Yuan Wencai
Encyclopedia
Yuan Wencai was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan
in Jiangxi
province, China
, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong
during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet
. However, this caused his own life in the following power struggle within the Communist Party of China
.
family in Maoping county, at the foothills of the Luoxian Mountains, in October, 1898. After graduating from a private elementary school, he dropped out of a local public middle school when his father abruptly died in 1920, leaving the family destitute. Being one of the extremely few peasants who received some education, he was elected by the local peasants as their representatives in their struggle against the brutal oppression of local landlords. As a result, he was deeply feared and hated by local strongmen such as Xie Guannan (谢冠南). In 1923, Xie Guannan (谢冠南) had Yuan Wencai's home ransacked, house burned down, his elder brother imprisoned, his wife raped and then enslaved, while his mother murdered execution style. The local strongmen were able to bribe the corrupted local government and had Yuan Wencai as wanted criminal. This marked the end of Yuan's struggle for welfare of the local peasants in legal means. The young Yuan Wencai, then in his early twenties, fled into the mountains and joined a group of brigands calling themselves the "Horse and Sword Brigade" (馬刀隊) headed by Hu Yachun (胡亚春). Yuan Wencai soon proved himself and it was not long before he became the leader of bandits. They operated in the hills of Jinggangshan, particularly around Ningang county, and had close ties with the "Green Forest" (绿林) bandits based on higher terrain, led by Wang Zuo
. Yuan Wencai proved to be a better leader than Wang Zuo
in that he had managed to win greater support of local peasants, and in 1924, Yuan's band attacked and took the town of Ninggang (宁冈), burned down the governmental administrative building.
Jiangxi
government sent in a battalion to eradicate Yuan's force, but due to the completely lack of support of local population which cheered Yuan's action, not only the campaign had failed to eradicate Yuan's force and resulted in defeat, but also suffered heavy casualties, though a great portion of the casualties suffered by the governmental force was due to illness. The failed governmental attempt increased Yuan's reputation among local peasants. In 1925, Wang Zuo
was forced to flee to Yuan Wencai's turf due to a coup staged by his subordinates, and Yuan helped Wang to defeat his opponents and firmly reestablished Wang's position as the chief of the band. The two became sworn brothers and strategically positioned their forces to secure their bases in Jinggangshan
. Yuan's force was stationed at the foothills at Maoping (茅坪), while Wang's force was stationed in the mountains at higher elevation at Greater and Lesser Five Wells (Daxiaowujing 大小五井).
via the Ninggang (宁冈) communist You Chaoqing (尤超清). In September, 1925, Yuan's force was reorganized as the Ninggang (宁冈) Security Regiment with Yuan as the regimental commander, and this is the first armed force in China
that was under the control of Communist Party of China
. In October 1926, during the Northern Expedition, he organized an attack on Ninggang county, deposed the local county chief Shen Qingyuan (沈清源) of the Beiyang clique of warlord
s, while seizing weapons and securing the area for the Communists. In November of that year, he became a member of the Communist Party, and his men were reorganized as a peasant self-defence force. After the appointment of a new county chief by the newly-established Republican government
at Nanjing
.
After April 12 Incident
, Yuan Wencai, like Wang Zuo
, decided to stay with communist side, and became the only two surviving communist forces locally, each had around sixty rifle
s respectively. Both Yuan and Wang adopted new strategies when they resumed their banditry activities for survival in that they had only targeted the richest landlords and merchants who were mostly hated by the general population. In doing so, they had managed not only to win the support of lower and lower-middle classes, but also that of many members of the middle class such as small business owners. Consequently, this successful practice also became the source of their crimes they were accused of in their subsequent downfall, when their future comrades accused them for being "Not carrying out the revolution completely" and "Being rightist". Due to the popular support from those with better economic status, the communists were able to secure a steady supply of provisions needed via trade, and helped with properties confiscated from the richest local strongmen, the communists became bolder and concentrated on guerrilla warfare against local governmental forces which were incapable of exterminating Yuan's and Wang's forces due to the strong popular support the communists enjoyed. In July, 1927, under the order of communists, Yuan's men and Wang's men raided Yongxin (永新) county, freeing over 80 Communist Party agents held in the local jail converted from a gaol. Although the town was briefly occupied, it was obvious that it was impossible for the token communist force to hold the town and thus they soon withdrew to the mountains to continue their guerrilla warfare.
