Some 70 million Chinese, along with countless Tibetans, Mongolians, Manchus, Koreans, Hmong, Uyghurs, and other nationalities, perished at his hands during his long and brutal reign. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office /> Mao was born into a rich peasant family in a valley called Shaoshan, set in the heartland of <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = urn:schemas-