Contributor(s): Richard McGregor | China's political and economic growth in the past three decades is one of astonishing, epochal dimensions. The country has undergone a remarkable transformation on a scale similar to the industrial revolution in the West. The most remarkable part of this transformation, however, has been largely left untold the central role of the Chinese Communist Party. As an organization alone, the Party is a phenomenon of unique scale and power. With more than seventy-three million members, it does more than just rule a country. The Party not only has a grip on every aspect of government, from the largest, richest cities to the smallest far-flung villages in Tibet and Xinjiang, it also presides over all official religions, the media, the military and large state-owned businesses.