What is meant by The Long March ? Show its route.
The Long March was a military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Communist Party of China, the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the Kuomintang (KMT or Chinese Nationalist Party) army. There was not one Long March, but a series of marches, as various Communist armies in the south escaped to the north and west.
Mao was able to mobilise the masses to attain the goals set by the Party. His concern was with creating a 'socialist man' who would have five loves: fatherland, people, labour, science and public property. Mass organisations were created for farmers, women, students and other groups.
For instance, the All-China Democratic Women's Federation had 76 million members, the All China Students Federation 3.29 million members. These objectives and methods did not appeal to everyone in the Party. In 1953-54, some were urging for more attention to industrial organisation and economic growth.
Liu Shaochi (1896-1969) and Deng Xiaoping (1904-97) tried to modify the commune system as it was not working efficiently. The steel produced in the backyard furnaces was unusable industrially.
How the transformation of Taiwan in to a democracy was dramatic ?
The Chinese path to modernisation was very different. Foreign imperialism, both Western and Japanese, combined with a hesitant and unsure Qing dynasty to weaken government control and set the stage for a breakdown of political and social order leading to immense misery for most of the people.
Warlordism, banditry and civil war exacted a heavy toll on human lives, as did the savagery of the Japanese invasion. Natural disasters added to this burden.
Why was an angry demonstration was held in Beijing on 4 May 1919?
On 4 May 1919, an angry demonstration was held in Beijing to protest against the decisions of the post-war peace conference. Despite being an ally of the victorious side led by Britain, China did not get back the territories seized from it.