People's History of Ideas Podcast
In this podcast, Matthew Rothwell, author of Transpacific Revolutionaries: The Chinese Revolution in Latin America, explores the global history of ideas related to rebellion and revolution. The main focus of this podcast for the near future will be on the history of the Chinese Revolution, going all the way back to its roots in the initial Chinese reactions to British imperialism during the Opium War of 1839-1842, and then following the development of the revolution and many of the ideas that were products of the revolution through to their transnational diffusion in the late 20th century.
S1 E126 · Wed, April 09, 2025
The Chinese Eastern Railway: Background to the 1929 Sino-Soviet War
The Guomindang moves to seize Soviet assets in Manchuria. Also, subscribe to the new substack at https://peopleshistoryofideas.substack.com/. Further reading: Bruce A. Elleman and Stephen Kotkin, eds., Manchurian Railways and the Opening of China Michael M. Walker, The 1929 Sino-Soviet War Some names from this episode: Li Lisan, Chairman of Central Committee Propaganda Department Chen Duxiu, Co-founder of the Chinese Communist Party Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Chinese Communist Party Lev Karakhan, Soviet deputy commissioner for foreign affairs in 1919 and acting commissioner in 1929 Zhang Zuolin, Manchurian warlord killed by Japan in 1928 Zhang Xueliang, Manchurian warlord, son of Zhang Zuolin Martemyan Nikitich Ryutin, Bolshevik leader of Harbin soviet in 1917 Episode artwork: Flag of the Chinese Eastern Railway Support the show
S1 E125 · Sat, January 25, 2025
“On the Problem of Party Organization” (The Gutian Resolution—Part Three)
Mao discusses problems in party organization and how to fix them. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 “On the Revolutionary “Three-in-One” Combination ” Episode artwork: May 1967 poster “Resolutely Protect the Policy of the Revolutionary Three-in-One Combination” Support the show
S1 E124 · Sat, January 18, 2025
“The Problem of Correcting Erroneous and Nonproletarian Ideological Tendencies in the Party” (The Gutian Resolution—Part Two)
We continue our textual analysis of the Gutian Resolution. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Mao Zedong, “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” “Bury the Slave Mentality Advocated by China’s Khrushchov” in Peking Review (April 14, 1967) Some names from this episode: Liu Shaoqi, top level Communist Party leader attacked as China’s Khrushchev during the Cultural Revolution Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Li Lisan, leading Communist Qu Qiubai, top leader of Communist Party from the summer of 1927 until the Sixth Congress Huang Chao, salt merchant who led a rebellion from 875-884 Li Chuang (Li Zicheng), bandit leader who seized Beijing in 1644 and was later defeated by the Manchus Hong Xiuquan, leader of the Taiping Revolution and claimed to be the younger brother of Jesus Christ Chen Yi, member of Front Committee of Fourth Red Army Episode artwork: Gutian village Support the show
S1 E123 · Fri, January 10, 2025
The Gutian Resolution (End of 1929) (Part One)
On the importance of the Resolution, and a beginning discussion of the actual text. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Mao Zedong, “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” Episode artwork: Photo of the Gutian Congress Support the show
S1 E122 · Sat, December 28, 2024
Two Letters and “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” (November to December 1929)
We look at two letters written by Mao on November 28, 1929, and introduce our discussion of “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” and the other parts of the Gutian Resolution. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Mao Zedong, “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” Abimael Guzmán, “Report of the Meeting of the Central Leadership with the Cangallo-Fajardo Regional Committee” Peking Review (Feb. 3, 1967) Some names from this episode: Li Lisan, Chairman of Central Committee Propaganda Department Yang Kaihui, Mao’s first wife Mao Anying, Mao’s first son Chen Yi, member of Front Committee of Fourth Red Army Chen Duxiu, former general secretary of the Communist Party Mao Zemin, Mao’s brother Xie Hanqiu, observer from the Fujian Provincial Committee Liu Heting, Guomindang military commander Jin Handing, Guomindang military commander Zhang Zhen, Guomindang military commander Episode artwork: He Kongde ’s Gutian Meeting poster Support the show
S1 E121 · Sat, December 21, 2024
The Battle for Shanghang (mid-September 1929)
The Communists take the fortified city of Shanghang in southwestern Fujian. Further reading and watching: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] The Battle for Dien Bien Phu Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Some names from this episode: Lin Biao, commander of the first column of the Fourth Red Army Lu Hanmin, Guomindang militarist Liu Angong, special envoy sent by Party Center to the Fourth Red Army Episode artwork: Aerial view of modern Shanghang Support the show
S1 E120 · Sat, December 14, 2024
The Politburo in Shanghai Discusses the Line Struggle in the Red Army and Issues the September Instruction
The Central Committee turns out to support centralized leadership. Also, the Comintern publishes Mao’s obituary. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao and the Remaking of the Chinese Communist Party, 1927–1934 Mao Zedong nianpu, 1893-1937 (毛泽东年谱) Chen Jian, Zhou Enlai: A Life Zhou Enlai, Selected Works of Zhou Enlai , vol. 1 Some names from this episode: Chen Yi, replaced Mao as secretary of the Front Committee Xiang Zhongfa, General secretary of the CP Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Li Lisan, Leading Communist Liu Angong, special envoy sent by Party Center to the Fourth Red Army Support the show
S1 E119 · Sat, December 07, 2024
Mao gets Kicked from Party Leadership, and Organizes a Land Reform in Western Fujian
The line struggle continues and does not go Mao’s way. Plus, comments on the historiography. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao and the Remaking of the Chinese Communist Party, 1927–1934 Mao Zedong nianpu, 1893-1937 (毛泽东年谱) Chen Jian, Zhou Enlai: A Life Some names from this episode: Liu Angong, special envoy sent by Party Center to the Fourth Red Army Lin Biao, commander of the first column of the Fourth Red Army Chen Yi, replaced Mao as secretary of the Front Committee Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Jiang Hua, secretary general of the political department of the Fourth Red Army Episode artwork: photo of Jiang Hua Support the show
S1 E118 · Sat, November 30, 2024
Mao’s 14 June 1929 Letter to Lin Biao
We continue our close reading of Mao’s letter to Lin Biao. In this episode, Mao discusses the roving rebel band mentality and the organizational state of affairs in the army, party, and mass organizations. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Mao Zedong, “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” Some names from this episode: Liu Angong, special envoy sent by Party Center to the Fourth Red Army Yang Sen, Sichuan warlord Zhu Yunqing, chief political advisor to the Fourth Red Army Episode artwork: photo of Zhu Yunqing Support the show
S1 E117 · Sat, November 23, 2024
The Line Struggle Between Mao Zedong and Zhu De (May to June 1929)
The Party Center’s intervention in the Fourth Red Army combines with a string of military victories to bring a simmering dispute between Mao and Zhu to a head. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao and the Remaking of the Chinese Communist Party, 1927–1934 Mao Zedong nianpu, 1893-1937 (毛泽东年谱) Some names from this episode: Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Liu Angong, special envoy sent by Party Center to the Fourth Red Army Lin Biao, commander of the first column of the Fourth Red Army Peng Dehuai, commander of the Fifth Red Army Support the show
S1 E116 · Wed, June 26, 2024
The Red Army Victorious: The Conquest of Several Counties in Jiangxi and Fujian in the Spring of 1929
The conquest of Yudu, Xingguo, Ningdu, Longyan, and Yongding counties by the Fourth Red Army. Zhu De reminisces. Also, poetry. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Peng Dehuai, Memoirs of a Chinese Marshall Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao and the Remaking of the Chinese Communist Party, 1927–1934 Mao Zedong nianpu, 1893-1937 (毛泽东年谱) Some names from this episode: Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Peng Dehuai, leader of the Fifth Red Army Support the show
S1 E115 · Wed, May 01, 2024
Mao Tells Zhou Enlai about Guerrilla Warfare
Mao’s April 5, 1929 reply to Zhou Enlai. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 David Apter and Tony Saich, Revolutionary Discourse in Mao’s Republic Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Michael Heinrich, Karl Marx and the Birth of Modern Society: The Life of Marx and the Development of His Work Some names from this episode: Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Xiang Zhongfa, General secretary of the CP Guo Fengming, bandit turned Guomindang local despot in Changting Liu Shiyi, Guomindang commander Ye Ting, Communist military leader He Long, Communist military leader Support the show
S1 E114 · Thu, April 04, 2024
The Party Center Attempts to Assert Control over the Red Army and Orders Mao and Zhu to Report to Shanghai
A close look at Zhou Enlai’s February 7, 1929, letter to Mao Zedong and Zhu De. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 E. H. Carr, Foundations of a Planned Economy , vol. 3 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Some names from this episode: Zhou Enlai, head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee Xiang Zhongfa, General secretary of the CP Li Lisan, Leading Communist Support the show
S1 E113 · Sun, March 10, 2024
Mao’s March 20 Letter to the Central Committee, and the 5th Red Army’s Retreat from the Jinggangshan (January to April 1929)
Mao plans to expand guerrilla warfare, and meets up with Peng Dehuai in Ruijin. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Peng Dehuai, Memoirs of a Chinese Marshall Some names from this episode: Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong He Changgong, secretary of the Ninggang County Party following the departure of the Fourth Red Army Long Chaoqing, former secretary of the Ninggang County Committee of the Communist Party Peng Dehuai, leader of the Fifth Red Army Li Wenlin, Communist guerrilla commander Duan Yuequan, Communist guerrilla commander Liu Shiyi, Guomindang commander Xiao Jiabi, reactionary militia leader Support the show
S1 E112 · Sun, February 04, 2024
On the Experience of the National Bourgeoisie in the New Democratic Revolution
Some reflections on the experience of Shanghai capitalists after 1949 prompted by the ‘Notice to Merchants and Intellectuals’ that Mao issued after taking Changting in 1929. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Yao Wenyuan, “On the Social Basis of the Lin Piao Anti-Party Clique” (for heavenly horses reference) David Apter and Tony Saich, Revolutionary Discourse in Mao’s Republic Lynn White, Policies of Chaos: The Organizational Causes of Violence in China’s Cultural Revolution David Barbosa, “Rong Yiren, a Chinese Billionaire, Dies at 89” Some names from this episode: Wu Zhongyi, Shanghai capitalist Rong Yiren, Shanghai capitalist Support the show
S1 E111 · Sat, January 13, 2024
A New Communist Order in Changting (March 1929)
Looking at what Mao and Zhu De did to install a new Communist order after conquering Changting. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Mao Zedong, “On New Democracy” Some names from this episode: Guo Fengming, bandit turned Guomindang local despot in Changting Feng Yuxiang, warlord close to both the USA and the Soviet Union Wang Jingwei, leader of the Guomindang left Dai Jitao, Guomindang ideologue Yan Xishan, warlord accused by Mao of being a running dog for the Japanese imperialists Support the show
S1 E110 · Thu, December 07, 2023
Leaving Donggu, Taking Changting (February to March 1929)
How the Fourth Red Army spent their time in Donggu, and how they took the first city in the new base area in the Jiangxi-Fujian border region. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao and the Remaking of the Chinese Communist Party, 1927–1934 Gao Hua, How the Red Sun Rose: The Origins and Development of the Yan’an Rectification Movement, 1930-1945 Stephen Averill, “The Origins of the Futian Incident” Some names from this episode: Xiao Ke, an officer in the Fourth Red Army Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Long Chaoqing, important early Communist in Jinggangshan area Peng Dehuai, Leader of the 5th Red Army Guo Fengming, Bandit turned Guomindang local despot in Changting Support the show
