When New China was first founded, China had 5.5 million troops at that time, and it was planned to restore 1.5 million soldiers, but due to the outbreak of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the Platon Army stopped expanding, and the peak of its strength later grew to 6.27 million. After the end of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, in order to reduce military expenditure and reduce the burden on the people, the army began to be continuously streamlined, and by 1958, the total strength of the People's Liberation Army had dropped to 2.4 million.
During the Cold War, due to changes in the international situation, the Platon Began to expand continuously, all the way to 6.1 million people. Beginning in 1975, the PLA began to carry out large-scale disarmament, and now the total strength of the army remains at about 2 million people. In the wave of successive major disarmaments, many old troops with a glorious history have been abolished, not to mention the Kuomintang troops that revolted during the Liberation War, but there is a unit with the background of the Kuomintang army's uprising troops that has not been abolished, but has received more attention, this unit is the 52nd Mountain Brigade of the Tibet Military Region.
The predecessor of the 52nd Mountain Brigade of the Tibet Military Region was the 60th Army of the Dian Army, which was a strong brigade of local warlords in Yunnan during the Republic of China period, and this unit has a very long history and participated in major historical events such as the Xinhai Revolution and the National Protection Movement. After the outbreak of the All-out War of Resistance, Long Yun expanded this unit to 40,000 people, and also purchased a full set of legal equipment for this unit, which was very well equipped.
During the Battle of Xuzhou, the 60th Army of the Dian Army, under the leadership of Commander Lu Han, marched to the area east of Taierzhuang to prepare to take over the defensive positions of Tang Enbo, Yu Xuezhong and other troops, but because Tang Enbo withdrew from the battlefield without authorization, the vanguard of the 60th Army fell into an ambush by the Japanese army and was caught off guard by the Japanese army. The 60th Army quickly blocked the Japanese army around Yuwang Mountain, and in the 27-day Yuwangshan Blockade Battle, the 60th Army blocked the Japanese Banyuan Division, and the two divisions of the Isoya Division had 50,000 troops, annihilating 14,000 enemy troops, but the 60th Army also paid a tragic casualty price, and 20,000 Yunnan disciples were killed on the battlefield.
After the end of the War of Resistance, this unit was first sent to Vietnam to be surrendered, and later sent to the northeast to fight a civil war. As a local force, this force is ostracized at every turn. In 1946, Pan Shuoduan, commander of the 184th Division of the 60th Army, led an uprising. In 1948, the 60th Army revolted under the leadership of its commander Zeng Zesheng, which was reorganized into the Siye 50th Army, whose commander was still Zeng Zesheng, and subsequently participated in the campaign to liberate the Great Southwest.
After the outbreak of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the main forces of the 50th Army, the 38th Army, the 39th Army, and the 40th Army entered the Dprk to participate in the war. In the first two battles, the 50th Army did not score much success, but General Manager Peng did not criticize Zeng Zesheng, which made Zeng Zesheng feel even more uncomfortable, because he believed that this unit was also a unit that could fight a war, and it was also a strong battle during the War of Resistance, so with the help of the political commissar, the whole army was reorganized and trained, which enhanced the ideological consciousness of the officers and men. During the third campaign, the unit completely annihilated the British Royal Heavy Tank Battalion and took the lead in entering Seoul with the 39th Army.
In the fourth campaign, this force blocked the attack of the main 50,000 American and British troops on the south bank of the Han River and the 38th Army for nearly 50 days, causing 11,000 casualties to the American army. At the most tense time of the battle, the US military recruited several agents from Taiwan, who took the roster of the former 60th Army, shouted the names of the officers and men of the 50th Army one by one with loudspeakers, and promised the high-ranking officer Houlu, but the 50th Army remained unmoved. In the blockade battle on the south bank of the Han River, more than 30,000 officers and men of the 50th Army fought with 10,000 people left, but they also joined the ranks of the main forces of the People's Liberation Army.
In 1969, the 140th Division of the 50th Army and the 52nd Division of the 18th Army were renamed, and in 1985, the 52nd Division of the Tibet Military Region was reorganized into the 52nd Mountain Infantry Brigade, that is to say, the current 52nd Mountain Brigade of the Tibet Military Region was the 149th Division of the 50th Army that year. Because of its strong combat effectiveness, excellent work style, and strict discipline, this unit has become a sharp sword on the southwest front.