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While the foreign community in Canton grew in influence, the local government began to suffer from civil discord inside China. The White Lotus Rebellion (1796–1804) drained the Qing dynasty's treasury of silver, forcing the government to levy increasingly heavy taxes on merchants.
The resulting widespread addiction in China was causing serious social and economic disruption there. In spring 1839 the Chinese government confiscated and destroyed more than 20,000 chests of opium—some 1,400 tons of the drug—that were warehoused at Canton ( Guangzhou) by British merchants.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
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Nov 10, 2021 · The paper found that though 90% of people in Guangzhou were bilingual, speaking Mandarin and Cantonese — the former overwhelmingly dominant as the medium of instruction in schools. Like Xiao Min, a fourth grader, who grew up in Guangzhou primarily speaking Mandarin. Of the 30-odd students in her class, only a few spoke Cantonese.
Apr 22, 2024 · Is Discord banned in China? Yes, Discord is banned in China. It is blocked by China’s Great Firewall, the system that controls and filters internet access in the country. Why did China block Discord? There are rumors that Discord was blocked in China because Guo Wengui, an exile and suspect in corruption, was using the platform to broadcast ...
- Overview
- Nationalist collapse and the establishment of the People’s Republic of China (1949)
The two-decade struggle for China between the Nationalists and the Communists reached its conclusion in 1949. The year began with a Nationalist appeal to the “Big Four” (the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union) to mediate a settlement with the Communists. The United States, which had for so long supported the Nationalist cause, immediately replied that such an effort would not serve any useful purpose. On January 14 Mao declared his willingness to negotiate on the following terms: (1) punishment of “war criminals,” (2) abrogation of the 1946 constitution, (3) abolition of the existing form of government, (4) reorganization of Nationalist armies, (5) confiscation of “bureaucratic” capital from Nationalist Party elites and functionaries, (6) land reform, (7) abrogation of “treasonous” treaties, and (8) establishment of a democratic coalition government without the participation of “reactionary” (Nationalist) elements. Meanwhile, the Communist advance continued, and Tientsin (Tianjin) fell on January 15, 1949. Chiang announced his resignation as president of China on January 21, and Nationalist leadership passed to Gen. Li Tsung-jen (Li Zongren). On January 22, Li accepted Mao’s eight conditions as a basis for peace negotiations, and Nationalist forces began their withdrawal from Peking (Beijing). With the fall of Peking, the Communist drive on the Nationalist capital of Nanking could begin in earnest.
Following a meeting with a preliminary peace delegation from Nanking, Mao, now in Peking, agreed on February 9 to call an official peace conference within a month. On February 20 Li flew to Canton (Guangzhou), the newly designated Nationalist capital, in an effort to rally the various Nationalist contingents behind his peace efforts. Premier Ho Ying-chin (He Yingqin) designated Gen. Chang Chih-Chung (Zhang Zhizhong) as head of the Nationalist peace delegation, while the Communists selected Zhou Enlai to head their mission. Talks were scheduled to begin on April 1 in Peking, a timetable that gave the Communists sufficient time to regroup their forces along the Yangtze and near Nanking. From April 2 to April 12 the delegates exchanged views informally over three fundamental Communist demands: (1) Communist armies must be allowed to cross the Yangtze to help reorganize Nationalist troops; (2) an interim government with Mao as chairman and Li as one of the vice-chairmen must be established; (3) the Chiang, Soong, Kung, and Chen families must be punished. Formal negotiations opened on April 13, and within three days Mao’s peace program had expanded to 24 items, with the crossing of the Yangtze by Communist armies and the elimination of the national government as the key issues. On April 17 the Communists gave the Nationalists three days to respond. Li’s government formally rejected Mao’s peace draft on April 19, and within hours the Communists had launched an all-out offensive. The fall of Nanking on April 24 marked the beginning of the disintegration of the Nationalist government.
In rapid succession, the Communists captured Hankow (Hankou) on May 17, Tsingtao (Qingdao) on May 25, and Shanghai on June 2. To consolidate Nationalist forces, a supreme council was created at Canton with Chiang Kai-shek as chairman, Li Tsung-jen as deputy, and Yen Hsi-shan (Yan Xishan) as premier. In July the Communists launched offensives into South China and the northwest. The vital commercial center of Changsha fell on August 5, the port of Foochow (Fuzhou) on August 17, and the northwestern fortress city of Lanchow (Lanzhou) on August 28.
