Quick questions on The Chinese Civil War 1945-1949: HSC Modern History National Study China

The KMT entered the war with apparent overwhelming advantage: - Around 4.3 million troops, including 39 US-equipped divisions. - US Lend-Lease equipment, including aircraft and naval vessels. - Control of all major cities, all railways, and all industrial centres. - International recognition as the legitimate Chinese government.

Chiang launched general offensives across north China. The KMT captured Zhangjiakou (Kalgan, October 1946), then Yan'an itself on 19 March 1947. Mao evacuated the capital but treated the loss strategically: "If the enemy advances, we retreat."

The PLA renamed itself the People's Liberation Army (1946 progressively, formally 1947) and shifted to conventional combined-arms warfare. PLA strength reached around 2.8 million by early 1948; KMT strength fell to around 3.6 million.

Liaoshen Campaign (12 September to 2 November 1948). Lin Biao's Northeast Field Army (around 700,000) faced Wei Lihuang's KMT forces (around 550,000) in Manchuria. The PLA cut KMT garrisons off from each other. Jinzhou fell on 14 October. Changchun surrendered after a six-month siege; perhaps 150,000 civilians died of starvation inside the city.

Chiang resigned the presidency on 21 January 1949; Li Zongren became acting president. Peace talks at Beiping (April 1949) failed. The PLA crossed the Yangtze on 20-21 April 1949. Nanjing fell 23 April.

Strategic. Chiang spread KMT forces too thinly garrisoning cities; the PLA concentrated overwhelming force at chosen points. The German and US-trained divisions, designed for conventional war, were destroyed faster than they could be replaced.

Strategic competence. Mao's strategic directives showed sustained discipline. Lin Biao's Manchurian campaign, Chen Yi's Huaihai operations, and Peng Dehuai's Shaanxi defence were all expertly executed.

Odd Arne Westad (Decisive Encounters: The Chinese Civil War 1946-1950, 2003) is the standard.

Lin Biao's Northeast Field Army (around 700,000) faced Wei Lihuang's KMT forces (around 550,000) in Manchuria. The PLA cut KMT garrisons off from each other. Jinzhou fell on 14 October.

The largest single campaign of the war. The Eastern China Field Army (Chen Yi) and the Central Plains Field Army (Liu Bocheng, Deng Xiaoping) totalled around 600,000. KMT forces under Du Yuming and Liu Zhi numbered around 800,000, including five elite armies.

Lin Biao's Fourth Field Army (around 1 million) plus North China forces surrounded the Beiping-Tianjin region (Fu Zuoyi, around 520,000 KMT). Tianjin fell on 15 January after a brief assault. Fu Zuoyi negotiated the peaceful surrender of Beiping on 31 January 1949.

Chiang spread KMT forces too thinly garrisoning cities; the PLA concentrated overwhelming force at chosen points. The German and US-trained divisions, designed for conventional war, were destroyed faster than they could be replaced.

Hyperinflation destroyed urban living standards and the KMT tax base. The Gold Yuan reform failed.

KMT corruption was endemic; the "Four Big Families" (Chiang, Soong, Kung, Chen) accumulated wealth while soldiers went unpaid. Press censorship and Blue Shirt repression alienated intellectuals and students.

The KMT never tackled rural inequality. CCP land reform mobilised peasant volunteers and supplied PLA logistics on a scale the KMT could not match.