The Great Leap Forward was a campaign initiated by Mao Zedong, the leader of the People’s Republic of China, beginning in 1958. The goal of this campaign was to rapidly transform China’s economy from an agrarian system based on subsistence farming to an industrialized economy. Its primary goal was to reach a higher level of economic development than the capitalist countries of the West. Mao Zedong believed that in order to reach this goal, the Chinese people would need to work collectively and invest in large-scale agricultural collectivization and industrialization.
At its core, the main cause of the Great Leap Forward was Mao Zedong’s attempt to pursue China’s modernisation in order to catch up with the West. Mao had developed a belief in the superiority of socialism over capitalism and believed that pursuing socialism would enable China to overtake capitalist countries economically and militarily.
Mao Zedong was convinced that collective effort and investment in industry would be the key factors that would help China catch up economically with the West. He also wanted to make sure that China didn’t fall behind in its military strength compared to other countries. To do this, he wanted China to develop its own nuclear weapons, which meant that China needed to industrialize quickly. Mao’s plans were ambitious, and in order to achieve his goals, he sought to quickly increase agricultural productivity and move the country towards a centrally planned economy. This was done by the implementation of a series of reforms, known as the Great Leap Forward.
The Great Leap Forward encompassed several initiatives, such as the establishment of communes and large-scale collectivization of agriculture, the introduction of early industrialization and the mobilization of the population for labor-intensive projects. These initiatives were intended to rapidly bring about economic transformation, but unfortunately, they did not have the desired effect.
Mao’s policies led to widespread famine, largely due to the government’s forced collectivization of agriculture and mismanaged waterworks projects. Additionally, the mobilization of the population for labor-intensive projects caused a disruption in the agricultural cycle. The state-mandated production quotas were impossible to meet, and the rural areas experienced a shortage of labor and capital. These policies had the unintended consequence of drastic food shortages and malnutrition, leading to widespread famine throughout the country.
The combination of food shortages, a breakdown of traditional farming practices and an inefficient centrally planned economy resulted in one of the most devastating famines in history. An estimated 20-30 million people died in just two or three years.
While the exact number of casualties is difficult to determine, it is clear that the Great Leap Forward was a failure. The campaign’s goals of industrializing China quickly were never achieved, and the people of China paid an enormous price for Mao’s ambition. The famine caused by the Great Leap Forward lasted until 1962 and has been referred to as one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century.
In conclusion, the main cause of the Great Leap Forward was Mao Zedong’s desire to modernize China’s economy and to catch up with the West. His ambition was commendable, but his policies ended in disaster, leading to a famine that killed millions of Chinese citizens.