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NSWModern History

Section II (National Study): China 1927-1949

13 dot points across 13 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How did the Chinese Communists defeat the Nationalists in the civil war between 1945 and 1949?

What did the founding of the People's Republic of China on 1 October 1949 represent, and how was the new regime structured?

How did the Japanese invasion of Manchuria (1931) reshape Chinese politics and the international system?

What was the state of China at the Japanese surrender in 1945, and what made renewed civil war likely?

How did the Chinese Communist Party survive and develop a new strategy in the Jiangxi Soviet between 1928 and 1934?

Why did the KMT collapse on the mainland in 1949, and how did Chiang Kai-shek consolidate the Republic of China on Taiwan?

How did the Long March transform the Chinese Communist Party, and why did Mao Zedong emerge as its dominant leader?

How did the Marco Polo Bridge Incident escalate into the Second Sino-Japanese War, and how was the war fought to 1941?

What were the achievements and failures of the Nationalist government during the Nanjing Decade (1928-1937)?

How did the Northern Expedition and the consolidation of Chiang Kai-shek's power transform China between 1926 and 1928?

How and why was the Second United Front formed in 1937, and why did it break down well before the end of the war?

Why did Chiang Kai-shek destroy the First United Front in 1927, and what were the consequences for the Communist Party?

How did the Chinese Communist Party expand its political and military strength during the Yan'an period (1937-1947)?