Mao

Mao Zedong (also spelled Mao Tse-tung; 毛泽东) was a Chinese communist revolutionary and political leader who helped found the People's Republic of China (PRC). He was born on December 26, 1893, in Shaoshan, Hunan Province, and died on September 9, 1976, in Beijing. As a leading figure of the Chinese Communist Party (CPC) from the 1930s onward, he led the party to victory in the Chinese Civil War and became the principal architect of the PRC’s early political and social framework.

Mao emerged from revolutionary circles during the early 20th century, participated in the May Fourth Movement, and joined the CPC in 1921. He rose through the ranks after the Long March (1934–1935), which solidified his leadership within the party. After establishing the PRC in 1949, Mao oversaw major campaigns and reforms, including land reform, industrialization drives, and social changes aimed at reshaping Chinese society.

His governance included controversial programs such as the Great Leap Forward (1958–1962), which aimed to rapidly industrialize and collectivize agriculture but led to widespread famine and millions of deaths according to many historians. In 1966, Mao launched the Cultural Revolution, a decade-long campaign intended to preserve communist ideology by purging perceived counterrevolutionaries, which resulted in social upheaval, persecution, and the destruction of cultural artifacts.

Mao’s ideas, collectively known as Mao Zedong Thought or Maoism, remained a core element of CPC doctrine for decades. His legacy is highly contested: he is regarded by some as a founding father who transformed China, while others criticize the human and social costs of his policies. His influence persists in Chinese politics and memory, including the prominence of his image in state symbolism.