The revolution of 1911 changed China in that it brought about the end of 2000 years of imperial rule, however little true change occurred. The country had already become out of central government control and so the warlord era that ensued was somewhat of a continuation from before. However, it did allow the creation of the Chinese Communist Party by creating an environment of political exploration. The revolution of 1949 however, brought substantial political and social change; similar to what was promised in 1911, although it did not bring the economic changes the Chinese people had hoped for. These did not materialize until the rise of Deng Xiaoping in 1978 when his reforms finally allowed the Chinese economy to flourish.

The political changes during each of the phases of China's history vary substantially. The revolution of 1911 brought little effective political change to the country; the imperial government had not had full control of...