People's Republic of China — Mao Era & Cultural Revolution (1949–1976)

1. Mao proclaims the People’s Republic of China

   Oct 1, 1949Labels: Mao Zedong, Tiananmen Square, People's Republic

   • HISTORY
   • PRC Proclamation

2. Land Reform Law decreed for implementation

   Jun 30, 1950Labels: Land Reform, Peasants, Rural Reform

   • China org cn

3. Chinese forces begin entering the Korean War

   Oct 19, 1950Labels: People's Volunteer, Korean War, Yalu River

   • PVA

4. First PRC Constitution adopted by National People’s Congress

   Sep 20, 1954Labels: 1954 Constitution, National People's, PRC institutions

   • 1954 Constitution

5. Hundred Flowers Campaign begins liberalization push

   May 1, 1956Labels: Hundred Flowers, Intellectuals

   • Britannica

6. Anti-Rightist Campaign begins crackdown after criticism

   Jun 1, 1957Labels: Anti-Rightist Campaign, Political Purge

   • Anti Rightist
   • Britannica

7. Great Leap Forward introduced for rapid transformation

   Jan 1, 1958Labels: Great Leap, Communes

   • Britannica
   • Great Leap

8. Lushan Conference purges Peng Dehuai

   Jul 2, 1959Labels: Lushan Conference, Peng Dehuai

   • Lushan
   • Britannica

9. Seven Thousand Cadres Conference reassesses Great Leap

   Jan 11, 1962Labels: Seven Thousand, Liu Shaoqi

   • 7000 Cadres
   • Oxford Academic

10. Cultural Revolution declared via May 16 Notification

    May 16, 1966Labels: May 16, Cultural Revolution

    • Britannica
    • AP News

11. First Red Guard posters appear at Tsinghua-affiliated school

    May 25, 1966Labels: Red Guards, Tsinghua High

    • Red Guards
    • Tsinghua History

12. Wuhan Incident exposes armed factional conflict

    Jul 20, 1967Labels: Wuhan Incident, PLA

    • Wuhan Incident

13. Lin Biao named Mao’s successor at Ninth Party Congress

    Apr 1, 1969Labels: Lin Biao, Ninth Party

    • Britannica
    • Lin Biao

14. Lin Biao dies in disputed 1971 plane crash

    Sep 13, 1971Labels: Lin Biao, Plane Crash

    • Lin Incident
    • Lin Biao

15. Nixon visits China to open U.S.–PRC rapprochement

    Feb 21, 1972Labels: Richard Nixon, U S

    • State Dept
    • Nixon Visit

16. Shanghai Communiqué issued during Nixon trip

    Feb 27, 1972Labels: Shanghai Communiqu, U S

    • State Dept
    • Shanghai Communiqu

17. Tiananmen Incident protests erupt after Zhou’s death

    Apr 4, 1976Labels: Tiananmen Incident, Zhou Enlai

    • 1976 Incident

18. Gang of Four arrested, Cultural Revolution effectively ends

    Oct 6, 1976Labels: Gang of, Jiang Qing

    • Gang of Four
    • AP News