Erick Romero 10/19/14 2A Explain the origin(s) of the Chinese Civil War, and to what extent was the Communist victory due to the use of guerrilla warfare In the early 20th century, China ran into political turmoil. With the revolution in 1911, in which the last dynasty, the Manchu dynasty was overthrown. The new Republic failed to set hold on China and warlord era would start. But China continued to be oppressed by many foreign powers because it lacked a strong central government. The Chinese Civil War was caused by two opposed political parties, the communists and the nationalists, to see who would be able to restore order and regain central power over China to bring it back to its glory.
Who were also looking to become in power. Trotsky was the main reason the Bolsheviks had survived as the Bolsheviks government due to Trotsky being the commander for the red army. He also had support from Lenin who was leading the red army with total discipline; those who were willing to fight were promoted and those who turned out to be cowards were exiled. Trotsky and Lenin were both smart during the civil war as they had a upper hand with resources as they were closer to them as their opposition were so far away. This was an advantage for the red army as it was easy to communicate which helped them in the battle fields and be much easier to be successful in the war without communication they weren’t able to come up with tactics and plan how they would attack the whites, also railway support would bring the army weapons and food supplies very quickly.
The final advantage the reds had was superior military man power. This was because under wartime communism Lenin said that all food should go to soldiers first and what was left should go to the people in the cities. This encouraged thousands of men to join the red army not because they supported them but because they would get fed and not starve. This amount of man power led to the reds being able to use overwhelming force against the whites. In conclusion the reds ability to communicate and raise thousands of troops enabled them to beat the whites and win the civil
Violence was a feature of Communist rule in China; however this was not the only way they ruled over the years as they sometimes did what the people wanted. The Communist Government set out a series of reunification campaigns in which three different armies were dispatched West and South to Tibet, Xinjiang and Guangdong. In Tibet, the PLA were sent to wipe out all traces of Tibetan identity leading to many deaths. In Xinjiang and Guangdong, the PLA brought the provinces under their control using terror and violence to stop anyone that disagreed. This shows that violence was part of the Communist rule, and it was used in order to get their way.
The Chinese Communists did this in order to start nationalistic unity. The leader of the Chinese Communist Party was Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong was significant because he fostered the peasant class to rise and become an immense power. He had a very confident and powerful tone, which represented that he had complete faith that the peasants would overcome “warlords, corrupt officials, local tyrants, and evil landowners into their graves. (doc 1)” Since Zedong was the leader of the Communist Party, he would have had the power to influence the Communist Party’s political position.
Ho Chi Minh and General Giap understood that they could not defeat the US through the use of conventional military tactics but could defeat them through an unconventional Peoples war. The Vietcong tactics were largely successful and effective, as they had extensive knowledge of the geography, topography and climate of Vietnam. Their tactics had also been hardened during the French war, making them more comfortable and experienced in their fighting. Furthermore, they avoided direct and open confrontation with the US forces in which they would be invariably outgunned. They operated mainly at night, which allowed them to have an advantage over the US soldiers who were unable to swiftly move about the unfamiliar terrain of Vietnam.
The second outcome of the revolutions was that the countries were dramatically changed, two great powers were stopped and communist leaders eventually took over in the two countries. Russia and China both shared similar goals in that they both wanted a new form of government and leadership. Russia’s ruler was Tsar Nicholas II which ruled Russia for more than three centuries. China’s ruling dynasty was the Qing Dynasty. Tsar Nicholas II wasn’t much of a good ruler for Russia; he ignored the fact that Russia wasn’t doing so good and overlooked the industrialization and nationalism that was occurring throughout Russia.
This was also a big reason why the American citizens were against the Vietnam War. After gathering an abundant amount information from various sources it’s safe to conclude that Vietcong is much more advanced and well prepared to war than Southern Vietnam and America. America didn’t have adequate tactics, and were poorly supported by their people. Alongside, Vietcong was well prepared as they had previous experience from the Guerrilla war and were aided by various other countries, which were close to their homeland. Also, the war occurred on Vietnamese ground, which was familiar to the Vietcong’s because they were able to use this information to their
For the North, to rally support and nationalistic spirit amongst villagers and troops for the war effort, and in the South for America to portray, through the media, their fight against ‘communism’. Impact of the 1968 Tet Offensive • While Tet was a military failure for the Communists, they essentially won a morale victory- it reinforced the fact that they would not give up in their fight for unification and independence, regardless of the cost. • Due to the role of the media, Tet had a profound social impact on the American home front. For the first time in the Vietnam War, the realities of the carnages of war were exposed, viewed in American living rooms. Vo Suu’s now iconic picture of the Chief of the South Vietnamese National Police shooting a Vietcong suspect in the head, is an example of this.
It is evident that Mao Zedong's abilities to control the party and to know how to improve its stranglehold on China, was the main reason for the CCP's survival. After the White Terror, where about 5,000 communists had been killed, the CCP were in disarray and mainly due to Mao's abilities in turning the situation into a positive, were the CCP able to survive. Mao used the White Terror to signal a way forward for the CCP; he used propaganda to make the peasants feel sympathetic towards the CCP and so would support them. This tactic meant that the support for the CCP started to rise again. This was pivotal to the survival of the CCP as they needed to increase their numbers.