The early years of the Communist Party of China were not easy. Small, but ever-growing, this new political force soon threw itself into the task organizing miners and factory workers in China's big cities into a revolutionary force.

But was the support of the Chinese working class enough on its own? Answering that question would lead this young party into an alliance and a struggle for survival that would not just see the party survive but witness the rise of one of history's greatest personalities - Mao Zedong.