Centuries of Vicissitudes: A Chronicle of China's National Industry and Commerce History

Author: Hu Zhang Editorial
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: A difficult and winding development process that provokes deep reflection; a vivid portrayal of real commercial struggles, intense and dynamic; the of individual business elites, lifelike and vivid; a collection of long-forgotten historical photographs, invaluable. The Chinese national industry and commerce have gone through a century of history, enduring vicissitudes and hardships. Nurtured and sprouted amidst the strong ships and powerful guns of imperialism; grown with difficulty under the dark rule of feudalism; ushered in a glorious period of development with the sound of the 1911 Revolution; nearly collapsing under the "control" of Japanese invaders; and truly reborn within the embrace of the People's Republic of China. The emergence and development of every new thing are not smooth sailing; it is through hardship that its tenacious will is tempered and its resilient life is shaped, effectively driving the development of the national economy and social progress, making an indelible contribution to advancing the course of Chinese history.
"To speak of light industry, one cannot forget Zhang Qian; to speak of heavy industry, one cannot forget Zhang Zhidong; to speak of chemistry, one cannot forget Fan Xudong; to speak of transportation and communications, one cannot forget Lu Zuofu." — Mao Zedong
"China does not have a red bourgeoisie, but it does have red capitalists." — Zhou Enlai
"The private capitalist economy in China represents advanced productive forces, possessing revolutionary and progressive qualities. Transforming China from an agrarian nation into an industrial one, and turning consumer cities into production cities, the national bourgeoisie plays a vital role." — Liu Shaoqi
The Century of Vicissitudes: A Chronicle of China's National Industry and Commerce takes the four major stages of the development of China's national industry and commerce as its main thread, selecting representative figures from each development period to profoundly recreate the winding journey of China's national industry and commerce from its birth to its growth and prosperity.
The of the Opium War marked the beginning of modern Chinese history and also sounded the clarion call for the development of China's national industry and commerce. The advanced production technologies and business concepts of the West brought unprecedented changes to China's economy and society. From state-run enterprises to state-supervised and commercial-run enterprises, and finally to the independent operation of private capital, China's national industry and commerce finally broke free from its cocoon. The defeat in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 made "saving the nation through industry" the theme of the era. The late Qing "New Policies," the Russo-Japanese War, the 1911 Revolution, and the subsequent World War I provided China's national economy with a relatively relaxed environment and opportunities for development, allowing China's national industry and commerce to grow from a spark into a prairie fire.
During its growth, China's national industry and commerce underwent major events such as the establishment of the Nanjing government, the occupation of Manchuria, the global economic crisis, the decade-long civil war, the War of Resistance against Japan, and the War of Liberation. There were both peaks and troughs, and it experienced a complex and tortuous process of difficult development. The founding of the People's Republic of China brought true hope and a dawn of development to Chinese society. With the establishment of the new socialist system, China's national industry and commerce, supported and protected by the Party and the government, developed rapidly. In the end, it transformed from national capital-owned industry and commerce into state-private joint enterprises with socialist characteristics, making positive and significant contributions to consolidating and developing the national economy.