Russian Revolution VS. Chinese Revolution free essay sample

Many question the many similarities and differences between the Russian Revolution and the Chinese Communist Revolution and how they may have been the same historical rebellion. Using Crane Brinton’s Anatomy of a Revolution to compare and contrast the two revolutions’ stages, there might be an answer to the debatable question. While during the Russian Revolution, they started out united, a new government was built, and the Kerensky Offensive was created and overpowered, and the Chinese Communist Revolution started off when the Nationalists had a bigger, but weaker group as to the Communists who strived for victory, Mao Zedong controlled over the Chinese, and the People’s Republic of China was established, it is understandable that both innovations has thrown out the government to only replace it with another compelling leader. The first revolutionary stage is, â€Å"Impossible demands made of government which, if granted, would mean its end. † This was shown in the Russian Revolution by Russians asking for food, equal rights, and an end to the war. They wanted World War I to end because it was the reason for the food shortage. The war was a disruption to agriculture and the government also had to finance for it, thus leading to inflation and prices increasing up to four times. On the other hand, the reason for the Chinese Revolution was because of the Nationalists and Communists not agreeing although they had a temporary alliance during the Japanese Invasion. Other reasonings were because the Chinese were in poverty and felt as if they were being exploited. The Russians and the Chinese asked for different things to happen, and the rebellions were started in two distinct ways. The following stage is, â€Å"Unsuccessful government attempts to suppress revolutionaries. † When the government of Russia saw that citizens were revolting, they tried to put a stop to it by sending troops towards them. The government thought that their army would be strong and threatening enough to cease the Russians, but failed. As for the Chinese, the Chinese Civil War has begun. The Nationalists and the Communists were battling each other. The United States provided direct support for the Nationalists’ colossal and powerless army and the Soviet Union barely contributed for the Communists’ strong and motivated soldiers. Also in result, the Nationalist government has been slowly changing and having political and economic chaos that lead to hyperinflation. The second stage of revolutions has shown how the government has started to lose power by trying to stop the activists. Third on the revolutionary stage list is, â€Å"Revolutionaries gain power and seem united. † An example of this being shown is when a Russian leader named Miliukov sent a note to the Allies which said Russia would continue giving them support in the war. The note was read by the public who demand him to resign. This shows how powerful the citizens are to force a leader to leave his position and accept that something undesirable cannot be avoided. For the Chinese Communist Revolution, this stage is demonstrated by the Nationalist government falling apart and the Communists capturing large Nationalist formations. Signs of success of revolting are now determined by the people who had the least power now having the most. The fourth stage is, â€Å"Once in power, revolutionaries begin to quarrel among themselves, and unity begins to dissolve. † In other words, once the revolters are in power, they begin to angrily argue with each other and will slowly not agree on everything. This, surprisingly, was not true for Russias revolution. Their new government was not having much issues, and was actually getting along well. Although this was not the case for Russia, it was not for the Nationalists during the Chinese Revolution. Their army was not as powerful as the Communists’ even with America’s tremendous help. At that point, there was not much hope and nationalism in themselves. The fourth stage on the list of revolutionary stages is the one that breaks Russia’s and China’s revolutions into two sides. Next is, â€Å"The moderates gain the leadership but fail to satisfy those who insist on further changes. † During this stage of the Russian Revolution, the Bolsheviks (Vladimir Lenin, Alexander Bogdanov, and Leon Trotsky) has regained power. Although their leadership was returned, they still did not appease the rest. As for the Chinese, Communists has gained the upper hand because it was obvious that since they have worked and strived for victory for over 20 years, going against the Nationalists was no problem. In this stage of revolutions, there are new leaders that either gratify their audience or not. Sixth on the list is, â€Å"Power is gained by progressively more radical groups until finally a lunatic fringe gains almost complete control. † This was not completely true for the Russian Revolution, instead, socialist revolutionaries and Maansheviks formed a new government. For the Chinese Communist Revolution though, this statement was shown through the Communists raiding cities. Many major cities went from Nationalist to Communist control without much resistance, this was all under Mao’s strategy. The sixth stage is shown as another difference between these two rebellions. After the sixth stage, is the seventh phase which is, â€Å"A strong man emerges and assumes great power. † This is clearly shown during the Russian Revolution when the Duma Executive Committee gains more power than it had and joins with revolutionaries to form â€Å"the dual power. † Although it is not one man and does not completely overthrow the revolters, there is still a new group that collides to increase the level of authority. Even though during the Chinese Revolution, Mao Zedong was the main leader, he additionally formed the People’s Liberation Army. Together, both the revolutions have had a point where there is more domination gained and discovered. The following step is the eighth, that is, â€Å"The extremists try to create a ‘heaven on earth’ by introducing their whole program and by punishing all their opponents. † When the Kerensky was created in the Russian Revolution, this stage was demonstrated. The Kerensky was the last Russian offensive in World War I and took place in July 1917. The fact that citizens wanted the war to end peacefully in the beginning, this was torture to them. Instead of the Kerensky offensive, during the China’s revolution, the Huai Hai Campaign had begun. This was a military action that was a decisive battle in the Chinese Civil War. The Communists destroyed the Republic of China which was ruled by Nationalists. These two battles have shown that the eighth stage is just the beginning of violence. Ninth of the list of revolutionary stages is, â€Å"A period of terror occurs. † or â€Å"Tragedies and problems with people. † An example of this during Russia’s revolution was when Alexander Kerensky becomes the Prime Minister. After his offensive, he continues to be their leader and this may not be so good. For the Chinese Communist Revolution, Chiang Kai-shek, 600,000 Nationalist troops, and about two million Nationalist-sympathizer refugees, mostly from the former government and business communities of the mainland, retreated to the island of Taiwan and proclaimed the Republic of China. After that, there remained only isolated pockets of resistance to the Communists on the mainland such as far south. It was clear that the Communists have won and they were drawing close to the end of the whole rebellion. There is now a new and strong leader in charge of both Russia and China. The last revolutionary stage is, â€Å"Moderate groups regain power. The revolution is over. † The Russians now realized that the point of the revolution was to raise the people’s faith in the Russian Army and the government, but that was not the situation. Later, Kerensky brought non-socialist Constitutional Democrats into the government which introduces Russia a new plan and starts the October Revolution. As for China, the main groups that are in rule are people’s Republic of China and People’s Liberation Army. This concludes both revolutions with new leading associations. Even though the Russian Revolution and the Chinese Communist Revolution started out in two different ways, they both came to a similar outcome. Many battles were started and many new leaders were brought in, but that was what made these rebellions meaningful in history. All these examples shown in both revolutions that were divided in stages were all crucial in their own way. If it weren’t for a specific event, their outcomes may have been different. It is important to recognize these circumstances to not only have a better understanding, but to also note how these may come in good use. After all, there is no value in repeating history.