China’s Great Famine (1959-1961): Summary
- The biggest famine ever recorded happened in China between 1959 and 1961.
- While the lack of rain made things worse, most of the suffering was caused by people, mainly Mao Zedong. We can’t say for sure how many people died, but estimates suggest around 30 million.
- Even now, two generations later, China hasn’t openly looked into what caused the famine and what happened because of it.
China’s Great Famine (1959-1961)
Around forty years ago, China faced the world’s biggest famine. It happened from around 1959 to 1961, and sadly, about 30 million Chinese people died because of it. Additionally, nearly the same number of births didn’t happen or were delayed. The famine was mostly caused by ideological reasons. It’s considered as significant as the two world wars in terms of public deaths caused by humans, according to Richard Rhodes, an expert.
Now, after two generations, China has become economically successful and can provide enough food. In this article, we take a look at a detailed explanation of China’s Great Famine (1959-1961).
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