S1 E109 · Thu, October 19, 2023
From Dabodi to Donggu: The Retreat from the Jinggangshan Continues (February 1929)
The Mao-Zhu Army raises funds in Ningdu and moves on to the Donggu base area for rest and recovery. Background on Donggu. Link to map of Jiangxi province: https://www.chinamaps.org/china/provincemaps/jiangxi-province-map.html Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao and the Remaking of the Chinese Communist Party, 1927–1934 Some names from this episode: Wang Chuxi, big landlord in Donggu area who lived in Futian Ye Jianying, Communist who led division of the National Revolutionary Army which took Ji’an during the Northern Expedition Duan Qifeng, Donggu bandit chief who joined with Communists Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Lai Jingbang, first leader of the Donggu communists Wang Liangzhao, younger brother to Wang Chuxi Support the show
S1 E108 · Thu, October 12, 2023
Running for Their Lives: The Retreat from the Jinggangshan (January to February 1929)
Mao and the Fourth Red Army break the encirclement of the Jinggangshan and retreat across southern Jiangxi with the Guomindang in hot pursuit. Link to map of Jiangxi province: https://www.chinamaps.org/china/provincemaps/jiangxi-province-map.html Further reading/watching on the difficulties of finding good maps of China: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restrictions_on_geographic_data_in_China https://www.reddit.com/r/Maps/comments/b6qnvc/just_blew_my_mind_every_map_of_china_is/ https://www.reddit.com/r/China/comments/7pju2c/why_is_google_maps_coverage_of_china_slightly_off/ Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 4: The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Soviet Republic, 1931-1934 Some names from this episode: Chen Yi, Political commissar for the 28th regiment of the Fourth Red Army Lin Biao, Battalion commander in the 28th regiment Wu Ruolan, Communist cadre and Zhu De’s wife Support the show
S1 E107 · Wed, October 04, 2023
Frameworks for Thinking about Tragic Historical Shortcomings of the Socialist Experience
Answering a listener question on the Great Leap Forward famine. Further reading: Mobo Gao, The Battle for China’s Past United Nations, “Losing 25,000 to Hunger Every Day” Minhaz Merchant, “Churchill’s Bengal Famine” Karl Marx, Capital Mike Davis, Late Victorian Holocausts Frederick Engels, The Condition of the Working Class in England Support the show
S1 E106 · Thu, September 28, 2023
The End of the Sixth Congress
We wrap up our discussion of the Sixth Congress with a discussion of the political line coming out of the congress, and some related issues. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chinese Labor Movement: A Study of Deng Zhongxia, 1894-1933 Various 6th Party Congress documents in Chinese Studies in History vol. 3, #4 through vol. 5, #1 Yueh Sheng, Sun Yat-sen University in Moscow and the Chinese Revolution: A Personal Account A Basic Understanding of the Communist Party of China Some names from this episode: Nikolai Bukharin, general secretary of the executive committee of the Comintern Qu Qiubai, Named head of provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Pavel Mif, Top Comintern China specialist Li Lisan, Leading Communist Zhou Enlai, Leading Communist Xiang Zhongfa, Trade unionist and new general secretary of the CP Xiang Ying, Leading Communist Support the show
S1 E105 · Thu, September 21, 2023
Clashing Communists and Comintern Guidance: The 6th Congress Gets off to a Rocky Start
Qu Qiubai’s report and proposal are disputed, and the Comintern intervenes to restore order. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chinese Labor Movement: A Study of Deng Zhongxia, 1894-1933 Qu Qiubai, “The Past and Future of the Chinese Communist Party” Various 6th Party Congress documents in Chinese Studies in History vol. 3, #4 through vol. 5, #1 Some names from this episode: Nikolai Bukharin, general secretary of the executive committee of the Comintern Qu Qiubai, Named head of provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Chen Duxiu, Co-founder and first general secretary of the Communist Party Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Pavel Mif, Top Comintern China specialist Chen Shaoyu, Protégé of Mif (better known as Wang Ming) Shen Zemin, Sun Yat-sen University student who translated at the 6th party congress Support the show
S1 E104 · Thu, September 14, 2023
Bukharin on the Nature of the Chinese Revolution in 1928
Our third (and last) close look at Bukharin’s speech at the 6th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, held in Moscow in the summer of 1928. Further reading: Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party” Lenin, “Speech at the First All-Russia Congress of Working Women” Some names from this episode: Nikolai Bukharin, general secretary of the executive committee of the Comintern Peng Dehuai, Guomindang colonel who was secretly a Communist and who launched an uprising in July 1928 Support the show
S1 E103 · Sat, May 27, 2023
Bukharin on the Theory of the Productive Forces (and Mao’s counterpoint on New Democratic Revolution)
Bukharin articulates a vision of the Chinese Revolution at the 6th Party Congress which is highly colored by the non-revolutionary Marxism of the 2nd International. Further reading: Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party” Andre Gunder Frank, World Accumulation, 1492–1789 Immanuel Wallerstein, The Modern World-System , vol. I: Capitalist Agriculture and the Origins of the European World-Economy in the Sixteenth Century Mao Zedong, “The Chinese Revolution and the Chinese Communist Party” Vladimir Lenin, “Two Tactics of Social-Democracy in the Democratic Revolution” Vladimir Lenin, “Once Again on The Trade Unions: The Current Situation and the Mistakes of Trotsky and Bukharin” Hung Hsueh-ping, “The Essence of ‘Theory of Productive Forces’ is to oppose Proletarian Revolution” Some names from this episode: Nikolai Bukharin, general secretary of the executive committee of the Comintern Chen Duxiu, Co-founder and first general secretary of the Communist Party Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang during the period of the first united front Support the show
S1 E102 · Sat, May 20, 2023
The ‘Third Period’ of the World Revolution: Bukharin’s Speech at the Sixth Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (June 1928)
Nikolai Bukharin kicks off the party congress with a very long speech. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) E. H. Carr, Foundations of a Planned Economy , vol. 3 Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party” Nicholas Kozlov and Eric Weitz, “Reflections on the Origins of the ‘Third Period’: Bukharin, the Comintern, and the Political Economy of Weimar Germany” Theodore Rosengarten, All God’s Dangers: The Life of Nate Shaw Robin Kelley, Hammer and Hoe: Alabama Communists during the Great Depression Some names from this episode: Nikolai Bukharin, general secretary of the executive committee of the Comintern Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Qu Qiubai, Top leader of the Chinese Communist Party from the August 7, 1927 emergency meeting until the 6th Party Congress Eugen Varga, Hungarian communist economist Support the show
S1 E101 · Sat, May 13, 2023
Preparations for the Sixth Party Congress (April to May 1928)
The decision to hold the Sixth Party Congress in Moscow, and some of the political debate inside the Communist Party of China leading up to that Congress. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937 Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chinese Labor Movement: A Study of Deng Zhongxia, 1894-1933 Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) E. H. Carr, Foundations of a Planned Economy , vol. 3 Organization of Communist Revolutionaries, “The CP, the Sixties, the RCP, and the Crying Need for a Communist Vanguard Party Today: Summing up a century of communist leadership, organization, strategy, and practice in the United States so that we can rise to the challenges before us” Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Top leader of the Chinese Communist Party from the August 7, 1927 emergency meeting until the 6th Party Congress Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party until summer 1927 Zhou Enlai, Leading Communist Support the show
S1 E100 · Thu, February 16, 2023
The Bailu Conference: Suppressing Orders from the Party Congress and Preparing to Leave the Jinggangshan (January 1929)
Potentially explosive guidance arrives in the Jinggangshan from the 6th Party Congress of the Communist Party, and plans are laid to break out of the enemy encirclement. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Mao Zedong, “Combat Liberalism” Some names from this episode: Peng Dehuai, Guomindang colonel who was secretly a Communist and who launched an uprising in July 1928 Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Shouhua, President of the General Labor Union Chen Yi, Political commissar for the 28th regiment of the Fourth Red Army Long Chaoqing, secretary of the Ninggang County Committee of the Communist Party Wang Huai, secretary of the Yongxin County Committee of the Communist Party He Changgong, important Fourth Red Army cadre Support the show
S1 E99 · Thu, February 02, 2023
The Base Area under Economic Blockade and Unification with the Fifth Red Army (End of 1928)
The national Guomindang center takes note of the Communists’ resilience, and takes charge of organizing a new suppression campaign, which is preceded by a tight economic blockade. Peng Dehuai makes his way to the Jinggangshan. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Mao Zedong, “The Struggle in the Chingkang Mountains” Edward Dreyer, China at War: 1901-1949 James Sheridan, China in Disintegration: The Republican Era in Chinese History, 1912-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Peng Dehuai, Memoirs of a Chinese Marshall Some names from this episode: Chen Yi, Political commissar for the 28th regiment of the Fourth Red Army Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong He Zizhen, Communist cadre known as the “Two-Gunned Girl General” Peng Dehuai, Guomindang colonel who was secretly a Communist and who launched an uprising in July 1928 Teng Daiyuan, Fifth Red Army leading cadre He Changgong, important Fourth Red Army cadre Support the show
S1 E98 · Sun, November 27, 2022
Vagrants, Mercenaries, and Rich Peasants (November 1928)
A close reading of a couple portions of Mao’s November 25, 1928 report to the Central Committee. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Mao Zedong, “The Struggle in the Chingkang Mountains” Names listed as having attended Nov. 6 meeting mentioned near the beginning of the episode: Zhu De, Chen Yi, He Tingying, He Changgong, Yuan Wencai, Wang Zuo, Tan Zhenlin, Deng Ganyuan, Li Quefei, Chen Zhengren, Wang Zuonong, Xiao Wanxia, Liu Huixiao, Xie Chunbiao, Liu Di, Xiong Shouqi, Yang Kaiming, Cao Shuo, Deng Jiuting, Mao Zedong, Song Qiaosheng, Peng Gu, and Yuan Desheng. Support the show
S1 E97 · Mon, October 31, 2022
Transforming, Building, and Purging the Party (September to November 1928)
Finishing our close reading of the resolution of the Border Area Party Congress of October 4 to 6, 1928. Also, the reorganization and purge of the party following the Communist recovery of the Jinggangshan base area after the August Defeat. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Charles Bettelheim, Class Struggles in the USSR: First Period: 1917-1923 Fyodor Vasilievich Gladkov, Cement Support the show
S1 E96 · Thu, October 20, 2022
Opportunism and Self-Criticism: The Jinggangshan Party Congress Resolution of October 1928
A discussion of the concept of opportunism as it developed in the international communist movement, and a close reading of the self-critical portion of the resolution of the Border Area Party Congress of October 4 to 6, 1928. Further reading: Lenin, “Opportunism, and the Collapse of the Second International” Cheng Yen-shih, ed., Lenin’s Fight Against Revisionism and Opportunism Mao Zedong, “On the Correct Handling of Contradictions among the People” Lynn White, Policies of Chaos: The Organizational Causes of Violence in China's Cultural Revolution Some names from this episode: Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee in May 1928 and who returned in June Liu Zhen, Secretary of the Yongxin County Party Committee Support the show