arrived at Sanwan (三湾) village of Yongxin (永新) county, just north of Jinggangshan
, with the remnants from the abortive Autumn Harvest Uprising
, and sent letters to both Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo
to ask their help to establish a communist base locally. On October 3, 1927, Mao's force reached the town of Ninggang (宁冈) and held a conference, at which Mao personally vetoed the suggestion to eliminate Yuan and Wang by force. At first Yuan Wencai was suspicious of Mao and lay an ambush on the mountain road to Ninggang to defend his turf. Accompanied by You Chaoqing (尤超清), Mao went to meet Yuan on October 6, 1927 at Dacang (大仓) village near Maoping (茅坪), and convinced Yuan to join his men. Mao gave more than a hundred rifle
s to Yuan and in return, Yuan gave over a thousand silver dollars to Mao. The next day, Yuan personally held a ceremony to welcome Mao and his men to Maoping (茅坪). Yuan had his bodyguard Li Genjin (李根勤) accompany Mao to Maoping, where they set up military headquarters. Yuan subsequently helped to gather five tons of grains and a huge amount of cloth to Mao's men, and helped to established the first military hospital in the communist base.
That winter Yuan's men drilled together with the Communists and were further indoctrinated in Marxist political theory, when Mao sent cadres including Xu Yangang (徐彦刚), You Xuecheng (游雪程), and Chen Bojun (陈伯钧) to help Yuan. In February 1928, the forces of Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo were officially incorporated into the regular Communist army as the 1st Army
, 1st Division
, 2nd Regiment
. Yuan was named as the regimental commander, and Wang as the deputy regimental commander, with He Changgong as the communist party representative (何长工). They participated in a successful attack at Xincheng on a battalion of the Kuomintang
's Jiangxi
Army, killing the enemy commander and taking more than a hundred prisoners. In the spring of 1928 Yuan Wencai introduced the sister of a classmate, He Zizhen
, to Mao Zedong. They couple began living together soon afterwards, much to the delight of Yuan. He cooked them a nuptial supper, apparently hoping that the partnership would commit Mao more strongly to the area's defence.
Soon afterwards, he accompanied Mao Zedong to Lingxian county in southern Hunan
province in aid of Zhu De
. Jinggangshan had meanwhile been overrun by landlord militia and had to be reconquered. After Zhu De's soldiers joined the Jinggangshan base, they were merged with the existing forces to become the Fourth "Red Army". Yuan and Wang's 2nd Regiment was renamed the 32nd Regiment. Later in the year, Zhu De's 28th and 29th regiments crossed into Hunan. The 32nd Regiment was given the assignment of securing Maoping from the advance of the Kuomintang's Jiangxi units until his return.
In January 1929, the bulk of the Red Army left Jinggangshan
to establish a new base at Ruijin
, leaving around 800 ex-Kuomintang troops under Peng Dehuai
. Just after the New Year, it was agreed that Peng's men and the 32nd Regiment of Wang Zuo
and Yuan Wencai should stay behind to defend Jinggangshan. Under intense pressure for about a week, Peng gathered together his three surviving companies and broke through the enemy blockade with heavy casualties. For the next year Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo survived with their men in the mountains and may have returned to banditry in their gurrilla warfare. The Kuomintang's repeated mop up operations against them proved to be futile because the communist forces only confiscated property from wealthy landlords, and distributing to peasants. As a result, such banditry was viewed positively by the local general populace, which refused to corporate with the Kuomintang forces.
were not immune to the power struggles within the Communist Party of China in the early 1930s. Xiang Zhongfa
and Li Lisan
succeeded in rising to power under the direction and support of the Comintern
and their extreme leftist policy inevitably effected all communist bases in China, including Jinggangshan. The extreme leftism of the new communist leadership included what Mao Zedong called military adventurism, which included attempts to take over the large cities, a result of unrealistic optimism on the Chinese
revolution and a direct copy of the Soviet model of urban revolution.
