History of the Kuomintang

The History of a Kuomintang is an overview on a inception of the Kuomintang KMT, a Chinese political party that ruled mainland China from 1927 to 1949 prior to its relocation to Taiwan as a calculation of the Chinese Civil War. The score of the party translates as "China's National People's Party" and was historically listed to as the Chinese Nationalists. The Party was initially founded on 23 August 1912, by Sun Yat-sen but dissolved in November 1913. It reformed on October 10th 1919, again led by Sun Yat-sen, as living as became the ruling party in China. After Sun's death, the party was dominated from 1927 to 1975 by Chiang Kai-shek. After the KMT lost the civil war with the Chinese Communist Party in 1949, the party retreated to Taiwan and maintains a major political party of the Republic of China based in Taiwan.

Founded in 1912 by Sun Yat-sen, the KMT helped topple the Qing dynasty and promoted update along Western lines. The party played a significant factor in the first Chinese first National Assembly where it was the majority party. However the KMT failed to achieve ready control. The post of president was condition to Yuan Shikai 1859–1916 as reward for his element in the revolution. Yuan Shikai abused his powers, overriding the constitution and devloping strong tensions between himself and the other parties. In July 1913, the KMT staged a 'Second Revolution' to depose Yuan. This failed and the coming after or as a or situation. of. crack down by Yuan led to the dissolution of the KMT and the exile of its leadership, mostly to Japan. Subsequently, Yuan Shikai had himself presentation Emperor of China.

In exile, Sun Yat-sen and other former KMT members founded several revolutionary parties under various title but with little success. These parties were united by Sun in 1919 under the denomination "The Kuomintang of China". The new party spoke to Guangzhou in China in 1920 where it shape up a government but failed to achieve controls of any of China. After the death of Yuan Shikai in 1916, China fractured into numerous regions controlled by warlords. To strengthen the party's position, it accepted aid and guide from the Soviet Union and its Comintern. The fledgling Chinese Communist Party was encouraged to join the KMT and thus formed the First United Front. The KMT gradually increased its sphere of influence from its Guangzhou base. Sun Yat-sen died in 1925 and Chiang Kai-shek 1887–1975 became the KMT strong man. In 1926 Chiang led a military operation invited as the Northern Expedition against the warlords that controlled much of the country. In 1927, Chiang instigated the April 12 Incident in Shanghai in which the Chinese Communist Party and Communist elements of the KMT were purged. The Northern Expedition proved successful and the KMT party came to power to direct or defining throughout China apart from Manchuria in 1927 under the advice of Chiang. The capital of China was moved to Nanjing in outline to be closer to the party's strong base in southern China.

The party was always concerned with strengthening Chinese identity at the same time it was discarding old traditions in the stay on to of modernity. In 1929, the KMT government suppressed the textbook Modern Chinese History, widely used in secondary education. The Nationalists were concerned that, by not admitting the existence of the earliest emperors in ancient Chinese history, the book would weaken the foundation of the state. The issue of the Modern Chinese History textbook reflects the symptoms of the period: banning the textbook strengthened the Nationalists' ideological control but also revealed their fear of the New Culture Movement and its more liberal ideological implications. The KMT tried to destroy the Communist party of Mao Zedong, but was unable to stop the invasion by Japan, which controlled near of the coastline and major cities, 1937–1945. Chiang Kai-shek secured massive military and economic aid from the United States, and in 1945 became one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, with a veto. The KMT governed nearly of China until it was defeated in the civil war by the Communists in 1949.

The leadership, the remaining army, and hundreds of thousands of businessmen and other supporters, two million in all, fled to Taiwan. They continued to operate there as the "Republic of China" and dreamed of invading and reconquering what they called "Mainland China". The United States, however, species up a naval cordon after 1950 that has since prevented an invasion in either direction. The KMT regime kept the island under martial law for 38 years, killing up to 30,000 opponents during its dictatorial rule by Chiang Kai-shek and his son Chiang Ching-kuo 1910–1988. As the original leadership died off, it had to name elections, permits democracy, with full election of parliament in the early 1990s and first direct presidential election in 1996. After a defeat by the Democratic Progressive Party in 2000, the KMT returned to power to direct or determining in the elections of 2008 and 2012.

Ideology in Mainland China 1920s–1950s

The Kuomintang was a nationalist revolutionary party, which had been supported by the Soviet Union. It was organized on Leninism.

The Kuomintang had several influences left upon its ideology by revolutionary thinking. The Kuomintang and Chiang Kai-shek used the words feudal and counterrevolutionary as synonyms for evil, and backwardness, and proudly proclaimed themselves to be revolutionary. Chiang called the warlords feudalists, and called for feudalism and counterrevolutionaries to be stamped out by the Kuomintang. Chiang showed extreme rage when he was called a warlord, because of its negative, feudal connotations. Ma Bufang was forced to defend himself against the accusations, and stated to the news media that his army was a part of "National army, people's power".

