Among the 57 founding generals, there is a general whose experience is very legendary, he became famous in World War I at the age of 22, and was elected commander of the corps at the age of 34, making him the youngest corps commander in the people's army at that time.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he rose all the way to become the most popular founding general in the sixties and seventies, and at the peak of his military career, he presided over the work of the Military Commission and took charge of the three armed forces.
This person is the founding general Chen Xilian.
Chen Xilian is a native of Hong'an, Hubei, and after being affected by the Jute Uprising, the 14-year-old Chen Xilian participated in the revolution and officially began his military career.
In the early days of Chen Xilian's military career, his comprehensive performance was not very outstanding, and he did not become the main general of the Four Front Army like Xu Shiyou, but belonged to a very ordinary general of the Four Front Army. The highest position he held was the deputy commander of the 10th Division of the Red 4th Army, and he belonged to a general at the regimental level.
Although, at this time, Chen Xilian's popularity in the Red Fourth Front Army was not very loud. But he must be the most diligent one, the most hard-working one, constantly improving himself, using his spare time to learn cultural knowledge, study military theory, coupled with the experience of actual combat, his progress is very fast.
Chen Xilian's efforts were not in vain, after the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, the Red Fourth Front Army was reorganized into the 129th Division, and Chen Xilian served as the commander of the 769th Regiment of the 385th Brigade at this time, becoming one of the youngest regiment commanders of the Eighth Route Army.
However, in October of the same year, Chen Xilian, who was only 22 years old, commanded the 769th Regiment to attack Yangmingbao Airport at night in the Battle of Xinkou, eliminating more than 100 Japanese invaders and successfully destroying 24 enemy planes, so that the invaders and Japanese invaders lost air supremacy in the Battle of Xinkou, which effectively supported the Battle of Xinkou.
It may be that the number of Japanese soldiers eliminated by the 769th Regiment of the Eighth Route Army in the night attack on Yangmingbao is not very large, but the impact of this battle is very great, and it is another major victory in the history of the Eighth Route Army's war, following the great victory at Pingxingguan and the ambush at Yanmen Pass.
After this battle, the 22-year-old Chen Xilian became famous in the first battle and won the reputation of the small steel cannon.
At the same time, Chiang Kai-shek also praised the 769th Regiment for the night attack on Yangmingbao Airport, and Chen Xilian, as the commander of the regiment, also received the rank of major general. You must know that during the eight-year Anti-Japanese War, only deputy division commanders, generals with the rank of brigade commander, received the rank of major general. As a regiment-level general, I am afraid that there is only Chen Xilian.
Of course, the highlight of Chen Xilian's military career was definitely not during the Anti-Japanese War, but on the battlefield of liberation later. At this time, Chen Xilian has grown into a backbone general in the people's army, serving as the commander of the third column under the command of Liu Deng's army.
Rushing to cross the Huai River, advancing into Dabie Mountain, and leading his troops to liberate Wanxi, he made a certain contribution to Liu Deng's army gaining a firm foothold in the Central Plains. Especially in the Huaihai Campaign, Chen Xilian served as the commander-in-chief of the assault corps, commanding three columns, one column, and 13 columns of Huaye reinforcements, and launched a fierce attack on Huang Wei's corps. In this process, Chen Xilian commanded a thorough battle plan, was determined to be quick and decisive, and was flexible and mobile in tactics, and made great achievements in eliminating Huang Wei's corps.
It may be because in the operation to eliminate Huang Wei's corps, Chen Xilian's tactical command was fully utilized. When the whole army was reorganized in 1949, he was successfully promoted and served as the commander of the Third Corps of the Second Field Army, the youngest corps commander in the whole army at that time.
The 34-year-old Chen Xilian is the commander of tens of thousands of troops, which once again proves that his military ability is very strong.
In the strategic pursuit stage, Chen Xilian commanded the Third Corps to participate in the battle of crossing the river, marched to the southwest, and together with his brother troops, eliminated Hu Zongnan's military group and liberated the southwestern provinces.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Chen Xilian served as artillery commander, and in 1959 he served as commander of the Shenyang Military Region. At the same time, he is also one of the few founding generals who has served as vice premier and commander of a large military region for more than 20 years.
In 1976, 61-year-old Chen Xilian once again ushered in the highlight of his military career, presiding over the daily work of the Military Commission and taking charge of the three armed forces. This position is equivalent to the generalissimo of the world's soldiers and horses in ancient times.