Option 32: Key topic 2: Economic policy, 1949–65 - 3 The Great Leap Forward — Edexcel GCSE History
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Option 32: Key topic 2: Economic policy, 1949–65 - 3 The Great Leap Forward explained
Mao launched the second Five-Year Plan, known as the Great Leap Forward (1958–62), to rapidly transform China into a modern industrial and agricultural power.
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A key reason was Mao's desire to break away from the Soviet economic model, which he felt relied too heavily on experts and urban industry. Instead, he wanted to harness the sheer manpower of the Chinese peasantry through mass mobilisation. Ideologically, Mao aimed to accelerate the transition to true communism by establishing People's Communes. Furthermore, Mao wanted to assert China's independence and superiority on the world stage, famously declaring that China would overtake Britain in industrial production within 15 years, driven by his belief in 'Walking on Two Legs'.
The successes and failures of the Great Leap Forward. Reasons for failures. The importance of the Lushan Conference (1959).
The Great Leap Forward (1958–62) had minor successes, such as the construction of irrigation projects and the ideological mobilisation of the peasantry. However, it was a catastrophic failure, resulting in the Great Famine which killed millions. Failures stemmed from absurd agricultural policies like Lysenkoism, the diversion of peasant labour to produce useless 'backyard iron', and local officials inflating production figures out of fear, leading the state to requisition too much grain. The 1959 Lushan Conference was highly important; when Peng Dehuai criticised the famine, Mao purged him. This silenced all opposition, ensuring the disastrous policies continued and demonstrating Mao's absolute, dictatorial control over the Party.
The organisation of the commune: communal living and the abolition of private farming. The significance of Lysenkoism.
During the Great Leap Forward, Mao reorganised agriculture into massive communes of around 5,000 households. This system abolished private farming entirely; peasants surrendered their private plots, livestock, and tools to collective ownership. Communal living was strictly enforced to maximise labour efficiency. Families ate in massive mess halls and children were placed in communal crèches, freeing both parents to work long hours. The adoption of Lysenkoism—a pseudoscientific agricultural theory promoted by Soviet agronomist Trofim Lysenko—was highly significant. Lysenko's methods, such as deep ploughing and close planting, were made official policy. Because these ideas were scientifically flawed, they exhausted the soil and drastically reduced crop yields, becoming a major cause of the subsequent famine.
The causes and impact of the Great Famine, 1958–62.
The Great Famine (1958–62) was a catastrophic event caused by disastrous government policies and extreme weather. The primary causes were the flawed agricultural practices of Lysenkoism, the diversion of peasant labour to backyard steel furnaces, and the demotivating effect of the commune system. Local officials, terrified of failing to meet Mao's unrealistic quotas, vastly exaggerated crop yields. Consequently, the state requisitioned too much grain, leaving peasants to starve. The impact was devastating, resulting in an estimated 30 to 50 million deaths. Rural areas like Anhui were hit hardest, experiencing severe starvation and disease. The famine severely damaged Mao's reputation, forcing him to step back from day-to-day governance and allowing pragmatists to introduce economic reforms.
Your focus
- Explain Mao's ideological and political motivations for launching the Great Leap Forward.
- Describe the concept of 'Walking on Two Legs' and how it influenced the goals of the second Five-Year Plan.
- Analyse why Mao chose to abandon the Soviet economic model in favour of mass mobilisation.
Show all 12 objectives
- Identify the limited successes and the massive human and economic failures of the Great Leap Forward.
- Explain the combination of political, pseudo-scientific, and environmental reasons that led to the Great Famine.
- Analyse the political importance of the Lushan Conference and its role in prolonging the disastrous policies.
- Describe the structure and daily reality of communal living in Mao's China.
- Explain the process and impact of abolishing private farming.
- Evaluate the significance of Lysenkoism in causing agricultural failure.
- Identify the multiple interconnected causes of the Great Famine.
- Describe the scale and severity of the famine's impact on the Chinese population.
- Explain how the famine altered the political balance of power within the Chinese Communist Party.
Option 32: Key topic 2: Economic policy, 1949–65 - 3 The Great Leap Forward exam tips
Marking Points
- Explain Mao's ideological desire to accelerate the transition to communism through the creation of People's Communes.
