In this podcast, Matthew Rothwell, author of Transpacific Revolutionaries: The Chinese Revolution in Latin America, explores the global history of ideas related to rebellion and revolution. The main focus of this podcast for the near future will be on the history of the Chinese Revolution, going all the way back to its roots in the initial Chinese reactions to British imperialism during the Opium War of 1839-1842, and then following the development of the revolution and many of the ideas tha ...
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“On the Problem of Party Organization” (The Gutian Resolution—Part Three)
25:46
25:46
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25:46Mao discusses problems in party organization and how to fix them. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 “On the Revolutionary “Three-in-One” Combination” Epis…
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“The Problem of Correcting Erroneous and Nonproletarian Ideological Tendencies in the Party” (The Gutian Resolution—Part Two)
31:43
31:43
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31:43We continue our textual analysis of the Gutian Resolution. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Mao Zedong, “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” “Bury…
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The Gutian Resolution (End of 1929) (Part One)
25:53
25:53
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25:53On the importance of the Resolution, and a beginning discussion of the actual text. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Mao Zedong, “On Correcting Mistaken …
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Two Letters and “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” (November to December 1929)
30:22
30:22
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30:22We look at two letters written by Mao on November 28, 1929, and introduce our discussion of “On Correcting Mistaken Ideas in the Party” and the other parts of the Gutian Resolution. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the …
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The Battle for Shanghang (mid-September 1929)
20:00
20:00
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20:00The Communists take the fortified city of Shanghang in southwestern Fujian. Further reading and watching: Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] The Battle for Dien Bien Phu Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan t…
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The Politburo in Shanghai Discusses the Line Struggle in the Red Army and Issues the September Instruction
21:54
21:54
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21:54The Central Committee turns out to support centralized leadership. Also, the Comintern publishes Mao’s obituary. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Joseph …
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Mao gets Kicked from Party Leadership, and Organizes a Land Reform in Western Fujian
24:15
24:15
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24:15The line struggle continues and does not go Mao’s way. Plus, comments on the historiography. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Le…
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We continue our close reading of Mao’s letter to Lin Biao. In this episode, Mao discusses the roving rebel band mentality and the organizational state of affairs in the army, party, and mass organizations. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From …
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The Line Struggle Between Mao Zedong and Zhu De (May to June 1929)
36:22
36:22
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36:22The Party Center’s intervention in the Fourth Red Army combines with a string of military victories to bring a simmering dispute between Mao and Zhu to a head. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the J…
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The Red Army Victorious: The Conquest of Several Counties in Jiangxi and Fujian in the Spring of 1929
29:46
29:46
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29:46The conquest of Yudu, Xingguo, Ningdu, Longyan, and Yongding counties by the Fourth Red Army. Zhu De reminisces. Also, poetry. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-Decembe…
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Mao Tells Zhou Enlai about Guerrilla Warfare
24:14
24:14
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24:14Mao’s April 5, 1929 reply to Zhou Enlai. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 David Apter and Tony Saich, Revolutionary Discourse in Mao’s Republic Tony Saic…
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The Party Center Attempts to Assert Control over the Red Army and Orders Mao and Zhu to Report to Shanghai
22:24
22:24
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22:24A close look at Zhou Enlai’s February 7, 1929, letter to Mao Zedong and Zhu De. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 E. H. Carr, Foundations of a Planned Eco…
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Mao’s March 20 Letter to the Central Committee, and the 5th Red Army’s Retreat from the Jinggangshan (January to April 1929)
25:08
25:08
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25:08Mao plans to expand guerrilla warfare, and meets up with Peng Dehuai in Ruijin. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Stephen Averill, Revolution in the Highl…
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On the Experience of the National Bourgeoisie in the New Democratic Revolution
