Land Reform in China (1911-1953)

[From Chapter I]

The significance of the Chinese land reform consists in the elimination of the landlord-gentry class and redistribution of land among the peasantry. It is, therefore, necessary to evaluate the following matters, before discussing land reform itself.

1. Since Confucianism has dominated the Chinese minds for about two thousand years, it will be useful to examine its impact on both the landlord-gentry class and the peasantry.

2. In the Chinese history, the landlord-gentry class constantly played an important and active role in social, economic and political affairs. A study of its origin, development, and structure will undoubtedly help us to understand the landlord-gentry class of the period of the Republic, which was actually the extension of the ancient one.

3. The concentration land ownership gave rise to the tenancy system. Overpopulation caused the peasants' suffering. A discussion of the peasant problems in terms of land maldistribution, tenancy system, overpopulation, and political instability, will tell us why land reform was urgently necessary.