S1 E95 · Thu, September 15, 2022
“Why Is It that Red Political Power Can Exist in China?” (October 1928)
A close reading of the portion of the resolution of the Border Area Party Congress of October 4 to 6, 1928, which later became a key early text in the Maoist canon. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Mao Zedong, “Why Is It that Red Political Power Can Exist in China?” Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Jane Degras, ed., The Communist International, 1919-1943: Documents , vol. 2: 1923-1928 A name from this episode: Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee in May 1928 and who returned in June Support the show
S1 E94 · Sun, July 31, 2022
The August Defeat (Part 2): The Communists Strike Back (August to November 1928)
The Communists fight to regain lost territory, and ethnic tensions explode among the peasants in the base area. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Some names from this episode: Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee in May 1928 and who returned in June Gong Chu, Political commissar for the 29th regiment Chen Yi, Political commissar for the 28th regiment Kang Keqing, Peasant guerrilla fighter from Wan’an County Yuan Wencai, Leader of the 32nd regiment Support the show
S1 E93 · Sun, July 24, 2022
The August Defeat (Part 1)
The 29th Regiment goes against Mao’s orders and decides to stay in Hunan, with disastrous results for the Communists. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Jurgen Domes, Peng Te-huai: The Man and the Image Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Some names from this episode: Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Hu Shaohai, Commander of the 29th regiment of the 4th Red Army Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee in May 1928 and who returned in June Fan Shisheng, Guomindang general and old friend of Zhu De Yuan Chongquan, 28th Regiment battalion commander who mutinied Yuan Desheng, Representative of the Hunan Provincial Committee Peng Dehuai, Guomindang colonel who was secretly a Communist and who launched an uprising in July 1928 Support the show
S1 E92 · Sun, July 17, 2022
The Yongxin Joint Conference and Mao’s July 4, 1928 Report to the Hunan Provincial Committee
Mao explains his refusal to comply with orders from the Hunan Provincial Committee. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Some names from this episode: Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee in May 1928 and who returned in June Yuan Desheng, Representative of the Hunan Provincial Committee in the Jinggangshan Yang Chisheng, Guomindang commander defeated by the Communists in June 1928 Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Jun, Guomindang military commander in Jiangxi Shang Chengjie, Guomindang military commander in Hunan Xu Kexiang, Guomindang military commander in Hunan Wu Shang, Guomindang military commander in Hunan Support the show
S1 E91 · Thu, April 28, 2022
Clandestine Transcripts of Revolutionary Globalization: The Shining Paths of Late Cultural Revolution Maoism
A talk that I recently delivered at the University of Hamburg, focused on the development of a new socialist political economy late in the Cultural Revolution and how this influenced the Communist Party of Peru. Further reading: Alessandro Russo, Cultural Revolution and Revolutionary Culture Fabio Lanza, The End of Concern: Maoist China, Activism, and Asian Studies Antonio Díaz Martínez, China: La revolución agraria Catalina Adrianzén, “Semblanza de Antonio Díaz Martínez” Peer Moller Christensen and Jorgen Delman, “A Theory of Transitional Society: Mao Zedong and the Shanghai School” Stephen Andors, China's Industrial Revolution: Politics, Planning, and Management, 1949 to the Present Some names from this episode: Catalina Adrianzén, Peruvian anthropologist in China from 1974-1976 Antonio Díaz Martínez, Peruvian agronomist in China from 1974-1976 Zhang Chunqiao, Leading figure on Maoist left in China Jiang Qing, Leading figure on Maoist left in China Support the show
S1 E90 · Mon, March 07, 2022
Nuclear War and Communist Revolution
In light of the Ukraine crisis, a historical look at communist thinking on the connection between a third world war and revolution. Further reading: Sergei N. Goncharov, John W. Lewis, and Xue Litai, Uncertain Partners: Stalin, Mao, and the Korean War David Holloway, Stalin and the Bomb Edward Wilson, “Thank you Vasili Arkhipov, the man who stopped nuclear war” Mao Zedong, “On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People” Mao Zedong, “Speech at a Meeting of the Representatives of 64 Communist and Workers’ Parties” M. Upshaw, “Considerations on a Revolutionary Situation in the United States: Likely Triggering Factors, Potential Political Contours” Some names from this episode: Vyacheslav Molotov, Soviet foreign minister Vasili Alexandrovich Arkhipov, Soviet submarine officer who averted nuclear war during the Cuban Missile Crisis Support the show
S1 E89 · Sun, February 27, 2022
The Beginning of the Midyear Crisis (June 1928)
The Hunan Provincial Committee decides that Mao must obey its authority. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Elizabeth Perry, Anyuan: Mining China’s Revolutionary Tradition Some names from this episode: Wang Meisheng, Courier between Anyuan and the Jinggangshan Du Xiujing, Inspector sent to the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee Yuan Desheng, Sent to work in the Jinggangshan by the Hunan Provincial Committee Yang Kaiming, Sent by Hunan Provincial Committee to replace Mao as secretary of the Jinggangshan special committee Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Support the show
S1 E88 · Thu, February 10, 2022
Land Revolution and Communist Party Growth: The High Tide of the Jinggangshan Base Area (Summer 1928)
In the wake of their military victories in late Spring 1928, the Communists carried out a major land redistribution and a mass recruitment drive. There were some unforeseen complications. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Some names from this episode: Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Support the show
S1 E87 · Thu, February 03, 2022
Beating Back Suppression Campaigns and Expanding the Jinggangshan Base Area (May to June 1928)
Mao Zedong and Zhu De learn warfare through warfare as they face continuing onslaughts from Guomindang forces. Further reading/watching: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 China: A Century of Revolution documentary Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), “ Experiences of the People’s War and Some Important Questions ” Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), “ Advance in the Great Direction of Creating Base Areas! ” Mao Zedong, “ Problems of Strategy in China’s Revolutionary War ” Name from this episode: Sunzi [Sun Tzu], Ancient Chinese general Support the show
S1 E86 · Thu, January 27, 2022
The Jinggangshan Junction of Forces: Mao Zedong and Zhu De Unite (April to May 1928)
The unification of Mao Zedong’s and Zhu De’s forces. Some discussion of the problems involved in unifying the Communist armed forces. Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Some names from this episode: Zhu De, Communist military commander Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Ye Ting, Commander of the 4th Army during the Northern Expedition Chen Yi, Leading Communist who served with Zhu De Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Hu Shaohai, Communist from South Hunan Lin Biao, Communist military officer Support the show
S1 E85 · Thu, January 20, 2022
The Wages of Revolution: Life Underground in Shanghai in the Late 1920s (Part 3)
Discussing pay for professional revolutionaries, the role of servants in the lives of Communist leaders, and the Comintern in Shanghai. Further reading: Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937 Elizabeth Perry, Shanghai on Strike: The Politics of Chinese Labor Wang Fan-hsi [Wang Fanxi], Memoirs of a Chinese Revolutionary Gavin McCrea, Mrs. Engels Frederick Litten, “The Noulens Affair” Anna Belogurova, “The Civic World of International Communism: Taiwanese communists and the Comintern (1921-1931)” Onimaru Takeshi, “Shanghai Connection: The Construction and Collapse of the Comintern Network in East and Southeast Asia” Jospehine Fowler, “From East to West and West to East: Ties of Solidarity in the Pan-Pacific Revolutionary Trade Union Movement, 1923-1934” Josephine Fowler, Japanese and Chinese Immigrant Activists: Organizing in American and International Communist Movements, 1919–1933 Frederic Wakeman, Policing Shanghai, 1927-1937 Some names from this episode: Liu Shaoqi, Leading Communist He Baozhen, Communist cadre and wife of Liu Shaoqi Li Dazhao, Co-founder of Chinese Communist Party Qu Qiubai, Top Communist leader Wang Fanxi, A member of the Central Committee Organization Bureau Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Peng Shuzi, Leading Communist expelled in 1929 Support the show
S1 E84 · Thu, January 13, 2022
Friendship, Compartmentalization, and Assassination Squads: Life Underground in Shanghai in the Late 1920s (Part 2)
How did the Communist Party try to protect itself in Shanghai? We discuss the compartmentalized party organization and the creation of the Special Services Division. Further reading: Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937 Timothy Cheek, “Making Maoism: Ideology and Organization in the Yan’an Rectification Movement, 1942-1944” Mao Zedong, “Combat Liberalism” Xuezhi Guo, China's Security State: Philosophy, Evolution, and Politics Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Top Communist leader from mid-1927 to mid-1928 Wang Shiwei, Cadre expelled during Yan’an rectification campaign Gu Shunzhang, Zhou Enlai’s deputy in the Special Services Division He Zhihua, Zhu De’s former lover from Germany, who betrayed the Communist Party Support the show
S1 E83 · Thu, January 06, 2022
Life Underground in Shanghai in the Late 1920s (Part 1)
The Communist Party Center remained underground in the dangerous city of Shanghai during the late 1920s and early 1930s. Further reading/watching: Patricia Stranahan, Underground: The Shanghai Communist Party and the Politics of Survival, 1927-1937 China: A Century of Revolution documentary Josephine Fowler, Japanese and Chinese Immigrant Activists: Organizing in American and International Communist Movements, 1919–1933 Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Wang Fan-hsi [Wang Fanxi], Memoirs of a Chinese Revolutionary Christina Gilmartin, Engendering the Chinese Revolution: Radical Women, Communist Politics, and Mass Movements in the 1920s Frederic Wakeman, Policing Shanghai, 1927-1937 Some names from this episode: Deng Yingchao, Communist Party activist and wife of Zhou Enlai Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Lin Zhuhan, Leading Communist Li Weihan, Head of CCP Organizational Department Gong Yinbing, CCP treasurer He Shuheng, Communist cadre Li Lisan, Leading Communist Liu Shaoqi, Leading Communist He Baozhen, Communist cadre and wife of Liu Shaoqi Wang Yizhi, Communist cadre and widow of Zhang Tailei Zhang Tailei, Leader of Guangzhou Commune Chen Yannian, Chair of Jiangsu Provincial Committee for a very short time until his arrest Chen Duxiu, Co-founder of Communist Party Zhu De, Communist military leader He Zhihua, Zhe De’s embittered lover from Germany Qu Qiubai, Top Communist leader from mid-1927 to mid-1928 Wang Fanxi, Member of Organization bureau Xu Baihao, Communist union leader Support the show
S1 E82 · Sun, December 19, 2021
Mao’s (Temporary) Expulsion from the Communist Party and the Collapse of the South Hunan Uprising (March and April 1928)
The Party Center puts the South Hunan Special Committee in charge of the Jinggangshan, and the contrast between the strategies advocated by Mao and the Party Center are put on vivid display. Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Some names from this episode: Zhu De, Communist military commander Li Weihan, member of politburo standing committee Zhou Lu, head of the military branch of the Southern Hunan Special Committee Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Support the show
S1 E81 · Wed, December 15, 2021
The Southern Hunan Uprising (Early 1928)
