After the three major battles, Chiang Kai-shek's concubines were basically annihilated by the Chinese People's Liberation Army, and the remaining Nationalist forces were gradually eliminated or captured by the People's Liberation Army in subsequent wars. At the beginning of 1949, in order to meet the needs of the new war, the Chinese People's Liberation Army was reorganized, and the original Northwest Field Army was renamed the First Field Army, the Central Plains Field Army was renamed the Second Field Army, the East China Field Army was renamed the Third Field Army, and the Northeast Field Army was renamed the Fourth Field Army.
The four major field armies included almost half of the elite generals of the People's Liberation Army at that time, and the commanders of the four major field armies were all the best generals of the People's Liberation Army, who were all awarded the rank of marshal in 1955, and the chiefs of staff of the four field armies were also served by outstanding generals of the People's Liberation Army.
1. Yan Yuyao, chief of staff of the First Field Army
On February 1, 1949, the Northwest Field Army was renamed the First Field Army, with Peng Dehuai as commander and political commissar, Zhang Zongxun and Zhao Shoushan as deputy commanders, Yan Yu as chief of staff, and Gan Siqi as director of the political department.
Yan Yuyao, a native of Jia County, Shaanxi Province, graduated from Huangpu Phase I, a classmate of Marshal Xu Qianqian and General Chen Geng, and served in the Kuomintang army after graduation, successively serving in the troops of Gao Guizi and Yang Hucheng of the Nationalist army. After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Yan Yu successively served as section chief of the General Headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, chief of the general staff office, director of the military and political department, and chief of staff of the Jiluyu Military Region.
During the Liberation War, Yan Yu held almost the post of chief of staff, successively serving as chief of staff of the Jinsui Joint Defense Army, chief of staff of the Northwest Field Corps, chief of staff of the Northwest Field Army, and chief of staff of the First Field Army.
After the founding of New China, Yan Yu successively served as director of the Intelligence Department of the Central Military Commission, deputy director of the Supervision Department of the Armed Forces of the Central Military Commission, deputy commander and chief of staff of the Jinan Military Region, and member of the Standing Committee of the Fifth CPPCC National Committee. In 1955, Yan was awarded the rank of lieutenant general and received the Order of August 1, 3rd Class, the Order of Independence and Freedom of the First Class, and the Liberation Medal of the First Class, and died in Beijing in 1994 at the age of 90.
2. Li Da, chief of staff of the Second Field Army
On February 5, 1949, the Central Plains Field Army was renamed the Second Field Army, with Liu Bocheng as commander, Deng Xiaoping as political commissar, Zhang Jichun as deputy political commissar and director of the political department, and Li Da as chief of staff.
Li Da, a native of Meixian County, Shaanxi Province, served in the Northwest Army in his early years, and in 1931 he followed Zhao Bosheng, Dong Zhentang, Ji Zhen and others to launch the Ningdu Uprising, joined the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, and successively served as the chief of staff of the Red 8th Army, the chief of staff of the Red 17th Division and the commander of the 50th Regiment, the chief of staff of the Red 2nd Army, and the chief of staff of the Red Second Front.
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Li Da served as the chief of staff of the 129th Division and began 12 years of cooperation with Liu Deng, participating in and commanding the 129th Division's successive operations against the Japanese army. During the Liberation War, Li Da successively served as chief of staff of the Jinji-Hebei Luyu Field Army, chief of staff of the Central Plains Military Region and the Central Plains Field Army, and chief of staff of the Second Field Army.
After the founding of New China, Li Da successively served as deputy commander and chief of staff of the Southwest Military Region, commander of the Yunnan Military Region, chief of staff of the Volunteer Army, vice minister of national defense, and director of the Supervision Department. Li Da was awarded the rank of general in 1955 and died in Beijing in 1993 at the age of 88.
Li Da served as chief of staff for 40 years, successively assisting Marshal He Long (during the Red Army period and the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China), Marshal Liu Bocheng (also the marshal with the longest period of assistance during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the War of Liberation), Marshal Xu Qianqian (during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Xu Shuai was the deputy commander of the 129th Division), Marshal Chen Yi (when the Central Plains Military Region was rebuilt in 1948, Chen Yi was deputy commander-in-chief, and Li Da was chief of staff), and Marshal Peng Dehuai (during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Li Da succeeded Xie Fang as chief of staff of the Volunteer Army).
