Chinese Communist Party Historiography of the 1911 Revolution, 1935-1976

Abstract

Mao Zedong’s ascension to a position within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)—unparalleled either before or since—was in part due to his ability to control the narration of history. Mao’s master narrative retold Chinese history so that it provided the foundation for Mao Zedong Thought and validated his power and policies. This thesis follows the creation, rise to prominence and ongoing revisions of this master narrative by examining its treatment of one, important historical event: the 1911 Revolution. I focus on the period of Mao’s leadership of the CCP between 1935 and 1976 in order to understand how his master narrative changed over time. Mao built his narrative of the 1911 Revolution around four themes: the United Front, the periodisation of history, class analysis and the unique nature of China. Each of these themes represents an aspect of Mao Zedong Thought. Changes in the relative prominence of these themes across the course of Mao’s life are related to changes in the way he sought to establish his power, the rise of perceived challenges to his revolutionary politics and power, changes in the policies that he was seeking to justify and changes in the nature of Mao Zedong Thought.