26:43
26:43
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26:43Some reflections on the experience of Shanghai capitalists after 1949 prompted by the ‘Notice to Merchants and Intellectuals’ that Mao issued after taking Changting in 1929. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Yao Wenyuan, “On th…
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A New Communist Order in Changting (March 1929)
34:07
34:07
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34:07Looking at what Mao and Zhu De did to install a new Communist order after conquering Changting. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of…
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Leaving Donggu, Taking Changting (February to March 1929)
22:50
22:50
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22:50How the Fourth Red Army spent their time in Donggu, and how they took the first city in the new base area in the Jiangxi-Fujian border region. Further reading: Pang Xianzhi and Jin Chongji, Mao Zedong: A Biography, vol. 1: 1893-1949 Agnes Smedley, The Great Road: The Life and Times of Chu Teh [Zhu De] Joseph Fewsmith, Forging Leninism in China: Mao…
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From Dabodi to Donggu: The Retreat from the Jinggangshan Continues (February 1929)
20:48
20:48
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20:48The Mao-Zhu Army raises funds in Ningdu and moves on to the Donggu base area for rest and recovery. Background on Donggu. Link to map of Jiangxi province: https://www.chinamaps.org/china/provincemaps/jiangxi-province-map.html Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi …
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Running for Their Lives: The Retreat from the Jinggangshan (January to February 1929)
22:00
22:00
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22:00Mao and the Fourth Red Army break the encirclement of the Jinggangshan and retreat across southern Jiangxi with the Guomindang in hot pursuit. Link to map of Jiangxi province: https://www.chinamaps.org/china/provincemaps/jiangxi-province-map.html Further reading/watching on the difficulties of finding good maps of China: https://en.wikipedia.org/wi…
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Frameworks for Thinking about Tragic Historical Shortcomings of the Socialist Experience
28:28
28:28
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28:28Answering a listener question on the Great Leap Forward famine. Further reading: Mobo Gao, The Battle for China’s Past United Nations, “Losing 25,000 to Hunger Every Day” Minhaz Merchant, “Churchill’s Bengal Famine” Karl Marx, Capital Mike Davis, Late Victorian Holocausts Frederick Engels, The Condition of the Working Class in England Support the s…
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We wrap up our discussion of the Sixth Congress with a discussion of the political line coming out of the congress, and some related issues. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chine…
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Clashing Communists and Comintern Guidance: The 6th Congress Gets off to a Rocky Start
21:22
21:22
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21:22Qu Qiubai’s report and proposal are disputed, and the Comintern intervenes to restore order. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Daniel Kwan, Marxist Intellectuals and the Chinese Labor Movement: A Study of Deng Zhongxia, 189…
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Bukharin on the Nature of the Chinese Revolution in 1928
38:08
38:08
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38:08Our third (and last) close look at Bukharin’s speech at the 6th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, held in Moscow in the summer of 1928. Further reading: Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party” Lenin, “Speech at the First All-Russia Congress of Working Women” Some names from this episode…
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Bukharin on the Theory of the Productive Forces (and Mao’s counterpoint on New Democratic Revolution)
24:51
24:51
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24:51Bukharin articulates a vision of the Chinese Revolution at the 6th Party Congress which is highly colored by the non-revolutionary Marxism of the 2nd International. Further reading: Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party” Andre Gunder Frank, World Accumulation, 1492–1789 Immanuel Wallerstein, …
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The ‘Third Period’ of the World Revolution: Bukharin’s Speech at the Sixth Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (June 1928)
25:18
25:18
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25:18Nikolai Bukharin kicks off the party congress with a very long speech. Further reading: Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) E. H. Carr, Foundations of a Planned Economy, vol. 3 Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks o…
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Preparations for the Sixth Party Congress (April to May 1928)
21:43
21:43
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21:43The decision to hold the Sixth Party Congress in Moscow, and some of the political debate inside the Communist Party of China leading up to that Congress. Further reading: Stuart Schram, ed., Mao’s Road to Power, vol. 3: From the Jinggangshan to the Establishment of the Jiangxi Soviets, July 1927-December 1930 Tony Saich, The Rise to Power of the C…
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