The new strategy was obvious unfit for China at the time, and many commanders such as Peng Dehuai, Zhu De and Chen Yi
voiced their opposition, Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai included, but it was useless because the new leadership refused to change its policy. As a result, the communist forces met disastrous defeats in attempts to carry out this unrealistic policy. Mao Zedong strongly opposed the military adventurism of Xiang Zhongfa
and Li Lisan, but lost and was temporarily forced out of the communist leadership and sent to southern Jiangxi. Although Mao's new position appeared to have the equal rank, in reality Mao was demoted, and could not protect Yuan and Wang, and his other proteges like he used to. Furthermore, during the 6th National Conference of Communist Party of China
held from June to July, 1928 in Moscow
, the top brass of communists passed the resolution on the "Organizational Problems of Soviet Government", in which it clearly stated that the bandits could only be utilized before the success of uprising, but afterward, they must be eliminated. This resolution had provided excellent ammo for Li Lisan and Xiang Zhongfa in their power struggle against Mao, and people like Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo were obviously targets.
However, the political struggle did not end at the top leadership of the communists. In contrast to the professional soldier Peng Dehuai who faithfully attempted to carry out the impossible missions by dutifully obeying the orders despite his personal opposition, which of course ended in obivous defeats, Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai not only voiced their opposition in words, but also carried it out in action by simply refusing to obey the unrealistic orders from the new communist party leadership and continued to practice Mao Zedong's strategy. The result of their actions was the obvious success that enabled Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai to have most of their force preserved. However, the relative success of Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai not only proved to be useless in helping them within the communist party, but it also served as a catalyst of their downfall because their success of preserving their own forces was viewed as an urgent threat by the new communist leadership, since with greater military force, it was more difficult to remove them politically. With their primary supporter and protector Mao Zedong falling out from power, Wang Zuo's and Yuan Wencai's days were numbered.
When the resolution from the communist 6th National Conference held in the mid-1928 in Moscow
reached the communist base in Jinggangshan
, it was already winter. In the beginning of 1929, Mao held the Bailu (柏露) Conference to discuss the issue. Wang Huai (王怀), the communist party secretary of Yongxin (永新) county and You Chaoqing (尤超清), the communist party secretary of Ninggang (宁冈) county, who had been at odds with Yuan and Wang insisted on executing Yuan and Wang according to the resolution but their suggestion was once again vetoed by Mao. The resulting decision was that Wang would remain to command forces in the communist base, while Yuan would be named as the chief-of-staff and deployed with the communist force striking southern Jiangxi
. During campaigns in southern Jiangxi
, Yuan accidentally came across the resolution from Moscow
at Donggu (东固), and although he feared for his life, he decided to prove himself by returning to the communist base in May, 1929, and he continued his service with communist faithfully, but this did not help.
's and Li Lisan's three lieutenants Zhu Changxie (朱昌偕) and Wang Huai (王怀), who told Peng that they had just received intelligence claiming Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai had defected to Kuomintang, and thus they need Peng's signature to deploy troops to exterminate the traitors. Ironically, one of the supporters of Zhu Changxie (朱昌偕) and Wang Huai (王怀), You Chaoqing (尤超清), was the one who introduced Wang and Yuan to the communists. Knowning both Wang and Yuan would not do such thing, Peng initially refused and argued with them to defend Wang and Yuan. The three lieutenants of Xiang Zhongfa and Li Lisan then changed their story by claiming that the intelligence was indeeded appeared to be a rumor, and they were to be invited to a meeting to clear things up, some force would be deployed just in case. Sensing Peng Dehuai's opposition, the three also asked Peng not to be involved by staying where he was instead of going to the planned meeting, for the sake of not to agitate situation. This tactic finally convinced Peng Dehuai who give his signature, and the three men led over three hundred troops away to plot their next move.
After leaving Peng Dehuai's camp, the three immediately faked Mao Zedong's order to lure both Yuan and Wang to the supposed meeting to discuss the military situation. But once Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai reached the meeting, they were shot in obscure circumstances, allegedly ambushed while trying to rebel. Wang managed to escape out a window but drowned whilst attempting to cross a river.
