| 1911 |
Overthow of Qing Dynasty. |
| 1919 |
May Fourth Movement for cultural
and political reform. |
| 1921 |
Founding of Chinese Communist
Party. |
| 1923 |
First United Front with the
Kuomintang (KMT, or Nationalist Party). |
| 1925 |
Death of Sun Yatsen. |
| 1926 |
Northern Expedition begins. |
| 1927 |
Chiang Kaishek purges communists. |
| 1928 |
Failure of Communist strategy of
urban insurrection. Mao Zedong establishes Soviet
base in Jiangxi |
| 1931 |
Japan invades Manchuria. |
| 1934 |
Long March begins. |
| 1936 |
Xi'an incident: Second United
Front begins. |
| 1942 |
Yan'an Rectification: Mao
consolidates position in Party. |
| 1945 |
Defeat of Japan |
| 1946 |
Resumption of Civil War |
| 1949 |
Establishment of People's
Republic of China. Land Reform continues through 1953. |
| 1950 |
Korean War begins. |
| 1953 |
First Five-Year Plan: peak of
Soviet influence. |
| 1956 |
Socialist Transformation:
industry, commerce, and agriculture are brought under state control. Hundred Flowers
Movement begins. |
| 1957 |
Anti-Rightist Movement. |
| 1958 |
Great Leap Forward begins |
| 1959 |
Lushan Plenum of CCP: Purge of
Defense Minister Peng Dehuai. |
| 1960 |
Split with the Soviet Union. |
| 1962 |
Mao turns left: "Never
forget class struggle." |
| 1966 |
Cultural Revolution begins. |
| 1968 |
Red Guards sent to countryside. |
| 1971 |
Lin Biao incident |
| 1976 |
Deaths of Zhou Enlai (January)
& Mao Zedong (September). Purge of Gang of Four and official end of Cultural
Revolution. |
| 1978 |
Deng Xiaoping Reform Program
begins. |
| 1979 |
Democracy Wall. |
| 1980 |
Trial of Gang of Four. |
| 1981 |
Hu Yaobang replaces Hua Guofeng
as Party leader. |
| 1983 |
Campaign against "spiritual
pollution." |
| 1986 |
Student demonstrations for
political reform. |
| 1987 |
Hu Yaobang forced to resign, Zhao
Ziyang becomes Party General Secretary. Campaign against bourgeois liberalization. |
| 1988 |
Li Peng becomes Prime Minister. |
| 1989 |
Mass movement for democracy,
terminated by June 4 Beijing Massacre. Jiang Zemin replaces Zhao Ziyang as Party leader. |
| 1992 |
14th Party Congress,
Intensification of market reforms. |
| 1997 |
Death of Deng Xiaoping, return of
Hong Kong to China |