The commanders of the first nine columns of the Northeast Field Army, which four columns, have never been replaced
The Northeast Field Army had a total of twelve columns, three of which were established relatively late, namely the Fifth Column, the Eleventh Column, and the Twelfth Column. It was not until 1948 that the three columns were formed. After the formation, until the column was reorganized into an army, the commander was not replaced.
So, what about the first nine veteran columns? Some of the commanders of the columns were replaced, and more than once. The commander never changed the column, only four. Let's start with the column of substitutions.
The commander of the first column was replaced, first by Wan Yi, and later by Li Tianyou. The commander of the third column was replaced, formerly Zeng Kelin and later Han Xianchu. The fourth column was also replaced, and both Wu Kehua and Hu Qicai served as commanders of this column.
(Admiral Liu Zhen)
The Eighth Column also changed people, one moment huang Yongsheng, the next duan Suquan. The commander should be replaced most frequently by the Sixth Column, first chen Guang, then Hong Xuezhi, Huang Yongsheng, and finally Hong Xuezhi.
Why should the commander of a column be replaced? There are many reasons, of course, and so on. For example, in the third column, it was obvious that Han Xianchu was more capable of fighting than Zeng Kelin, so he was replaced. For example, in the fourth column, Wu Kehua was changed to deputy commander of the Liaodong Military Region because of the transfer of his position, and Hu Qicai took over as commander, and later Hu Qicai fell ill, and Wu Kehua returned to the fourth column and continued to be the commander.
There were only four columns that never changed commanders. The first is the second column, from the establishment of the second column in 1946, when it was still called the Northeast Democratic United Army, Liu Zhen was the commander, all the way to the Northeast Field Army, and then to the Fourth Field Army, the column was reorganized into an army, and the commander (commander) was always Liu Zhen.
Why didn't Liu Zhen change it? First, Liu Zhen was young and promising, very capable of fighting, which was not controversial, and after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Liu Zhen was awarded the rank of founding general. Second, the predecessor of the second column was part of the Third Division of the New Fourth Army, which was an old unit brought out by Liu Zhen.
(Admiral Deng Hua)
Then there was the Seventh Column, a relatively special column, which was reorganized from the local troops of Liaoji Province, and the commander was Deng Hua, the former commander of the Liaoji Military Region. The transformation of local troops into regular armies requires a process.
The seventh column originally had a heavy guerrilla habit, but under the command of Deng Hua, it soon grew into a main column capable of fighting a hard battle. Deng Hua is very good at leading the team. By the time of the establishment of Siye, Deng Hua became the only commander of all the columns of the Northeast Field Army to be promoted to corps commander. He was also a founding general.
Next was the Ninth Column, and the commander was Zhan Caifang, who was very old. Among the column commanders of all the Northeast Field Army, I am afraid that no one is older than Zhan Caifang, who was the military commissar of the Red Fourth Front in 1933.
The Ninth Column was also reorganized from the local column, and the foundation was poor, and Lin Zong did not regard it as the main force. However, in the Liaoshen Campaign, the performance of the Ninth Column was very good, and it was praised by Lin Zong many times. The column was reorganized into an army, and Zhan Caifang was the commander of the army, and was later awarded the title of founding lieutenant general.
The last one was the Tenth Column. The commander was the famous Liang Xingchu, and from the establishment of this column to the reorganization of the Forty-seventh Army, Liang Xingchu was always the commander (commander). Why? Liang Daya was too capable of fighting, a fierce Montenegrin blockade battle, and the tenth column impressed the other brother columns. Liang Xingchu was also a founding lieutenant general.