On the morning of June 4, 1989, months of student protests were violently quashed by China’s soldiers in the heart of Beijing, leaving a legacy that the world will not soon forget
The Gathering Storm
In April of 1989, university students descend on Beijing's Tiananmen Square to commemorate the death, by heart attack, of deposed General Secretary Hu Yaobang and voice discontent with the government. By May 18, the students are five days into a hunger strike. They are joined by civil servants, factory workers and other supporters and the crowd and the crowd — now one million strong — shouts slogans demanding resignation of Deng Xioaping.Patrick Zachmann / Magnum Photos
Advance
As the soldiers advance, many, including bystanders, are shot and killed.Robert Croma / Eyepress New
Solidarity
A man pulls a Chinese soldier away from this comrade. Thousands of Beijing citizens took to the streets to block the troops as they made their way to the square.Mark Avery / AP Photo
Under Cover
A man sneaks along a street left devastated by the army's push toward the city center. By the morning of June 4th, Tiananmen Square is surrounded.Jacques Langevin / Sygma /Cobris
Powerless
A student lies down during the protests.Robert Croma / Eyepress News
The Dead
Dead bodies, heaped en masse. The number of people killed in the crackdown is disputed to this day. Estimates vary from several hundred to several thousand.Dario Mitidieri / Reportage / Getty Images
A Plea, Unanswered
A man begs a soldier not to attack the students. Many in Beijing were outraged to see Chinese soldiers kill fellow Chinese, especially students.Peter Turnley / Cobris
The Legacy
The next day, pedestrians walked by the charred remains of Chinese military vehicles torched in anger. For some, that anger — now tinged with outrage over the government's silence — persists. But strict rules about discussing the incident keeps the events of June 4, 1989 shrouded in silence.David Turnley / Cobris
To The Square
Trucks from around the city — and across the country — pour into Tiananmen Square square, swelling the ranks. On the evening of May 18th Party elders and Politburo members, including Deng Xiaoping and Li Peng, approve the declaration of martial law. On May 19th martial law is declared.Patrick Zachmann / Magnum Photos
Waiting Game
The students hold the square while the government tries, in vain, to move the People's Liberation Army into Beijing. After days spent stuck in Beijing's congested streets, the PLA retreats.Jacques Langevin / Sygma / Corbis
Camping Out
Deadlock ensues. Meanwhile, the city is flooded with demonstrators who eat, sleep and protest in the vicinity of Tiananmen Square.Patrick Zachmann / Magnum Photos
The Preamble
A month before the crackdown, momentum was already gathering as thousands of students swarmed in the square on May 4, 1989 to call for greater freedom of speech and democracy.Peter Turnley / Corbis
Crowd Control
Once the protests started the next month, chaos reigned with tens of thousands of soldiers and demonstrators on Beijing's street. The government, students and soldiers wait for someone to make the next move.Robert Croma / Eyepress News
Chain Of Command
Soldiers await their orders. Many of the troops who entered Beijing were young farmers with little knowledge of city life.Stuart Franklin / Magnum Photos
Crackdown
On the night of June 3, the soldiers are ordered to take the square. Tanks roll through the streets.O'Hara / Focus Magazine / Sipa Press
State of Emergency
An injured woman is rushed to hospital by bicycle. The conflict escalates overnight, with many dead and wounded.Dario Mitidieri / Reportage /Getty Images
