Claude Cadart (; 12 November 1927 – 4 May 2019) was a French sinologist and a specialist in the history of contemporary China. Together with his wife Cheng Yingxiang, he translated and published the memoirs of his father-in-law

Peng Shuzhi Peng Shuzhi (also spelled Peng Shu-tse; ;alias Ivan Petrov, Xi Zhao, Nan Guan, Tao Bo, Ou Bo. 1895–1983) was an early leader of the Chinese Communist Party who was expelled from the party for being a Trotskyist. After the Communist victory in C ...

, a dissident

Trotskyist Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...

early leader of the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

. He was one of the first European intellectuals to criticize

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; traditionally Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Mao Tse-tung. (26December 18939September 1976) was a Chinese politician, revolutionary, and political theorist who founded the People's Republic of China (PRC) in ...

's political campaigns.

Biography

Cadart was born on 12 November 1927 in Paris. He participated in

anti-Nazi resistance Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and later worked as a journalist. In the early 1960s, Cadart became a researcher at the (CERI) of

Sciences Po Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...

and dedicated himself to the study of contemporary China. At a time when many sinologists considered

a visionary leader, Cadart cautioned that Mao's political campaigns, most notably the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

, were not the liberation or left movements that many European leftists had envisioned, but were merely political machinations for maintaining his own power. This was before

Simon Leys Pierre Ryckmans (28 September 1935 – 11 August 2014), better known by his pen name Simon Leys, was a Belgian-Australian writer, essayist and literary critic, translator, art historian, sinologist, and university professor, who lived in Austral ...

published ''Les Habits neufs du président Mao'' in 1971, the famous work that exposed the destructions of Mao's Cultural Revolution. Cadart was married to Cheng Yingxiang (程映湘), the daughter of the early

leader

. Peng had been expelled from the CCP for supporting

Trotskyism Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...

and fled to France with his family after the CCP victory in the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led Nationalist government, government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Armed conflict continued intermitt ...

. Cadart and Cheng organized, translated into French, and published the memoirs of Peng Shuzhi, which exposed an aspect of Communist China little known to the outside world at the time. After Mao's death in 1976 and the advent of the

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping also Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng (). (22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese statesman, revolutionary, and political theorist who served as the paramount leader of the People's R ...

era, Cadart assisted Cheng with her book ''Dégel de l’intelligence en Chine''. Cadart died in Paris on 4 May 2019, the

centenary A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

of China's

May Fourth Movement The May Fourth Movement was a Chinese cultural and anti-imperialist political movement which grew out of student protests in Beijing on May 4, 1919. Students gathered in front of Tiananmen to protest the Chinese government's weak response ...

, at the age of 91.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cadart, Claude 1927 births 2019 deaths French Resistance members French sinologists Historians of China Academic staff of Sciences Po Writers from Paris 20th-century French historians