How The “Red Terror” Arose: A Case Study of Hailufeng, 1927–1928

Abstract

Marked by the random killing and plundering of landlords, gentry, and all “counter-revolutionaries”, the “Red Terror” prevailed from 1927 to 1930, when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) started its own road of revolution. The “Red Terror” in Hailufeng, Guangdong from May 1927 to February 1928 is notorious for its long duration, heavy casualties, and appalling atrocities. Why and how did such a “Red Terror” arise there at that time? This thesis is concerned with its manifestations, development, and dynamics. It argues that the “Red Terror” was jointly shaped by the CCP’s mobilization and the local peasants’ spontaneous action. In light of their ingrained violent tradition, the inhabitants preferred violence, manifested in rampant clan feuds and banditry, as well as brutal torture. By analyzing the mindset of Peng Pai, I attempt to showcase the CCP’s ideological mobilization, a critical factor that appealed for class struggle and introduced a framework to legitimize and expand massacre in the name of “eliminating counter-revolutionaries.” Even so, the CCP’s policy and tactics only incited the peasants’ spontaneous violence, which was out of the Party’s control due to its undisciplined organization. The “Red Terror” brought unexpected and undesirable results to both sides.