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Wavell Plan & Simla Conference

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Wavell Plan Simla Conference

An abortive effort to solve the political deadlock in India was made in 1945. Lord Wavell invited the leaders of all sections of political opinion. A conference was held at Simla. Discussions went on for about one month. The Wavell Plan, in its essence, was the complete Indianisation of the Executive Council. The caste Hindus and Muslims were to be represented on it on the basis of parity. Mahatma Gandhi resented the use of the words “caste Hindus”.

The Muslim League clamoured for having the representation of the Muslim members of the Council. The Congress, being a national organisation, insisted on the nomination of its representatives from all the communities. The conference met with failure because neither the Congress nor the League was prepared to deviate from the stand taken by them.

General elections were held in the United Kingdom in 1945. As a result of these elections, the Labour Party came to power. The Labour Party wanted to transfer power to the Indians as a matter of political expediency. A mission consisting of three Cabinet Ministers of the British Government—Sir Stafford Cripps, Lord Pethick-Lawrence and A. V. Alexander—was, therefore, sent to India to resolve the political deadlock.

The mission reached New Delhi on March 24, 1945. From the third week of March to the middle of June 1945, the three British Ministers along with Lord Wavell had a series of conferences with all the important political leaders of India representing every important party. Towards the end of their stay in India, they announced their plan regarding the future political set-up for India, known as the Cabinet Mission Plan.

Read Also: India Under Viceroys

The plan rejected the demand of the All India Muslim League for partition of the country and establishment of a fully sovereign Pakistan. It envisaged a confederation consisting of three groups of autonomous states vesting the powers of three departments—Defence, External Affairs, and Communications— in a Central Government and all the remaining powers with the groups themselves. Each of the groups was free to have a separate constitution of its own choice, thus, giving ample scope for both the leading religious groups-—Hindus and Muslims—to enjoy complete autonomy in areas where they were in a majority.

The plan had two parts, namely, a long-term programme and a short-term one. While the long-term programme was concerned with the future political setup on a permanent basis, the short-term programme was intended to establish an immediate Indian Government.

The Muslim League accepted both parts of the plan while the Indian National Congress decided that it would unreservedly accept only the long-term programme. As a result, the Muslim League later on rejected the plan as a whole and declared that it would resort to Direct Action to achieve its own demands.

Meanwhile, elections in the British Indian provinces were completed and the provincial autonomy scheme of the Government of India Act, 1935 was given effect to by forming popular ministries in all provinces. But the question of forming an interim cabinet at the Centre still remained unresolved. As a temporary measure, a caretaker government of senior Civil Service officials was formed by the Governor-General towards the end of June 1946.

Must Read: Governor Generals and Viceroys of India

In the elections to the Central and provincial legislatures held in 1946, the Congress captured an overwhelming majority of seats from the general constituencies whereas the Muslim League captured a thumping majority of seats from the Muslim constituencies. Elections to the Constituent Assembly were also held.

On August 12,1946, Lord Wavell invited Jawaharlal Nehru to consider proposals for the formation of an interim government at the Centre. The discussions bore fruit and an interim government was formed on September 2, 1946. The Muslim League at first refused to join it but later on, it did so. It, however, continued to boycott the Constituent Assembly.

In the meantime, resort to Direct Action by the Muslim League had already resulted in widespread communal disturbances of a magnitude unprecedented in India. Thousands of innocent people belonging to both the communities were killed. The entire country was caught in the grip of the communal frenzy of the worst order. Even the Muslim League nominees joining the interim government a few weeks later did not bring the situation to normalcy.

A ticklish situation was created due to the Muslim League’s participation in the interim government and non-participation in the Constituent Assembly. An attempt to establish the practice of collective responsibility in the interim government failed on account of the hostile attitude of the Muslim League. Ultimately, the Muslim League withdrew from the interim government and demanded the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly of India on the ground that it was not fully representing all sections of the Indian people.

It was on February 20, 1947, that British Prime Minister Clement Attlee announced that the British Government was determined to transfer power to responsible Indian hands and fixed June 1948 as the final date for the purpose. If within that period, Indian leaders fail to produce an agreed solution, the Britishers would not stay in after that date and would hand over power to one or more than one government.

For the purpose of taking necessary steps for transfer of power, the British Government thought that Lord Wavell was not equal to the situation and, therefore, the appointment of Lord Wavell was terminated and Lord Louis Mountbatten was appointed to succeed him as the Governor-General.