We look at the successful conquest of three cities (and one heart) by Zhu De during the course of the uprising he led in south Hunan at the beginning of 1928. The link for my new course on academia.edu mentioned at the end of the episode: www.academia.edu/learn/MatthewRothwell Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Christina Gilmartin, Engendering the Chinese Revolution: Radical Women, Communist Politics, and Mass Movements in the 1920s Some names from this episode: Zhu De, Communist military commander Hu Shaohai, Communist from Yizhang Fan Shisheng, Guomindang general and old friend of Zhu De Xu Kexiang, Notorious Guomindang general known as the Peasant Butcherer Tang Shengzhi, leader of Guomindang Left military forces Chen Yi, Communist from a scholarly family and staff officer of Zhu De Wu Ruolan, Married Zhu De in Leiyang He Zizhen, Communist cadre known as the “Two-Gunned Girl General” He Zhihua, Mother of Zhu De’s daughter Luo Yinong, Communist leader killed after He Zhihua informed on him Support the show
S1 E80 · Sat, November 20, 2021
Studying Marxism and Getting Thrown in Jail: Zhu De in Germany (1922-1926)
Following Zhu De in Shanghai and Germany, finishing up our four-part detour through the early life of Zhu De. Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, first general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Zhou Enlai, organized branches of the Chinese Communist Party in Europe when he was a student there in the early 1920s, before returning to China to become a leading Communist Sun Bingwen, Zhu De’s friend who traveled to Europe and joined the Communist Party with him Li Dazhao, Co-founder of Chinese Communist Party Support the show
S1 E79 · Tue, November 02, 2021
Zhu De and The Army for the Defense of the Republic in Sichuan and Yunnan (1916-1922)
As the Army for the Defense of the Republic faces defections from the revolutionary nationalist cause as well as powerful warlord enemies, Zhu De rethinks the military vocation. Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Some names from this episode: Cai E, Republican general and governor of Yunnan after the 1911-12 revolution Yuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army and dictator after the fall of the Qing Xiong Kewu, Nationalist general turned warlord Xiao Jufang, Zhu De’s first wife Zhu Baozhu, Zhu De’s son (later took name Zhu Qi) Chen Yuzhen, Zhu De’s second wife Tang Jiyao, Opium growing Yunnan warlord Lei Yongfei, Social bandit in control of part of Sikang province Support the show
S1 E78 · Thu, September 23, 2021
From Gym Teacher to General: Zhu De in Revolution and Rebellion (1907-1916)
Following Zhu De from his time as a teacher of physical training at a modern school, through his time at the Yunnan Military Academy, the Revolution of 1911 and the rebellion against Yuan Shikai. Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Some names from this episode: Cai E, Republican general and governor of Yunnan after the 1911-12 revolution Yuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army and dictator after the fall of the Qing Xiao Jufang, Zhu De’s first wife Lu Shaozhen, reactionary chief of staff of Yunnan Army’s First Division Support the show
S1 E77 · Thu, September 16, 2021
From Poor Peasant to Gym Teacher: The Early Life of Zhu De
Taking a look back at the early life of Zhu De, the man who would later be Mao’s main partner in revolution. Further reading: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Some names from this episode: Zhang Tailei, leader of the Guangzhou Uprising of December 1927 Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Shi Dakai, Taiping general who fought a campaign in Sichuan Emperor Guangxu, Emperor of China who tried to assert his power during Hundred Days Reform only to be thwarted by the Empress Dowager Cixi Xi Bingan, Zhu De’s teacher Empress Dowager Cixi, power behind the throne from 1861 to 1908 Support the show
S1 E76 · Thu, September 09, 2021
Engels on Insurrection
The story behind how guidance on communist armed struggle got into a major American newspaper in 1852. Listener requested background on the text used by Lenin and which was so influential in the Guangzhou Commune. Further reading: Frederick Engels, Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Germany Lenin, “ Advice of an Onlooker ” Some names from this episode: Zhang Tailei, leader of the Guangzhou Uprising of December 1927 Support the show
S1 E75 · Thu, September 02, 2021
The Guangzhou Commune (December 11-13, 1927)
The last major armed uprising of 1927, in which the Communists temporarily took over Guangzhou. Further reading: Arif Dirlik, “ Narrativizing Revolution: The Guangzhou Uprising (11-13 December 1927) in Workers’ Perspective ” Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Hsiao Tso-Liang, “ Chinese Communism and the Canton Soviet of 1927 ” Lenin, “ Advice of an Onlooker ” Some names from this episode: Zhang Tailei, secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party Ye Ting, Communist military leader He Long, Communist military leader Heinz Neumann, German Comintern agent Zhang Fakui, Guomindang militarist who seized Guangzhou on November 17, 1927 Xu Xiangqian, Communist military officer, played leading role in Guangzhou Uprising Deng Zhongxia, Communist labor leader Huang Ping, One of the organizers of the Guangzhou uprising Qu Qiubai, top leader of Communist Party beginning in the summer of 1927 Support the show
S1 E74 · Thu, August 26, 2021
Red Canton: Background to the Guangzhou Uprising of December 1927
Some background on the situation in Guangzhou leading up to the uprising. Further reading: Arif Dirlik, “ Narrativizing Revolution: The Guangzhou Uprising (11-13 December 1927) in Workers’ Perspective ” Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Hsiao Tso-Liang, “ Chinese Communism and the Canton Soviet of 1927 ” Manuel Gomez, “ Organize for Liberation of the Colonies: Canton Center of World Movement ” Some names from this episode: Wang Jingwei, leader of the Guomindang Left Li Jishen, Guomindang militarist allied with Wang Jingwei Zhang Fakui, Guomindang militarist who launched a coup in Guangzhou in November 1927 Zhang Tailei, secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party Liu Ersong, the chairman of the Workers’ Delegates Conference Peng Pai, Communist peasant leader Zhou Enlai, leading Communist Li Chai-sum, Guomindang general Support the show
S1 E73 · Thu, August 19, 2021
‘Blind Actionism’ in Action: Understanding the Hundreds of Small Revolts Led by Communists at the End of the 1920s in China
Using the early November 1927 peasant revolt in Jiangsu province to illustrate features common to the many small Communist-led uprisings at the end of the 1920s. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Chang Liu, “ Making Revolution in Jiangnan: Communists and the Yangzi Delta Countryside, 1927-1945 ” Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, top leader of Communist Party beginning in the summer of 1927 Zhu De, Communist military commander Zhou Enlai, leading Communist Support the show
S1 E72 · Thu, August 12, 2021
Summing Up Failures, or Playing the Blame Game? The November 1927 Politburo Meeting in Shanghai
The Politburo meets to decide whether the leadership’s overall policy was wrong, or whether all the cadres carrying out the policy are just bad. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party until summer 1927 Qu Qiubai, Top leader of Communist Party beginning in the summer of 1927 Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Li Lisan, Leading Communist Tan Pingshan, Leading Communist expelled for the failure of the Nanchang Uprising Zhou Enlai, Leading Communist Support the show
S1 E71 · Thu, August 05, 2021
Sedan Chairs, Tired Intellectuals, and Indifferent Masses: The Denouement of the Nanchang Uprising/Southern Expedition (August to October 1927)
We follow the Southern Expeditionary force from Ruijin in Jiangxi province to Shantou in Guangdong. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) C. Martin Wilbur, “The Ashes of Defeat” Some names from this episode: Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Yun Daiying, Communist Central Committee member Li Lisan, Leading Communist Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Zhang Tailei, Member of Communist Politburo Qu Qiubai, Top leader of Communist Party Tan Pingshan, One of the leaders of the Nanchang Uprising Zhou Enlai, Leading Communist Zhu De, Communist military commander Lin Biao, Company commander in Communist military Support the show
S1 E70 · Thu, July 29, 2021
Hearts, Minds, and a Head on a Spike: The Unification of People and Forces in the Jinggangshan
How Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai’s forces were brought into the Red Army, and Mao cemented the loyalty of the locals by marrying the Two-Gunned Girl General. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Christina Gilmartin, Engendering the Chinese Revolution: Radical Women, Communist Politics, and Mass Movements in the 1920s Some names from this episode: Yuan Wencai, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Zuo, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong He Changgong, cadre sent to advise Wang Zuo and win him over Yin Daoyi, militia leader Yin Haomin, Yin Daoyi’s son Xu Yan’gang, chief-of-staff of the Second Regiment of the First Division of the Red Army He Zizhen, Communist cadre known as the “Two-Gunned Girl General” Yang Kaihui, Mao’s wife Link to a podcast I recently appeared on: Episode 71 of Cosmopod, discussing the early years of the Chinese Communist movement Support the show
S1 E69 · Thu, July 22, 2021
Secret Agent for International Maoism: José Venturelli, Chinese Informal Diplomacy and Latin American Maoism
A podcast version of an article published a few years back. The Chilean artist José Venturelli was a supporter of Maoist China. This article, a brief political biography of Venturelli, shows how he acted on behalf of the People's Republic of China's informal diplomacy among Latin Americans and worked to promote Maoist politics among Latin American revolutionaries. The article can be read here . Support the show
S1 E68 · Thu, July 15, 2021
Two Incursions, One Betrayal, and Six Points for Attention: The Red Army in Chaling and Suichuan (October 1927 to January 1928)
The early progress of the Red Army in expanding Soviet power in the Jinggangshan region. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Some names from this episode: Yuan Wencai, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Jingwei, leader of Guomindang Left Tang Shengzhi, leader of Guomindang Left military forces Chen Hao, led Communist takeover of Chaling Wan Xixian, political commissar in Revolutionary Army Xiao Jiabi, militia leader in Suichuan Support the show
S1 E67 · Thu, July 08, 2021
Alliances, Discipline, and an Army to Serve the People: The Beginning of the Jinggangshan Base Area (October 1927)
Mao forges an alliance with Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo, and the Revolutionary Army builds its capacity as a political force. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Some names from this episode: Long Chaoqing, secretary of the Ninggang County Committee of the Communist Party Yuan Wencai, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Zuo, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Xiao Jiabi, powerful reactionary militia leader in Suichuan Yin Daoyi, militia leader Support the show
S1 E66 · Thu, July 01, 2021
The Early Jinggangshan Revolutionary Movement
How the Chinese revolution came to the Jinggangshan, and how the revolution and counter-revolution developed up until Mao’s arrival in October 1927. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Some names from this episode: Long Chaoqing, important early Communist in Jinggangshan area Xiao Guohua, Communist women’s movement activist in Nanchang Yuan Wencai, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Wang Zuo, bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Zhu De, leading Communist military figure Yin Daoyi, conservative elite in Guanbei Ouyang Luo, Yongxin Communist cadre He Yi, Yongxin Communist cadre He Zizhen, the “Two-gunned Girl General” Wang Xinya, Communist military officer Liu Zuoshu, Yongxin Communist cadre He Minxue, Yongxin Communist cadre Support the show
S1 E65 · Thu, June 24, 2021
Mao’s Bandit Comrades: Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai
The stories of Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai before they joined up with Mao Zedong. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Some names from this episode: Wang Zuo, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Yuan Wencai, Bandit leader who joined with Mao Zedong Zhu Kongyang, Warlord army officer turned bandit Xie Guannan, Patriarch of the local tyrant Xie family in the area around Maoping Support the show
S1 E64 · Thu, June 17, 2021
Bandits of the Jinggangshan
