The mutiny that founded the Chinese Red Army. Further reading:Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist PartyStuart Schram, … [Read more...] about Episode 55: The Nanchang Uprising (August 1, 1927)
Episodes
Episode 54: The End of the United Front (June to July 1927)
As the Wuhan regime collapses, so does the united front. Soviet advisors leave China, Chinese Communists go underground. The purge strikes … [Read more...] about Episode 54: The End of the United Front (June to July 1927)
Episode 53: “Like Taking a Bath in a Toilet” (May and June 1927)
The Comintern’s guidance falls short in response to the ongoing massacre of peasants.Further reading:C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in … [Read more...] about Episode 53: “Like Taking a Bath in a Toilet” (May and June 1927)
Episode 52: “An Example of the Chinese Tenant-Peasant’s Life”
This episode is an appendix to episode 51, and consists of a booklet written by Mao Zedong describing the life of a tenant-peasant in Hunan. This … [Read more...] about Episode 52: “An Example of the Chinese Tenant-Peasant’s Life”
Episode 51: Mao Tries to Legislate a Peasant Revolution: The Wuhan Land Commission (April to May 1927)
Mao’s experience on the Wuhan Guomindang Left government’s Land Commission, with some comparative remarks on land reform in Communist … [Read more...] about Episode 51: Mao Tries to Legislate a Peasant Revolution: The Wuhan Land Commission (April to May 1927)
Episode 50: The Fifth Party Congress and the ‘Better Fewer but Better’ Approach to Summing up a Massacre
The Fifth Party Congress of the Communist Party (April 29 to May 9, 1927) decides that the united front is better without Chiang Kai-shek. Further … [Read more...] about Episode 50: The Fifth Party Congress and the ‘Better Fewer but Better’ Approach to Summing up a Massacre
Episode 49: Rivers of Blood in the Streets of Shanghai: The Massacre of the Communists by the Guomindang Right
Chiang Kai-shek’s April 12, 1927 coup against the Communists. Further reading:Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, … [Read more...] about Episode 49: Rivers of Blood in the Streets of Shanghai: The Massacre of the Communists by the Guomindang Right
Episode 48: The Third Armed Uprising in Shanghai
On March 21-22, 1927, Shanghai fell to a combination of general strike, armed uprising, and the advance of the National Revolutionary Army. Further … [Read more...] about Episode 48: The Third Armed Uprising in Shanghai
Episode 47: The Split in the Guomindang: The Left Government in Wuhan and the Military Headquarters in Nanchang Develop Irreconcilable Differences (January to March 1927)
The question of what sort of revolution the Nationalist revolution will be creates a fundamental division within the Guomindang. Further reading:C. … [Read more...] about Episode 47: The Split in the Guomindang: The Left Government in Wuhan and the Military Headquarters in Nanchang Develop Irreconcilable Differences (January to March 1927)
Episode 46: Summation, Red Terror, and Frustration: The Aftermath of the Second Armed Uprising in Shanghai (February and March 1927)
Summations of the Second Uprising on several different levels; the continuing inability of the Shanghai Regional Committee of the Communist Party to … [Read more...] about Episode 46: Summation, Red Terror, and Frustration: The Aftermath of the Second Armed Uprising in Shanghai (February and March 1927)