Second United Front - wikipedia Second United Front For other uses, see United Front ( disambiguation ). Chinese Civil War Major engagements in bold Shanghai massacre Uprisings Autumn Harvest Baise Guangzhou Nanchang Encirclement Campaigns First Jiangxi Hubei -- Henan -- Anhui Honghu Hubei -- Henan -- Shaanxi Shaanxi -- Gansu Soviet Second Jiangxi Hubei -- Henan -- Anhui Honghu Hubei -- Henan -- Shaanxi Shaanxi -- Gansu Soviet Third Jiangxi Hubei -- Henan -- Anhui Honghu Ningdu uprising Hubei -- Henan -- Shaanxi Shaanxi -- Gansu Soviet Fourth Jiangxi Hubei -- Henan -- Anhui Honghu Soviet Fifth v. Jiangxi Soviet Hubei -- Henan -- Anhui Long March Luding Bridge Intermission Wannan Opening Campaign Yetaishan S. Jiangsu Baoying Yongjiazhen Tianmen Linyi Wuhe Yinji Huaiyin -- Huai'an Xinghua Dazhongji Lingbi Zhucheng Lishi Pingdu Taixing Shangdang Wuli Xiangshuikou Rugao Weiguangnuan Shicun Operation Beleaguer Houmajia Handan Pacification of NE China Shaobo Gaoyou Tangguo Houma 1st Siping 2nd Siping North China Plain S. Tongpu Railway Datong Jining Longhai Dapu Ruhuang Dingtao Linfu Zhengtai Datong -- Puzhou Huaiyin -- Huai'an Yan'an Kalgan Lüliang Linjiang Guanzhong Beitashan S. Baoding Niangziguan Tang'erli Menglianggu Summer 1947, NE China Heshui 3rd Siping N. Baoding Nanlin Meridian Ridge N. Daqing River Autumn 1947, NE China Mt. Funiu Winter 1947, NE China Gongzhutun Phoenix Peak W. Tai'an Jingzhong Linfen Zhouzhang Hebei -- Rehe -- Chahar Yanzhou Shangcai Liaoshen Changchun Jinzhou Tashan Jinan Taiyuan Huaihai Shuangduiji Jiulianshan Pingjin Tianjin Bandits Suppression N. China C.S. China E. China Dabieshan NW. China Wupin SW. China Longquan N. Canton NE. Guizhou Hunan -- Hubei -- Sichuan W. Hunan Shiwandashan Liuwandashan W. Guangxi Shanghai Lanzhou Ningxia Nanchuan Guangxi Bobai Chengdu Bamianshan Tianquan Yiwu KMT insurgency 1950 -- 58 China -- Burma border Island campaigns Quemoy Denbu Nan'ao Hainan Island Dongshan Wanshan Nanpeng Nanri Nanpeng Dalushan Dongshan Yijiangshan Dachen Dong - Yin A Communist soldier waving the Nationalists ' flag of the Republic of China after a victorious battle against the Japanese during the Second Sino - Japanese War The Second United Front was the alliance between the Chinese Nationalist Party ( Kuomintang, or KMT ) and Communist Party of China ( CPC ) to resist the Japanese invasion during the Second Sino - Japanese War, which suspended the Chinese Civil War from 1937 to 1941. Contents 1 Background 2 Xi'an Incident 3 Cooperation during the War of Resistance 4 Breakdown and aftermath 5 See also 6 References Background In 1927 the Chinese Communists revolted against Kuomintang following a purge of its members in Shanghai by National Revolutionary Army commander Chiang Kai - shek, which marked the end of the KMT 's four - year alliance with Soviet Union and its cooperation with the CPC during the Northern Expedition to defeat warlords and unify China. In 1931 the Japanese launched its invasion and subsequent occupation of Manchuria. Chiang Kai - shek, who led the central government of China, decided that China must avoid all - out war with Japan due to domestic turmoil and inadequate preparation. Therefore, he `` pursued a strategy of appeasing Japan while struggling for real national unity and over time sufficient strength to confront the Imperial army. This appeasement policy lasted for another six years ''. Even though his campaigns against the Communists resulted in their retreat and a 90 % reduction in their fighting strength, he was unable to eliminate their forces entirely, and his policy of `` internal pacification before external resistance '' ( ( in Chinese ) : 攘 外 必 先 安 内 ) was very unpopular with the Chinese populace, which caused widespread resentment against the ruling KMT leadership and its regional warlord allies. Xi'an Incident Main article : Xi'an Incident In 1936, Chiang Kai - shek assigned the `` young marshal '' Zhang Xueliang the duty of suppressing the Red Army of the CPC. Battles with the Red Army resulted in great casualties for Zhang 's