Preceden

The Cultural Revolution

Events

Lin Biao prasises Mao at Lushun Conference

1959

Delivered a fulsome speech in praise of Mao, thus helping to destroy his fellow marshal, Peng Dehuai, whose position he inherited as Minister of Defence.

Lin Biao praises Mao at Cadres Conference

January 1962

Although an unpopular speech, Mao clapped enthusiastically to Lin praising him in front of 7,000 people.

Mao's Little Red Book became a standard Chinese text

1963

-Stressed the primacy of ideology and correct thought
-Issued to all recruits - PLA became Mao's favourite institution

"The Diary of Lei Feng" published

1963

Madame Mao sent to Shanghai

February 1965

  • Madame Mao dispatched to Shanghai to commission an article attacking the historian, bureaucrat and playwright Wu Han.
  • The parallels with Peng Dehuai in Wu Han's book were too great, so Mao was convinced it was an attack on him.

The article attacking "The Dismissal of Hai Rui from Office" is published

November 1965

-Peng forbade any Beijing paper to reprint it.
-Mao gets Zhou Enlai to argue for him that it was simply a literary issue.

First Tiananmen Square rally

1966