As early as October of that year, Mao Zedong criticized the officials in power of the Jiangxi Soviet for the assassination of his old allies. Just who gave the order for the death of Wang Zuo, however, is still not clear, although a number of officials of the Jiangxi Communist Party were implicated. Wang Yunlong (王雲隆), Wang Zuo's younger brother and an officer of the 32nd Regiment, became the new leader of his brother's men, and defected to Kuomintang, taking many former Yuan Wencai's men with them. After Wang Yunlong (王雲隆)'s death, Wang Zuo's son became the leader and it was not until nearly two decades later in 1949 when the communists were finally able to retake Jinggangshan.
After 1949, both Yuan and Wang were marked as examples of ideologically reformed bandits who had been transformed into Communist soldiers. Both were recognised as martyr
s of the Chinese Revolution. When Zhu De visited Jinggangshan in 1962 and Mao Zedong in 1965, both called upon Yuan Wencai's elderly widow Xie Meixiang (謝梅香). In 1986, his grave was moved to the newly constructed Jinggangshan Martyrs Cemetery. Although Peng Dehuai was not directly involved in the death of Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo, as proved by the history, that did not prevent Mao Zedong from blaming it on Peng, and Peng Dehuai was persecuted thirty years later, the death of Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai was one of the alleged crime Peng committed against Mao, and this alleged crime again appeared during the Cultural Revolution
when Peng Dehuai was struggled by the Red Guard
s.
Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan is located in the Luoxian Mountains , in the remote border region between Jiangxi and Hunan provinces of China. It lies at the junction of four counties - Ninggang, Yongxing, Suichuan and Lingxian. The mountains cover some 670 km², with an average elevation of 381.5 m above sea...
in Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
province, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet
Jiangxi Soviet
The Chinese Soviet Republic , also translated as the Soviet Republic of China or the China Soviet Republic, and often referred to in historical literature as the Jiangxi Soviet , was a state established in November 1931 by the future Communist Party of China leader Mao...
. However, this caused his own life in the following power struggle within the Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
.
Early life
Yuan was born into a HakkaHakka people
The Hakka , sometimes Hakka Han, are Han Chinese who speak the Hakka language and have links to the provincial areas of Guangdong, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan and Fujian in China....
family in Maoping county, at the foothills of the Luoxian Mountains, in October, 1898. After graduating from a private elementary school, he dropped out of a local public middle school when his father abruptly died in 1920, leaving the family destitute. Being one of the extremely few peasants who received some education, he was elected by the local peasants as their representatives in their struggle against the brutal oppression of local landlords. As a result, he was deeply feared and hated by local strongmen such as Xie Guannan (谢冠南). In 1923, Xie Guannan (谢冠南) had Yuan Wencai's home ransacked, house burned down, his elder brother imprisoned, his wife raped and then enslaved, while his mother murdered execution style. The local strongmen were able to bribe the corrupted local government and had Yuan Wencai as wanted criminal. This marked the end of Yuan's struggle for welfare of the local peasants in legal means. The young Yuan Wencai, then in his early twenties, fled into the mountains and joined a group of brigands calling themselves the "Horse and Sword Brigade" (馬刀隊) headed by Hu Yachun (胡亚春). Yuan Wencai soon proved himself and it was not long before he became the leader of bandits. They operated in the hills of Jinggangshan, particularly around Ningang county, and had close ties with the "Green Forest" (绿林) bandits based on higher terrain, led by Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo 王佐 , nicknamed Nandougu , was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province, China, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet...
. Yuan Wencai proved to be a better leader than Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo 王佐 , nicknamed Nandougu , was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province, China, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet...
in that he had managed to win greater support of local peasants, and in 1924, Yuan's band attacked and took the town of Ninggang (宁冈), burned down the governmental administrative building.
Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
government sent in a battalion to eradicate Yuan's force, but due to the completely lack of support of local population which cheered Yuan's action, not only the campaign had failed to eradicate Yuan's force and resulted in defeat, but also suffered heavy casualties, though a great portion of the casualties suffered by the governmental force was due to illness. The failed governmental attempt increased Yuan's reputation among local peasants. In 1925, Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo 王佐 , nicknamed Nandougu , was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province, China, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet...
was forced to flee to Yuan Wencai's turf due to a coup staged by his subordinates, and Yuan helped Wang to defeat his opponents and firmly reestablished Wang's position as the chief of the band. The two became sworn brothers and strategically positioned their forces to secure their bases in Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan is located in the Luoxian Mountains , in the remote border region between Jiangxi and Hunan provinces of China. It lies at the junction of four counties - Ninggang, Yongxing, Suichuan and Lingxian. The mountains cover some 670 km², with an average elevation of 381.5 m above sea...
