Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese revolutionary and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After Chinese Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong's death in 1976,Deng rose to power and led China through its process of Reform and Opening Up and the development of the country's socialist market economy. Deng developed a reputation as the "Architect of Modern China" and his ideological contributions to socialism with Chinese characteristics are described as Deng Xiaoping Theory.
The Gang of Four was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes due to their responsibility for the excesses and failures in the Cultural Revolution. The gang's leading figure was Jiang Qing. The other members were Zhang Chunqiao,Yao Wenyuan,and Wang Hongwen.
Hua Guofeng was a Chinese politician who served as Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party and Premier of the People's Republic of China. The designated successor of Mao Zedong,Hua held the top offices of the government,party,and the military after the deaths of Mao and Premier Zhou Enlai,but was gradually forced out of supreme power by a coalition of party leaders between December 1978 and June 1981,and subsequently retreated from the political limelight,though still remaining a member of the Central Committee until 2002.
The Tiananmen incident or the April 5 Tiananmen incident was a mass gathering and protest that took place on April 4–5,1976,at Tiananmen Square in Beijing,China. The incident occurred on the traditional day of mourning,the Qingming Festival,after the Nanjing incident,and was triggered by the death of Premier Zhou Enlai earlier that year. Some people strongly disapproved of the removal of the displays of mourning,and began gathering in the Square to protest against the central authorities,then largely under the auspices of the Gang of Four,who ordered the Square to be cleared.
Wang Hongwen was a Chinese labour activist and politician who was the youngest member of the "Gang of Four". He rose to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976),after organizing the Shanghai People's Commune,to become one of the foremost members of national leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Li Xiannian was a Chinese Communist military and political leader,president of the People's Republic of China from 1983 to 1988 under paramount leader Deng Xiaoping and then chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference from 1988 until his death. He was a full member of the Politburo from 1956 to 1987,and of its Standing Committee from 1977 to 1987.
From November 1978 to December 1979,thousands of people put up "big character posters" on a long brick wall of Xidan Street,Xicheng District of Beijing,to protest about the political and social issues of China;the wall became known as the Democracy Wall. Under acquiescence of the Chinese government,other kinds of protest activities,such as unofficial journals,petitions,and demonstrations,were also soon spreading out in major cities of China. This movement can be seen as the beginning of the Chinese Democracy Movement. It is also known as the "Democracy Wall Movement". This short period of political liberation was known as the "Beijing Spring".
"Seek truth from facts" is a historically established idiomatic expression (chengyu) in the Chinese language that first appeared in the Book of Han. Originally,it described an attitude toward study and research. Popularized by Mao Zedong,it has become a major slogan of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the inspiration for its principal theoretical journal,Qiushi.
The "Two Whatevers" refers to the statement that "We will resolutely uphold whatever policy decisions Chairman Mao made,and unswervingly follow whatever instructions Chairman Mao gave" (凡是毛主席作出的决策，我们都坚决维护；凡是毛主席的指示，我们都始终不渝地遵循).
The time period in China from the death of Mao Zedong in 1976 until the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre is often known as Dengist China. In September 1976,after Chairman Mao Zedong's death,the People's Republic of China was left with no central authority figure,either symbolically or administratively. The Gang of Four was purged,but new Chairman Hua Guofeng insisted on continuing Maoist policies. After a bloodless power struggle,Deng Xiaoping came to the helm to reform the Chinese economy and government institutions in their entirety. Deng,however,was conservative with regard to wide-ranging political reform,and along with the combination of unforeseen problems that resulted from the economic reform policies,the country underwent another political crisis,culminating in the crackdown of massive pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square.
The Chairman Mao Memorial Hall,also known as the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong,is the final resting place of Mao Zedong,Chairman of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party from 1943 and the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party from 1945 until his death in 1976.