- Describe Mao's intention to move away from the Soviet model of relying on technical experts and central planning.
- Identify the concept of 'Walking on Two Legs', aiming to develop both agriculture and industry simultaneously.
- Discuss Mao's nationalistic goal to make China an independent superpower capable of overtaking Western nations like Britain in production.
- Identify the limited successes, such as mass mobilisation for large-scale irrigation and terracing projects.
- Detail the catastrophic failures, primarily the Great Famine and the production of worthless pig iron in backyard furnaces.
- Explain the reasons for failure, including pseudo-scientific agricultural methods (Lysenkoism), inflated production figures, and poor weather.
- Analyse the importance of the Lushan Conference in silencing opposition, as Peng Dehuai's purge deterred others from speaking the truth about the famine.
- Explain how communes merged collectives into larger units to control all aspects of peasant life.
- Describe the features of communal living, such as mess halls, crèches, and the militarisation of daily routines.
- Detail the abolition of private farming, noting the confiscation of private plots, tools, and animals.
- Analyse the significance of Lysenkoism, explaining how flawed techniques like close planting led to crop failures.
- Identify the political causes of the famine, including exaggerated production figures by fearful local cadres.
- Explain how the diversion of labour to backyard furnaces left crops rotting in the fields.
- Describe the demographic impact, noting the estimated 30 to 50 million deaths, predominantly in rural provinces.
- Analyse the political impact, specifically Mao's temporary withdrawal from frontline politics and the rise of Liu Shaoqi.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Clearly distinguish between economic reasons (boosting production) and ideological reasons (achieving true communism).
- 💡Use the phrase 'Walking on Two Legs' to demonstrate your understanding of Mao's dual focus on industry and agriculture.
- 💡Connect Mao's deteriorating relationship with Khrushchev to his desire for China to become economically self-sufficient.
- 💡When discussing reasons for failure, ensure you link the fear of Mao to the inflated production figures reported by local cadres.
- 💡Use the Lushan Conference as key evidence of Mao's dictatorial power and the lack of democratic debate within the CCP.
- 💡Be prepared to weigh the impact of human error (policies) against natural disasters when explaining the causes of the Great Famine.
- 💡When discussing the communes, link the abolition of private farming to the loss of peasant motivation and falling production.
- 💡Use specific examples of Lysenko's methods, such as deep ploughing, to explain why crop yields collapsed.
- 💡Connect communal living to the broader goals of the Great Leap Forward, such as freeing up female labour for industrial work.
- 💡Use the phrase 'wind of exaggeration' to describe how local officials inflated grain production figures out of fear.
- 💡Link the causes of the famine directly to the policies of the Great Leap Forward, such as communes and Lysenkoism.
- 💡When discussing the impact, mention both the human cost and the political consequences for Mao's leadership.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing the reasons for the first and second Five-Year Plans; correction: the first relied on Soviet expertise, while the second explicitly rejected it in favour of mass peasant mobilisation.
- Believing the Great Leap Forward only focused on agriculture; correction: it aimed to boost both agriculture and industry simultaneously ('Walking on Two Legs').
- Overlooking the political context; correction: include Mao's desire to reassert his authority and prove his ideological purity after the Hundred Flowers Campaign.
- Stating that the backyard furnaces produced useful steel; correction: the furnaces produced brittle, useless 'pig iron' that could not be used for manufacturing.
- Blaming the famine entirely on natural disasters; correction: while bad weather contributed, the primary causes were disastrous government policies and inflated reporting.
- Misunderstanding the outcome of the Lushan Conference; correction: rather than fixing the policies, the conference entrenched them because Mao refused to accept criticism.
- Confusing communes with earlier cooperatives; communes were much larger and involved total communal living, not just shared labour.
- Assuming Lysenkoism was a successful scientific advancement; it was actually pseudoscientific and caused massive agricultural damage.
- Believing peasants willingly gave up private farming; many resisted or slaughtered their animals rather than hand them over.
- Attributing the famine solely to natural disasters; while bad weather played a role, government policies were the primary cause.
- Stating that the government provided adequate relief; the state continued to export grain and requisition food despite the starvation.
- Confusing the timeline of the famine with the Cultural Revolution; the famine occurred during the Great Leap Forward.