Li Zhilong, a historical figure famous for the "Zhongshan Warship" incident, was an important historical figure in China's modern history, and before the incident he was one of the most promising young party members of our party, and at the age of 29, he became the acting director of the Naval Bureau of the National Government in Guangzhou, equivalent to the commander of the Navy.
But why did his name disappear into the mighty river of history soon after, and even after his death, he was not even rated as a martyr?
Lee's Dragon
In 1897, Li Zhilong was born in a peasant family in Qiuyang County, Hubei Province, he was an extrovert when he was a child, he went to herd cattle at the age of 6, he raised a green haired mule, one day Qingmao Mu and a small partner's yellow hair had a fight, but Qing Mao Mu was unable to support it, and was beaten by huang Mao Mu and was injured, which made Li Zhilong very angry.
After returning home, his father Li Guoyuan comforted him: "It is common for cattle to fight each other, and it is also common to win or lose, as long as you pay more attention in the future and do not let them graze together." ”
But Li Zhilong was not convinced, he heard the old farmer say that the cow eating eggs can enhance his strength, so he avoided his family, fed Qingmao mu two eggs every day, and he also slapped its neck with the sole of his shoes to make the neck more robust, and sharpened its double horns with a knife...
Former residence of Li Zhilong
Later, Qingmaomu and Huangmaomu met again, Li Zhilong continued to cheer for Qingmaomu, this time a miracle occurred, Huangmaomu was fought and fled, li Zhilong finally smiled happily.
Later, Li Guoyuan participated in the Wuchang Uprising, and after the founding of the Republic of China, he served as the director of the Changde Telegraph Bureau, and later transferred to the director of the Henan Provincial Tobacco and Alcohol General Bureau.
Li Zhilong also left his hometown with his family in 1912 to go to school in Wuchang, and he looked at his hometown that was gradually going away, and could not help but compose a poem:
From the other village to close the boat, the spring wind lake is sad.
The lister refers to Wuchang'an from afar, and the guests are mistakenly scheduled for Baishazhou.
Not to open the eyes of the two mountains, only because of the five classics of love.
When to drink the wine of the old garden, also said Du Kiln night rain and autumn.
In the autumn of 1915, Li Zhilong was admitted to the Yantai Naval Officer School, his talent began to show, he wrote a book called "Practical Fitness Techniques", which was stipulated as a required textbook for naval schools, and later published by the Zhonghua Book Company.
Former site of the Yantai Naval School
During his time at school, Li Zhilong successively participated in the restoration activities of the reactionary warlord Zhang Xun and the "May Fourth Movement", and at the same time as the activities, he began to read progressive books and periodicals such as "New Youth", absorb new ideas, and open his eyes.
In the autumn of 1921, the school authorities illegally withheld the salaries of school workers and sailors, and the whole school was full of complaints. In this regard, Li Zhilong launched a suspension of work and strike by school workers and sailors, and resolutely demanded that the school pay back the arrears.
After the school learned that he was a "troublemaker", it expelled him from school and military rank. After experiencing this setback, Li Zhilong was determined to break away from the cage of the old army and find another way to save the country.
After Leaving school, Li Zhilong came to Shanghai and became acquainted with Chen Duxiu and other Communists, who gradually understood the basic program and advanced nature of the Communist Party of China and accepted Marxism. At the end of 1921, he joined the Communist Party of China under the introduction of Chen Duxiu.
After that, Li Zhilong successively engaged in the workers' movement in Hunan and Hubei, and he organized and participated in the "27" Beijing-Hankou railway strike. In early 1924, he was transferred to Guangzhou to serve as the translator's secretary to the head of the Soviet advisory, Borodin, who liked him so much that he regarded him as his chief disciple in China.
The Beijing-Hankou Railway Strike
After the establishment of the Whampoa Military Academy, Li Zhilong entered the first phase of the military academy according to the instructions of the party organization. Because of his rich revolutionary experience in his early years and his outstanding talent, he soon stood out among his students. In July 1924, the Kuomintang Whampoa Military Academy Special District Party Department was established, and Li Zhilong was the only student elected as a member of the executive committee.
In November 1924, Zhou Enlai served as the director of the political department of the Whampoa Military Academy, and immediately after he took office, he immediately guided the establishment of the China Young Soldiers' Federation, aiming to extensively unite the graduated and in-school revolutionary soldiers of various military academies in Guangzhou.
Zhou Enlai during the Whampoa Military Academy
Li Zhilong's work was carried out very well, and he also set up a "Blood Flower Drama Society" and served as its president, which was a revolutionary propaganda literary and artistic organization in the Whampoa Military Academy with Communists, Communist Youth League members and Leftist students as the core, and often performed in Guangzhou, mainly about how imperialism invaded China, how warlords brutalized the people, and how capitalists oppressed the poor, which soon caused a great impact.
Li Zhilong fully displayed his talents in the drama club, he combined screenwriters, directors, and actors in one, and successively wrote and directed his own plays such as "New Era" depicting young people participating in the revolution and "When This Hatred Will Be Extinguished" reflecting the Opium War.
