During the revolutionary war years, he was wounded six times, the commanders and fighters of the army praised him as a good leader who "can participate in good planning", and General Xiong Guangkai, former deputy chief of general staff of the People's Liberation Army, commented that he had a "bold personality".
In 1955, he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general for his outstanding military achievements, and in September 1988, after the People's Liberation Army restored the rank system, he was awarded the rank of general.
When the National Defense University was established in 1985, he became the first president of the National Defense University, and at the age of 71, he resolutely undertook the historical responsibility of training middle and senior military cadres for the republic.
He is the founding lieutenant general - General Zhang Zhen!
In this article, let's talk about the story of General Zhang Zhen. If you are also interested in history, you may wish to calm down and read it, maybe you will have the same harvest.
Zhang Zhen, whose original name was Zhang Jiansheng, was born in October 1914 to a poor peasant family in Changshou Town, Pingjiang County, Hunan Province.
At the age of 12, Xiao Zhang Zhen joined the local labor boy group and was elected as the deputy head of the regiment. Subsequently, Xiao Zhang Zhen joined the local Young Pioneers and served as the propaganda director, mainly responsible for the propaganda and organization of anti-imperialist and patriotic activities.
At the age of 15, Xiao Zhang zhen was "fooled" by his neighbors to participate in Qian Dajun's teaching of a certain company of the Third Division. Although he was "fooled", Zhang Zhen also received preliminary military basic training here.
A few months later, Peng Dehuai led the main force of the Fifth Red Army to meet the division at Pingjiang and established a Soviet government.
After Zhang Zhen heard this news, he was very excited. He had long heard that the Red Army was a people's army that fought for the poor people, and he was tired of the deceitfulness, corruption and cowardice in the National Revolutionary Army, and he tried to sneak out several times, but because he had no good home, he could only bend here first.
But now it was different, and the arrival of the Red Army gave him hope. So he ran home on the pretext of going home to visit his family. And this time, there is no coming back.
After Zhang Zhen returned to his hometown, he did not hesitate to sign up for the Red Army, and was subsequently assigned to the special service brigade as a propagandist. At this time, Zhang Zhen was only 16 years old!
In that era of frequent wars, the Red Army suffered a lot of tests, but only 3 months after Zhang Zhengang joined the Red Army, he ushered in the first battle in his life.
Figure | General Zhang Zhen during the Revolutionary War (left)
In 1930, Zhang Zhen's unit was ordered to attack Changsha!
Changsha is a large city where the enemy is heavily garrisoned, and it is very difficult to defeat it, and it is very difficult to say that the dense mine array outside the enemy's position is very difficult.
To this end, some people have proposed to use the method of "fire bull breaking the array" in the Warring States period to break through the enemy's mine array.
At this time, Zhang Zhen, a member of the sharp knife squad, was ordered to tie the sharp knife to the horn of the cow, and then tie the cotton poured with kerosene to the tail of the cow, and when the attack was made, the cotton was ignited, forcing the fire bull to go to the enemy's mine array, while Zhang Zhen and his comrades were preparing to charge behind.
This method may have been useful in the Warring States era of the cold weapon period, but now it is the era of hot weapons, bullets and shells, both powerful and fast, are stronger than the bow and arrow in ancient times, so it is almost impossible to break through the enemy's mine array through this so-called "fire bull".
It is also true that these fire bulls have not yet rushed into the enemy position, and they have been brutally strafed by enemy machine guns, and the results are self-evident.
Subsequently, Zhang Zhen and his comrades charged forward together, and also engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the enemy, and the battle was extremely fierce.
This battle left a very deep impression on Zhang Zhen, and later, he once said with deep feelings: "The Warring States period was a cold weapon, modern times are hot weapons, the times and conditions have changed, how can simple imitation be achieved?" ”
Although the strategies and tactics of the ancients are classic, they are not all applicable. Whether it is ancient military or modern military, any strategy and tactics need to conform to the reality of the moment, otherwise it can only be talked about on paper and is useless.
The reason why the Red Army is getting stronger and stronger is because it is good at summing up and studying, so that it has become stronger step by step.
