Terry McAuliffe
American businessman and politician
Jiang Qing, also known as Madame Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary and major political figure during the Cultural Revolution. She was the fourth wife of Mao Zedong and played a significant role in the events of that tumultuous period in Chinese history.
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Jiang Qingduring her acting career (which ended in 1938), and was known by many other names. Jiang was best known for playing a major role in the Cultural Revolution and for forming the radical political alliance known as the Gang of Four.
Jiang married Mao in Yan’an in November 1938 and served as the inaugural “First Lady” of the People’s Republic of China. She served as Mao’s personal secretary in the 1940s and was head of the Film Section of the Communist Party’s Propaganda Department in the 1950s. Jiang served as an important emissary for Mao in the early stages of the Cultural Revolution. In 1966, she was appointed deputy director of the Central Cultural Revolution Group. She collaborated with Lin Biao to advance Mao’s view of Communist ideology as well as Mao’s cult of personality. At the height of the Cultural Revolution, Jiang held significant influence in the affairs of state, particularly in the realm of culture and the arts, and was idolized in propaganda posters as the “Great Flagbearer of the Proletarian Revolution”. In 1969, Jiang gained a seat on the Politburo. Before Mao’s death, the Gang of Four controlled many of China’s political institutions, including the media and propaganda. However, Jiang, deriving most of her political legitimacy from Mao, often found herself at odds with other top leaders.
Mao’s death in 1976 dealt a significant blow to Jiang’s political fortunes. She was arrested in October 1976 by Hua Guofeng and his allies, and was subsequently condemned by party authorities. Since then, Jiang has been officially branded as having been part of the “Lin Biao and Jiang Qing Counter-Revolutionary Cliques” (Lin Biao Jiang Qing Fan Ge Ming Ji Tuan ), to which most of the blame for the damage and devastation caused by the Cultural Revolution was assigned. Though she was initially sentenced to death, her sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 1983. After being released for medical treatment, Jiang committed suicide in May 1991.
Jiang Qing was a Chinese communist revolutionary, actress, and major political figure during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). She was the fourth wife of Mao Zedong, the Chairman of the Communist Party and Paramount leader of China.
Jiang Qing played a major role in the Cultural Revolution and formed the radical political alliance known as the Gang of Four. She was appointed deputy director of the Central Cultural Revolution Group in 1966 and collaborated with Lin Biao to advance Mao’s communist ideology and cult of personality.
After Mao’s death in 1976, Jiang Qing’s political fortunes took a significant blow. She was arrested in October 1976 by Hua Guofeng and his allies and was subsequently condemned by party authorities as part of the ,Lin Biao and Jiang Qing Counter-Revolutionary Cliques,.
Jiang Qing had an acting career in the 1930s, using the stage name Lan Ping, before becoming Mao Zedong’s fourth wife in 1938. She served as Mao’s personal secretary in the 1940s and was head of the Film Section of the Communist Party’s Propaganda Department in the 1950s.
Though Jiang Qing was initially sentenced to death, her sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 1983. After being released for medical treatment, she died by suicide in May 1991.