The China civil war and the independence of Taiwan (165)

Cold War Conversations - "vivid & compelling" The NY Times

Ian Sanders

History, Documentary, Society & Culture

4.8 • 865 Ratings

🗓️ 27 February 2021

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The events of 1949 in China reverberated across the world and throughout the rest of the century. That tumultuous year saw the dramatic collapse of Chiang Kai-shek's 'pro-Western' Nationalist government, overthrown by Mao Zedong and his communist armies, and the foundation of the People's Republic of China. I talk with author Graham Hutchings who has written a vivid, gripping account of China in 1949 and the formation of an independent Taiwan. We discuss, the politics, the military campaigns, and the legendary Amethyst Incident where a British warship became embroiled in the Chinese Civil War. If you are enjoying the podcast, you can show your support via a monthly donation of $4, £3 or €3 via Patreon, plus you will get the sought after CWC coaster as a thank you and bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ If a financial contribution is not your cup of tea, then you can still help us by leaving written reviews wherever you listen to us as well as sharing us on social media. It really helps us get new guests on the show. I am delighted to welcome Graham Hutchings to our Cold War conversation… There’s further information on this episode and a book giveaway in our episode notes which can also be found on this link. https://coldwarconversations.com/episode165 If you can’t wait for next week’s episode do visit our Facebook discussion group where guests and listeners continue the Cold War Conversation. Just search Cold War Conversations on Facebook. Thank you very much for listening. It is really appreciated Support the project! https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/ Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/ Youtube https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations 0:00 Introduction 1:02 Interview with author Graham Hutchings about the Chinese Civil War 10:32 Analysis of the Nationalist strategy and situation by 1949 17:58 British authorities' perspective on the civil war in Hong Kong 23:32 Exploration of the scale of the conflict and its impact on the lives of millions of people 26:11 Detailed discussion of the HMS Amethyst incident 30:00 Examination of the fall of the nationalist cause and the fate of the Guangxi leaders 34:37 Shift in the communist approach post-victory: from rural insurrection to urban administration 41:10 A look at a striking photograph in Graham Hutchings' book 44:44 Mao's relationship with the Soviet Union 49:00 America's effort to thwart Chinese invasion of Taiwan 52:11 Discussion on current tensions between China and Taiwan 54:01 Acknowledgement of Patrons and Supporters 2:03 How to help support the podcast Chapters powered by PodcastAI✨ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Cold War Conversations, the home of real stories of the Cold War.
0:05.7	This is an extraordinary episode in the history of the Royal Navy, and I suppose is one of those
0:11.5	examples of how the British are quite successful in turning a catastrophic defeat and
0:19.1	humiliation into a national triumph.
0:24.3	This is Cold War Conversations.
0:30.1	If you're new here, you've come to the right place to listen to first-hand Cold War history accounts.
0:36.7	Do make sure you subscribe in your podcast
0:39.1	app so that you don't miss out on future episodes. The events of 1949 in China reverberated
0:49.2	across the world and throughout the rest of the century. That tumultuous year saw the dramatic collapse of Yankeye Shek's pro-Western nationalist government
1:00.9	overthrown by Maltzy Dung and his communist armies
1:04.5	and the foundation of the People's Republic of China.
1:08.5	I talked with author Graham Hutchings, who has written a vivid gripping account of
1:13.1	China in 1949. We discussed the politics, the military campaigns and the legendary amethyst incident
1:20.4	where a British warship became embroiled in the Chinese Civil War. We also have a book giveaway of Graham's book, China, 1949, so make
1:31.0	sure you check out the links in the show notes. If you're enjoying the podcast, you can
1:39.2	show your support via a monthly donation of $4, 3 pounds or 3 euros via Patreon.
1:46.4	Plus you get the sought after Cold War Conversations drinks coaster as a thank you.
1:51.7	But don't take my word for it.
1:54.0	Here's one of our patrons.
1:56.0	Hi, my name's Glenn.
1:57.5	I'm from New Zealand.
1:58.6	I've always been fascinated by Cold War.
	...

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