Mao Zedong 

 

Mao Zedong was born on December 26, 1893 in Shaoshan village, Hunan Province, China. He came from a peasant family. Mao was born in Shaoshan, Hunan. He converted Marxism while he worked at Peking University. In 1921- Mao co-founded the Chinese Communist Party. He gave a geographic slant to Marxism as he felt that within an Asiatic society, communists had to concentrate on the countryside rather than the industrial towns.
 

1949- The Chairman Mao, he governed as Chairman of the Communist Party of China from its establishment in 1949 and he was a Chinese Communist revolutionary and the founding father of the People's Republic of China. Based on Chairman Mao new concept of New Democracy or the New Democratic Revolution "Bloc of Four Social Classes" theory and they were proletarian workers, peasants, the petty bourgeoisie (small business owners), and the nationally-based capitalists. These theories were developed by Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin and Mao combination, military strategies and political policies are collectively known as Marxism-Leninism-Maoism theories.

 

1950- Mao introduced land reforms and the first Five Year Plan started in 1953. Peasant co-operatives were set up.

 

1959- Mao gave up the position of head of state. This went to Liu Shao-chi. He did remain party chairman and concentrated his efforts on ideological changes.

1960 to 1965- a struggle took place between Liu and Mao over who were the more important - the industrial workers or the peasants. Mao still placed his faith in the peasants. Liu favored the urban workers.

 

1966- Some essays by Mao entitled "Thoughts" became all but compulsory reading for Chinese peoples. This was to become Mao’s famous "Little Red Book" and Mao’s death in 1976.