Decisive encounters : the Chinese Civil War, 1946-1950 / Odd Arne Westad.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Westad, Odd Arne.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

China--History--Civil War, 1945-1949.

China.

History.

China--Politics and government--1945-1949.

Politics and government.

Physical Description:

viii, 413 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Other Title:

Chinese Civil War, 1946-1950

Place of Publication:

Stanford, Calif. : Stanford University Press, 2003.

Summary:

The Chinese Civil War was one of the key conflicts of the twentieth century. The Communist victory determined Chinese history for several generations, and defined international relations in East Asia during the Cold War and after. Despite its importance and scope -- its battles were the largest military engagements since World War II -- until now remarkably little has been known about the war, and even less about its effects on the societies that suffered through it. This major new history of the Chinese Civil War attempts to answer two central questions: Why was the war fought? What were the immediate and the lasting results of the Communists' victory? Though the book highlights the military aspects of the war, it also shows how these took place alongside profound changes in Chinese politics, society, and culture -- changes that ultimately contributed as much to the character of today's China as did the major battles. By analyzing the war as an international and not simply a domestic conflict, the author explains why so much of the present legitimacy of the Beijing government derives from its successes during the late 1940s, and reveals how the antagonism between China and the United States, so important to current international affairs, was born.

Contents:

1. East Asian Cockpit: The Aftermath of World War II 17

2. Two Bridges: The Outbreak of Civil War 35

3. Takeovers: Resurrecting the Guomindang State 69

4. Adjusting Heaven: Communist Rule in the Provinces 107

5. Into the Cauldron: The Guomindang Offensives 147

6. The Turn: Battlefields of the North 181

7. The Chase: Crossing the Yangzi 215

8. To Tian'anmen: Constructing New China 259

9. To the Yalu River: New China and the World 297

Postscript: The Chinese Civil War Today 327

Studying the Chinese Civil War: A Brief Bibliography 383.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [383]-401) and index.

ISBN:

0804744785

080474484X

OCLC:

51447172