Chinese Civil War

:See Taiping Rebellion for the Chinese Civil War of 1851 to 1864 that killed 20 to 50 million people

Final stage of fighting (1946–1949)

With the breakdown of peace talks, an all out war resumed. To the Communists, this stage was called the War of Liberation (????). While the Soviet Union provided limited aid to the Communists, the United States assisted the Nationalists with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of now surplus military supplies and generous loans of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of military equipment.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Belatedly, the Nationalist government sought to enlist popular support through internal reforms. The effort was in vain, however, because of the rampant corruption in government and the accompanying political and economic chaos including massive hyperinflation. By late 1948 the Nationalist position was bleak. The demoralized and undisciplined Nationalist troops proved no match for the communist People's Liberation Army. The Communists were well established in the north and northeast. Although the Nationalists had an advantage in numbers of men and weapons, controlled a much larger territory and population than their adversaries, and enjoyed considerable international support, they were exhausted by the long war with Japan and the attendant internal responsibilities.

Related Topics:
Hyperinflation - 1948 - People's Liberation Army

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

After numerous operational set-backs in Manchuria, especially in attempting to take the major cities, the Communists were ultimately able to seize the region and then focus on the war south of the Great Wall. In January 1949 Peiping was taken by the Communists without a fight, and its name was changed back to Beijing. Between April and November, major cities passed from Nationalist to Communist control with minimal resistance. In most cases the surrounding countryside and small towns had come under Communist influence long before the cities.

Related Topics:
1949 - Peiping

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Ultimately, the Communist Party was victorious. On October 1, 1949 Mao Zedong proclaimed the People's Republic of China. Chiang Kai-shek and 600,000 Nationalist troops and 2,000,000 refugees, predominantly from the government and business community, fled from the mainland to the island of Taiwan, and there remained only isolated pockets of resistance. In December 1949 Chiang proclaimed Taipei, Taiwan, the temporary capital of the Republic of China and continued to assert his government as the sole legitimate authority in China.

Related Topics:
October 1 - 1949 - Mao Zedong - People's Republic of China - Mainland - Taiwan - December - Taipei - Republic of China

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~