. Yuan's force was stationed at the foothills at Maoping (茅坪), while Wang's force was stationed in the mountains at higher elevation at Greater and Lesser Five Wells (Daxiaowujing 大小五井).
Early communist years
From the summer of 1925, Yuan Wencai began to have contact with representatives of the Communist Party of ChinaCommunist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
via the Ninggang (宁冈) communist You Chaoqing (尤超清). In September, 1925, Yuan's force was reorganized as the Ninggang (宁冈) Security Regiment with Yuan as the regimental commander, and this is the first armed force in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
that was under the control of Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
. In October 1926, during the Northern Expedition, he organized an attack on Ninggang county, deposed the local county chief Shen Qingyuan (沈清源) of the Beiyang clique of warlord
Warlord era
The Chinese Warlord Era was the period in the history of the Republic of China, from 1916 to 1928, when the country was divided among military cliques, a division that continued until the fall of the Nationalist government in the mainland China regions of Sichuan, Shanxi, Qinghai, Ningxia,...
s, while seizing weapons and securing the area for the Communists. In November of that year, he became a member of the Communist Party, and his men were reorganized as a peasant self-defence force. After the appointment of a new county chief by the newly-established Republican government
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
at Nanjing
Nanjing
' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...
.
After April 12 Incident
April 12 Incident
The April 12 Incident of 1927 refers to the violent suppression of Chinese Communist Party organizations in Shanghai by the military forces of Chiang Kai-shek and conservative factions in the Kuomintang...
, Yuan Wencai, like Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo 王佐 , nicknamed Nandougu , was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province, China, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet...
, decided to stay with communist side, and became the only two surviving communist forces locally, each had around sixty rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s respectively. Both Yuan and Wang adopted new strategies when they resumed their banditry activities for survival in that they had only targeted the richest landlords and merchants who were mostly hated by the general population. In doing so, they had managed not only to win the support of lower and lower-middle classes, but also that of many members of the middle class such as small business owners. Consequently, this successful practice also became the source of their crimes they were accused of in their subsequent downfall, when their future comrades accused them for being "Not carrying out the revolution completely" and "Being rightist". Due to the popular support from those with better economic status, the communists were able to secure a steady supply of provisions needed via trade, and helped with properties confiscated from the richest local strongmen, the communists became bolder and concentrated on guerrilla warfare against local governmental forces which were incapable of exterminating Yuan's and Wang's forces due to the strong popular support the communists enjoyed. In July, 1927, under the order of communists, Yuan's men and Wang's men raided Yongxin (永新) county, freeing over 80 Communist Party agents held in the local jail converted from a gaol. Although the town was briefly occupied, it was obvious that it was impossible for the token communist force to hold the town and thus they soon withdrew to the mountains to continue their guerrilla warfare.
Joining Mao Zedong
On September 30, 1927, Mao ZedongMao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
arrived at Sanwan (三湾) village of Yongxin (永新) county, just north of Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan is located in the Luoxian Mountains , in the remote border region between Jiangxi and Hunan provinces of China. It lies at the junction of four counties - Ninggang, Yongxing, Suichuan and Lingxian. The mountains cover some 670 km², with an average elevation of 381.5 m above sea...
, with the remnants from the abortive Autumn Harvest Uprising
Autumn Harvest Uprising
The Autumn Harvest Uprising was an insurrection that took place in Hunan province and Jiangxi province, China on September 7, 1927, led by Mao Zedong, who established a short-lived Hunan Soviet....