A closer look at the phenomenon of banditry in the Jinggang Mountains, because of the importance that banditry and other forms of collective violence had on how the revolutionary movement developed. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Zhu Kongyang, Warlord army officer turned bandit Support the show
S1 E63 · Thu, June 10, 2021
Background on Society and Economy in the Jinggang Mountains
With particular emphasis on the geographical divisions between valleys and mountainsides, and ethnic divisions between Han and Hakka. Further reading: Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Name from this episode: Zhu Beide, Governor of Jiangxi province Support the show
S1 E62 · Thu, June 03, 2021
Entering the Jinggangshan: The Sanwan Reorganization of the People’s Army
As Mao’s troops arrive in the Jinggangshan region, a revolutionary reorganization of the people’s army is begun. Also, a tangent on Mao’s leadership style and nuclear war with a jump 30 years into the future. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highlands: China’s Jinggangshan Base Area Mao Zedong, “Speech at a Meeting of the Representatives of 64 Communist and Workers’ Parties” Some names from this episode: Lu Deming, Leader of the Lu Deming Regiment He Long, One of the Communist leaders of the Nanchang Uprising Yuan Wencai, Communist ‘social bandit’ leader Chen Muping, Yuan Wencai’s secretary and graduate of the peasant training institute Support the show
S1 E61 · Thu, May 27, 2021
The Autumn Harvest Uprising in Hunan
The first days of Mao Zedong’s long career of armed struggle. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Roy Hofheinz, “The Autumn Harvest Insurrection” Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Elizabeth Perry, Anyuan: Mining China’s Revolutionary Tradition Some names from this episode: Lu Deming, Leader of the Lu Deming Regiment Zhang Fakui, Guomindang general close to Wang Jingwei Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Support the show
S1 E60 · Fri, May 21, 2021
Planning the Autumn Harvest Uprising in Hunan
Mao doesn’t budge on his military line in the face of pressure from the Party Center, and then gets arrested. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Roy Hofheinz, “The Autumn Harvest Insurrection” Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography , vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Elizabeth Perry, Anyuan: Mining China’s Revolutionary Tradition C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Edgar Snow, Red Star Over China Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Besso Lominadze, New Comintern head in China starting in July 1927 Peng Gongda, Leading Communist in Hunan Yang Kaihui, Mao’s wife Tang Shengzhi, Leader of Guomindang Left military forces Mao Anlong, Mao’s youngest son Mao Anqing, Mao’s three-year-old son Mao Anying, Mao’s four-year-old son Support the show
S1 E59 · Sat, May 15, 2021
The Autumn Harvest Uprising in Hubei
The planning and execution of the Autumn Harvest Uprising in southern Hubei province. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Roy Hofheinz, “The Autumn Harvest Insurrection” Timothy Cheek’s Introduction to Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, eds., Mao Zedong : A Biography , vol. 1 Some names from this episode: Feng Yuxiang, Christian warlord “Scarlet Rays” Huang, Member of South Hubei special committee Liu Pu-I, Leader of “People’s Self-Defense Army” Hsieh I-huan, Member of South Hubei special committee Fu Hsiang-i, Member of South Hubei special committee Support the show
S1 E58 · Sat, May 08, 2021
The “Tender-Hearted Communist:” Qu Qiubai
Background on Qu Qiubai before he became Communist leader in 1927. Further reading: Tsi-an Hsia, The Gate of Darkness: Studies on the Leftist Literary Movement Jonathan Spence, The Gate of Heavenly Peace: The Chinese and Their Revolution Paul Pickowicz, Marxist Literary Thought in China: The Influence of Ch'u Ch'iu-pai Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Wang Shouhua, President of the General Labor Union Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Chinese Communist Party Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Besso Lominadze, New Comintern head in China starting in July 1927 Support the show
S1 E57 · Sat, April 24, 2021
Army or Militia? Mao and the Politburo Diverge on Military Policy for the Autumn Harvest Uprising
Mao takes a critical position on the military line pursued by the Comintern and the Politburo. Also, the issue of scapegoating individuals as a way of dealing with repudiated party policies. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Zhou Enlai, Selected Works of Zhou Enlai , vol. 1 Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Besso Lominadze, New Comintern head in China starting in July 1927 Tang Shengzhi, Leader of Guomindang Left military forces Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Tan Pingshan, Communist representative in Wuhan government Chen Duxiu, Former General Secretary of the Communist Party Zhou Enlai, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Support the show
S1 E56 · Sat, April 17, 2021
The Decisive Turn to Overthrowing the Guomindang: The 7 August 1927 Emergency Conference
The new policy of mass uprisings against the Guomindang is decided upon, and Mao’s comments at the meeting stand out for their epistemology. Further reading: Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, Communist general secretary until July 12, 1927 Zhou Enlai, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Zhang Guotao, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Li Lisan, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Qu Qiubai, Named head of new provisional politburo at August 7, 1927 Emergency Conference Xia Xi, Named to the South Hunan special committee responsible for the Autumn Harvest Uprising Guo Liang, Named to the South Hunan special committee responsible for the Autumn Harvest Uprising Ren Zuoxuan, Named to the South Hunan special committee responsible for the Autumn Harvest Uprising Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Besso Lominadze, New Comintern head in China starting in July 1927 Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Chinese Communist Party Wang Jingwei, Leader of the Guomindang Left Support the show
S1 E55 · Wed, February 17, 2021
The Nanchang Uprising (August 1, 1927)
The mutiny that founded the Chinese Red Army. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Marcia Ristaino, China’s Art of Revolution: The Mobilization of Discontent, 1927 and 1928 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 C. Martin Wilbur, “The Ashes of Defeat” Some names from this episode: Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and early Comintern agent in China Zhang Fakui, Guomindang general close to Wang Jingwei Ye Ting, Communist officer He Long, Communist officer Zhou Enlai, Commanded Front Committee which coordinated Nanchang Uprising Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and political head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Besso Lominadze, New Comintern head in China in July 1927 Zhang Guotao, Leading Communist Wang Jingwei, Leader of Guomindang “Left” Zhu De, Nanchang chief of public security Agnes Smedley, Communist journalist Zhu Beide, Governor of Jiangxi province Nie Rongzhen, Communist military leader Song Qingling, Guomindang Left leader and widow of Sun Yatsen Deng Yanda, Head of the Guomindang peasant bureau Eugene Chen, Guomindang Left foreign minister Support the show
S1 E54 · Mon, February 08, 2021
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 Wuhan. Further reading: C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Anna Louise Strong, China’s Millions Vera Vladimirovna Vishnyakova-Akimova, Two Years in Revolutionary China, 1925-1927 C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Some names from this episode: M. N. Roy, Indian Comintern agent Wang Jingwei, Leader of the Guomindang Left Feng Yuxiang, Christian warlord Vasily Blyukher, Soviet general and military genius, chief of Soviet military mission to aid the Guomindang Zotov, Blyukher’s code clerk, died of poisoning Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and political head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang He Jian, Nationalist general T. V. Soong, Wuhan government finance minister Chen Duxiu, Communist general secretary until July 12, 1927 Zhou Enlai, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Zhang Guotao, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Li Lisan, Member of temporary standing committee of Communist Politburo appointed in July 1927 Song Qingling, Guomindang Left leader and widow of Sun Yatsen Deng Yanda, Head of the Guomindang peasant bureau Eugene Chen, Guomindang foreign minister Gregory Voitinsky, Chairman of the Far Eastern Bureau of the Comintern Support the show
S1 E53 · Fri, January 29, 2021
“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 China, 1923-1928 Donald Jordan, The Northern Expedition: China’s National Revolution of 1926-1928 Alexander Pantsov, The Bolsheviks and the Chinese Revolution, 1919-1927 Some names from this episode: Tang Shengzhi, Hunan warlord who sided with the National Revolutionary Army and contested leadership with Chiang Kai-shek Ye Ting, Communist general and garrison commander who defended Wuhan against a right-wing mutiny M. N. Roy, Indian Comintern agent Wang Jingwei, Leader of the Guomindang Left Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Chen Duxiu, General secretary of the Communist Party Zhang Guotao, General secretary of Hubei branch of Communist Party Support the show
S1 E51 · Sat, January 23, 2021
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 thought. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Lynne Viola, The Best Sons of the Fatherland: Workers in the Vanguard of Soviet Collectivization Lenin, “ Pages from a Diary ” and “ On Co-operation ” Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Wang Jingwei, Leader of the Guomindang Left Support the show
S1 E52 · Sat, January 23, 2021
“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 episode should help you to concretely picture peasant life in Hunan during the period we have been discussing in the podcast, while also giving a short example of Mao Zedong’s practice of social investigation. Most of this is Mao running down the income and expenditures of a tenant-peasant, and just the last few minutes of this recording are Mao giving his conclusions. If you’re good at hearing lists of expenses and income and extrapolating in your mind what that meant for someone’s life concretely, then this piece will help you. If that’s not you, this might get pretty dry pretty fast. Feel free to skip this episode if it’s not working for you. Some units of measurement used in this document: 1 mu = .167 acre 1 dan = 100 liters 1 dou = 10 liters A note to the text indicates that the use of the terms dan and dou is not consistent throughout the text. 1 jin = .5 kg 1 fen = .01 yuan (yuan, or Chinese dollar, is the unit of currency, so 1 fen could also be translated as 1 penny) 3,300 cash = 1 yuan 1 sheng = 1 liter liang = tael (traditional unit for counting silver) string = 1000 copper coins strung together through the holes in the middle of the coins 1 zhang = 10 chi = 141 inches Support the show
S1 E50 · Mon, January 18, 2021
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 reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Some names from this episode: M. N. Roy, Indian Comintern agent Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Wang Jingwei, Leader of the Guomindang Left Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Li Lisan, Communist labor organizer Support the show
S1 E49 · Thu, January 07, 2021
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, 1920-1927 Elizabeth Perry, Shanghai on Strike: The Politics of Chinese Labor Maurice Meisner, Li Ta-chao and the Origins of Chinese Marxism Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Some names from this episode: Wang Shouhua, President of the General Labor Union Du Yuesheng, One of three top leaders of the Green Gang Huang Jinrong, One of three top leaders of the Green Gang (and top cop in the French Concession) Zhou Enlai, Leading Communist responsible for the workers’ armed forces in Shanghai Bai Chongxi, NRA commander whose forces occupied Shanghai Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party Gregory Voitinsky, Chairman of the Far Eastern Bureau of the Comintern Support the show
S1 E48 · Thu, December 17, 2020