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The Later Mughals of the (Mighty) Mughal Empire

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Syskool
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The Mughal Empire

When Aurangzeb,the de facto last representative of the mighty Mughal Empire, at the age of 90 died in March 1707, a war of succession to the throne began between his sons- Muazzam, who was also known as Shah Alam, the eldest one, Muhammad Azam and Kam Bakhsh.

When Muazzam received the news of his father’s death, he was at that time in Afghanistan; he hurried back to Agra and dispossesses, rather murdered his brothers to capture the throne and the legacy left behind by Aurangzeb. In June 1707, Muhammad Azam was killed and in the year 1709 Kam Bakhsh was killed in Hyderabad. He did not even spare his brother’s son fearing they might become a threat in the future. After crowning himself (in 1707) he took the title of Bahadur Shah and after ruling for five years he died when he was in his late sixties.

Must Read: Impact of Religious Policy of Aurangzeb on Mughal Empire

Reign of Jahandar Shah: Mughal Empire deteriorated

The death of Bahadur ShahI in 1712, predictably, was followed by a war of succession among his four sons in which Jahandar Shah emerged successful and ascended the throne on 29 March, 1712.

When Jahandar Shah, who was known to be frivolous, reckless and pleasure loving, became the emperor he raised the status of Lal Kanwar to that of an empress; Lal Kanwar belonged to a family of musicians to whom he was devoted.

At first the family member of Lal Kanwar were appointed to important administrative posts; however, due to the neglect of Jahandar Shah, gradually they took the charge of entire administration in their hands.

It was due to these relatives’ misappropriation of Shahi Treasury and mismanagement of State the conditions in the Empire deteriorated very quickly.

Also Read: The Vijayanagar Empire: Social life and Economic condition

Farukh Siyar’s reign: Way for Colonial Rule

Farrukh Siyar, the nephew of Jahandar Shah, after seizing the power by defeating his uncle and then strangling him, blinded all his rival Mughal princes to secure that the throne would be his.

The reign of Farrukh Siyar, who proved to be a poor ruler because he depended completely on his allies, the Saiyyids, who had helped him in acquiring power, was marked by the granting of some undue trade privilages to the English East India Company, that proved harmful to the economic interest of the Empire. In fact, his actions prepared and paved the way to the establishment of British rule in Bengal.

Farrukh Siyar was dethroned, blinded and imprisoned by his allies, the Sayyids, who had finally turned against him. When he tried to escape they after killing him buried Farrukh Siyar in Humayun’s tomb.

Read Also: Centralized Administration of Mauryan Empire

Reign of Muhammad Shah: Breaking up of Mughal Empire

Muhammad Shah, at the age of 17, was raised to throne, where he remained for almost 30 years, by the Saiyyid brothers. According to most of the contemporary historians Muhammad Shah was an ineffectual and pleasure loving individual who acted like a imperial puppet at the hands of the Saiyyid brothers who continued to rule through him for a few years, for Muhammad Shah did try to get rid of them with the help of those Mughal nobles who were offended by the supremacy of the Saiyyid brothers. Muhammad Shah finally, in 1722, got success in dispossessing the Saiyyids.

However, after the disposal of the Saiyyid brothers from power, the emperor Muhammad Shah did not pay attention to strengthen his empire, instead he remained busy in seeking pleasures. Although he ruled for a very long period, province after province became independent and the mighty Mughal Empire started to break up due to his explicit lack of interest in the affairs of the State.

During all those years when Muhammad Shah remained an emperor till his death in 1748, Afghanistan, then called Kabul, which had been the part of the Mughal Empire, was under the governorship of Nasir Khan. But Nasir Khan was a weak person; this provided an opportunity to Nadir Shah,  a new but brave and courageous military leader, to seize power.

In 1739 Nadir Shah invaded India and defeated the Mughal Empire army very comprehensively. Sensing that it would be useless to resist, Muhammad Shah tried to negotiate with Nadir Shah with the hope of saving his empire. However, Nadir Shah did not oblige him and drained the treasury and carried off with the Peacock Throne.

Must Read: The Revenue System under Mughal Administration

Ahmad Shah: The Emperor of Harem

Ahmad Shah remained emperor from 1748-54. He was a completely ineffectual ruler. The story of him getting the name of the ‘Emperor of Harem’ goes like this: he was, in fact, brought he liked nothing better than spending all his time in harm. This earned him the name ‘emperor of the harm’.

