The Chinese Cultural Revolution, lasting from 1966 to 1976, was a period marked by massive social and political upheaval in the People’s Republic of China. The Revolution was led by Mao Zedong, then Chairman of the Communist Party of China, and his radical supporters in an effort to reassert his authority and purge those in the party and government who Mao believed had strayed from his communist ideals. Though initially praised for purportedly bringing about a new egalitarian society where all citizens are equal, the Cultural Revolution was characterized by widespread social turbulence, destruction of cultural artifacts and economic stagnation and ultimately claimed as many as 2 million lives.
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution was officially launched on May 16, 1966 with a statement issued by Mao Zedong from Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. In this statement, Mao announced that a political and social campaign—dubbed the “Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution”—was necessary in order to maintain the revolutionary spirit that he believed had been lost since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. In addition, Mao encouraged the youth of China to take up their own revolutionary responsibilities and attack any manifestations of bourgeois thinking or reactionary politics in their daily lives.
In response to Mao’s call to action, millions of young people throughout China formed paramilitary groups called Red Guards and began attacking intellectuals, bureaucrats and anyone else who was deemed to have acted in opposition of revolutionary thought. The Cultural Revolution was also accompanied by violent purges within the Chinese government and the Party, resulting in the imprisonment of hundreds of thousands of people accused of being “enemies of the revolution.”
In August of the same year, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China declared a nationwide campaign to “purify” the country and eliminate all counterrevolutionary elements. In line with this goal, schools, universities, and other educational institutions were closed, and textbooks deemed unfit for revolutionary thought were burned. In October of 1966, Mao publicly declared that “the Cultural Revolution is a great revolution that touches people to their very souls and constitutes a new stage in the development of the socialist revolution in our country.”
As the Cultural Revolution wore on, it became increasingly chaotic and brutal. In January 1967, the Chinese government declared martial law in Beijing in order to quell escalating violence between rival factions of the Red Guards. Throughout the country, millions of people were persecuted and even killed for their perceived lack of enthusiasm for the Revolution. The government also began to target foreign embassies, media outlets and other institutions considered “hostile forces” within the country.
By 1969, the Cultural Revolution had created a climate of fear and economic ruin throughout China. In an attempt to restore order, the Chinese government deputized several ultra-radical militiamen to crush the Red Guard militias and reassert Mao’s authority. This policy was met with mixed success, but organized resistance to the Cultural Revolution gradually died down as more repressive measures were implemented.
By 1971, the Cultural Revolution had largely petered out as Mao Zedong and the Chinese government focused their attention on restoring order and rebuilding the economy. This period was marked by increased censorship, greater control over the press and media, and a reemphasis on Marxist-Leninist ideology. The Constitution of 1975 officially ended the Cultural Revolution, though its legacy would linger for decades; many of the economic, political and social policies put into place during this tumultuous time still remain in place in China today.