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 reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Li Qiushi, Delegate to the Fifth Communist Party Congress known for being very handsome Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China from 1921-1923 Zhou Enlai, Head of the military commission of the Communist Central Committee Bai Chongxi, NRA commander whose forces occupied Shanghai Support the show
S1 E47 · Thu, December 03, 2020
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. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 C. Martin Wilbur, The Nationalist Revolution in China, 1923-1928 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Alexander Pantsov, The Bolsheviks and the Chinese Revolution, 1919-1927 Jack Gray, Rebellions and Revolutions: China from the 1800s to 2000 Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Tang Shengzhi, Hunan warlord who sided with the National Revolutionary Army and contested leadership with Chiang Kai-shek Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Karl Radek, provost of Sun Yatsen University in Moscow Support the show
S1 E46 · Thu, November 12, 2020
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 control the ‘dog-beating’ squads; and some thoughts on the problem of the inevitability of errors being made in revolutionary armed struggle and Mao’s thinking on that problem. Further reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Allyn and Adele Rickett, Prisoners of Liberation Some names from this episode: Qu Qiubai, Communist Central Committee member and head of propaganda Zhou Enlai, Head of the military commission of the Communist Central Committee Li Baozhang, the commander of the garrison of warlord troops in Shanghai Support the show
S1 E45 · Thu, November 05, 2020
The Second Armed Uprising in Shanghai (February 1927)
Where we continue to follow the insurrectionary journey of the Shanghai Communists. Further reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Sun Chuanfang, Leader of warlord coalition in China’s southeast Zhang Zongchang, Shandong warlord Li Baozhang, the commander of the garrison of warlord troops in Shanghai Zhou Enlai, Communist commissar who left Whampoa to aid the Shanghai military commission Niu Yongjian, Veteran Nationalist operative who came to Shanghai in 1926 Support the show
S1 E44 · Thu, October 29, 2020
From Dog-Beating Squads to the First Armed Uprising: The Shanghai Communists’ Steep Learning Curve in Developing Armed Struggle (1922 to 1926)
The bumpy road that the Communist Party took in Shanghai as it developed its capacity to deploy organized violence as a political tactic. Further reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Wang Shouhua, Leading Communist labor organizer in Shanghai Yu Xiaqing, Leader of a nationalist faction of Shanghai’s merchant class Niu Yongjian, Veteran Nationalist operative who came to Shanghai in 1926 Sun Chuanfang, Leader of warlord coalition in China’s southeast Tao Jingxuan, Communist union organizer executed after First Armed Uprising Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Support the show
S1 E43 · Thu, October 22, 2020
When Peasant Revolution Meets the Theory of the Productive Forces: The Communist Debate on Unity with the Nationalist Left
The tension between maintaining the united front and mobilizing the peasants for revolution finds expression in a crucial debate over strategy at the end of 1926. Further reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Gregory Voitinsky, Chairman of the Far Eastern Bureau of the Comintern Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Wang Jingwei, Main leader of the Guomindang left Support the show
S1 E42 · Thu, October 15, 2020
More Mass Movements, More Problems: The Aggressive Line of the Guangdong Comrades
Debate breaks out within the Communist Party and the Comintern over how to assess the balance of forces and relate to the developing revolutionary situation engendered by the mass movements in Hunan and Hubei in late 1926. Further reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Arif Dirlik, “Mass Movements and the Left Kuomintang” Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chinese Labor Movement: A Study of Deng Zhongxia, 1894-1933 Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Wang Jingwei, Main leader of the Guomindang left Chen Gongbo, Close follower of Wang Jingwei Sun Chuanfang, leader of warlord coalition which held east China before being defeated during the Northern Expedition Vasily Blyukher, Soviet general purported to be de facto commander-in-chief of Northern Expedition Tang Shengzhi, Hunan warlord who sided with the National Revolutionary Army and contested leadership with Chiang Kai-shek Gregory Voitinsky, Chairman of the Far Eastern Bureau of the Comintern Support the show
S1 E41 · Thu, October 08, 2020
Revolution in the Countryside: The Peasant Movement in Hunan in the Wake of the Northern Expedition
Mass upheaval in Hunan and elsewhere after people are liberated from warlord rule. Further reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Yokoyama Suguru, “The Peasant Movement in Hunan” Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 A name from this episode: Wu Peifu, Northern warlord Support the show
S1 E40 · Thu, October 01, 2020
The Northern Expedition Begins: Attempts at Merging the Mass Movement with Regular Warfare
Examining the role of both organized and unorganized mass support for the Northern Expedition in its first phase, the offensive from Guangdong to Wuhan from May to October 1926. Further reading: Donald Jordan, The Northern Expedition: China's National Revolution of 1926-1928 C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, Founding leader of the Guomindang Wu Peifu, Northern warlord Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China at various points Support the show
S1 E39 · Thu, September 24, 2020
Mao in 1926: War in Hunan, Coup in Guangzhou, Polemicizing for the Peasant Movement
Mao's political activity and intellectual development during the first nine months of 1926. Further Reading: Gerald Berkley, “The Canton Peasant Movement Training Institute” Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Yokoyama Suguru, “The Peasant Movement in Hunan” Philip C. C. Huang, “Mao Tse-Tung and the Middle Peasants, 1925-1928” Angus McDonald, “The Hunan Peasant Movement Its Urban Origins” Some names from this episode: Shen Yanbing (Mao Dun), Communist writer and later Culture Minister, in 1926 worked with Mao Zedong in Guomindang propaganda department Zhao Hengti, Dominant warlord in Hunan Tang Shengzhi, Subordinate of Zhao who allied with the Guomindang and displaced Zhao Wu Peifu, Northern warlord Nikolay Kuibyshev, Soviet general and head of military mission in Guangdong in late 1925 and early 1926 Andrei Bubnov, Headed Soviet military inspection mission to China in early 1926 Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Support the show
S1 E38 · Thu, September 17, 2020
Spreading Peasant Revolution Across Guangdong, and Beyond: The Guangzhou Peasant Movement Training Institute
How the Communist Party took the formula of "Haifeng + armed self-defense" and set out to organize the peasants of Guangdong, and beyond. Further Reading: Pang Yong-pil, “Peng Pai: From Landlord to Revolutionary” Yuan Gao, “Revolutionary Rural Politics: The Peasant Movement in Guangdong and Its Social-Historical Background, 1922–1926” Robert Marks, Rural Revolution in South China: Peasants and the Making of History in Haifeng County, 1570-1930 Roy Hofheinz, The Broken Wave: The Chinese Communist Peasant Movement, 1922-1928 Fernando Galbiati, P’eng P'ai and the Hai-Lu-Feng Soviet Gerald Berkley, “The Canton Peasant Movement Training Institute” C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Elizabeth Perry, Rebels and Revolutionaries in North China, 1845-1945 Some names from this episode: Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Chen Jiongming, Warlord dominant in Haifeng region until 1925 Li Zhongkai, Leader of Guomindang left, assassinated in 1925 Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party Support the show
S1 E37 · Thu, September 10, 2020
The Beginning of the Peasant Movement in Guangdong Province: How the Communist Party Got a Mass Base of Peasant Support in Spite of Itself
Peng Pai and the beginning of the peasant movement in Guangdong Province. Further Reading: Pang Yong-pil, “Peng Pai: From Landlord to Revolutionary” Yuan Gao, “Revolutionary Rural Politics: The Peasant Movement in Guangdong and Its Social-Historical Background, 1922–1926” Robert Marks, Rural Revolution in South China: Peasants and the Making of History in Haifeng County, 1570-1930 Roy Hofheinz, The Broken Wave: The Chinese Communist Peasant Movement, 1922-1928 Fernando Galbiati, P’eng P'ai and the Hai-Lu-Feng Soviet Some names from this episode: Peng Pai, Communist peasant organizer Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party Chen Jiongming, Warlord dominant in Haifeng region until 1925 Zhu Mo, Bad landlord in Haifeng County Zhang Zepu, Judge in Haifeng County Support the show
S1 E36 · Thu, September 03, 2020
The March 1926 Zhongshan Gunboat Incident: Coup and Countercoup in the Pearl River Delta
Tensions come to a head between Chiang Kai-shek, Wang Jingwei and General Kuibyshev, as a Soviet plot backfires spectacularly. Further Reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Wu Tien-wei, “Chiang Kai-shek's March Twentieth Coup d'Etat of 1926” Barbara Tuchman, Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-1945 Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Wang Jingwei, Leader of Guomindang government in Guangdong in late 1925 and early 1926 Dai Jitao, Right-wing Guomindang ideologue Nikolay Kuibyshev, Soviet general and head of military mission in Guangdong in late 1925 and early 1926 Victor Rogachev, Soviet general and adviser to Chiang Kai-shek Li Zhilong, Communist in Guomindang navy Hu Hanmin, Leader of Guomindang right-wing, spent a period of exile in the USSR Andrei Bubnov, Headed Soviet military inspection mission to China General V. A. Stepanov, Headed Soviet military mission after Kuibyshev left and before Blyukher returned Vasily Blyukher, Soviet general whose return was requested by Chiang Kai-shek Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Support the show
S1 E35 · Thu, August 27, 2020
From Quaker Peace Activist to Maoist Revolutionary: An Oral History of Personal Transformation from a 1971 American Delegation to China
An oral history interview with Monica Shay (née Newbold, aka Kathryn) about her experience in China in 1971-72. Some names from this episode: William Hinton, author of Fanshen and other books on China Jiang Qing, leading radical during Cultural Revolution and wife of Mao Zedong Revolutionary Union (RU), pro-China communist group in the US in early 1970s Dazhai, model agricultural commune Support the show
Bonus · Mon, August 24, 2020
Bonus: New China Song by Prairie Fire
The song "New China" by the band Prairie Fire, from the 1976 album Break the Chains . This song will be referenced in our next episode. Support the show
S1 E33 · Thu, August 20, 2020
The Beginning of Maoism: Mao Zedong’s “Analysis of All the Classes in Chinese Society”
Mao’s first major statement on the need for a strategic reorientation toward mobilizing the peasantry. The chart cited in the episode is now on the podcast website (as of 8-24-20): https://peopleshistoryofideas.com/episode-33-the-beginning-of-maoism-mao-zedongs-analysis-of-all-the-classes-in-chinese-society/ . Further Reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Philip C. C. Huang, “Mao Tse-Tung and the Middle Peasants, 1925-1928” Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Li Dazhao, Co-founder of Communist Party Support the show
S1 E32 · Thu, August 13, 2020
Propaganda, Criticism and Corruption: Mao as Propagandist and Disciplinarian (October 1925 to early 1926)
Mao as acting head of propaganda for the Guomindang. Further Reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Some names from this episode: Wang Jingwei, Leader of Guomindang government in Guangdong in late 1925 and early 1926 Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China at various points Dai Jitao, Right-wing Guomindang ideologue Support the show
S1 E31 · Thu, August 06, 2020
Strike, Assassination and War: The Revolution/Counter-Revolution Dialectic in Guangdong in the Second Half of 1925