After this battle, Zhang Zhen followed the troops to participate in the battle of Linjiang Town, Jiangxi!
In this battle, he entered 3 and left Linjiang Town 3 times, always charged ahead in battle, took the lead, and made great contributions to the victory of the battle.
1930 was Zhang Zhen's happiest year!
First of all, he found an army that could be entrusted to him for a lifetime; secondly, through one battle after another, he learned a lot of useful military knowledge; and finally, to his greatest pleasure, he was introduced to the Communist Party by his superiors and officially became a glorious member of the Chinese Communist Party.
During the second anti-"encirclement and suppression" campaign in 1931, Zhang Zhen, who was then the political instructor of the 4th Company of the First Regiment of the First Division of the Fifth Army of the Red Third Army, was ordered to lead the company as a vanguard and launched an attack on the enemy entrenched in the Tomita area.
On that day, the rain was torrential and the ground was slippery, and Zhang Zhen alone led a platoon of soldiers to rush to the front in the rain, shouting while fighting: "Comrades! Charge bravely, kill the enemy bravely, and avenge the comrades who sacrificed! ”
Encouraged by him, the entire platoon of fighters rushed towards the enemy's positions with all their might. However, just as Zhang Zhen rushed to the enemy trench, a bullet suddenly hit him in the head, and the severe pain made him lose consciousness and fall to the ground.
Fortunately, Zhang Zhen was saved by his comrades-in-arms, and after careful rescue by medical staff, he quickly recovered.
As the saying goes, "a hundred days of broken bones", not to mention the injury to the head, even if it is healed, at least a few months of rest. But Zhang Zhen waited so long, and after a brief rest in the rear for a few days, he hurried to the front line.
But after all, it has not really healed, during the march, Zhang Zhen's wounds were infected and began to flow pus, and the pain spread throughout the body, making people feel painful. Despite this, he never fell behind and followed the troops to a series of battles.
In March 1933, Zhang Zhen participated in the fourth anti-"encirclement and suppression" battle in the Central Soviet Region. In the Battle of Caotaigang, our Red Army annihilated eight regiments of the enemy and captured a considerable amount.
During the battle, Peng Shaohui, then the commander of the Red First Division, fell down after being hit in the left arm by an enemy bullet, and at the moment of this thousand gunshots, Zhang Zhen rushed up desperately and carried Peng All the way to the hidden place.
In the battle, Zhang Zhen not only dared to fight and fight, but also was very clever, and was deeply loved by the superior leaders.
At the beginning of the following year, Zhang Zhen was promoted to acting battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion of the Red 10th Regiment and led his troops to participate in the famous "Battle of Guangchang".
In this campaign, due to the disparity in strength between the enemy and us, the Red Army lost more than 5,000 people, accounting for one-fifth of the total number of people participating in the battle. Among them, the casualties of the Red Third Army reached more than 2,700, accounting for a quarter of the total number of the whole army.
During the battle, all the fortifications of Zhang Zhen's battalion were collapsed by the enemy army, and the bullets were also exhausted, and the situation was extremely critical.
But they did not flinch, and the whole battalion, led by Zhang Zhen, engaged in fierce hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. After several rounds of fighting, the original 140 people in the battalion were only more than 20 people left.
At this time, Zhang Zhen and his comrades-in-arms all killed the red eye and prepared to attack the enemy again! However, at this moment, the superior suddenly came to the order, let them quickly withdraw from the battle, Zhang Zhen had to lead the soldiers to withdraw from the position.
However, the withdrawing Zhang Zhen did not get a rest, and he was just transferred, he was ordered to lead a company to support the brother troops, and on the way, he fought fiercely with more than 100 enemy troops!
During the battle, Zhang Zhen's right arm was unfortunately hit by a bullet, and coupled with the fact that he had malaria again, the regimental headquarters had to send him to the rear hospital for treatment.
Figure | General Zhang Zhen (Admiral)
During Zhang Zhen's hospitalization, when General Huang Kecheng went to the hospital to visit the wounded, he also had a special chat with him!
