Life Under the Guomindang

What was life like under the GMD?

Most Chinese citizens lived under the control of the GMD for nearly 30 years. Chiang Kai-shek ruled China for most of that period.

When was Chiang Kai-shek in power in Nationalist China?

There were 2 main periods of rule under Chiang Kai-shek:

• ❖ Chiang Kai-shek first ruled China from 1928 until 1937. This period was known as the Nanjing decade.
• ❖ Chiang Kai-shek also ruled China during the period of war that engulfed the country from 1937 to 1949. This included the Second Sino-Japanese War, which became the Second World War in 1941, through to the conclusion of the Chinese Civil War in 1949.

What were Chiang Kai-shek's political ideas under the GMD?

Chiang Kai-shek adopted 6 important political strategies to rule China from 1928 until 1949:

• ❖ In 1934 Chiang Kai-shek began the New Life Movement. This encouraged obedience to the government and those above you and was based on 'old Chinese' Confucian traditions.
• ❖ From the early 1930s, Chiang Kai-shek used repression, intimidation and censorship to destroy opposition voices.
• ❖ Chiang Kai-shek's government was a single-party state held together by a military dictatorship. In many ways, it was similar to Mussolini's Italy.
• ❖ Chiang Kai-shek was influenced by fascism and set up a paramilitary force called the Blueshirts. They were supported by the wealthy and used against opponents.
• ❖ The GMD army was filled with forced conscripts who were controlled by wealthy and corrupt officers.
• ❖ Brutal public executions of communists were carried out on the streets of major cities to spread fear among those thinking of supporting the CCP.

How were the peasants treated under Chiang Kai-shek in Nationalist China?

For the peasants, life under Chiang Kai-shek was difficult for the following 5 reasons:

• ❖ The majority of Chinese citizens were peasants, so were forced into the GMD military in large numbers. This was widely resented.
• ❖ The peasants felt little connection to the GMD. The organisation had no representation in China's towns and villages to encourage their loyalty.
• ❖ Famine was a common problem in China and the GMD did little to stop millions from starving between 1929 and 1931, or again in 1941.
• ❖ Taxation fell heaviest on the peasants as landlords and wealthy landowners often bribed officials to avoid paying tax.
• ❖ Tenant farmers had to pay up to 50% of their crop to their landlords. Chiang Kai-shek did nothing to resolve this situation.

How were the wealthy treated under Chiang Kai-shek in Nationalist China?

For the wealthy, life under Chiang Kai-shek was beneficial for the following 4 reasons:

• ❖ The GMD recruited many wealthy people, while many others helped fund the organisation for their own benefit.
• ❖ There was no reform of bribery and corruption, allowing those with influence to use the GMD for their own gain.
• ❖ A small number of families associated with Chiang Kai-shek and his wife dominated industry, banking and commerce. They became incredibly wealthy as a result.
• ❖ Former warlords and other wealthy people were given political posts, government positions or command of the National Revolutionary Army as bribes, rather than because of their skills or experience.

How did China change under Chiang Kai-shek's leadership in Nationalist China?

During the period of Chiang Kai-shek's rule the following 8 changes took place:

• ❖ A new, modern currency called the yuan was introduced.
• ❖ By negotiating with the foreign powers in China, Chiang Kai-shek claimed back the right to collect customs duties and some territories held by Britain.
• ❖ The banking system was modernised.
• ❖ A school building programme helped to extend education across China.
• ❖ The railway network grew from 13,000km to 21,000km during the Nanjing decade.
• ❖ The road network was expanded to over 115,703 kms by 1937.
• ❖ Airports and modern aircraft meant China was better connected.
• ❖ After the Japanese invasion of 1937, the capital moved to Chongqing, where there were many intellectuals and experts.

What problems were there under Chiang Kai-shek's rule in Nationalist China?

During the period of Chiang Kai-shek's rule the following 10 problems emerged:

• ❖ The GMD lost its support from the middle classes when Japan occupied many of China's major cities, so had to rely more on the wealthy.
• ❖ The war caused hyperinflation; by 1942, inflation was rising by 300% per year.
• ❖ Corruption was widespread. The finance minister manipulated the currency for his own benefit.
• ❖ After 1945, a kilogram of rice cost half a million Chinese dollars and there were increasing examples of food riots in GMD-controlled cities.
• ❖ Chiang Kai-shek's allies did not trust him, especially the USA. He often avoided fighting the Japanese because he could not trust many of his commanders to fight.
• ❖ The CCP provided a much better alternative government in the areas it liberated. It introduced land reform, fair taxation and some level of democracy, as well as ending corruption.
• ❖ It was clear even to the Americans that the GMD was losing control. From 1945, America had sent over 200 million dollars in aid, but this was stopped in 1947.
• ❖ Reliance on support and money from the wealthy bankers, landowners and merchants made the GMD more repressive and reactionary against any reform in China.
• ❖ The GMD only really had strong support in some cities in the east of China. The masses of people in the countryside never supported it.
• ❖ The New Life Movement did nothing to improve the lives of people, for example by increasing access to medicine, acting to eradicate poverty or abolishing old ideas such as foot-binding.