Ahmad Shah was blinded and deposed by the son of the Nizam of Hyderabad, Ghazi-ud-Did who had himself with the Marathas in 1754; after this he lived in confinement till his death.

Alamgir II: the Mughal Empire slipped into anarchy

Alamgir II or Aziz-ud-Did, the sixteenth Mughal emperor of India between 1754 and 1759, was an elderly son of Jahandar Shah. As he had spent most of his life in prison, Alamgir II when he was placed on the throne after Ahmad Shah, was not fully prepared to rule. He tried to copy Aurangzeb by taking the name of Alamgir as Aurangzeb had acquired the name Aurangzeb Alamgir at the time of his accession to the throne. However, the irony behind this act of Aziz-ud-Did was that at the time of his accession he was already 55 years old and possessed none of the talents of Aurangzeb.

During the rule of Alamgir II, British gained control of Bengal in 1757, the Marathas encroached from the South and the Sikhs became independent with an amazing rapidity in the Punjab. And finally in 1756, Ahmad Shah Durrani gained control of the North, and the status of Alamgir was reduced to a puppet who was ruling over an empire where anarchy predominated.

Also Read: Mughal Architecture

Last Mughal Rulers: Puppets of the British

According to most of the contemporary modern historians the Mughal rulers who followed Aurangzeb became British or French puppets because the Mughal Empire was unprepared, and some how intruders.

The British, by the middle of the nineteenth century, were controlling the enormous tracts of the Mughal Empire and other states as well. Technically, the British had the status of agents of the Mughal Empire but in reality they had the complete power.

Shah Alam was taken under British ‘protection’ in 1803; although he was the official emperor who ruled from Delhi, he was totally under the command of the British who kept him a prisoner and he had to do what they asked him to do. This arrangement of proxy ruling, under the protection of the British, continued with the succeeding Mughal rulers too until Bahadur Shah II, the last emperor, rather ruler, of the mighty Mughal Empire.

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India and South-East Asia in the Ancient World

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Syskool
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Ancient South-East Asia

In the ancient world India, that was way ahead of other nations in her culture and civilization and that had been the cultural leader of the world had trade relations with many countries especially with the countries of South East Asia.

Indians spread and propagated their religions and civilization in East Asia, Sri Lanka, China, Greece, Babylonia and the West Asian countries. Some adventurous rulers of India established their colonies in South East Asia.

The countries of South-East Asia were rich in minerals and spices. So this region was also called Suvarna Bhumi (the land of God). Indian traders from Bengal, Saurashtra, Kalinga, Tamil Nadu and other places bought the spices and minerals from these countries of South- East Asia and sold these to Rome and other countries in the West at a high profit.

Some adventurous merchants from India married got married in the noble families in the South East Indian countries and therefore, settled there permanently.

Also Read: Ancient India

India and Cambodia

The kingdom of Cambodia was established by a Hindu merchant namely Kundilya who after marrying a princess of the land settled in Cambodia. Not only the princess but also the courtiers and others adopted Hindu religion, customs and maners. Jayaraman I, II, VII, Yashovarman and Suryavarman were brave rulers of this kingdom. All the rulers of this kingdom had Hindu names.

Must Read: Kings in Indian History

India and Java

In 132 AD a Hindu King, named Devavarman, established the kingdom of Java (Yavadvipa). When the Chinese traveler Fa-hien visited Java in 414 AD he founded the Hindu religion flourishing there. According to Fahien, the king and the subjects followed Hindu religion. In the honour of their Gods, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma, they built many temples. Many depicted on the walls of these Javanese temples. It seems that the epic the Mahabharata was also known to them.

However, most of the Javanese, in the 8th century AD, got themselves converted to monasteries among them the Borobudur Stupa is the most famous; these stupas was built by the rulers of Shailendra dynasty. It is the biggest stupa in the world and contains 436 images of the Buddha. It is known as the eighth wonder of the world.

Also Read: The Gandhara Art

India and Sumatra

Sumatra, a Hindu Kingdom, was founded by a Pallava prince Srivijaya. So it was also called Srivijaya. According to I’tsang, the Chinese traveler, from the 5th century to 10th century India became and remained a centre of Indian culture, as well as Buddhist learning.