3. Zhang Zhen, chief of staff of the Third Field Army
In February 1949, the East China Field Army was renamed the Third Field Army, with Chen Yi as commander and political commissar, Su Yu as deputy commander and second deputy political commissar, Tan Zhenlin as first deputy political commissar, Zhang Zhen as chief of staff, and Tang Liang as director of the political department.
Zhang Zhen, a native of Pingjiang, Hunan, joined the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army in 1930, and during the Red Army period, Zhang Zhen successively served as a battalion commander, the communications director of the 4th Division of the Red First Army, and the chief of staff of the 12th Regiment of the 4th Division of the Red First Army.
During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Zhang Zhen first served in the Eighth Route Army, successively serving as a staff officer and chief of the General Affairs Section of the Eighth Route Army's office in Jin. In 1938, he was transferred to the New Fourth Army, and successively served as the chief of staff of the 8th Regiment of the 4th Detachment of the New Fourth Army, the chief of staff of the guerrilla detachment of the New Fourth Army, the chief of staff of the 4th Division of the New Fourth Army and the chief of staff of the Huaibei Military Region, and the brigade commander of the 11th Brigade of the 4th Division of the New Fourth Army.
During the Liberation War, Zhang Zhen still served under Chen Yi, successively serving as commander and political commissar of the 9th Column of Huaye, chief of staff of the 1st Corps of the East China Field Army, deputy chief of staff of Huaye, and chief of staff of the Third Field Army. After the founding of New China, Zhang Zhen successively served as the director of the Operations Department of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army, the acting commander of the 24th Army of the Volunteer Army, and the vice president and dean of the Nanjing Military Academy.
The peak of Zhang Zhen's life was after the reform and opening up, and after 1978, Zhang Zhen successively served as the director of the General Logistics Department, the president of the National Defense University, and the vice chairman of the Central Military Commission. He was awarded the rank of lieutenant general in 1955 and general in 1988, and Zhang Zhen died in 2015 at the age of 101 on the day of the "93 Military Parade".
4. Xiao Ke, chief of staff of the Fourth Field Army
On March 11, 1949, the Northeast Field Army was renamed the Fourth Field Army, with Lin Biao as commander, Luo Ronghuan as political commissar, Xiao Ke as chief of staff, and Tan Zheng as director of the political department.
Xiao Ke, a native of Jiahe, Hunan, was born in a scholarly mendi and joined the Communist Party of China in 1927. During the Red Army period, Xiao Ke successively served as the commander of the 3rd Column of the Red Fourth Army, the commander of the Red 12th Division, the commander of the Red 8th Army, the commander of the Red Sixth Army, the deputy commander-in-chief of the Red Second Front, and the commander of the 31st Army of the Red Fourth Front.
During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Xiao Ke successively served as the deputy commander of the 120th Division, the commander of the Jirecha Advancing Army, the deputy commander of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region, and the acting commander of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region. During the Liberation War, Xiao Ke first served as vice president of North China Military and Political University, and then transferred to the Fourth Field Army as chief of staff.
After the founding of New China, Xiao Ke successively served as minister of military training, vice minister of national defense, director of the department of training director, and dean of the military academy. In 1955, he was awarded the rank of general, ranking first, and is said to be "General of the Town of Shaw". He died in Beijing in 2008 at the age of 101.
It is worth mentioning that General Xiao Ke also has a certain degree of achievement in literature, and his "Blood Luo Xiao" won the honorary award of the 1988 Mao Dun Literature Award.
brief summary:
After the founding of New China, Xiao Ke and Zhang Zongxun were awarded the rank of general, Yan Yuyao and Zhang Zhen were awarded the rank of lieutenant general, and Zhang Zhen was awarded the rank of general again in 1988. Moreover, the four chiefs of staff were all relatively old-lived, and General Zhang Zhen and General Xiao Ke both lived past the age of 100.