forces, but Chiang Kai - shek did not provide any support to his troops. On 12 December 1936, a deeply disgruntled Zhang Xueliang kidnapped Chiang Kai - shek in Xi'an to force an end to the conflict between KMT and CPC. To secure the release of Chiang, the KMT was forced to agree to a temporary end to the Chinese Civil War and the forming of a united front between the CPC and KMT against Japan on 24 December 1936. The China Democratic League, an umbrella organization for three political parties and three political pressure groups, also agreed to take part in the united front formed by KMT and CPC. Cooperation during the War of resistance As a result of the truce between KMT and CPC, the Red Army was reorganized into the New Fourth Army and the 8th Route Army, which were placed under the command of the National Revolutionary Army. The CPC agreed to accept the leadership of Chiang Kai - shek, and began to receive some financial support from the central government run by KMT. After the commencement of full - scale war between China and Japan, the Communists forces fought in alliance with the KMT forces during the Battle of Taiyuan, and the high point of their cooperation came in 1938 during the Battle of Wuhan. However, the Communists submission to the chain of command of the National Revolutionary Army was in name only. The Communists acted independently and hardly ever engaged the Japanese in conventional battles but proved efficient in guerrilla warfare. The level of actual coordination between the CPC and KMT during the Second Sino - Japanese War was minimal. Breakdown and aftermath In the midst of the Second United Front, the Communists and the Kuomintang were still vying for territorial advantage in `` Free China '' ( i.e. those areas not occupied by the Japanese or ruled by puppet governments ). The uneasy alliance began to break down by late 1938 as a result of the Communists ' efforts to aggressively expand their military strength through absorbing Chinese guerrilla forces behind enemy lines. For Chinese militia who refused to switch their allegiance, the CPC would call them `` collaborators '' and then attack to eliminate their forces. For example, the Red Army led by He Long attacked and wiped out a brigade of Chinese militia led by Zhang Yin - wu in Hebei in June, 1939. The situation came to a head in late 1940 and early 1941 when there were major clashes between the Communist and KMT forces. In December 1940, Chiang Kai - shek demanded that the CPC 's New Fourth Army evacuate Anhui and Jiangsu Provinces. Under intense pressure, the New Fourth Army commanders complied, but they were ambushed and defeated by Nationalist troops in January 1941. This clash, which would be known as the New Fourth Army Incident, weakened the CPC position in Central China and effectively ended any substantive co-operation between the Nationalists and the Communists and both sides concentrated on jockeying for position in the inevitable Civil War. It also ended the Second United Front formed earlier to fight the Japanese. Afterwards, within the Japanese occupied provinces and behind enemy lines the KMT and CPC forces carried on warfare with each other, with the Communists eventually destroying or absorbing the KMT partisan forces or driving them into the puppet forces of the Japanese. The communists under the leadership of Mao Zedong also began to focus most of their energy on building up their sphere of influence wherever opportunities were presented, mainly through rural mass organizations, administrative, land and tax reform measures favoring poor peasants ; while the KMT allocated many divisions of its regular army to carry out military blockade of the CPC areas in an attempt to neutralize the spread of Communist influence until the end of the Second Sino - Japanese War. After the Second Sino - Japanese War, Chiang Kai Shek and Mao Zedong attempted to engage in peace talks. This effort failed and by 1946 the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party were engaged in all - out civil war. The Communists