India and Bali

Bali too was a Hindu colony. It still has the traces of Hindu culture. The people of Bali perform ceremonies related to Hindu religion and culture of their ancestors. They worship Brahma Shiva and Ganesha and epics like the Ramayana are still popular with them. The Balian society too has a caste system.

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India and Sri Lanka

It is believed, though traditionally, that the present inhabitants of Sri Lanka, who are called Sinhalese, have their origin in an old branch of Aryans called Simha (lion) tribe.

Indian Tamilians, during the times of imperial Cholas, had a powerful influence over Sri Lanka. And during Asoka’s reign, India exercised its cultural influence by sending the son and daughter of Asoka the great to spread Buddhism, that continues to be a dominant faith in this part of the world.

Must Read: Buddhism

India and Burma

The Hindus, before the first century AD, had set up their colonies in Burma. In Burma, the people developed the Theraveda form of Buddhism; it was during the times of Asoka that many Buddhist preachers visited Burma with the message of the Buddha.

Later on as Hinduism also spread in some parts of Burma and many Hindu temples were contrasted. Burma was a part of India during the British period till 1935, when it was separated by an Act of the British Parliament.

India and Champa of Anam

With a good deal of Hindu culture in South-East Asia, Champa was, in Indo-China region, a powerful Hindu Kingdom. Here, people worshipped Lord Shiva. They were constantly at war with Kambuja. However, they were able enough to defend themselves against their enemies till they fell finally before the Mongols. Amravati was the capital of Champa, that was a centre of Sanskrit leanings.

Also Read: India -China Relations

India and Afghanistan

There are hundreds of Buddhist monasteries and stupas spread over the length and breadth of Afghanistan. The tallest Buddha statue at Baniyan has been found in Afghanistan. It has been recorded in history that Buddhism continued to be the main religion of the Afghans until it was captured and overpowered by Islam in the 8th century.

India and the Central Asia

From the 1st century Ad, that is the time of Kanishka, Buddhist missionaries began visiting China, Afghanistan and Central Asian countries. After China; Korea, Japan and Tibet too became Buddhist art and architecture.

Must Read: An attempt to revive India’s relation with Central Asia

India and Siyam

Siam, an important part of South-East Asia, now modern Thailand, came under the authority of Indians in about 3rd century AD. Siam’s people were influenced by the art, religion, language and literature of India. Even today, they are mainly Buddhist and have built beautiful monasteries. The stories of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata are very popular in this part of the South-East Asia.

Recent archaeological discoveries have shown that the Hindus that included the civilization to South-East Asia, Central Asia, China, Japan, Indonesia and Indo-China. In The Gobi desert and Khotan the influence and impact of Indianisation has been found to be so complete that it seemed as if a person was moving in an ancient city in Punjab.

It can be, after going through in detail the history of the South-East Asia, it can be surmised that the India influence on these countries has been obtained not by conquest or diplomacy, but by goodwill, love and truth, peace and brotherhood. This heritage of India is her greatest strength.

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Mughal Emperors

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Mughal Emperors

Babur (1526-30)

Babur victory in the first Battle of Panipat made him the Emperor of Delhi and the Founder of Mughal Empire in India. Before his death in December 1530 he defeated Rana Sanga in the Battle of Khanva fought in 1527.

Humayun (1530-40 & 1555-56)

Humayun succeeded his father Babur in 1530. Having been twice defeated by Sher Shah Suri, the Afghan leader, first in the Battle of Chausa and then in the Battle of Kannauj in 1540, Humayun fled away to Persia. After a lapse of 15 years, he restored his lost empire in 1555 with the help of Persian Emperor and died in 1556.

Sher Shah Suri (1540-45 A.D.): He ruled from 1540 to 1545. Grand Trunk Road was built by him. He died in 1545. Mohammed Ali Shah was the last ruler of this dynasty.

AKBAR (1556-1603)

Akbar (1556-1603) succeeded his father Humayun at the young age of 13 years. The emperor being minor, Bairam Khan worked as his regent. Hemu, the leader of Sur Afghans, who had captured Delhi and Agra, immediately after Akbar’s accession, was defeated by the Mughal army in the Second Battle of Panipat in 1556 and was subsequently slain by Bairam Khan. In 1560 he assumed personally the reins of government and dismissed Bairam Khan.