The Hong Kong strike, the assassination of Liao Zhongkai, and the Second Eastern Expedition. Further Reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 John Erickson, The Soviet High Command: A Military-Political History, 1918-1941 Some names from this episode: Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun Yatsen Deng Zhongxia, Communist labor leader, involved in Hong Kong strike Wang Jingwei, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of Guomindang Liao Zhongkai, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of Guomindang Hu Hanmin, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of Guomindang (further to Right than the other two) Chen Jiongming, Southern warlord, ally and then enemy of Sun Yatsen Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Zhou Enlai, Communist head of the Whampoa Academy political department, leading commissar on Second Eastern Expedition Victor Rogachev, Soviet general and adviser to Chiang Kai-shek Support the show
S1 E30 · Thu, July 30, 2020
Guangdong Spring 1925: Revolutionary Warfare Erupts and Workers Shut Down Hong Kong
The National Revolutionary Army battles the warlords for supremacy in Guangdong, while the British and French escalate tensions by massacring supporters of a strike which shut down Hong Kong. Further Reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun Yatsen Vasily Blyukher, Soviet general who led military mission to aid Guomindang Zhou Enlai, Communist head of the Whampoa Academy political department Wang Jingwei, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of Guomindang Liao Zhongkai, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of Guomindang Hu Hanmin, Potential heir apparent to Sun Yatsen as leader of Guomindang (further to Right than the other two) Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the Guomindang, died in March 1925 Chen Jiongming, Southern warlord, ally and then enemy of Sun Yatsen Support the show
S1 E29 · Thu, July 23, 2020
The Soviet Military Alliance with the Guomindang, and the Creation of the National Revolutionary Army
The first year of the Soviet military alliance with the Guomindang, including the creation of the Whampoa Military Academy, the formation of the National Revolutionary Army, and the crushing of the Merchant Corps. Further Reading: C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 John Erickson, The Soviet High Command: A Military-Political History, 1918-1941 Some names from this episode: Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun Yatsen Chen Jiongming, Southern warlord, ally and then enemy of Sun Yatsen Deng Zhongxia, Leading Communist labor organizer Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China at various points, much more wary of Sun Yatsen and the Guomindang than Borodin Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the Guomindang Support the show
S1 E28 · Thu, July 16, 2020
Peasant Revolution?: An Exhausted Mao Rediscovers His Roots
Mao gets sick of all the BS in Shanghai and returns to his hometown of Shaoshan, where he discovers a militant peasantry. Further Reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 2: National Revolution and Social Revolution, December 1920-June 1927 Yokoyama Suguru, “The Peasant Movement in Hunan” Some names from this episode: Li Lisan, Communist leader of the Shanghai General Labor Union Liu Shaoqi, Communist leader just below Li Lisan in the Shanghai General Labor Union Liu Hua, Union activist executed for leading role in May 30 Movement Liu Bolun, Stood in for Mao at a meeting of the Committee for Common People’s Education Wang Xianzong, Hunanese Communist murdered by a local warlord for organizing peasants Wang Jingwei, Head of Guomindang government in Guangzhou in late 1925 when Mao arrived from Hunan Han Suyin, early biographer of Mao for a western audience Liu Shaoqi, Leading Communist labor organizer in the 1920s, later targeted as a capitalist roader in the Cultural Revolution Deng Xiaoping, Chinese leader targeted as a capitalist roader in the Cultural Revolution Support the show
S1 E27 · Thu, July 09, 2020
Gonzalo in the Middle Kingdom: What Abimael Guzmán Tells Us in His Three Discussions of His Two Trips to China
A podcast version of a recently published article which discusses what the leader of Peru's Shining Path, Abimael Guzmán, has to say about the time he spent in Maoist China. The article can be read on the podcast website . Support the show
S1 E26 · Thu, July 02, 2020
The May 30 Movement: The Chinese People’s Uprising Against the British and Japanese in 1925
Workers, students and merchants in Shanghai take on the British authorities of the International Settlement and Japanese mill owners after protesters are massacred. Further Reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Li Lisan, Communist leader of the Shanghai General Labor Union Zhang Xueliang, son of Zhang Zuolin, occupied Shanghai’s Chinese city Zhang Zuolin, northern warlord Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China in 1925 Liu Shaoqi, Communist leader just below Li Lisan in the Shanghai General Labor Union Liu Hua, Union activist executed for leading role in May 30 Movement Support the show
S1 E25 · Thu, June 25, 2020
Lenin’s Ideas on Revolutionary Situations and the Situation in the United States Today
In response to a listener request, we consider the situation in the United States today in light of historical thinking on the question of revolutionary situations. Further reading: Lenin, The Collapse of the Second International ( chapter two ) Lenin, Letters from Afar Lenin, “Marxism and Insurrection” Support the show
S1 E24 · Thu, June 18, 2020
Back to the Labor Front!: The Japanese Mills Strike of 1925
The Communist Party tries to figure out how to put the workers in the lead of the nationalist revolution, and has some initial success. Further Reading: Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Deng Zhongxia, Leading Communist labor organizer Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party, often credited as China’s first Marxist Li Lisan, Leading Communist labor organizer Chen Duxiu, Chen Duxiu, General secretary of the Communist Party Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern representative in China in 1925 Yang Zhihua, Communist leader in women’s movement Support the show
S1 E23 · Thu, June 11, 2020
The Proletarian Nation vs. The Theory of the Productive Forces
The thinking of Chinese Communism’s two founders, Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu, diverges as revolutionary experience is gained. Further Reading: Maurice Meisner, Li Ta-Chao and the Origins of Chinese Marxism Some names from this episode: Li Dazhao, Co-founder of the Communist Party, often credited as China’s first Marxist Chen Duxiu, Co-founder and first general secretary of the Communist Party Zhang Guotao, Communist leader and opponent of ‘united front from within’ with Guomindang Support the show
S1 E22 · Thu, June 04, 2020
Friends Close, Enemies Closer: The United Front in Action
As both the Guomindang and the Communist Party benefit from their collaboration, tensions build. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in China Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai, 1920-1927 Alexander Pantsov, The Bolsheviks and the Chinese Revolution, 1919-1927 C. Martin Wilbur and Julie Lien-ying How, Missionaries of Revolution: Soviet Advisers and Nationalist China, 1920-1927 Arif Dirlik, “Mass Movements and the Left Kuomintang” Some names from this episode: Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the Guomindang Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Chen Jiongming, Southern warlord, ally and then enemy of Sun Yatsen Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun Yatsen Lev Karakhan, Soviet ambassador to China beginning in 1923 Gregory Chicherin, Soviet People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs Chen Duxiu, General Secretary of the Communist Party Support the show
S1 E21 · Thu, May 28, 2020
The Road Is Tortuous: The Chinese Revolution and the End of the Global Sixties
A podcast version of a recently published article which argues that the rightward turn of Chinese politics in the 1970s was a key contributing factor in ending the revolutionary era of the long and global 1960s and ushering in the neoliberal age of reaction which followed. The article can be read on the podcast website . Support the show
S1 E20 · Thu, May 21, 2020
The Loneliest United Front: The Chinese Communist Party in 1923
The Communist Party of China tries to find a way to implement the united front with the Guomindang in 1923, but ultimately has to wait for the Soviet-Guomindang alliance to mature. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in China Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power , vol. 2 Some names from this episode: Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the Guomindang Wang Jingwei, leader of Guomindang left-wing, later president of Japanese puppet state in China Cao Kun, northern warlord who controlled Beijing Li Yuanhong, president of China from 1922-1923 Zhang Guotao, communist leader and opponent of ‘united front from within’ with Guomindang Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China from 1921-1923 Chiang Kai-shek, Japan-trained military officer, close confidant of Sun Yatsen Mikhail Borodin, Comintern agent and head of Soviet mission to aid the Guomindang Support the show
S1 E19 · Thu, May 14, 2020
Communist Unionizing and the Genesis of the United Front with the Guomindang
The Communist Party begins its labor organizing drive, and the Comintern pushes for a united front with the Guomindang. Further reading: Elizabeth Perry, Shanghai on Strike Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in Chin a Steve Smith, A Road Is Made: Communism in Shanghai 1920-1927 Some names from this episode: Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China beginning in 1921 Zhang Guotao, emerged from founding congress as an important Communist leader Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yatsen, leader of the Guomindang Li Qihan, communist teacher and labor organizer who pioneered utilization of secret society contacts in labor organizing Huang Ai, anarchist labor organizer executed in 1922 Pang Renquan, anarchist labor organizer executed in 1922 Chen Duxiu, first general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Gregory Voitinsky, leader of Comintern delegation to China in 1920 Chen Jiongming, progressive southern warlord, sometime opponent of Sun Yatsen V. Lidin, Comintern agent in China, subordinate to Maring Li Dazhao, leading Communist Adolph Joffe, Soviet ambassador to China Georgy Safarov, head of eastern section of the Comintern Wu Peifu, northern warlord who crushed railroad workers’ strike in 1923 Support the show
S1 E18 · Thu, May 07, 2020
Workers' Revolution or Nationalist United Front? Early Strategic Decisions of the Chinese Communist Party
The early divergence in strategic thinking and revolutionary priorities between the CCP and the Comintern. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Origins of the First United Front in China Some names from this episode: Chen Gongbo, Founding Chinese Communist who studied at Columbia and later joined the Japanese puppet regime Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China beginning in 1921 Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yat-sen, leader of the Guomindang Georgii Chicherin, People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union Lao Xiuchao, Chinese Bolshevik who attended the first Comintern Congress in 1919 Chen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and first general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Gregory Voitinsky, Leader of Comintern delegation to China in 1920 Zhang Guotao, emerged from founding congress as important Communist leader Li Hanjun, advocated study and propaganda as main party activities as first congress Liu Renjing, one of the Beijing delegates to the first party congress Support the show
S1 E17 · Thu, April 30, 2020
Demarcation and Organization: The Chinese Communist Party is Founded
Polemics with non-revolutionary Marxists and anarchists, and then the party congress in July 1921. Further reading: Arif Dirlik, The Origins of Chinese Communism Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and leader of Shanghai Communist nucleus Gregory Voitinsky, Leader of Comintern delegation to China in 1920 Karl Kautsky, Second International theorist of economic determinist Marxism Li Dazhao, Beijing-based revolutionary Marxist leader Zhang Dongsun, Exponent of a non-revolutionary interpretation of Marxism Ou Shengbai, Guangzhou anarchist and former student of Chen Duxiu Henk Sneevliet, alias Maring, Dutch Communist and Comintern leader in China beginning in 1921 Zhang Guotao, emerged from founding congress as important Communist leader Li Hanjun, advocated study and propaganda as main party activities at first congress Liu Renjing, one of the Beijing delegates to the first party congress Support the show
S1 E16 · Fri, April 24, 2020
