The Extermination Campaigns

What were the Extermination Campaigns?

The Extermination Campaigns were a series of attacks on the communists to try and destroy them completely.

When were the Extermination Campaigns?

They took place between October 1930 and October 1934.

Who led the Extermination Campaigns?

The campaigns were led by Chiang Kai-shek and the National Revolutionary Army (NRA).

What were the main Extermination Campaigns?

There were 4 key events:

• ❖ October 1930: 44,000 NRA troops attacked communists in Jiangxi. The attack failed due to the communists using guerrilla warfare tactics.
• ❖ July 1931: 100,000 NRA troops attacked the communists, but the nationalist soldiers' caution allowed the communists to escape.
• ❖ Autumn 1933: The final campaign was launched. Using a scorched earth policy, the GMD forced the communists to fight. By October, the communists were heavily defeated and forced to retreat.
• ❖ A number of other campaigns took place, but these often failed due to lack of support from the peasants. They viewed the GMD as violent aggressors, and were themselves victims of brutality by Chiang's men.

What were the results of the Extermination Campaigns?

There were 4 main outcomes from the Extermination Campaigns:

• ❖ Over 500,000 peasants were killed by the GMD.
• ❖ The communists lost over 60,000 soldiers.
• ❖ The communists lost control of the Jiangxi Soviet and were forced to flee, which forced them to seek a new base area.
• ❖ Some would argue this was the first battle of the civil war between the GMD and CCP, following the Shanghai Massacres.