Shanghai massacre

The April 12, 1927, purge in Shanghai in which Chiang Kai-shek’s forces attacked Communists and labor activists, ending the First United Front.

Chiang Kai-shek: A Chinese military and political leader who headed the Nationalist government and led the 1927 purge in Shanghai. He ordered the crackdown as he sought to consolidate Nationalist control.
First United Front: An alliance between the Chinese Nationalist Party and the Chinese Communist Party from 1924 to 1927. The massacre shattered this cooperation between the two parties.
Chinese Civil War: A prolonged conflict between the Chinese Nationalists and Communists, interrupted by periods of cooperation and war against Japan. The purge helped turn the parties’ rivalry into armed civil war.
Wuhan Nationalist government: A rival Kuomintang government based in Wuhan in 1927 and associated with the party’s left wing. Its leaders initially opposed Chiang’s purge and maintained the alliance with the Communists.
Green Gang: A powerful Shanghai criminal organization led by Du Yuesheng during the early twentieth century. Its members helped attack labor activists and Communist organizers.
Chinese Communist Party: A political party founded in 1921 that sought a communist revolution in China. Its Shanghai organization and labor allies were targeted in the purge.
Nanchang Uprising: An August 1927 revolt by Communist forces against the Nationalist government in Nanchang, Jiangxi. The uprising was among the first armed Communist responses to the purges.
Shanghai Massacre of 1925: A May 30, 1925, episode of violence in Shanghai after British police fired on Chinese demonstrators. It is a separate event, despite the similar name and the city’s labor unrest.
Shanghai General Labor Union: A labor organization that coordinated Shanghai workers during the strikes and uprisings of 1925–1927. Its networks and leaders were among the purge’s principal targets.
Kuomintang: A Chinese nationalist political party founded by Sun Yat-sen and led by Chiang Kai-shek in 1927. The party’s right wing carried out the purge against its former Communist allies.

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