From Russia with Organizational Expertise: The Comintern Comes to China
Gregory Voitinsky comes to China and helps get the ball rolling to found the Communist Party. Also, a few words on commodity fetishism as the keystone of Marx's Capital and how this leads to Lenin's innovations in conceptualizing communist party formations. Some names from this episode: Gregory Voitinsky, Comintern organizer who arrived in China in March 1920 Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu, two of the key figures in founding the Chinese Communist Party (their background is discussed in past episodes) Support the show
S1 E15 · Wed, March 25, 2020
The Communist International
Explaining how the strategic thinking of the Communist International developed, as background to the key role the ComIntern played in facilitating the founding of the Chinese Communist Party. Support the show
S1 E14 · Thu, February 20, 2020
Mao's Anarchist Years (The Young Mao Zedong Part Two)
In this episode we continue our examination of Mao Zedong’s ideological development by discussing his anarchist period. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 1: The Pre-Marxist Period, 1912-1920 is the indispensable source here. Some names from this episode: Li Dazhao, leading proponent of learning from the Russian Revolution Hu Shi, student of John Dewey and advocate for pragmatism Chen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and leading New Culture intellectual Support the show
S1 E13 · Wed, January 29, 2020
Liberals Becoming Marxists: The New Culture and May 4th Movements (1915-1919)
In this episode we explore the move from liberalism toward Marxism among progressive intellectuals in the 1915-1919 period, and how those ideas began to be brought to the working class in China’s cities. This includes the New Culture Movement, the May 4th Movement, and the June 5th Movement. Further reading: Maurice Meisner, Li Ta-Chao and the Origins of Chinese Marxism Arif Dirlik, The Origins of Chinese Communism Some names from this episode: Yuan Shikai, leader of the Beiyang Army and dictator after the fall of the Qing Sun Yat-sen/Sun Zhongshan, leader of the Guomindang Chen Duxiu, editor of New Youth and leading New Culture intellectual Lu Xun, progressive writer who wrote “A Madman’s Diary” for New Youth Li Dazhao, collaborator with Chen Duxiu and leading proponent of learning from the Russian Revolution Support the show
S1 E12 · Sat, December 21, 2019
The Young Mao Zedong
In this episode we look at Mao Zedong’s childhood, family background, and see what he was thinking in 1912. Further reading: Edgar Snow, Red Star Over China Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 1: The Pre-Marxist Period, 1912-1920 Lee Feigon, Mao: A Reinterpretation Jonathan Spence, Mao Zedong: A Life Some names from this episode: Ba Jin, anarchist novelist who wrote The Family Shang Yang, founder of the Legalist school Sima Qian, author of Records of the Grand Historian Support the show
S1 E11 · Sat, December 14, 2019
The 1911 Revolution
The overthrow of the Qing Dynasty, followed by the first years of the Republic of China. Further reading on the 1911 Revolution: Joseph Esherick and C.X. George Wei, editors, China: How the Empire Fell Some names from this episode: Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Revolution and revolutionary communist par excellence Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yat-sen, leader of the Revolutionary Alliance Huang Xing, Vice-President of the Revolutionary Alliance and military leader of the April 1911 uprising in Guangzhou Puyi, child emperor who abdicated his throne at age five Prince Chun, regent for Puyi Yuan Shikai, leader of Beiyang Army Empress Dowager Cixi, power behind the throne who died in 1908 Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of liberal modernization and Qing loyalist Guangxu Emperor, Emperor of China during the Hundred Days Reform of 1898 Song Jiaoren, leading Guomindang organizer, assassinated in 1913 Zeng Guofan, leader of Qing forces that defeated the Taiping rebels Li Hongzhang, high level Chinese statesman and advocate of self-strengthening Support the show
S1 E10 · Thu, November 21, 2019
Revolutionary Voices from the End of the Qing Dynasty
In this episode, we explore some of the major voices of revolution from the decade preceding the end of the Qing Dynasty in 1912: Zou Rong, Qiu Jin and Sun Yat-sen [Sun Zhongshan]. Some names from this episode: Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of liberal modernization and focus of episode 8 Guangxu Emperor, Emperor of China who was put under house arrest by Cixi after attempting to assert his power during the Hundred Days Reform (episode 8) Empress Dowager Cixi, ruler of China during this period Liang Qichao, disciple of Kang Youwei Zou Rong, author of The Revolutionary Army Subao newspaper, newspaper run by anti-Qing revolutionaries out of the Shanghai International Settlement Qiu Jin, China’s first feminist and anti-Qing revolutionary Sima Qian, Han dynasty historian Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Revolution and revolutionary communist par excellence Sun Zhongshan/Sun Yat-sen, leader of the Revolutionary Alliance Li Hongzhang, high level Chinese statesman and advocate of self-strengthening (episode 5) Support the show
S1 E9 · Tue, November 05, 2019
The Boxer Uprising of 1900
In the face of foreign aggression and natural disaster, masses of Chinese people turn to traditional folk religion and martial arts to attempt to throw out the imperialists. A couple sources for reading more, and which I used in preparing this episode: Joseph Esherick, The Origins of the Boxer Uprising Paul Cohen, History in Three Keys: The Boxers as Event, Experience, and Myth Some names from this episode: Wang Lun, leader of White Lotus rebellion in the 18th century Empress Dowager Cixi, ruler of China during this period Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of liberal modernization and focus of last episode Emperor Guangxu, Emperor of China who was put under house arrest by Cixi after attempting to assert his power during the Hundred Days Reform (last episode) Alphonse Favier, Roman Catholic bishop in Beijing who engaged in looting when the Eight-Nation Army occupied Beijing and crushed the Boxers Support the show
S1 E8 · Sat, October 12, 2019
Kang Youwei and the Hundred Days Reform
In the wake of the Sino-Japanese War, Kang Youwei works with the Guangxu Emperor to try to replicate Japan's Meiji reforms, before being crushed by Cixi and other Manchu conservatives. At the beginning of the episode, I talk some about how westerners have written about Chinese history. A good book that goes really deep into this is Paul Cohen's Discovering History in China . If you're into that topic, you may also want to read Fabio Lanza's End of Concern: Maoist China, Activism, and Asian Studies . Some names from this episode: Kang Youwei, Confucian advocate of liberal modernization and Qing loyalist Emperor Guangxu, Emperor of China during this episode, tried to assert his power during Hundred Days Reform Empress Dowager Cixi, the real power behind the throne Ito Hirobumi, senior Japanese statesman whose met with Guangxu while Cixi 'sat behind the curtain' Yuan Shikai, leader of Chinese army Rong Lu, conservative Manchu governor of metropolitan region and Cixi loyalist Kang Guangren, Kang Youwei's younger brother Okuma Shigenobu, Japanese prime minister who offered Kang Youwei aid Mao Zedong, leader of the Chinese Revolution Support the show
S1 E7 · Sun, September 29, 2019
Losing the Tributaries: The Sino-French and Sino-Japanese Wars in Vietnam and Korea
In this episode we do some Q&A and then cover the Sino-French War of 1884-1885 and the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895. A couple names from this episode: Emperor Qianlong: ruled China from 1735 to 1799 Li Hongzhang: high level Chinese statesman and advocate of self-strengthening Support the show
S1 E6 · Sun, August 18, 2019
Book Review of The Shining Path: Love, Madness, and Revolution in the Andes
A review of the new book about the civil war in Peru, The Shining Path: Love, Madness, and Revolution in the Andes , by Orin Starn and Miguel La Serna. This book is the first history of the Shining Path aimed at the general reading public to come out in a long time. Next episode, we'll return to our series on the historical background to the Chinese Revolution. Support the show
S1 E5 · Mon, August 12, 2019
The Self-Strengthening Movement: Too Little Too Late?
This episode focuses on the 1862-1895 period, when the Empress Dowager Cixi ruled and reformers tried to make China strong enough to stand up to foreign powers by modernizing the military and promoting 'new learning.' Also, a few words on the surge in overseas Chinese migration during this time, and its relationship to revolutionary nationalist movements to overthrow the Qing Empire. The books that I quote from in the episode are: Zheng Yangwen, Ten Lessons in Modern Chinese History ( https://www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9780719097737/ ) Stephen Platt, Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom: China, the West, and the Epic Story of the Taiping Civil War ( https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/131825/autumn-in-the-heavenly-kingdom-by-stephen-r-platt/9780307472212/ ) Support the show
S1 E4 · Wed, July 03, 2019
The Second Opium War and the End of the Taiping Civil War
The episode wraps up the events of the Taiping Revolution (1850-1864) and also deals with the events and outcome of the Second Opium War (1856-1860). The Qing Dynasty is weakened and the British, French, American and Russian powers extract new unequal treaties. Then the British help the Qing to put down a peasant-based revolution. Support the show
S1 E3 · Sat, June 15, 2019
The Taiping Revolution
The strange story of Christian peasant revolutionaries in 19th century China. This episode is about the origins and early years of the Taiping Revolution (1850-1864). Both the early Nationalist revolutionaries, like Sun Yat-sen, and later Communists, like Mao Zedong, were inspired by the peasant war led by Hong Xiuquan. But the Taipings were more than just a very large peasant rebellion, as their leader, Hong, thought he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ. Good resources for more information: Jonathan Spence, God's Chinese Son: The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom of Hong Xiuquan ( https://wwnorton.com/books/Gods-Chinese-Son/ ) Stephen Platt, Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom: China, the West, and the Epic Story of the Taiping Civil War ( https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/131825/autumn-in-the-heavenly-kingdom-by-stephen-r-platt/9780307472212/ ) Support the show
S1 E2 · Fri, May 31, 2019
The Opium War and the Beginning of China's Century of Humiliation
This is the first of several episodes which will give broad historical background for our upcoming discussion of the Chinese Revolution and the international spread of ideas related to the Chinese Revolution. This episode focuses on the background to and events of the First Opium War (1839-1842). China's defeat in the First Opium War began the Century of Humiliation at the hands of imperialist powers (Britain, France, Russia, Germany, USA, Japan) that ended with the revolution's victory in 1949. Good resources for more information on these events: Zheng Yangwen, The Social Life of Opium in China ( https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/social-life-of-opium-in-china/F5A70808CF5B7621B0E949686E90406C ) Stephen Platt, Imperial Twilight: The Opium War and the End of China's Last Golden Age ( https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/221056/imperial-twilight-by-stephen-r-platt/9780345803023/ ) Support the show
S1 E1 · Wed, May 29, 2019
Introducing the People's History of Ideas Podcast
This is a short episode just introducing you to the podcast. Matthew Rothwell is your host. The theme is the history of revolutionary ideas, starting with background to the Chinese Revolution. For Dr. Rothwell's book on Maoism in Latin America, see here: https://www.routledge.com/Transpacific-Revolutionaries-The-Chinese-Revolution-in-Latin-America/Rothwell/p/book/9781138108066 For a shorter introduction to his work, see this article: http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1531961/1/Rothwell_RA.pdf Full audio of the Malcolm X speech excerpted in this episode, "Message to the Grassroots," is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a59Kwp35Z80 Support the show
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