What I learned about the cultural revolution...

Before I researched the Cultural Revolution, I only knew that it dealt with the leadership in China in the recent past. I did not know any details of this revolution and how it effected even the people across the world. The Cultural Revolution occurred from October 1966 to October 1976. The leader of China at the time, Mao Zedong, wanted to revive the economy of China. To do so, he allowed others to reign and lead China to fix the problems at hand. While it seemed like a good idea, the leaders abused their authority and became known as reactionary bourgeois authority. Mao referred to Deng Xiaoping and Liu Shaoqi as the bourgeois because he felt that they oppressed the people and objected to the cultural revolution. With uncertain government, China spun into confusion. Mao then, felt the need to attack the ruling communist party. Along with his wife, Jiang Qing, he organized the "Red Guards" to spread socialism throughout the communist China. His ideas were criticized by many others because of the many negative effects the revolution had on China. While the cultural revolution was designed to equalize the nation, it created many harmful effects on the population. Countless ancient buildings, artifacts, antiques, books, and paintings were destroyed, along with the halting of the educational system of China. Mao's wife, Jiang Qing, and her associates defended Mao's policies. Their strong efforts led the movement to end when the Gang of Four was arrested. In all, I learned that the cultural revolution of China had good intentions to create a better place for the people of China, but it in fact left China with fear of the government and a very poor economy.