Part 5/17:
Mao’s tenure is widely regarded as a catastrophic failure, especially regarding economic management. The Great Leap Forward aimed to rapidly industrialize China and collectivize farms by forcing peasants into collective farming. This effort ignored the lessons of Soviet failures with collectivization and led to disastrous famines, causing an estimated death toll of between 15 to 55 million. The policy resulted in severe famine, economic stagnation, and immense human suffering.
The Cultural Revolution further decimated Chinese society—targeting intellectuals, destroying cultural heritage, and dismantling the economy. It was essentially a purge of traditional Chinese culture and knowledge, with little regard for economic pragmatism or social stability.