After Huang Kecheng saw Zhang Zhen, he asked, "Are you Zhang Zhen?" Zhang Zhen nodded.
Huang Kecheng then said: "You are not only brave in fighting on the front line, but also have your own set of methods, the young man is amazing!" ”
Affirmed by the chief, Zhang Zhen smiled shyly. Zhang Zhen was favored by General Huang Kecheng, and was later transferred to the Tenth Regiment as a combat staff officer, and since then he has gradually been promoted to become the general staff of the Eighth Route Army.
Of course, these are all for later!
In October 1934, after the failure of the fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" campaign, the main central Red Army was forced to carry out a strategic shift in order to get rid of the encirclement and pursuit of the Kuomintang army. The twenty-five thousand-mile long march has begun!
At this time, Zhang Zhen, whose wounds had not yet healed, also had to follow the troops to move!
During the Long March, Zhang Zhen was appointed as the communications director of the 10th Regiment of the 4th Division of the Third Red Army, mainly responsible for communications liaison, fortification, and the arrangement of vigilance during camping.
After the Red Army broke through the enemy's first blockade line, Zhang Zhen suffered from malaria, and his wounds did not heal, and every day he had a high fever and could not walk normally, so he could only lie on a stretcher.
The Long March was very hard, and it was difficult to march even if there was no burden on the body, let alone carrying a person. Zhang Zhen felt very uneasy about this, the wound improved slightly, he struggled to go on his own, no matter how his comrades persuaded, he just refused to go on the stretcher.
It would be fine if it was just a simple march, but the enemy was always harassing, and the Soldiers of the Red Army had to break through the enemy's blockade lines in addition to the complex environment and the current situation of hunger.
The degree of difficulty cannot be clearly explained in a few paragraphs, and those who have not experienced it personally cannot deeply appreciate this difficulty!
After the Successful Arrival of the Red Army in Northern Shaanxi, Zhang Zhen was appointed chief of staff of the 12th Regiment of the 4th Division of the Red First Army, and successively participated in the battles in Wuqi Town, Zhiluo Town, and other places, as well as many battles such as the Eastern Expedition and the Western Expedition, and made outstanding achievements.
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in 1937, Zhang Zhen was appointed as a staff officer and section chief of the Eighth Route Army Office in Jinjin, and then he was ordered to go to the town of Zhugou in Southern Henan to create a new guerrilla detachment of the Fourth Army and serve as chief of staff.
In 1939, Zhang Zhen was ordered to lead his guerrilla detachment to march east into Bozhou, Yongcheng and other places to open up the Yuwan Su District.
During the year, Zhang Zhen and his comrades had little time to rest, and there would be a large battle almost every five or six days, and there were countless small battles. For this period, in the words of the general, it was: "Cross the line immediately."
The following year, the guerrilla detachment was ordered to be reorganized into the Sixth Detachment of the New Fourth Army, with Zhang Zhen as chief of staff, and the unit grew to more than 17,000 people. After meeting with Huang Kecheng's division, the department was formally formed as the fourth column of the Eighth Route Army, with Zhang Zhen as the chief of staff of the headquarters.
After that, Zhang Zhen commanded the Fourth Column to engage in a fierce battle with the Japanese puppet army at Banqiao, annihilating more than a thousand enemy troops and creating an example of shooting down Japanese aircraft with machine guns.
After the "Anhui Incident," Zhang Zhen was appointed chief of staff of the Fourth Division of the New Fourth Army and chief of staff of the Huaibei Military Region, assisting Peng Xuefeng and Deng Zihui in leading their troops to smash the Japanese puppet army's "sweeping" plan of the Huaibei Su-Anhui Border Region.
After that, Comrade Peng Xuefeng was heroically sacrificed while marching westward to recover the Yuwan-Suzhou base area, and Zhang Zhen was ordered to take over his command and continue the battle.
Later, Zhang Zhen led his troops to participate in the Battle of Yanshan South and the Battle of Baoshan. In the Battle of Baoshan, more than 3,600 enemy troops were annihilated and a lot of captures were made.
