Author: CHUNG Yoon-Ngan
Date: 06-12-03 18:36
The Hakka Marshall - Ye Jianying (2)
葉劍英元帥
According to his book "Red Star Over China" , first published in 1937, Edgar Snow, states that Ye Jianying returned to China in 1930 and not 1932 as stated in my previous article. Edgar Snow interviewed Ye Jianying in Yanan in Shaanxi province (陜西省延安) in 1936. When Ye Jianying arrived at the Jiangxi (江西) Red Base in 1930, the Chinese Soviet Government was not established yet. Only the following year in November 1931 that the Republic of Chinese Soviet Government was proclaimed.
For your information, this is the background of the formation of the Chinese Soviet Republic in Jiangxi province.
On 8th September, 1927, Mao Zedong (毛澤東) led a group of peasants and staged an uprising called the Autumn Harvest Uprising (秋收暴動) in Hunan province (湖南省). After the insurrection, the following month, Mao Zedong congregated the remnants of the uprising of about 800 men and 80 rifles. They climbed the Jinggang Shan (井崗山) and established the first CCP revolutionary base in these mountains.
Jinggang Shan is a massive mountain range, lying between the two provinces of Jiangxi (江西省) and Hunan. At that time there were only five villages in this region of 900 square kilometers. All the families were Hakkas whose forefathers had come from the north several hundred years ago.The total population in Jinggang Shan was less than 2,000 and they were so poor that only a few of them had more than a pair of trousers. They made fire by striking stones.
The red earth in Jinggang Shan was so hard that hardly any crops grew in this desolated area. These Hakka men were mostly porters and farm hands in the plains below. Mao managed to win over two bands of about 600 bandits in this area. The Hakkas in Jinggang Shan supported Mao Ze Dong.
After the Nanchang uprising and having wandered the Hakka regions in the provinces of Fujian (福建省) and Guangdong (廣東省), in April 1928 Zhu De (朱德), a Hakka originally from Sichuan province (四川省), leading a force of about 2,000 men, arrived in Jinggang Shan and joined up with Mao Zedong. Together, there were about 4,000 of them in the region.
On 22nd June, 1928, the Kuomintang (國民黨 KMT) launched an attack on Jinggang Shan. Mao Zedong defeated the KMT forces by using the tactics in Sun Wu's (孫武)'s military classic book of "The Art of War" written 2,000 years before.
(1) 敵進我退=If the enemy advances, we retreat.
(2) 敵退我進=If the enemy retreats, we pursue.
(3) 敵駐我擾=If the enemy halts and encamps, we harass.
(4) 敵疲我打=If the enemy tires and seeks to avoid battle, we attack.
In the late August, 1928 Mao Zedong leading some soldiers left Jinggang Shan for Gui Dong (桂東) in southern Huanan province to meet Zhu De, leaving a militia regiment at the base. On 30th August, 1928, the KMT forces from the provinces of Jiangxi and Hunan launched a second attack on Jinggang Shan. The militias defending the base were at the top of the mountain holding the passes. The KMT made four attempts to capture the base, but they failed. In order to defeat the KMT a group of militias left the base and forced march to the rear of the KMT. They attacked the KMT. Thinking that the Red Army had returned, the KMT fled.
Knowing that the region could not support the 4,000 Red Army, in January 1929 Mao Zedong and Zhu De shifted their base to the region between the provinces of Jiangxi and Fujian (福建省). The following year in 1930 Ye Jianying arrived at the new Red base.
The Chinese Soviet Republic was established on 7 November, 1931. Rui Jin (瑞金), south of Jiangxi province, was the capital of the Soviet Republic. The Chairman of the Soviet Republic was Mao Zedong (毛澤東). The Vice Chairmen were Xiang Ying (項英) and Zhang Guotao (張國濤). The commander-in-chief of the Red Army was Zhu De (朱德). Ye Jianying was appointed the principal of the Military Academy of the Red Army.
CHUNG Yoon-Ngan (鄭永元)
All rights reserved 13062003
Yoon-Ngan
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