Seizure of power (Cultural Revolution)

The seizure of power (simplified Chinese: 夺权; traditional Chinese: 奪權), or power-seizure movement (simplified Chinese: 夺权运动; traditional Chinese: 奪權運動) during the Chinese Cultural Revolution was a series of events led by the "rebel groups (造反派)", attempting to grab power from the local governments in China and local branches of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).[1][2][3][4][5] The seizure of power began in the "January Storm" of Shanghai in 1967, and rapidly spread to other areas of China.[2][5][6][7] The power seizure usually culminated in the establishment of local revolutionary committees, which replaced the original governments as well as communist party branches, and wielded enormous power that often caused much chaos in the Chinese society.[2][3][5][7][8]

The rally of power-seizure movement in Shanxi, China (April 1967).

Brief history

Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution in May 1966. In January 1967, the January Storm in Shanghai marked the beginning of power-seizure movement, which then spread to other areas of China.[5][7][8][9] The rebel groups across China, such as those in Shanxi, Heilongjiang, Guizhou and Shandong, started their own seizure of power as early as late January.[3][10] The Cultural Revolution thereafter entered a new phase.[8][9]

The end product of the power seizure were the revolutionary committees, which were established to wield the power grabbed from local governments and communist party committees.[8] The revolutionary committees possessed enormous and highly centralized power.[5][8] However, conflicts and power struggle within the revolutionary committees and the rebel groups often occurred, which resulted in nationwide violent struggles and the persecution of a large number of people.[5][9][10]

After the Cultural Revolution, the revolutionary committees were gradually abandoned during the Boluan Fanzheng and "Reforms and Opening-up" period.

See also

References
  1. "Talk At A Meeting Of The Central Cultural Revolution Group". www.marxists.org. Retrieved 2020-06-09.
  2. "MAO'S "CULTURAL REVOLUTION" IN 1967: THE STRUGGLE TO "SEIZE POWER"" (PDF). CIA. 1968.
  3. Song, Yongyi (2011-08-25). "Chronology of Mass Killings during the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1966-1976)". Sciences Po. Retrieved 2020-06-09.
  4. Bridgham, Philip (1968). "Mao's Cultural Revolution in 1967: The Struggle to Seize Power". The China Quarterly. 34 (34): 6–37. doi:10.1017/S0305741000014417. ISSN 0305-7410. JSTOR 651368.
  5. "第七章 十年"文化大革命"的内乱". The Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). Retrieved 2020-06-09.
  6. Jiang, Hongsheng (2010). "The Paris Commune in Shanghai: The Masses, the State, and Dynamics of 'Continuous Revolution'" – via Duke University. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ""一月革命"风暴". Renmin Wang (in Chinese). Retrieved 2020-06-09.
  8. ""文化大革命"初期夺权的动态变化". The Research Institute for the History of the Chinese Communist Party (in Chinese). Retrieved 2020-06-09.
  9. Bridgham, Philip (1968). "Mao's Cultural Revolution in 1967: The Struggle to Seize Power". The China Quarterly. 34 (34): 6–37. doi:10.1017/S0305741000014417. ISSN 0305-7410. JSTOR 651368.
  10. DE WITTE, MELISSA (2019-10-29). "How violence unfolded during China's Cultural Revolution". Stanford University. Retrieved 2020-06-09.
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