By the end of this year, after several months of arduous struggle, Zhang Zhen's troops had annihilated more than 13,000 Japanese puppet troops. Later, Zhang Zhen was appointed brigade commander of the 11th Brigade of the Fourth Division of the New Fourth Army and commander of the Huaibei Road West Military Subdistrict.
In mid-February 1945, when Zhang Zhen led his troops to fight the Japanese puppet army in Xiao County, a bullet hit his right arm, and after a simple bandage, he continued to command the operation until he achieved complete victory.
However, because the bullet was not removed in time and no effective treatment was carried out, the bullet remained in his arm for a decade. The general's perseverance had to be impressed.
After the outbreak of the Liberation War, Zhang Zhen successively served as commander and political commissar of the Ninth Column of the Central China Field Army, deputy chief of staff of the East China Field Army, and chief of staff of the Third Field Army.
In the summer of 1946, Chiang Kai-shek dispatched a million troops and launched an all-out offensive against our liberated areas.
In July of that year, Chiang Kai-shek ordered the regular army of 58 divisions, together with more than 500,000 security forces, to launch an offensive against the liberated areas of East China and Shandong.
Soldiers will come to block, water will come to cover! The Kuomintang army was menacing, and the central authorities immediately made arrangements: Zhang Zhen, then commander of the Ninth Column of the Central China Field Army, was ordered to immediately lead his troops to meet with the main force of the Shandong Field Army, and under the unified command of Commander Chen Yi, from Huaibei to northern Jiangsu, successively launched the battles of Chaoyangji and Lianghuai, smashing the enemy's plot in one fell swoop.
In this battle, our army won a complete victory, and in the Battle of Subei alone, more than 20,000 enemy troops were annihilated and countless captured.
After that, Zhang Zhen led his troops north to participate in the Battle of Lunan, in which more than 50,000 enemy troops were annihilated.
But this was not the end, in the following Battle of Menglianggu, Zhang Zhen led his troops to block the Kuomintang Seventh Army aided by the west, ensuring that the brother troops completely annihilated the enemy 74th Division and killed the enemy division commander Zhang Lingfu.
After that, Zhang Zhen led his troops to participate in many battles such as the Battle of Eastern Henan, the Battle of Kaifeng, the Battle of Huaihai, the Battle of Crossing the River, and the Battle of Shanghai, making outstanding contributions to the liberation of all of China.
In this series of battles, what impressed Zhang Zhen the most was the battle to liberate Shanghai. Why?
According to General Zhang Zhen, the Battle of Shanghai was the most complicated battle he had ever experienced, because it was not just a military war, but also a political, economic and diplomatic war.
After the campaign to liberate Shanghai was launched, in order to minimize the losses caused by the war to this luxurious metropolis and make it fully return to the hands of the people, Zhang Zhen and the headquarters organs conducted repeated studies.
They first made enough preparations for the army to enter Shanghai, read a large number of investigation materials about Shanghai, including buildings, factories, hydropower facilities, humanities, etc., and then formulated relevant battle plans.
General Zhang Zhen recalled: In order to protect this metropolis, they must draw out the enemies in the city as much as possible. In addition, after the troops entered the city, they were not allowed to use heavy weapons such as artillery, so as not to damage the buildings in the city.
Finally, after 16 days of arduous fighting, on May 27, 1949, Shanghai was officially declared completely liberated, and the cosmopolitan metropolis was returned to the hands of the people.
After the founding of New China, Zhang Zhen successively served as director of the Operations Department of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army, acting commander and political commissar of the Twenty-fourth Army, and vice president of the Military Academy of the people's liberation army of the Chinese.
In May 1953, Zhang Zhen was ordered to lead the 24th Army of the Chinese Volunteer Army into the Korean War, and successively led his troops to participate in the second offensive operation of the summer counterattack campaign and the Jincheng offensive campaign, commanding more than 40 large and small battles, annihilating more than 10,000 enemy people, and truly fighting the national and military prestige.
