The “general line” sets a course for socialist transition

The law abolished landlord landownership and redistributed land to rural households. It broke a deeply unequal agrarian structure and gave many peasants a direct material stake in the new order, while...

The campaign against corruption, waste and bureaucratism began in party and government organizations in December 1951. Since sources identify the month rather than one nationwide launch day, 31...

A central directive opened a campaign against bribery, tax evasion, theft of state property, cheating on government contracts and leaking economic information. It framed private capital as both a...

By the end of 1952, land redistribution had been completed across most of the mainland, although implementation in some minority regions followed a different timetable. Hundreds of millions of rural...

The first plan launched large-scale state-led industrialization, prioritizing heavy industry, energy, machinery and transport. It drew on Soviet planning methods and technical support, and aimed to...

A central resolution endorsed the development of agricultural production cooperatives, moving beyond temporary mutual-aid teams. Cooperative farming was promoted as a means to pool labor and tools,...

A State Council order established planned procurement and planned supply of grain. The policy helped feed cities, build reserves and supply expanding industry, but it also gave the state stronger...

The Constitution established the institutions of the new republic and recognized state, cooperative, individual and capitalist economic forms within a transition toward socialism. It gave legal form...

The currency reform replaced the early renminbi at a ratio of 10,000 old yuan to one new yuan. The change simplified accounting after the postwar inflationary period and supported national fiscal...

The legislature formally approved the 1953–1957 plan after implementation had already begun. It set targets for industrial construction and major infrastructure, with Soviet-supported projects and...