Time-line Mao’s life.

In 1893

q Mao Zedong is born 26 December in Hunan.

q Mao doesn’t leave his home province until he is 25 years old.

q He has poor education, 6 years junior school.

In 1911 at the age of 18, China becomes a Republic

1918 Mao goes to Peking, he will work as an assistant in the Library of the Peking University. He will work under the Chief librarian, who is also very much involved in the New Youth Magazine.

In 1919 The 4^th May Movement involves Mao.

In 1921 Mao is one of the 50 founders of CCP.

In 1925 Mao is sent back to Hunan by the CCP due to his inability to carry out the task to be coordinator in policies between GMD and CCP.

On 30 May the same year a line of strikes and rebellion occur around China. British-commanded police shots and kills 12 demonstrators in Shanghai, and in June the trouble continue in Canton (Guangzhou) when 30 demonstrators are killed. The Chinese, especially in the major cities, start campaigns and boycotts against British and western products. A wave of massive anti-imperialism spread through China. The revolution spread to the countryside too.

The same year Sun Yat-sen dies, and Chiang Kai-shek takes over.

Mao is left outside this while his party comrades can organize workers strikes etc he finds out the revolutionary powers of the farmers.

In 1926 Chiang starts his Northern Expedition, a military revolutionary movement to try to unite the country.

In 1927 Mao publish Report on Peasant Movement in Hunan – stressing the importance of revolution carried by the peasants, not the workers in the cities. Very soon after this Chiang starts his counterrevolution. GMD feared the ideas of Mao, the GMD had support in the cities and wanted to keep control over the revolution by maintaining it in the cities.

Chiang’s war against the communists in the cities forced the CCP to go underground there and more importantly, they had to listen to Mao and his ideas on how to organize the revolution in the countryside, where the GMD didn’t maintain control.

In 1928 and onwards the CCP started organizing Soviets around China, Mao did the same in the mountain areas of Hunan. We can spot an early division here within the CCP. One side, the center of the CCP located in Shanghai trying to strengthen the leadership and party discipline, the other side, Mao and his followers, working more practical with organizing revolutions and soviets in the countryside. This split coincides with the Chiang successes in his anti-communist campaigns.

In the beginning of the 30’s Mao becomes organizer of the Chinese Red Army.

In 1934 Chiang’s armies reaches Mao’s Soviet and others, and forces the Long March to occur.

In January 1935 at the Tsunyi Conference Mao turns the tables against the pro-Russian leadership of CCP and with the support of the army, gets appointed as Chairman of the Politburo.

In 1936 Mao and his followers settle in Yan’an (Yenan).

In 1937 the Sino-Japanese war breaks out causing the Second United Front between CCP and GMD. From 1939 and onwards the front got weaker and weaker, clashes between GMD and CCP were common.

In 1941 the front was basically over, surviving on paper only until 1945. The CCP needed a leader that could challenge the pro-Russian group of the CCP. Why? Stalin and USSR were supporting Chiang Kai-shek, since they thought that the GMD were the true leaders of China and the ones that could defeat the common foe, Japan. This meant that in order to challenge the leadership of Chiang, you had to challenge Russia.

Events in Russia helped Mao, when Hitler attacked Russia this meant that Stalin got held up on that front, and dissolved the Comintern. Now the city based Russian Wing could be outmaneuvered.

In 1942 – 1944 Mao seized the opportunity and launched a rectification campaign in the CCP.

In 1945 Mao’s ideas are written in the constitution of the CCP.

Under Mao’s brilliant military leadership CCP are victors in the Civil War 1949. The reason they win is a combination of tactics and failure of the GMD. The key to the success is the Guerilla War launched by CCP, using the strong support among the peasants, the communists manage to hide and strike against the bigger but lesser disciplined GMD Nationalist Army.

In 1955 Mao launches a campaign on the countryside.

In 1956 Mao holds his Hundred Flowers Speech, encouraging critics against the Party.

In 1957 the pro-Russian part of the CCP influence Mao to launch the Great Leap Forward, done in “the face” of the Russians. Maybe Mao saw it as necessary to do this in order to maintain leadership with in the CCP. The Great Leap Forward will on the other hand become very Maoist.

The Hundred Flowers Campaign in 1956-57 and especially the Cultural Revolution of 1966 has to be seen in the light of the internal power struggle that was within the CCP.

In 1976 9 September Mao dies.