The Chinese claim a history of
5000 years. The first dynasty, the Xia, is yet to be
archaeologically verified but is accepted as lasting from 2200 to
1700 BC, and is described in legends as having been preceded by a
succession of god-like sovereigns who bestowed the gifts of life,
hunting and agricultural knowledge. The existence of ensuing
dynasties is similarly hazy, but clarity increases with each era,
revealing agricultural societies who practised ancestor worship.
The Zhou period (1100-221 BC) saw the emergence of Confucianism and
the establishment of the 'mandate of heaven' whereby the right to
rule was given to the just and denied to the evil and corrupt,
leading to the later Taoist view that heaven's disapproval was
expressed through natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods and
insect plagues.
The Chinese were united for the first time during the Qin dynasty
(221-207 BC). The dynasty standardised the writing system and
completed construction of the Great Wall. The ensuing Han dynasty
(206 BC-AD 220) featured much military conflict and the creation of
the Three Kingdoms. Curiously, these war-torn centuries also saw the
flowering of Buddhism and the arts.
Unity arose out of the chaos under the Sui dynasty (581-618) and was
consolidated under the Tang (618-907), commonly regarded as the most
glorious period of Chinese history. Military conquests
re-established Chinese control of the silk routes and society was 'internationalised'
to an unprecedented degree. Buddhism flourished under the Tang,
splitting into two distinct schools: the Chan (Zen) and Pure Land
(Chinese Buddhist).
The Song dynasty (960-1279) was marked by a revival of Confucianism
and urban and commercial revolutions - it was during the 13th
century that Marco Polo commented on the grand scale of China's
prosperous cities. Genghis's grandson Kublai Khan's Yuan dynasty
(1206-1368) established a capital at what is now Beijing and
militarised the nation's administration. The novice Buddhist Hongwu
established the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), with capitals at Beijing
and Nanjing.
The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive in China,
anchoring off the coast in 1516. A trade mission was established in
Macau by 1557, but it was not until 1760 that other powers gained
secure access to Chinese markets via a base in Guangzhou. Trade
flourished, but in China's favour, as British purchases of silk and
tea far outweighed Chinese purchases of wool and spices. In 1773 the
British decided to balance the books by encouraging the sale of
opium. By 1840 the Opium Wars were on.
The resulting treaties signed in British favour led to the cession
of Hong Kong and the signing of the humiliating Treaty of Nanking. A
subsequent land-grabbing spree by Western powers saw China carved up
into spheres of influence. The Chinese agreed to the US-proposed
free-trade Open Door Policy and all of China's colonial possessions
soon evaporated, with Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia falling to the
French, Burma to the British, and Korea and Taiwan to Japan.
The first half of the 20th century was a period of utter chaos.
Intellectuals searched for a new philosophy to replace Confucianism,
while warlords attempted to grab imperial power. Sun Yatsen's
Kuomintang (KMT, or Nationalist Party) established a base in
southern China and began training a National Revolutionary Army
(NRA). Meanwhile, talks between the Soviet Comintern and prominent
Chinese Marxists resulted in the formation of the Chinese Communist
Party (CCP) in 1921. Hopes of the CCP aligning with the KMT were
dashed by Sun Yatsen's death and the rise from the KMT of Chiang
Kaishek in Beijing, who favoured a capitalist state supported by a
military dictatorship.
The communists were split between those who focused on urban revolt
and those who believed victory lay in uniting the countryside. Mao
Zedong established his forces in the mountains of Jinggang Shan, and
by 1930 had marshalled a guerrilla army of 40,000. Chiang mounted
four Communists extermination campaigns, each time resulting in
communist victories. Chiang's fifth campaign was very nearly
successful because the communists ill-advisedly met the KMT head-on
in battle. Hemmed in, the communists retreated from Jiagnxi north to
Shaanxi - the Long March of 1934. En route the communists armed
peasants and redistributed land, and Mao was recognized as the CCP's
paramount leader.
In 1931 the Japanese had taken advantage of the chaos in China to
invade Manchuria. Chiang Kaishek did little to halt the Japanese,
who by 1939 had overrun most of eastern China. After WWII, China was
in the grip of civil war. On 1 October 1949 Mao Zedong proclaimed
the foundation of the People's Republic of China (PRC), while Chiang
Kaishek fled to Taiwan. The USA continued to recognise Chiang as the
legitimate ruler of China.
The PRC began its days as a bankrupt nation, but the 1950s ushered
in an era of great confidence. The people were bonded by the Korean
War, and by 1953 inflation had been halted, industrial production
was restored to prewar levels, the redistribution of land had been
carried out and the first Five Year Plan had been launched. The most
tragic consequence of the Party's dominance was the 'liberation' of
Tibet in 1950. Beijing oversaw the enforced exile of the Tibetan
spiritual leader and initiated the genocide of a precious culture.
Today, the destruction is by no means over.
The next plan was the Great Leap Forward, aimed at jump-starting the
economy into first-world standards. Despite oodles of revolutionary
zeal, the plan was stalled by inefficient management, coupled with
floods, droughts and, in 1960, the withdrawal of all Soviet aid. The
Cultural Revolution (1966-70) attempted to draw attention away from
these disasters by increasing Mao's personal presence via his Little
Red Book of quotations, the purging of opponents and the launch of
the Red Guard. Universities were closed, intellectuals were killed,
temples were ransacked and reminders of China's capitalist past were
destroyed.
Beijing politics were divided between moderates Zhou Enlai and Deng
Xiaoping and radicals and Maoists led by Mao's wife, Jiang Qing. The
radicals gained the upper hand when Zhou died in 1976. Hua Guofeng,
Mao's chosen successor, became acting premier. Public anger at Jiang
Qing and her clique culminated in a gathering of protesters in
Tiananmen Square, and a brutal crackdown led to the disappearance of
Deng, who was blamed for the 'counter-revolutionary' gathering. Deng
returned to public life in 1977, eventually forming a six-member
Standing Committee of the CCP.
With Deng at the helm, and the signing of the 1984 Sino-British
Joint Declaration, China set a course towards economic
reconstruction, although political reform was almost nil. General
dissatisfaction with the Party, soaring inflation and increased
demands for democracy led to widespread social unrest, typified by
the demonstrations of 1989 that resulted in the bloody Tiananmen
Square massacre.
With the handover of Hong Kong and Macau, China's 'one country, two
systems' plan shifted up a gear. Jiang Zemin's leadership charted a
new course based on economic growth; overseeing the admission of
China into the World Trade Organisation and guiding Beijing to
success in the 2008 Olympics bid. His successor, Hu Jintao is set to
follow the path of economic modernisation more aggressively still.
Continued civil rights abuses, official corruption and the stagnant
rural economy are the sharpest thorns in the country's side, but
membership of the World Trade Organisation is a great leap forward -
though probably not one Chairman Mao would have envisaged.
The biggest barrier to the 'One China' model is the tiny rogue
island of Taiwan, which has agreed in principle to the model but
paradoxically interprets it in its idiosyncratic, Taiwanese way.
China has retorted with rhetoric about 'brothers and sisters' and,
just to prove that all families have their problems, have backed it
up with a show of military muscle. It's the equivalent of a Chinese
burn administered by an older and stronger brother. |
Western
China