, and sent letters to both Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo 王佐 , nicknamed Nandougu , was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province, China, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet...
to ask their help to establish a communist base locally. On October 3, 1927, Mao's force reached the town of Ninggang (宁冈) and held a conference, at which Mao personally vetoed the suggestion to eliminate Yuan and Wang by force. At first Yuan Wencai was suspicious of Mao and lay an ambush on the mountain road to Ninggang to defend his turf. Accompanied by You Chaoqing (尤超清), Mao went to meet Yuan on October 6, 1927 at Dacang (大仓) village near Maoping (茅坪), and convinced Yuan to join his men. Mao gave more than a hundred rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s to Yuan and in return, Yuan gave over a thousand silver dollars to Mao. The next day, Yuan personally held a ceremony to welcome Mao and his men to Maoping (茅坪). Yuan had his bodyguard Li Genjin (李根勤) accompany Mao to Maoping, where they set up military headquarters. Yuan subsequently helped to gather five tons of grains and a huge amount of cloth to Mao's men, and helped to established the first military hospital in the communist base.
That winter Yuan's men drilled together with the Communists and were further indoctrinated in Marxist political theory, when Mao sent cadres including Xu Yangang (徐彦刚), You Xuecheng (游雪程), and Chen Bojun (陈伯钧) to help Yuan. In February 1928, the forces of Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo were officially incorporated into the regular Communist army as the 1st Army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
, 1st Division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
, 2nd Regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
. Yuan was named as the regimental commander, and Wang as the deputy regimental commander, with He Changgong as the communist party representative (何长工). They participated in a successful attack at Xincheng on a battalion of the Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
's Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
Army, killing the enemy commander and taking more than a hundred prisoners. In the spring of 1928 Yuan Wencai introduced the sister of a classmate, He Zizhen
He Zizhen
He Zizhen was the third wife of Mao Zedong from May 1930 to 1937.- Biography :He Zizhen was born in Yunshan , Jiangxi, during Qing Dynasty China, and joined the Communist Youth League in 1925. She graduated from the Yongxin Girls' School and joined the Communist Party of China in 1926...
, to Mao Zedong. They couple began living together soon afterwards, much to the delight of Yuan. He cooked them a nuptial supper, apparently hoping that the partnership would commit Mao more strongly to the area's defence.
Soon afterwards, he accompanied Mao Zedong to Lingxian county in southern Hunan
Hunan
' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
province in aid of Zhu De
Zhu De
Zhu De was a Chinese militarist, politician, revolutionary, and one of the pioneers of the Chinese Communist Party. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, in 1955 Zhu became one of the Ten Marshals of the People's Liberation Army, of which he is regarded as the founder.-Early...
. Jinggangshan had meanwhile been overrun by landlord militia and had to be reconquered. After Zhu De's soldiers joined the Jinggangshan base, they were merged with the existing forces to become the Fourth "Red Army". Yuan and Wang's 2nd Regiment was renamed the 32nd Regiment. Later in the year, Zhu De's 28th and 29th regiments crossed into Hunan. The 32nd Regiment was given the assignment of securing Maoping from the advance of the Kuomintang's Jiangxi units until his return.
In January 1929, the bulk of the Red Army left Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan is located in the Luoxian Mountains , in the remote border region between Jiangxi and Hunan provinces of China. It lies at the junction of four counties - Ninggang, Yongxing, Suichuan and Lingxian. The mountains cover some 670 km², with an average elevation of 381.5 m above sea...
to establish a new base at Ruijin
Ruijin
Ruijin is a county-level city of Ganzhou in the mountains bordering Fujian Province in south-eastern Jiangxi.The name derives from the ancient God, Rui Jin. It is most famous as one of the earliest centers of Chinese communist activity...
, leaving around 800 ex-Kuomintang troops under Peng Dehuai
Peng Dehuai
Peng Dehuai was a prominent military leader of the Communist Party of China, and China's Defence Minister from 1954 to 1959. Peng was an important commander during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Chinese civil war and was also the commander-in-chief of People's Volunteer Army in the Korean War...
. Just after the New Year, it was agreed that Peng's men and the 32nd Regiment of Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo
Wang Zuo 王佐 , nicknamed Nandougu , was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the mountainous area of Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province, China, from 1923, and then joined the communists, becoming a protege of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet...
and Yuan Wencai should stay behind to defend Jinggangshan. Under intense pressure for about a week, Peng gathered together his three surviving companies and broke through the enemy blockade with heavy casualties. For the next year Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo survived with their men in the mountains and may have returned to banditry in their gurrilla warfare. The Kuomintang's repeated mop up operations against them proved to be futile because the communist forces only confiscated property from wealthy landlords, and distributing to peasants. As a result, such banditry was viewed positively by the local general populace, which refused to corporate with the Kuomintang forces.