Akbar, by his diplomacy, won over all the Rajput princes except Rana Udai Singh of Mewar whose son Rana Pratap Singh like his father continued to defy the Mughal authority till his death in 1597 despite his defeat in 1567 in Battle of Haldighati. In pursuance of his policy of befriending Hindus, he married Jodhabai, the daughter of Raja BihariMaloi Jaipur who gave birth in 1569 to Salim, Akbar’s only son and heir.

A Sufi saint Salim Shah Chisti is believed to have blessed Akbar with the son In honour of the saint, he shifted his capital from Agra to Fatehpur Sikri where the saint lived. The imperial court remained there from 1570 to 1585. In 1581 he proclaimed a new religion named Din-e-llahi which although represented the good points of all religions, could not succeed. Birbal was the only Hindu who joined it. Akbar died in 1605 at Agra and was buried in a tomb built by the Emperor himself at Sikandra near Agra.

Jahangir (1605-1627)

Akbar’s son Salim succeed his father in 1605 as Jahangir. Guru Arjun of Sikhs who was an accomplice of Prince Khusro who revolted against Jahangir in 1606 was sentenced to death. In May 1611 Jahangir married Mirh-un-nisa, the widow of Sher Afghan, a Persian nobleman of Bengal. She was titled Nur-Jahan.

Shahjahan (1628-1659)

Shahjahan  ascended the throne in 1628 after suppressing his brothers. Three years after his accession, Shahjahan  beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal died. To perpetuate the memory of Mumtaz Mahal, Shahjahan built Taj Mahal at Agra in 1632-53. In 1636 the Emperor appointed his son Aurangzeb as the Viceroy of Deccan. Aurangzeb seized Agra in 1658 and later defeated all his brothers and imprisoned Shahjahan in 1659 who died in 1666 in the captivity of his son.

Aurangzeb (1659-1707)

Aurangzeb was crowned in 1659 as Alamgir. Religiously, he was most intolerant. He imposed Jaziya on non-Muslims. Jaziya was a coercive tax imposed on non-Muslims as a penalty for not embracing Islam.

Sikh revolt: Aurangzeb executed Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of Sikhs in 1675 on his refusing to embrace Islam. His son Guru Govind Singh organised Sikhs in a militant band called Khalsa to avenge the murder of his father. Two of his own sons were put to death. Guru Govind Singh was murdered in 1708 by an Afghan in Deccan.

Relations of Aurangzeb with Marathas: Shivaji, the Maratha leader was another powerful enemy of Aurangzebs. Shivaji, seduced by Rajput ruler Jai Singh, went on the assurance of honourable peace terms to meet the Emperor at Agra in 1665 but was imprisoned. In 1666 Shivaji, however, managed to escape from the prison. In 1674 Shivaji was proclaimed a monarch. He died in 1680. He was succeeded by his son Sambhaji who was captured and executed by Aurangzeb and his son Sahu detained in the Mughal court.

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The Chinese Revolution

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Syskool
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Chinese Revolution

As all human advancement is distinguished by some kind of revolution, that is a fundamental change in an established system, the Chinese Revolution reflects the same characteristic. A social revolution, for instance, establishes a new social order; a political revolution results in a new political system; and a technological revolution caters to us new lifestyles.

People become revolutionaries after many years of suffering under an established system. Upheavals, led by these people, do not regard any existing values and usually becomes violent.

Chinese revolution was not a single event, but a series of upheavals, uprisings and rebellions, mostly leading to violence. To understand the nature of Chinese Revolution it is important here to go through the famous definition of Revolution provided by Mao Zedong under whom CCP (Chinese Communist Party) made the government by formally establishing the People ’s Republic of China. He said, “Revolution is not a dinner party, nor an essay, nor a painting, nor a piece of embroidery; cannot be advanced softly, gradually, carefully, considerately, respectfully, politely and modestly. A revolution is an insurrection, an act of violence by which one class overthrows another.”

Also Read: India and South-East Asia in the Ancient World

Events leading to the Chinese Revolution

A series of political upheavals took place in China, between 1911 and 1949, that consequentially led to the Chinese Revolution. First, in 1911 the imperial dynasty ruling over China at that time was overthrown.

The Chinese revolution of 1911, a nationalist revolt, was led by two men, Dr. Sun Yat Sen and General Chiang-kai-Shek. There were ten attempts in all at Chinese revolution mostly in the southwest provinces.The revolution in fact started with the rebellion in Szechwan.

