Seven Thousand Cadres Conference

As the death toll of the Great Leap Forward became more and more apparent, both to China and the exterior world, a conference was called. The Seven Thousand Cadres Conference was very true to its name, and 7,000 CCP party officials met in Beijing to discuss the way forward. Two characters stood out in their critique of Mao Zedong's policies; Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping, The former delivered a particularly scathing critique of the Great Leap Forward, and of Mao Zedong personally, putting him in the aim of the ultra-left wing of the CCP. The conference's effects were profound; the CCP was suddenly split between the ultra-Maoist and Modernist camps. A veteran of politics and irregular warfare, in early 1964 Mao ordered the creation of the paramilitary Red Guards to "protect the revolution". These were largely composed of armed radicalised students, operating on a decentralised leadership model. Political violence escalated all throughout China. In mid 1964, as a conspiracy emerged, the two factions clashed for control of the most populous country on Earth.

Next: Red Guards and the Cultural Revolution