The inefficiency and corruption amongst GMD officials were not helped by the GMD having a big army as it meant more problems and more responsibility, which consequently led to rival fractions within their own army. There opposition groups opposed such as the Guomindang Revolutionary Alliance and the Democratic League, not to mention desertions of troops and army generals, and that between the years of 1945-1949 800000 GMD troops changed sides to become communists, this helped Mao secure and rise power, it showed the people of China that Chiang Kai-shek was having problems controlling his own troops, therefore many people began to question what hope is there for him running the country? This also showed that Mao had better leadership skills following the Long March. Furthermore by 1945 the GMD were politically weak and had failed to prove themselves worthy of running and controlling China despite the 10 years that had in government. Consequently it showed the Chinese that maybe changed a change was needed, and it began to look as if Mao was that change.
In contrast the advantages of the CCP played a role in Mao’s rise to power, fro instance the pro peasant policies that included the CCP’s Land Reform Policy paid attention to the needs of the peasants who made up a large percentage of the population, and showed that Mao was a man of the people, and that he had forgotten his background and his peasant upbringing. In addition the CCP had created effective political structures and administration where the GMD’s was corrupt, therefore made Mao and the Communists more appealing to the people of China, than Chiang Kai-shek and the GMD. Additionally Chiang Kai-shek and the GMD were increasingly beginning to be seen as being out of touch with the fundamental needs of China, as the peasants were willing to rebel against a government it didn’t trust and didn’t have their interests at heart.
It has been argued that the GMD had been finally finished off by the economy, and as a result led to Mao’s rise to power as by 1937 prices began to rise out of control. 65% of the budget was met by the currency expansion that had been introduced and only 10% was met by taxes. To help overcome this problem Chiang borrowed money and printed more paper money that led to hyperinflation. So consequently there was a drastic fall in the value of the Chinese currency and as a result Chiang Kai-shek became increasingly dependent on foreign aid (US), which helped bring about Mao and the communist’s victory, and was one of the reasons of why Mao rose to power.
Furthermore the war against Japan (1937) played a part in the downfall of the GMD, and Mao’s rise of power. In 1938 Japan controlled most of the northern Chinese railways, and the GMD weren’t seen to be doing anything or very little in the fight against the Japanese, and the people of Chiang felt betrayed, as it seemed to them that Chiang Kai-shek and the GMD had just let the Japanese walk into china and take control of parts of it. Therefore it was Mao and the CCP that launched a more effective resistance against the Japanese as oppose to the GMD. The GMD were regarded as a nationalist forced which had refused to accept the humiliation of the Japanese and simply didn’t launch as successful resistance as the communist did, as they were more interested in fighting the CCP than the Japanese, even after the invasion of Manchuria.
The Japanese War certainly strengthened the communist position, therefore Mao’s in China, so when the Japanese surrendered the membership of the Communists was 1.2 million and was estimated to have 900000 soldiers under communist command. They controlled 19 base areas with a combined population of 90 million. However, the Communist lacked heavy military equipment, no air power, but their strength lay essentially in the north of Yangtze, and helped Mao rise to power.
The women of women helped in Mao’s rise to power, as women benefited from the new marriage law issued in 1950, which declared equal rights to women, and that arranged marriages were forbidden as were dowries and concubinage and that women could hold property in their own name just like men regardless if they were unmarried, divorced or a window. Children born out of wedlock had equal rights and divorce was available on equal terms. The only exceptions that men couldn’t divorce his pregnant wife, nor a year after she had given birth. Such changes were a social revolution that challenged many of China’s traditional family and village life, thus modernising China, not only in the economic way but a social way too, therefore showed the people of China that Mao led the path to the future, a new age of China. This links in with Mao’s ideology which helped his rise to power which led to the formation of the People’s Republic of China.
To conclude the weakness of the GMD and Chiang Kai-shek within not only there economy but their association with bribery and making deals with warlords and overall corruption made it easier for the communists to appeal to people of China. The events in the Chinese Civil War such as the USSR raking control of Manchuria that had been previously controlled by the Japanese, gave the communists an advantage as the USSR gave the CCP Japanese weapons, which aided them in their fighting with the GMD. And the use of guerrilla war tactics against the numerous GMD showed the people of China, the communist’s determination and courage, as well as intelligence, which Chiang Kai-shek was not showing especially during the Japanese War. Mao’s cult of personality that had been formed after the legendary Long March, and helped by his being a man of the people, and peasant upbringing helped associate himself with the majority of the population who were also peasants and lastly his ideology of Land Reforms and such that were geared into helping peasants are factors of Mao Zedong’s rise to power.
