Communist China

A group of young Chinese formed the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1921. During the late 1920s and the 1930s, Mao Zedong emerged as the leader of the Chinese Communists. Mao believed that the Communist would succeed in China only by winning the support of the peasants. He insisted that Communist forces treat peasants fairly and politely. Unlike other Chinese armies, the Communist paid the peasants for the food their forces required. With the support of the peasants, Mao’s army grew in numbers.

Once in power, the Chinese Communists wrote a new constitution. On paper, it set up a National People’s Congress, permitted free elections, and protected other democratic rights. In practice, China became a one-party dictatorship. Communist party members held all the important jobs and controlled the government and the economy. Supported by the army, the Communists silenced critics and enforced their own views. As head of the Chinese Communist party, Mao Zedong became chairman of the People’s Republic of China.