Contemporaries of Mao Tse-Tung?

Question

Hi

I am doing a history project and I need some ideas of leaders that lived in Mao's era(1893-1976)

Please tell me if the following leaders are considered to be contemporaries of Mao

Hitler-1889-1945

Stalin-1878-1953

Ho Chi Minh 1890-1969

Answer 1

Yes, yes and yes.

Hitler and Mao were pen-pals, too!

Answer 2

Each of these built a nation out of ruins. You will need to define "nationalism". Stalin and Ho Chi Minh fit in better than Hitler. I know that the dates overlap but Mao's rise was really post-1945.

You should read "The Rise and Fall of Lin Piao".

There  you will get a good idea of Mao's influence on his contemporaries. Edgar Snow has a lot of good material but beware of his presentation.

  I have always felt that Mao's rise in the party was a little fortuitous.

  To understand Hitler you need a book on the conditions in post1914 Germany. Note the people who suported him because they thought it would be to their advantage. von Ribbentrop is an example. Nobody could use Hitler; he was his own man.

  When you read about Ho Chi have a look at the situation which developed after the VietNam war, wwhen China tried to put pressure on him.

You have a fascinating topic and there is enough material around to fill several books. Be careful in the topics you select to cover within your project.

  

Answer 3

Well, technically they all are.  However, Mao Tse-Tung became a prominent political figure right after WW2, so you might be better off picking people that were also in office in the period between 1945 and 1976.

What about Richard Nixon, Leonid Brejnev, Hirohito?  They all had their own opinion on China.