With the fall of the Qing Dynasty, Yuan Shikai took power and created the Republic of China. He became emperor in an attempt to revive the Chinese monarchy and empire. He was a powerful war general as well and ruled by force and intimidation. However, his reign was short lived due to his death, and after China was left with no form of government which led to total chaos.
On May 4th, 1919 the people of China took part in what become know as the May Fourth Movement. This movement was a protest on the Treaty of Versailles because Japan had been given land that China believed should belong to them. This led to a strong feeling of nationalism in China, and a dislike of the democracy in the Western world. With this sense of nationalism and doubt of democracy, the Chinese Communist Party was created.
The Chinese Communist Party was officially formed on July 1st, 1921.
The Communist Revolution:
For over two decades a civil war took place as the Communist Party battled against the Republic of China.
In the beginning of the war Jiang Jieshi rose to power as the President of the Republic of China and helped lead the fight against the Communists.
In 1934 the Communist Party was forced to retreat from the Republic's nationalist army. This is when Mao Tse Tung started being recognized as a stand out leader. He began gaining support, and was eventually elected as a new leader of the Communist Party.
There was a brief break in the war between the two parties because of World War II. During this time the two sides allied together in order to protect themselves from Japan.
In 1949 Mao and his troops were finally able to defeat the nationalist, ending the Republic of China. This is officially the beginning of Communist China.
References: Chinese Revolution Timeline. (n.d.). Time Toast. Retrieved from https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/chinese-revolution-timeline 50 Years of Communism in China. (1999). The New York Times. Retrieved from https://partners.nytimes.com/library/world/asia/china-index-timeline.html Chinese Revolution. (August 19, 2008). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/event/Chinese-Revolution-1911-1912 The Chinese Civil War. (2015) Alpha History. Retrieved from http://alphahistory.com/chineserevolution/chinese-civil-war/ China in Revolution. (2009). Asia for Educators, Columbia University. Retrieved from http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/main_pop/kpct/kp_chinarevolution.htm