3. Sent people to labour camps to encourage “Thought Reform”. They’d understand what it was like to live and work like a peasant → less likely to oppose Mao’s policies
4. “Let 100 flowers bloom, let 100 schools of thought contend”
5. Ended abruptly → Historical debate over the true motivation of the campaign

Question 6

Propaganda (Cult of Mao)

Answer 6

1. Lin Biao → projected image of Mao as saviour of the nation
2. Mao’s picture and quotes were everywhere → cult of personality = most people did not understand his ideology, but still believed he was right
3. People would wake up early and bow down to Mao’s photo.
4. Mao did not often speak in public → population saw it as a great honor to witness his speeches
5. Little Red Book (1964) → contained selections of his speeches
6. Attack on Revisionism → official announcement that CCP was infected by revisionism
   7.Swimming in the Yangtze river (1966) = Wanted to show everyone that he was still healthy → still in command

Question 7

Propaganda: August Rally 1966

Answer 7

1. Destroy revisionism (4 Olds → thoughts, habits, customs, culture)
2. Young became the instrument of the Cultural Revolution=Red Guards → young people terror squads
3. Red Guards=Free to attack and destroy property → replace intellectuals with true revolutionaries
4. Public attacks → 40000 killed

Question 8

Imposition of Military Control

Answer 8

1. Military went around taking over territory (Tibet, Xinjiang, and Guangdong (GMD base)) → Sent in order to improve local conditions, impose martial law and repress opposition
2. Terror tactics → Purgers against GMD supporters
3. Neighbors spied on neighbors, children reported on their parents, workers snooped on other workers
4. Mao wanted the proletarian class in power

Question 9

Structure of Government

Answer 9

1. Structure of PRC: 6 regions led by 4 officials=Chairman, Party secretary, Military commander(PLA), Political commissar(PLA)
2. CCP claimed people had authority. Reality → Politburo-controlled PRC
3. Claimed to have “elections” for each official. Reality → they were all hand-picked. Politburo was filled with people loyal to Mao.
4. Military Commander and Political Commissar for each of the 6 sections of China were from PLA - giving Mao control, regardless of who the Chairman was, of each region and bureau