It was clear that the end was rapidly approaching for the Nationalist cause on the mainland. From his capital at Peking, Mao proclaimed the establishment of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. Within days the Soviet Union and the communist bloc recognized it as the legitimate government of China, and by year’s end several other countries had followed suit. On October 10 the Nationalist government officially informed foreign diplomats that it was relocating its capital again, this time to Chungking (Chongqing). The Communists took Canton on October 15 and Amoy (Xiamen) on October 17. By this time, the Communists had penetrated the southwest, and the Nationalists abandoned Kweiyang (Guiyang), about 200 miles (320 km) south of Chungking, on November 13.
Britannica Quiz
A History of War
The two-decade struggle for China between the Nationalists and the Communists reached its conclusion in 1949. The year began with a Nationalist appeal to the “Big Four” (the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union) to mediate a settlement with the Communists. The United States, which had for so long supported the Nationalist cause, immediately replied that such an effort would not serve any useful purpose. On January 14 Mao declared his willingness to negotiate on the following terms: (1) punishment of “war criminals,” (2) abrogation of the 1946 constitution, (3) abolition of the existing form of government, (4) reorganization of Nationalist armies, (5) confiscation of “bureaucratic” capital from Nationalist Party elites and functionaries, (6) land reform, (7) abrogation of “treasonous” treaties, and (8) establishment of a democratic coalition government without the participation of “reactionary” (Nationalist) elements. Meanwhile, the Communist advance continued, and Tientsin (Tianjin) fell on January 15, 1949. Chiang announced his resignation as president of China on January 21, and Nationalist leadership passed to Gen. Li Tsung-jen (Li Zongren). On January 22, Li accepted Mao’s eight conditions as a basis for peace negotiations, and Nationalist forces began their withdrawal from Peking (Beijing). With the fall of Peking, the Communist drive on the Nationalist capital of Nanking could begin in earnest.
Following a meeting with a preliminary peace delegation from Nanking, Mao, now in Peking, agreed on February 9 to call an official peace conference within a month. On February 20 Li flew to Canton (Guangzhou), the newly designated Nationalist capital, in an effort to rally the various Nationalist contingents behind his peace efforts. Premier Ho Ying-chin (He Yingqin) designated Gen. Chang Chih-Chung (Zhang Zhizhong) as head of the Nationalist peace delegation, while the Communists selected Zhou Enlai to head their mission. Talks were scheduled to begin on April 1 in Peking, a timetable that gave the Communists sufficient time to regroup their forces along the Yangtze and near Nanking. From April 2 to April 12 the delegates exchanged views informally over three fundamental Communist demands: (1) Communist armies must be allowed to cross the Yangtze to help reorganize Nationalist troops; (2) an interim government with Mao as chairman and Li as one of the vice-chairmen must be established; (3) the Chiang, Soong, Kung, and Chen families must be punished. Formal negotiations opened on April 13, and within three days Mao’s peace program had expanded to 24 items, with the crossing of the Yangtze by Communist armies and the elimination of the national government as the key issues. On April 17 the Communists gave the Nationalists three days to respond. Li’s government formally rejected Mao’s peace draft on April 19, and within hours the Communists had launched an all-out offensive. The fall of Nanking on April 24 marked the beginning of the disintegration of the Nationalist government.
In rapid succession, the Communists captured Hankow (Hankou) on May 17, Tsingtao (Qingdao) on May 25, and Shanghai on June 2. To consolidate Nationalist forces, a supreme council was created at Canton with Chiang Kai-shek as chairman, Li Tsung-jen as deputy, and Yen Hsi-shan (Yan Xishan) as premier. In July the Communists launched offensives into South China and the northwest. The vital commercial center of Changsha fell on August 5, the port of Foochow (Fuzhou) on August 17, and the northwestern fortress city of Lanchow (Lanzhou) on August 28.
It was clear that the end was rapidly approaching for the Nationalist cause on the mainland. From his capital at Peking, Mao proclaimed the establishment of the People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. Within days the Soviet Union and the communist bloc recognized it as the legitimate government of China, and by year’s end several other countries had followed suit. On October 10 the Nationalist government officially informed foreign diplomats that it was relocating its capital again, this time to Chungking (Chongqing). The Communists took Canton on October 15 and Amoy (Xiamen) on October 17. By this time, the Communists had penetrated the southwest, and the Nationalists abandoned Kweiyang (Guiyang), about 200 miles (320 km) south of Chungking, on November 13.
Britannica Quiz
A History of War
t. e. The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang -led government of the Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), with armed conflict continuing intermittently from 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949, resulting in a CCP victory and control of mainland China in the Chinese Communist Revolution .
The Canton Coup [1] of 20 March 1926, also known as the Zhongshan Incident [2] or the March 20th Incident, [3] was a purge of Communist elements of the Nationalist army in Guangzhou (then romanized as "Canton") undertaken by Chiang Kai-shek. The incident solidified Chiang's power immediately before the successful Northern Expedition, turning ...