Prelude to downfall
Jinggangshan and Jiangxi SovietJiangxi Soviet
The Chinese Soviet Republic , also translated as the Soviet Republic of China or the China Soviet Republic, and often referred to in historical literature as the Jiangxi Soviet , was a state established in November 1931 by the future Communist Party of China leader Mao...
were not immune to the power struggles within the Communist Party of China in the early 1930s. Xiang Zhongfa
Xiang Zhongfa
Xiang Zhongfa was one of the early senior leaders of the Communist Party of China .-Early life:Xiang was born in 1880 to a poor family living in Shanghai. He dropped out of elementary school to move with his parents to their ancestral home in Hubei...
and Li Lisan
Li Lisan
Lǐ Lìsān was an early leader of the Chinese communists, and the top leader of the Chinese Communist Party from 1928 to 1930, member of Polit Bureau, and later member of Central Committee.-Early years:...
succeeded in rising to power under the direction and support of the Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
and their extreme leftist policy inevitably effected all communist bases in China, including Jinggangshan. The extreme leftism of the new communist leadership included what Mao Zedong called military adventurism, which included attempts to take over the large cities, a result of unrealistic optimism on the Chinese
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
revolution and a direct copy of the Soviet model of urban revolution.
The new strategy was obvious unfit for China at the time, and many commanders such as Peng Dehuai, Zhu De and Chen Yi
Chen Yi (communist)
Chen Yi was a Chinese communist military commander and politician. He served as the 2nd Mayor of Shanghai and the 2nd Foreign Minister of China.-Biography:Chen was born in Lezhi, near Chengdu, Sichuan, into a moderately wealthy magistrate's family....
voiced their opposition, Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai included, but it was useless because the new leadership refused to change its policy. As a result, the communist forces met disastrous defeats in attempts to carry out this unrealistic policy. Mao Zedong strongly opposed the military adventurism of Xiang Zhongfa
Xiang Zhongfa
Xiang Zhongfa was one of the early senior leaders of the Communist Party of China .-Early life:Xiang was born in 1880 to a poor family living in Shanghai. He dropped out of elementary school to move with his parents to their ancestral home in Hubei...
and Li Lisan, but lost and was temporarily forced out of the communist leadership and sent to southern Jiangxi. Although Mao's new position appeared to have the equal rank, in reality Mao was demoted, and could not protect Yuan and Wang, and his other proteges like he used to. Furthermore, during the 6th National Conference of Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
held from June to July, 1928 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, the top brass of communists passed the resolution on the "Organizational Problems of Soviet Government", in which it clearly stated that the bandits could only be utilized before the success of uprising, but afterward, they must be eliminated. This resolution had provided excellent ammo for Li Lisan and Xiang Zhongfa in their power struggle against Mao, and people like Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo were obviously targets.
However, the political struggle did not end at the top leadership of the communists. In contrast to the professional soldier Peng Dehuai who faithfully attempted to carry out the impossible missions by dutifully obeying the orders despite his personal opposition, which of course ended in obivous defeats, Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai not only voiced their opposition in words, but also carried it out in action by simply refusing to obey the unrealistic orders from the new communist party leadership and continued to practice Mao Zedong's strategy. The result of their actions was the obvious success that enabled Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai to have most of their force preserved. However, the relative success of Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai not only proved to be useless in helping them within the communist party, but it also served as a catalyst of their downfall because their success of preserving their own forces was viewed as an urgent threat by the new communist leadership, since with greater military force, it was more difficult to remove them politically. With their primary supporter and protector Mao Zedong falling out from power, Wang Zuo's and Yuan Wencai's days were numbered.
When the resolution from the communist 6th National Conference held in the mid-1928 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
reached the communist base in Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan
Jinggangshan is located in the Luoxian Mountains , in the remote border region between Jiangxi and Hunan provinces of China. It lies at the junction of four counties - Ninggang, Yongxing, Suichuan and Lingxian. The mountains cover some 670 km², with an average elevation of 381.5 m above sea...