Deng Xiaoping Theory,also known as Dengism,is the series of political and economic ideologies first developed by Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping. The theory does not reject Marxism–Leninism or Maoism,but instead claims to be an adaptation of them to the existing socioeconomic conditions of China.
Lin Liheng,commonly known by her nickname Lin Doudou,is the daughter of Chinese marshal Lin Biao and his second wife Ye Qun. As the child of a prominent Chinese military and political leader,Lin was given minor but important positions during her youth. During the Cultural Revolution,she served as the deputy editor-in-chief of the newspaper of the People's Liberation Army Air Force. However,following her father's death and subsequent denouncement by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1971,Lin was stripped of her positions and detained indefinitely.
Wang Dongxing was a Chinese military commander and politician,famous for being the chief of Mao Zedong's personal bodyguard force,the 9th Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security. Wang held many important positions,both in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the government;he was Deputy Minister of Public Security in 1955–1958 and again in 1960–1970 and notably served as CCP Vice Chairman from 1977 to 1980,under Chairman Hua Guofeng.
Wu De,born Li Chunhua (李春华),was a Chinese Communist revolutionary and politician of the People's Republic of China. He served in provincial-level leadership positions in Pingyuan Province,Tianjin municipality,Jilin Province,and Beijing municipality,and was a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party from 1973 to 1980. After the Cultural Revolution,Wu was a key supporter of Hua Guofeng and was forced out of politics after Deng Xiaoping ousted Hua from his leadership position.
The 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party was a pivotal meeting of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party held in Beijing,China,from December 18 to December 22,1978.
Ji Dengkui was a prominent Chinese political figure during the Cultural Revolution. He was a member of the 10th and 11th Politburos of the Communist Party and was a protégéof Mao Zedong in Mao's later years. He served in a number of important government and military posts,including member of the Central Military Commission,Political Commissar of the Beijing Military Region,and Vice Premier of the State Council. After Mao's death in 1976,he supported Mao's designated successor,Hua Guofeng,in purging the Gang of Four. Two years later,Deng Xiaoping ousted Hua from his leadership position,and Ji,labelled the "Little Gang of Four" together with other prominent Hua supporters,was forced out of politics.
The Secretary-General of the Chinese Communist Party was a senior leadership position of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to assist in the daily work of the Central Committee. The secretary-general was established at the beginning of the founding of the CCP. However,due to the loss of information during the Long March and the Chinese Civil War,the records of the early secretaries-general were incomplete. Deng Xiaoping,the second-generation leader of China,served three times in the early years as the secretary-general of the Central Committee. The position of the secretary-general was renamed as general secretary from 1956 to 1966 and from 1980 to 1982. At that time,the leader of the Communist Party was Chairman of the Central Committee. The general secretary assisted the party chairman and vice chairmen in handling works of the Secretariat. Deng Xiaoping and Hu Yaobang successively served as the secretary-general and general secretary during the period of Chairman Mao Zedong and Chairman Hua Guofeng respectively.
Boluan Fanzheng refers to a period of significant sociopolitical reforms starting with the accession of Deng Xiaoping to the paramount leadership in China,replacing Hua Guofeng,who had been appointed as Mao Zedong's successor before Mao's death in 1976. During this period,a far-reaching program of reforms was undertaken by Deng and his allies to "correct the mistakes of the Cultural Revolution",and restore order in the country. The start of the Boluan Fanzheng period is regarded as an inflection point in Chinese history,with its cultural adjustments later proven to be the bedrock upon which the parallel economic reform and opening up could take place. As such,aspects of market capitalism were successfully introduced to the Chinese economy,giving rise to a period of growth often characterized as one of the most impressive economic achievements in human history.
The 1978 Truth Criterion Controversy,also known as the 1978 Truth Criterion Discussion,sometimes referred to as the First Great Debate in contemporary China,was a sociopolitical debate around 1978,mainly revolving around Hua Guofeng's "Two Whatevers" and Deng Xiaoping's "Reform and opening up".
