Explain why Manchuria was the main battleground of the Chinese civil war in the years 1946–1948.

The long-term factor that made Manchuria the main battleground in the beginning of the Civil War was its economic importance. Not only was Manchuria the industrial centre of China at the time, it was a strategic trade zone because of its infrastructure. Manchuria had some of the key railway lines connecting the region with a number of areas in China. Its economic importance was highlighted by the Japanese invasion in 1931, when they had chosen the region seeking for natural resources such as coal. Thus the region had proven to be economically beneficial for both sides, which one of the main reasons it was chosen to be the main battleground at the early stages of the war between the GMD and CPC.

The fundamental reason for Manchuria being the key battleground between 1946 and 1948 however was the power vacuum created by Japanese surrender in August 1945. After a sudden retreat of Japanese troops, both the Nationalists and the Communists were determined to seize the abandoned territory, which is why both sent their troops to Manchuria as soon as Japanese had surrendered. The reason why it had been so essential for either side to take control of Manchuria was that seizing Manchuria would considerably strengthened the chances of either GMD or CPC to take over China. Therefore it was crucial to get control over Manchuria in order to have greater control over the whole of China.

Furthermore, Manchuria was the main battleground because this was the region where both the CPC and the GMD were able to receive foreign aid. Firstly, Manchuria was referred to as a ‘comfy armchair’ by Mao, which essentially meant its strategic geopolitical location within China. Manchuria had boarders with potential Communists’ allies such as the USSR, North Korea and Mongolia. Indeed, the USSR boarder was the key direction of retreat for the Communists, where they could gain Russian support against the GMD attacks. Secondly, after the Japanese surrender, the USSR troops handed over the seized weaponry to the PLA, which enhanced Communists’ strength. However, it were not only the Communists who benefitted from Manchuria’s position, the GMD forces were also able to get support from the USA in a form of 100,000 troops being airlifted to Manchuria. This was supposedly done to assist the GMD at accepting the Japanese surrender.

In conclusion, Manchuria was the main battleground at the early stage of the Civil war due to its strategic economic and geopolitical position, which allowed the foreign allies of the both sides to send aid to both the CPC and the GMD.

Explain why the Communists were in a weak position at the start of the Civil war in 1946.

Foreign influence had negatively affected the Communist position in the beginning of the Civil war. Although the USSR offered their help, in particular after the Japanese surrender in August 1945, their aid cannot be considered genuine and therefore it could be argued whether it benefitted the CPC or weakened their position. The reason for that was Stalin being cautious of the conflict with the USA, who simultaneously seemed to support the Nationalist forces by sending 100,000 of troops. Consequently, Stalin ordered the Communists to give up Manchuria in 1945-1946, which arguably weakened their position. The USA, on the other hand, were strengthening the GMD’s position, although they were not in favour of the Nationalist government, but they were even more hostile towards the Communist ideology. Therefore the foreign interference significantly weakened the Communist position in the beginning of the Civil war despite some aid being provided by the USSR.

A basic lack of strength in comparison to the Nationalist troops was the ultimate reason for a weak position the Communists found themselves in during the early stages of the Civil war. By 1946, the Nationalists were a relatively well-established governing party in China and were internationally recognised as the official government of China. In addition, they had a strong support base that consisted of influential middle classes and intelligentsia. The Communists, on the other hand, had always been dominated and undermined by the GMD. The CPC had not yet become popular among the peasants as it did later. Furthermore, they had always been oppressed by the GMD forces and did not have one single large base, they only controlled such isolated areas as Yan’an. And even when they did settle in one place, it was not long until the GMD would force them to retreat. Thus ultimately the Communists had been considerably more weak that the GMD by 1946, which resulted in the CPC being weak in the beginning of the war.

The Communists were also weaker than the GMD in terms of military factors. The Communists were not in a great financial position due to being a relatively small and new party, which meant that they could not afford advanced weaponry that the Nationalists had. In total numbers, the Communists had ten times less weaponry and troops than the Nationalists, which put the CPC in a difficult position. This also did not allow the Communists to conduct conventional warfare against a way bigger army of the Nationalists. What is more important, the Nationalists had the control of the vast majority of China’s regions, especially central China, whereas the Communists only had small bases in rural China. This gave the GMD an advantage over the CPC at the early stages of the Civil War.

In conclusion, compared to the Nationalists, the Communists were considerably weaker in the beginning of the Civil War because of their inferior military position as well as lack of control over China, which was exacerbated by negative foreign influence from the USA and USSR.