Chiang Kai-shek
However, the Kuomintang right-wing cadets represented by He Zhihan and others in the school were very hostile to the development of the Young Soldiers' Federation, and they established the "Sun Wen Doctrine Society", and the two factions often clashed and even fought.
Once Li Zhilong gave a speech on behalf of the Federation of Young Soldiers, but halfway through, He Zhihan brought people to make trouble, and the two sides fought hard, and the tables, chairs, benches, and tree branches and flagpoles at the venue became weapons, and finally more than a hundred rescuers were sent to the hospital, and it is said that the wounded who were sent to the hospital fought again in the hospital, which also laid the groundwork for the split of the Whampoa Military Academy in the future.
Despite these twists and turns, Li Zhilong's development at the Whampoa Military Academy was not only unaffected, but also made very rapid progress. At the beginning of 1925, during the first eastern expedition of the Guangzhou government, Li Zhilong served as the battalion party representative of the Huangpu Student Army Teaching Regiment and participated in the right wing of the Eastern Expeditionary Army, he led the troops to lay siege to Wuhua City, captured hundreds of officers and men below the enemy's chief of staff and a large number of weapons and ammunition, and made great contributions to the victory of the First Crusade and became famous.
The National Revolutionary Army crusades
In October 1925, the Naval Bureau presided over by the Soviet Smilov needed a person to serve as the director of the political department, Li Zhilong because he had made great contributions during the Crusade and had studied the navy before, so Zhou Enlai recommended him to take over this position, so that Li Zhilong directly became the director of the political department of the Naval Bureau with the rank of rear admiral, which can be described as a step to the heavens.
In January 1926, Smilov was ordered to leave his post and return to China, and Zhou Enlai was ready to recommend Li Zhilong to take over as the head of the Naval Bureau, but he also considered that Li Zhilong's promotion was too fast, and there would certainly be people who would not be convinced, so he suggested that he must make more military achievements so that the disobedients could shut up.
Li Zhilong did not live up to the expectations of Zhou Enlai, he personally commanded the fleet in the Second Crusade, crushed the attack on Humen by the British and Beiyang warlord fleets, and all 4 Beiyang gunboats were captured, which enabled him to be successfully appointed as the director of the Navy Bureau and promoted to the rank of vice admiral, and later he also served as the chief of staff of the Naval Bureau and the captain of the Zhongshan Ship.
Li Zhilong oil painting
At this time, Li Zhilong had become the highest ranking communist in the National Revolutionary Army at that time, and controlled an army, Bao Huisheng once said that he was a "red man in Guangzhou", and Chiang Kai-shek's rank at that time was only lieutenant general, and Li Zhilong could be said to be on an equal footing with him.
Li Zhilong's promotion to such a rapid position naturally aroused Chiang Kai-shek's dissatisfaction, and when he was promoted to major general, because Chiang Kai-shek was not in Guangzhou at the time, Chiang Kai-shek's opinion was not consulted on this matter, which also made him even more annoyed.
On March 18, 1926, Chiang Kai-shek instructed his cronies to order the Zhongshan warship to sail to Guangzhou huangpu for waiting in the name of the provincial office of the Whampoa Military Academy, and after the Zhongshan warship returned to Huangpu, Chiang Kai-shek arrested Li Zhilong on the grounds that the Zhongshan warship had trespassed into Huangpu and the Communists wanted to plot a riot, which is the famous "Zhongshan incident" in huangpu.
Zhongshan ship
After the incident, Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and others advocated resolutely attacking Chiang Kai-shek, but General Secretary Chen Duxiu adopted a policy of concessions, allowing Chiang Kai-shek to usurp the military power of the First Army.
In early April, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China sent Zhang Guotao to investigate the matter, and Zhou Enlai wanted Zhang Guotao to help rescue Li Zhilong, but Zhang Guotao said that he thought that Li Zhilong might be in collusion with the Kuomintang rightists and should deal with him seriously.
In this regard, Zhou Enlai explained: "Li Zhilong is flawed, his sharp edge is too exposed, and he does not pay attention to protecting himself, but he is our good comrade, and he is being framed by the rightists and is imprisoned, and we cannot sit idly by. ”
Zhang Guotao
Later, Zhou Enlai proposed to Chiang Kai-shek through He Xiangning to release Li Zhilong, and Li Zhilong's wife also pleaded with the Political Training Department of the Military Commission of the Nationalist Government for his early release.
After Li Zhilong was released, the acting director of the Naval Bureau was revoked, and Chen Duxiu, in order to clarify that the "Zhongshan Ship Incident" had nothing to do with the CCP, wrote a letter to Chiang Kai-shek, saying that before this incident, Li Zhilong had been given the punishment of staying on party probation, which made Li Zhilong feel very helpless, so he published a notice in the "Guangzhou Republic of China Daily" on May 18, 1926, which was considered to be a formal departure from the party:
In order to avoid disputes and facilitate work, I hereby solemnly declare my resignation from the Communist Party of China and all social organizations related to it, and I hereby solemnly declare that I will withdraw from the Communist Party of China and all social organizations related to it, and that I will seek the forgiveness of the comrades of the Communist Party of China with the simple qualifications of a member of the Chinese Kuomintang and under the guidance of my teacher, Mr. Chiang Kai-shek, in order to seek the realization of the Three People's Principles.