, it was already winter. In the beginning of 1929, Mao held the Bailu (柏露) Conference to discuss the issue. Wang Huai (王怀), the communist party secretary of Yongxin (永新) county and You Chaoqing (尤超清), the communist party secretary of Ninggang (宁冈) county, who had been at odds with Yuan and Wang insisted on executing Yuan and Wang according to the resolution but their suggestion was once again vetoed by Mao. The resulting decision was that Wang would remain to command forces in the communist base, while Yuan would be named as the chief-of-staff and deployed with the communist force striking southern Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
. During campaigns in southern Jiangxi
Jiangxi
' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...
, Yuan accidentally came across the resolution from Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
at Donggu (东固), and although he feared for his life, he decided to prove himself by returning to the communist base in May, 1929, and he continued his service with communist faithfully, but this did not help.
Death
In the late night of February 23, 1930, Peng Dehuai was awakened from his bed by Xiang ZhongfaXiang Zhongfa
Xiang Zhongfa was one of the early senior leaders of the Communist Party of China .-Early life:Xiang was born in 1880 to a poor family living in Shanghai. He dropped out of elementary school to move with his parents to their ancestral home in Hubei...
's and Li Lisan's three lieutenants Zhu Changxie (朱昌偕) and Wang Huai (王怀), who told Peng that they had just received intelligence claiming Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai had defected to Kuomintang, and thus they need Peng's signature to deploy troops to exterminate the traitors. Ironically, one of the supporters of Zhu Changxie (朱昌偕) and Wang Huai (王怀), You Chaoqing (尤超清), was the one who introduced Wang and Yuan to the communists. Knowning both Wang and Yuan would not do such thing, Peng initially refused and argued with them to defend Wang and Yuan. The three lieutenants of Xiang Zhongfa and Li Lisan then changed their story by claiming that the intelligence was indeeded appeared to be a rumor, and they were to be invited to a meeting to clear things up, some force would be deployed just in case. Sensing Peng Dehuai's opposition, the three also asked Peng not to be involved by staying where he was instead of going to the planned meeting, for the sake of not to agitate situation. This tactic finally convinced Peng Dehuai who give his signature, and the three men led over three hundred troops away to plot their next move.
After leaving Peng Dehuai's camp, the three immediately faked Mao Zedong's order to lure both Yuan and Wang to the supposed meeting to discuss the military situation. But once Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai reached the meeting, they were shot in obscure circumstances, allegedly ambushed while trying to rebel. Wang managed to escape out a window but drowned whilst attempting to cross a river.
As early as October of that year, Mao Zedong criticized the officials in power of the Jiangxi Soviet for the assassination of his old allies. Just who gave the order for the death of Wang Zuo, however, is still not clear, although a number of officials of the Jiangxi Communist Party were implicated. Wang Yunlong (王雲隆), Wang Zuo's younger brother and an officer of the 32nd Regiment, became the new leader of his brother's men, and defected to Kuomintang, taking many former Yuan Wencai's men with them. After Wang Yunlong (王雲隆)'s death, Wang Zuo's son became the leader and it was not until nearly two decades later in 1949 when the communists were finally able to retake Jinggangshan.
After 1949, both Yuan and Wang were marked as examples of ideologically reformed bandits who had been transformed into Communist soldiers. Both were recognised as martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
s of the Chinese Revolution. When Zhu De visited Jinggangshan in 1962 and Mao Zedong in 1965, both called upon Yuan Wencai's elderly widow Xie Meixiang (謝梅香). In 1986, his grave was moved to the newly constructed Jinggangshan Martyrs Cemetery. Although Peng Dehuai was not directly involved in the death of Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo, as proved by the history, that did not prevent Mao Zedong from blaming it on Peng, and Peng Dehuai was persecuted thirty years later, the death of Wang Zuo and Yuan Wencai was one of the alleged crime Peng committed against Mao, and this alleged crime again appeared during the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
when Peng Dehuai was struggled by the Red Guard
Red Guards (China)
Red Guards were a mass movement of civilians, mostly students and other young people in the People's Republic of China , who were mobilized by Mao Zedong in 1966 and 1967, during the Cultural Revolution.-Origins:...
s.