Great Leap Forward
Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward was Mao’s economic and social campaign launched in 1958.
Its main features:
- peasant land was merged into communes
- private ownership was reduced
- the state tried to rapidly increase agricultural and industrial output
The policy failed badly. Food shortages became severe, and millions died of starvation.
Warning
Great Leap Forward = 大跃进，是中国现代史上一次灾难性的激进改革
By 1960, the policy was abandoned.