The imperial government took over the railways and the students took to streets on 24 August 1911, demanding a delay in takeover . A violent conflict between troops and the protesters broke out in which thirty two people were killed.

The revolution of 1911, as an ingredient to the Chinese Revolution, was unusual because it was initiated by the conservative and wealthy gentry, and not by the poor. The leaders of the uprising did not want to dislodge the imperial government; they rather wanted their financial concerns fulfilled. When they realized that the imperial government was not ready to even negotiate with them, they rebelled.

It was from the very beginning the desire of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen, who later was honoured by getting the most prestigious designation, a leader of a Chinese revolution gets, of the founding father of the Republic of China, to overthrow the Manchu dynasty. After ten unsuccessful attempts he finally emerged successful in 1912 when Emperor Pu Yi was dethroned.

Sun Yat Sen, who believed in strong ideals, joined hands with general Chiang Kai-Shek, a military leader, and formed a new party namely the Nationalist Party which in 1913 won a majority of seats in the national Assembly.

After the death of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen in 1925, Chiang Kai-Shek took the charge and became commander in chief of the new Nationalist Army and led the Chinese National Party, that was also called Kuomintang, for almost five decades. He functioned as the head of State of the Chinese Nationalist Government between 1928 and 1949.

Chiang Kai-Shek led an expedition known in history as the Northern Expedition that resulted in the reunification of most of China under a National Government based in Nanjing. Although, Kai-Shek presided over a modest programme of reform in China, almost all resources of the government were employed on fighting internal opononents, including the Communist.

Must Read: National Movement of India: 1905 to 1920

Kuomintang Party or National People’s Party

It was established in 1912 by Sun Yat-Sen. In 1913 when the party got suppressed, Sun Yat-Sen and his military commander, Chiang Kai-Shek, eloped to Japan. With the assistance Soviet Union’s advisers the Kuomintang gradually enhanced its power in China. Chiang Kai-Shek became head of the Kuomintang, the party got engaged in a bitter civil war with the communists.

Warlord Period

The period from 1916 to 1930 s is famously known as the Warlord Period in the history of the republic of China. It was a period when the country was divided among military rulers. The Warlord Era, true to its name, was characterized by constant warfare, dragged China into an interminable economic and political instability. The Warlords maintained total control over their regions by their personalaemies. Although they dominated Chinese politics during the early years of the Republic of China, their rule ended rather abruptly of 1928.

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May 4th Movement of 1919

In the modern Chinese history, this movement as a part of the Chinese Revolution, deserves special mention because it was the first mass movement. It began as a patriotic eruption against foreign imperialists and warlords. On 4th May 1919, about 5,000 University students protested the Versailler Agreement that awarded the former German leasehold of Jiaozhou to Japan.

The Chinese Civil War

From 1927-1949 the Chinese Civil War continued between the Communist and the Nationalists. Communists wanted to make China like Soviet Union, for which they had the support of many poor people, and the Nationalists wanted to make China like the United States of America in which they had got the support of not only USA and UK but  also the support of the richer people and the Chinese who lived in Urban areas. The Communists were led Mao Zedong and the leader of the nationalists  was Chiang-Kai-Shek.

Also Read: Causes of World War 2

People’s Republic of China Established

The People’s Republic of China was formally established on 1 October, 1949 with its national capital at Beijing. The creation of a people’s democratic dictatorship, to be led by the CCP (Chinese Communist Part), was announced by Mao Zedong.

The Cultural Revolution and its background

The Cultural Revolution, the parallel revolution of the Chinese Revolution, was in fact a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China. It transformed into a widespread social, political and economic violence. A large section of society fell into chaos that eventually dragged the entire country to the brink of Civil War.

The political changes after the communist takeover in 1949 resulted in sweeping social changes. In the process of the consolidation of the power and authority of the Communists, the houses of the former ruling classes were confiscated, and any items that did not comply to Mao’s values were destroyed.

In 1957, Mao Zedong proposed an increase in the industrial growth and to accomplish it he began the ‘great leap forward’ by setting up special communes, that were units of administration, in the countryside. These communes used collective labour and mass mobilization of peasants to enhance the production of steel and to increase agricultural production. However this did not work and the ‘great leap forward’ failed.

The Cultural Revolution, proving to be an offshoot of Chinese Revolution, of all other things, was a method to regain control of the party after the disastrous ‘great leap forward’ that led to a significant loss of Mao’s power to his rival Liu Shaoqi.

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