History glossary
Great Leap Forward
Mao's 1958-1962 campaign to rapidly transform agriculture and industry through mass mobilization.
- Category
- Political campaign
- Region
- China
- Date range
- 1958-1962
What it means
The Great Leap Forward was Mao Zedong's campaign, launched in 1958, to accelerate China's development through communes, mass mobilization, backyard steel production, and ambitious production targets. Inflated reporting, coercive procurement, and policy failure contributed to a catastrophic famine.
Related terms
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