were able to obtain seized Japanese weapons and took the opportunity to engage the already weakened KMT. In October 1949, Mao Zedong established the People 's Republic of China, while Chiang Kai - Shek retreated to the island of Taiwan. See also Communists Party of China 's Central Committee Declaration of Cooperation between KMT and CPC ( in Chinese ) First United Front United Front ( People 's Republic of China ) United Front Doctrine United front References Jump up ^ Wilbur, C. Martin ( 1983 ), The nationalist revolution in China, 1923 -- 1928, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 31864 - 8 P. 114 Jump up ^ Taylor, Jay ( 2009 ). The Generalissimo : Chiang Kai - shek and the struggle for modern China, Cambridge, Massachusetts : Harvard University Press P. 94 Jump up ^ `` Archived copy ''. Archived from the original on 2012 - 12 - 07. Retrieved 2012 - 12 - 07. Jump up ^ Ye, Zhaoyan Ye, Berry, Michael. ( 2003 ). Nanjing 1937 : A Love Story. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0 - 231 - 12754 - 5. Jump up ^ Buss, Claude Albert. ( 1972 ). Stanford Alumni Association. The People 's Republic of China and Richard Nixon. United States. Jump up ^ Ray Huang, 從 大 歷史 的 角度 讀 蔣介石 日記 ( Reading Chiang Kai - shek 's Diary from a Macro History Perspective ) China Times Publishing Company, 1994 - 1 - 31 ISBN 957 - 13 - 0962 - 1, p. 259 ^ Jump up to : Schoppa, R. Keith. ( 2000 ). The Columbia Guide to Modern Chinese History. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0 - 231 - 11276 - 9. Jump up ^ `` Crisis ''. Time. 13 November 1944. Jump up ^ https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/cwr/88312.htm Resistance and Revolution in China Chinese Civil War Principal belligerents and campaigns Nationalist Party / Republic of China ( National Revolutionary Army → Republic of China Armed Forces ) Communist Party / People 's Republic of China ( Red Army → 8th Route Army, N4A, etc. → People 's Liberation Army ) Pre-1945 Post-1945 Current issues 1924 First United Front 1926 Canton Coup 1927 Nanking Incident Shanghai Commune Shanghai massacre Nanjing - Wuhan Split 715 Incident Nanchang uprising Autumn Harvest Uprising Guangzhou Uprising 1929 Sino - Soviet conflict 1930 -- 1934 Encirclement Campaigns 1931 -- 1934 Chinese Soviet Republic 1933 -- 1934 Fujian People 's Government 1934 -- 1936 Long March 1936 Xi'an Incident 1937 -- 1946 Second United Front 1944 Dixie Mission 1945 Chongqing Negotiations Double Tenth Agreement 1946 Jiaochangkou Incident 1945 - 1947 Marshall Mission 1945 -- 1949 Operation Beleaguer 1946 -- 1949 Revolution 1948 SS Kiangya Incident Liaoshen Campaign 1948 -- 1949 Huaihai Campaign Pingjin Campaign 1949 Taiping Steamer Incident Yangtze River Crossing Campaign 1950 -- 1958 Kuomintang Islamic insurgency 1950 Hainan Island Campaign Wanshan Archipelago Campaign Battle of Chamdo ( Incorporation of Tibet ) 1955 First Taiwan Strait Crisis 1958 Second Taiwan Strait Crisis ( Jinmen Crisis ) 1960 -- 1961 China -- Burma border Third Taiwan Strait Crisis 2005 -- present Pan-Blue visits Political status of Taiwan Chinese unification Taiwan independence movement Cross-Strait relations Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Second_United_Front&oldid=850193301 '' Categories : 1930s in China 1940s in China China in World War II Chinese Civil War Military history of the Republic of China National Revolutionary Army Political party alliances in China Popular fronts Republic of China ( 1912 -- 49 ) Second Sino - Japanese War History of the Communist Party of China Hidden categories : Articles with Chinese - language external links Articles containing Chinese - language text Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Eesti Français 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Português Русский ไทย 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 14 July 2018, at 08 : 44 ( UTC ). 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Question: who did the nationalists and communists in china form an alliance against
Answer: the Japanese