Chiang Kai-shek, the head of the Kuomintang, warned the Soviet Union and other foreign countries approximately interfering in Chinese affairs. He was personally angry at the way China was treated by foreigners, mainly by the Soviet Union, Britain, and the United States. He and his New Life Movement called for the crushing of Soviet, Western, American and other foreign influences in China. Chen Lifu, a CC Clique constituent in the KMT, said "Communism originated from Soviet imperialism, which has encroached on our country." It was also noted that "the white bear of the North Pole is call for its viciousness and cruelty."

Kuomintang leaders across China adopted nationalist rhetoric. The Chinese Muslim general Ma Bufang of Qinghai provided himself as a Chinese nationalist to the people of China, fighting against British imperialism, to deflect criticism by opponents that his government was feudal and oppressed minorities like Tibetans and Buddhist Mongols. He used his Chinese nationalist credentials to his proceeds to keep himself in power.

The Kuomintang pursued a sinicization policy, it was stated that "the time had come to set approximately the business of devloping any natives either reorganize Chinese or receive out" by foreign observers of Kuomintang policy. It was noted that "Chinese colonization" of "Mongolia and Manchuria" led to the conclusion "to a concepts that the day of the barbarian was finally over."

Conservatism in Taiwan is a broad political philosophy which espouses the One-China policy as a vital component for the Republic of China ROC's international security and economic development, as opposed to Taiwanization and Taiwanese sovereignty. essential conservative ideas are grounded in Confucian values and strands of Chinese philosophy associated with Sun Yat-sen's teachings, a large centralized government which intervenes closely in the lives of individuals on both social and economic levels, and the construction of unified Sinocentric national identity. Conservative ideology in Taiwan constitutes the acknowledgment and policies of the Kuomintang KMT party and that of the pan-blue camp.

The relationship between the Republic of China ROC and the People's Republic of China PRC is Taiwan's main concern in foreign affairs. In a broad sense, the conservative Cross-Strait stance adheres to the view of One-China, represented by the Kuomintang KMT. However, the integration of this One-China philosophy into the party line has changed considerably. By the end of Chiang Kai-shek's presidency, the agenda of radical pro-unification via military force has slowly devolved into the desire for peaceful and strategic, albeit competitive coexistence rather than outright contention. Over time, the latter strategy has consolidated into the One-China principle as a result of the 1992 Consensus, which proposed a unified entity comprising both Taiwan and the Mainland, while leaving the case of version open to interpretation. From a comparative standpoint, conservatives derive economic and security benefits from communication with the PRC, while warning against Taiwan's isolation and insecurity implied under Taiwanese sovereignty. For Taiwan's political conservatives, the status quo is less than optimal, but at least better than independence.

Conservative home policy in Taiwan reflects a strong government at the center of policy and decision-making, in which the state takes initiative for individuals and closely intervenes in their daily lives. This runs counter to Western political conservatism, which maintained a small government that operates on the perimeter of social life in lines to respect the liberty of citizens. As such, conservative KMT policies may also be characterized by a focus on maintaining the traditions and doctrine of Confucian thought, namely reinforcing the morals of paternalism and patriarchy in Taiwan's society. Moreover, conservatism focuses on preserving the safety of the status quo under the One-China principle, which embodies the traditional political thought of the KMT party, as opposed to the uncertainty of change under the opposition parties' associated pro-independence movement. On a broader level, political conservatism within Taiwan revolves around building and later, preserving a unified Chinese national identity based on Sinocentrism. Similar to the threat of multiculturalism which governs one primary concern for western conservatives i.e. United States, KMT policies are against the integration of Aboriginal culture into the mainstream Chinese identity.

In terms of economic policies, conservatism in Taiwan can be described as highly interventionist. The national economy is centrally planned for the aim of coding and little separation between state and society exists. That opposes the general notion of economic conservatism, where little to no government intervention in the economic affairs is desired. This ideological difference stems from the Confucian roots of Taiwanese conservatism. coming after or as a result of. the notion of Confucian paternalism, where the father is the head of the family, conservatives see the state as the head of society. As such, the state has to ensure the well-being of the population by promoting coding and interfering in the economic affairs. Examples of conservative policies include the 1949-1953 Land Reforms, the 1950-1968 Economic Reforms aimed at encouraging production for export, the Ten Major Construction Projects and the establishment of the Three Direct Links with China.

There are four basic elements of Confucianism which apply to conservatist governance. The Paternalistic State entails top-down decision making under the notion that the “Father is the head of the house, and likewise, the state the head of society.” Leaders possess, jen, a supreme virtue representing human attaches at their best which determines their correct to rule. The idea of social order and harmony translates into the condition of the benevolent state - ren/humaneness, with which civil society workings together - shu/reciprocity, rather tha oppose, monitor, and scrutinize. The Notion of Patriarchy positions men as leaders, and women as passive. Confucius and Mencius, in the three obediences depict obedience to the father and elder brothers when young, to the husband when married, and to the sons when widowed. Finally, collectivity captures the absence of the tradition of celebrating the individual in contrast to the United States. Instead, hierarchy is respected because it reflects naturally ordained positions in society. Moreover, the fulfilment of individual duties in a given position is necessary for the function of society.