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C Chinese Civil War

History

1927-1949: Shanghai, Long March, Japan interval, three campaigns, PRC and Taiwan.

Educational history. Casualty figures are documented ranges. This is not operational advice, a ranking of nations, or a how-to for weapons or coups.

At a glance
Timeline

Milestones in order. This is history, not a weekly activity grid.

1927-04 Shanghai massacre1934-35 Long March1937-07 Japan full-scale war1945-08 Japan surrenders1946 Marshall mission fails1948-49 Three campaigns1949-04 Yangtze crossing1949-10-01 PRC proclaimed1949-12 ROC to Taiwan1950-06 Korea and the Fleet
  1. Shanghai massacre
  2. Long March
  3. Japan full-scale war
  4. Japan surrenders
  5. Marshall mission fails
  6. Three campaigns
  7. Yangtze crossing
  8. PRC proclaimed
  9. ROC to Taiwan
  10. Korea and the Fleet
Score intensity

Darker cells mean a higher score for this topic on that metric.

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Quick answers

Are the scores a ranking of nations or armies?

No. Scores are browsing aids inside an era-bounded atlas — not live league tables of countries.

How many died?

A wide band, often about 6-10 million for civil-war related deaths across phases, overlapping the Japanese war and postwar campaigns. Treat any single number as a false census.

Did Japan pause the civil war?

It forced a united front and moved the main enemy, but both parties positioned for the next round. 1945 was a restart, not a blank slate.

Why did the Communists win?

Rural organisation, KMT inflation and corruption, Manchurian campaigns, and a more coherent political-military command. US aid was real and insufficient to offset legitimacy collapse.

What happened on 1 October 1949?

Mao proclaimed the PRC in Beijing. The ROC government relocated to Taipei. Both claimed to be the government of China.

How does this connect to the Korean War?

The new PRC intervened in Korea in October 1950. The US interposed the Seventh Fleet in the Strait, blocking an immediate Taiwan campaign.

Start with this section - History

Start-dates argue: 1927 is the usual split; some start with 1911 or the warlord wars. This page treats 1927-49 as the core civil war.

Omitting 1937-45 makes 1949 look like a sudden collapse. It was a restart after a world war on Chinese soil.

Timeline

  1. Shanghai massacre

    KMT-CCP split; urban CCP crushed; rural struggle begins.

  2. Long March

    CCP remnant reaches Yan'an; Mao's leadership consolidates.

  3. Japan full-scale war

    United front; civil war subordinated, not forgotten.

  4. Japan surrenders

    Race for cities and Japanese arms; Soviets in Manchuria.

  5. Marshall mission fails

    Talks collapse; full-scale civil war resumes.

  6. Three campaigns

    Liaoshen, Huaihai, Pingjin destroy KMT main forces.

  7. Yangtze crossing

    Nanjing falls; the Nationalist capital is lost.

  8. PRC proclaimed

    Mao in Beijing; a new state claims the mainland.

  9. ROC to Taiwan

    Chiang's government completes the withdrawal.

  10. Korea and the Fleet

    Korean War begins; US Seventh Fleet enters the Strait -- civil war and Korea lock together.

Eras

First civil war

Split, soviets, encirclement, Long March.

War of resistance

United front against Japan; both parties expand for later.

Failed peace

Chongqing talks, Marshall, Manchurian scramble.

Communist victory

Three campaigns, PRC founding, ROC retreat.

Strait standoff

Korea, crises, diplomacy -- history of an unfinished pair of states.

Milestones

Long March myth and fact

A retreat that became a state founding story.

1949 founding

The largest population shift of sovereignty in this atlas.

Korea lock-in

1950 tied the leftover civil war to a UN war.

1 October 1949 is a founding date, not a peace date. The Strait remained a military frontier.

Death figures must stay a band because civil war, anti-Japanese war, and later campaigns overlap in the records.

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