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CCW Causes - Coggle Diagram
CCW Causes
Economic
1 - Short term weak trade agreements resulted in China being exploited by Japan during the Sino-Japanese war and by Western powers later on
Japan’s 21 Demands
Japanese control of China greatly expanded -> Japan had key influence over railways, major cities and finance
Treaty of Nanking: British indemnity, ceded Hong Kong to Britain in order to establish a “fair and reasonable” tariff on British ships entering China
Gave Britain many trade advantages, such as trading at 5 different ports
Treaty of Wanghia: Established fixed tariffs on trade ports and gave the US the right to buy land on treaty ports to erect churches and hospitals, also abolished a Chinese law forbidding foreigners from learning Chinese
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EVAL/SIGNIFICANCE/EXTENT: China was seen as a pushover internationally -> almost every foreign power had taken advantage of it for economic concessions and purposes. This revealed the weakness of Chinese governments and resulted in many negative changes in citizens’ ways of life, further fuelling citizens’ anger towards the government and highlighting the need for a change in government. This encouraged the rise of rebellions in attempts to overthrow the government for a stronger one which would hurt its country less.
2 - Long term rich-poor divide was huge, with the massive peasant population and widespread poverty outside major Eastern cities encouraging dissent.
Population grew rapidly to 400 million by 1850 -> farming was labour intensive and not sufficient for sustenance. Led to poor conditions for the peasant population such as starvation, floods and droughts
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Population grew by 8% after 1850 but the land cultivated only increased by 1% -> imbalance made famines more frequent
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EVAL/SIGNIFICANCE/EXTENT: Showcased the great discontent and dissatisfaction of peasants towards the government and led to a loss in support. The current government was no longer seen as a ruling power which could support, defend and provide for the country, thus giving rise and power to different revolutionary groups which were vital in promoting revolutionary movements that eventually started the war.
Ideological
1 - Long term resentment in the peasant class created grounds for ideological divide between peasants and ruling classes
85% of population peasants, majority of peasants didn’t own their land and was charged high rents by wealthy landlords -> rent was 70% value of crops in Hunan province
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Humiliation and a severe economic downturn during Yuan Shikai’s rule + warlord era resulted in hyperinflation and heavy taxation as the warlords used peasants to fund their competition for power
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EVAL/SIGNIFICANCE/EXTENT: Increased anger and resentment over injustices cultivated a revolutionary sentiment, steering the peasant majority towards alternative groups such as the CCP and thus inspiring ideological discord over a need for change, which ultimately caused the war.
2 - Long history of peasant uprisings and rural unrest was widespread and revealed dissent towards government
Boxer Rebellion: uprisings opposing foreign influence -> burned Christian churches, killed Christians and threatened officials who did not support the uprising
Rising anger and grievances manifested in the form of the Boxer Rebellion, which critically contributed to the crippling of China’s economy and the further decentralisation of China
Taiping Rebellion: A revolt against the Qing dynasty fought with religious conviction over regional economic conditions
The shift in power from capital to provinces saw a growth in provinces that further decentralised the government due to the inability of the dynasty to put in place far reaching reforms
EVAL/SIGNIFICANCE/EXTENT: Long term impacts caused by internal rebellion hampered China’s advancements and centralization, leading to the overall growth of rural provinces and the exacerbation of fragmentation in China, hence increasing internal ideological division within the population that would culminate in war
Political
1 - Short term political tension and suspicion between the GMD and CCP was a key factor in causing the CCW
GMD were more sympathetic toward the middle class while the CCP leaned more to the lower class despite both having nationalist views -> CCP wanted to promise land to the lower class to improve living conditions while the GMD wanted to maintain the strength of their financial support of foreign powers and business leaders which came from the middle class, hence exploiting and ignoring the plight of the lower class
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Chiang Kai Shek was more intent on crushing the communist than Japanese invaders as his paranoia (stemming from CCP’s growth in power during the 1926 Northern Expedition) led him to purge the communists from the First United Front before the expedition was completed. He believed that national unity had to be achieved before attacking the Japanese and believed that while the Japanese were a disease of the skin, the communists were a disease of the soul
Resulted in GMD losing support from people as there was anger at Chiang for not standing up to Japanese aggression, undermining and decentralising central governance in China while heightening tensions that exacerbated the political split between the two parties
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EVAL/SIGNIFICANCE/EXTENT: The suspicion that the GMD (especially Chiang) held towards the CCP encouraged them to take drastic and violent actions against the CCP (e.g. the white terror, Jiangxi, nationalist “purification” campaign against communist 1930-4) This intolerance for the CCP escalated tension between both parties and turned them against each other, dissolving the United Front and dividing China into two major political parties.
2 - Long term political weakness in governments and lack of central governance in China prevented effective political structures
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GMD further failed to eradicate the warlords in the 1926 Northern Expedition as Chiang Kai Shek’s paranoia led him to purge the communists from the First United Front before the expedition was completed
Led to remaining provinces being fragmented from the central govt. and continuing to be ruled by individual warlords, hence undermining central governance in China
EVAL/SIGNIFICANCE/EXTENT: Impotence of the central government created weakness and division, with the decentralisation of governance ultimately undermining control and creating easy opportunity for conflict and war