Li Zhilong's notice eliminated Chiang Kai-shek's dissatisfaction to a certain extent, so Chiang Kai-shek sent him to the General Political Department of the Northern Expedition army before the Northern Expedition to assist Deng Yanda in charge of propaganda work, and he also entered Wuhan with the Northern Expedition army in October 1926.
Lee's Dragon stills
After Arriving in Wuhan, Li Zhi took over the New Market People's Paradise, he replaced the barrel of the gun with a pen, changed the place into a revolutionary propaganda position, named "Blood Flower World", he personally choreographed many revolutionary dramas, which not only changed people's traditional concepts, but also publicized the truth of the revolution, at this time he was full of enthusiasm for the revolution, and also wrote a special poem:
The spring breeze is clear in the summer for a few days, and the birdsong of the good listeners in the suburbs.
A hundred tongues of high branches originally understand, a stream of water is always concerned.
The hills chirp mud swallows, and the clouds chirp wood warblers.
It is not a matter of time before the old country is another country, and it will also be called to the same voice.
While working hard, Li Zhilong also felt very regretful about his previous act of leaving the party, so he always applied to the organization to restore his party membership, but Chen Duxiu, Zhang Guotao, and others always stubbornly believed that the "Zhongshan Ship Incident" was related to him and always refused to restore his party membership, which made him very distressed.
Chiang Kai-shek also co-opted Li Zhilong many times, but after the "Zhongshan Incident," Li Zhilong saw clearly his reactionary nature, always disdained to be with him, and rejected him many times.
After Chiang Kai-shek launched the "April 12" coup, Li Zhilong published a series of articles in the People's Daily sponsored by the Central People's Club to expose the truth of the "Zhongshan Ship Incident" and openly denouncing Chiang Kai-shek.
Li Zhilong also used his old naval connections to prepare to instigate a naval uprising and meet the troops of the Nanchang Uprising led by Zhou Enlai, who was on their way to Chaoshan Province, but the rebel forces were soon transferred and he came to Shanghai to carry out activities. At this time, the Kuomintang also began to hunt him down, and in order to avoid disaster, he had to cross east to Japan.
On February 6, 1928, Li Zhilong secretly returned to Guangzhou by boat, preparing to continue his counter-offensive work in the navy, but as soon as he got off the ship, he was targeted by agents and arrested again that night.
When Chiang Kai-shek learned of this, he immediately called Chen Ce, commander of the Fourth Fleet, who had undertaken Li Zhilong's case, and asked him to immediately escort Li Zhilong to his headquarters, and he wanted to win Li Zhilong for his own use, but Chen Ce had already killed Li Zhilong on February 8 on the charge of "instigating naval rebellion", and he was only 31 years old when he was killed.
Chen Ce
Before li zhilong was killed, he left a suicide note to his wife, which read:
"My revolutionary obligations are now over, don't grieve. I hope you will raise your children to adulthood and inherit my unfinished revolutionary cause. ”
In 1951, Li Zhilong's widow Chen Zhengming and son Li Guangci applied to the Wuhan Municipal People's Government to posthumously recognize Li Zhilong as a martyr. However, the staff of the Civil Affairs Bureau of the Central and Southern Administrative Committee at that time could not determine whether Li Zhilong died for the revolution, so they sent letters to Premier Zhou Enlai and Vice Premier Dong Biwu, asking them to provide supporting materials.
Dong Biwu
In the end, Zhou Enlai decided that Li Zhilong could not be rated as a martyr. There are two main reasons:
1. Li Zhilong's arrest has nothing to do with the CCP, because he has already made a statement of departure from the party before and is not a party member.
2. Li Zhilong's murder was not to participate in the activities organized by the Communist Party, but at that time his rebellion in the Kuomintang Navy was his own spontaneous act, so his death should belong to the internal contradictions of the Kuomintang and had nothing to do with "revolution".
Therefore, Li Zhilong was not rated as a martyr in the end, and under the historical conditions at that time, Zhou Enlai strictly controlled the selection criteria for martyrs in line with the principle of seeking truth from facts, which was no problem.
Lee Jo Lung Memorial Hall
On January 7, 1982, Yang Xianzhen, a member of the Central Advisory Committee of the Communist Party of China, wrote a letter to Chen Pixian, the first secretary of the Hubei Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, asking for Li Zhilong's reputation to be restored. General Li Qizhong, a cadet of the first phase of Huangpu, also proved that Li Zhilong did not commit treason against the party, and Marshal Nie Rongzhen later also proved it. Under their struggle, Lee was restored to his political reputation.
However, whether Li Zhilong issued that statement of departure from the party is difficult to verify. Throughout his life, it is indeed regrettable that if he could always follow the party, with his talent, he is likely to become the founding marshal. What a pity, sigh!