Zhang Zhen was awarded the rank of lieutenant general in September 1955, and was awarded the rank of general after the People's Liberation Army restored the rank system in 1988.
In 1985, the National Defense University was established, with Zhang Zhen as the president, and Zhang Zhen was already 71 years old at this time. However, the general was old and strong, and did not hesitate to take on the historical responsibility of training middle and high-ranking military cadres for the republic.
Figure | In 1985, General Zhang Zhen presented the flag ceremony at the establishment of the National Defense University
In 1992, Zhang Zhen, who was now 78 years old, was appointed vice chairman of the Central Military Commission at the suggestion of Deng Xiaoping, formally taking on the heavy burden of strengthening the construction of the People's Liberation Army.
The old general was diligent all his life, and on the battlefield, he fought bravely and did not fear life and death; in his post, he was conscientious, diligent, and never considered personal gains and losses.
Once, when the general came to a certain unit of the Guangzhou Military Region for inspection, the leader of the unit specially prepared a military exercise for his arrival.
But the general knew very well in his heart that this kind of exercise was only rehearsed in advance, and the surface was good-looking, but it could not see the substance.
Therefore, after reading the beginning, the general stood up and said to the leaders of the accompanying troops: "You continue the exercise, I will go to the company to see!" After saying this, the general left the field and went straight to the grass-roots company.
The old general is just and upright, and he never likes others to make "superficial remarks" about him, because he knows very well that as far as the troops are concerned, what they are like on the surface must be what they are behind their backs, and they should seek truth from facts and oppose formalism.
However, every time the old general went down to inspect the troops, he had a set of tricks specifically to deal with formalism! He first told a joke before the meeting, and waited until the leaders of the troops attending the meeting let down their vigilance, and then asked questions by stitching and pinning.
And the questions he asks are often to the point, often making those who cheat reveal their original form and have no place to bear themselves.
Once, the general went to the Dadu River Company of the troops stationed in Hong Kong to inspect! During the inspection, he suddenly asked the director of the company: "How much does an egg weigh?" ”
The secretary replied, "One or two or so." The general then asked, "How many grams is the largest egg?" The chief secretary replied, "About 70 grams." ”
"What about the smallest?" A: "About 50 grams." ”
After listening to the chief secretary's answer, the general was very satisfied, and he smiled and said, "This chief secretary, he has gone to the street to buy vegetables." When the crowd heard this, they all laughed.
Behind this laughter is the admiration of the general's serious, pragmatic spirit.
Figure | General Zhang Zhen inspected the troops
For General Zhang Zhen, many people may only know his outstanding military achievements, as well as his upright and honest attitude of governing the army and being a person, but they do not know that the education of the old generals in treating their children is also very admirable.
The old general set 3 family rules for his family:
1. No one may at any time play in his banner, shall not reveal his relationship with him, and shall not take advantage of his influence to make a special one.
2. It is not allowed to accept gifts from any unit or individual, as well as special care.
3. It is not allowed to ride in the vehicle allocated to him by the public, let alone gambling in disguise, etc.
Once, the township government of Pingjiang County, Hunan Province, was preparing to repair the graves of the general's parents, and when the general heard about it, he personally wrote to the local government: "It is not allowed to occupy a single share of the land of the villagers, and no other tombstones are erected." ”
Not only that, the general also asked his children to often go back to their hometowns to visit those old Red Army and old Red Guards, and truly feel the fine traditions and style of the Red Army.
And it was also under the education of the old general that his four sons grew up to become generals in the new era of the republic! His eldest son Zhang Xiaoyang, second son Zhang Lianyang, and fourth son Zhang Ningyang were all major generals, and the third son, Zhang Haiyang, had the highest rank and was a general. In addition, his son-in-law is also a major general! There are six generals in one family, which is really enviable!
On September 3, 2015, General Zhang Zhen died of illness in Beijing at the age of 101. It is worth mentioning that the old general was the last of the founding lieutenant generals in 1955 to die.
Where there are good years, it is just someone who carries the weight for us! Finally, let us pay the highest respect to General Zhang Zhen, the founding Lieutenant General!