In September 1955, the autumn scenery of Beijing's Zhongnanhai was particularly beautiful, and the sun's rays scattered from the clouds and reflected on the dark green water, refracting brilliant spots.
On the 27th, two award ceremonies were held in Zhongnanhai. At about 5 p.m., Chairman Mao Zedong personally awarded Zhu De, Peng Dehuai, and others the rank order and the meritorious medal of the marshal of the republic in recognition of their tremendous contributions to national independence and national liberation.
Each letter of order has a unique number, marshal Zhu De, as one of the main founders and leaders of the People's Liberation Army, is the deserved head of the marshal, so people thought that his order number should be 001.
However, it was not until a visit more than sixty years later that the outside world knew that there was another person in the order no. 001, so who would this marshal be?
On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War in 2015, Dong Cun, former deputy editor-in-chief of the People's Liberation Army Publishing House, and others came to visit the home of a marshal.
The marshal's daughter pointed to a mirror frame on the wall and introduced to the guests: This is the order letter given to the marshal by Chairman Mao Zedong when our army was awarded the rank in 1955. You see, my father's number is 001.
The guests were surprised by this, because in everyone's impression, Zhu De was the head of the ten marshals, the commander-in-chief of the Red Army, and his marshal rank certificate should also be ranked first.
However, on the marshal rank order that did not belong to Zhu De, it was clearly written no. 001. Some people think that this may be a mistake in that year, but some people say that the award of the marshal's title is a major event in the big thing, how can it be wrong?
In the end, there was unanimous agreement that Chairman Mao Zedong could never have issued Order 001 with his bare hands, and that this move must have a special meaning.
Speaking of this, we will not sell Guanzi, the marshal's daughter is named He Xiaoming, and it is no one else who has received this Marshal 001 order, it is her father Marshal He Long.
Then why did Chairman Mao Zedong grant Order 001 to He Long? This is inseparable from the Nanchang Uprising, the source of the people's army.
The people's army has a glorious revolutionary history, which begins with the Nanchang Uprising of 1927, and He Long is the commander-in-chief of the Nanchang Uprising.
In April and July 1927, Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Jingwei rebelled against the revolution one after another, and most of the National Revolutionary Army, which had been jointly created by the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, also fell to the Kuomintang.
At this time, He Long was serving as the commander of the 20th Army of the National Revolutionary Army, and although he was not yet a Communist, the various practices of the Kuomintang reactionaries had long been deeply resented by him, and He Long had already made up his mind to follow the Communists.
In early July 1927, He Long met zhou Enlai, the head of the CPC Central Committee, in Wuhan, and the two talked happily at first sight. He Long said: I have always pursued the ideal of enabling the toiling masses of China to live a good life, and I have always pursued a political party that can realize this ideal, and in the end, I have decided that the Communist Party is the best. I obeyed the leadership of the Communist Party, and as long as the Communist Party believed in me, I was very satisfied that I had nothing else to ask for.
Zhou Enlai also knew He Long well, knowing that He Long sincerely supported the Communist Party and the workers' and peasants' movement, and he replied: Of course we believe in you, so what reason do we have not to believe you?
He Long then said firmly: I listen to the Communist Party! We must fight to the end with Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Jingwei! Subsequently, He Long also met Zhu De, who was already a communist, for the first time, and Zhu De actually found the Communist Party after some exploration, which was quite similar to He Long's experience, and the two also had a heart-to-heart conversation.
When Wang Jingwei tore off his disguise and hunted down and massacred the Communists, He Long also covered many Communists in the name of the 20th Army, and Zhu De himself was able to move to a safe place under the escort of He Long.
At the end of July, He Long led his troops to Nanchang, Jiangxi, and at this time Nanchang City concentrated three communist forces, including He Long's 20th Army, Ye Ting's 24th Division, and Zhu De's Officers' Instruction Corps, which also became the main force in the Nanchang Uprising.
On July 28, He Long met with Zhou Enlai again, and Zhou Enlai explained to him the plans for the Nanchang Uprising, and then asked He Long for his opinion. He Long replied without hesitation: I listen to the Communist Party! I will do what the Communist Party wants me to do! Zhou Enlai then conveyed to He Long a glorious and arduous task: to serve as the commander-in-chief of the Nanchang Uprising!
At 2:00 a.m. on August 1, 1927, under the command of Zhou Enlai, He Long, Ye Ting, Zhu De, Liu Bocheng, and others, the rebel forces launched a fierce attack on the enemy defending Nanchang, thus firing the first shots of armed resistance against the Kuomintang reactionaries, and the history of the people's army began.
He Long not only personally participated in this great event, but also was the commander-in-chief of the Nanchang Uprising, and from this point of view, his contribution to the Chinese revolution was already very great. 28 days after the Nanchang Uprising, he joined the Communist Party of China in Ruijin, Jiangxi Province, and officially became a member of the party.
Although the Nanchang uprising troops that He Long participated in command suffered heavy losses in the later course of the battle, a new revolutionary road has been successfully opened, and the people's army in the future will only become more and more frustrated and courageous, and those who have firm revolutionary convictions will only face difficulties.
In the following revolutionary struggle, He Long was still in the forefront as in the past, and he made great achievements in the cause of the Chinese revolution by conquering the south and fighting in the north.
Based on his outstanding contributions, he was awarded the rank of Marshal during the PLA accreditation process in 1955.
When Issuing the certificate, Chairman Mao Zedong decided to award Certificate No. 001 to He Long, taking into account the Nanchang Uprising, which was the historical starting point of the people's army, and He Long's contribution to the Nanchang Uprising.
At 4:30 p.m. on September 27, 1955, He Long, Zhu De, Peng Dehuai, Chen Yi, and others dressed in marshal uniforms came to the lounge of Huairen Hall in Zhongnanhai.
Chen Yi asked He Long, speaking Sichuan-flavored Mandarin: "Mr. He, when you fired the first shot in Nanchang, did you think you could be a marshal today?"
He Long touched his beard, pondered for a moment, and then said: Don't say that you want to be a marshal, you didn't even think of the first shot fired in Nanchang, you just wanted to fight that shot well.
Chen Yi also mentioned ye Ting, who had sacrificed himself, and the marshals who had experienced hundreds of battles and walked out of the sea of corpses and blood could not help but feel a pang of sadness. At this time, Premier Zhou Enlai came and invited several marshals to move to the venue together.
When the hands on the clock pointed to 5 o'clock, in the sound of military music, Chairman Mao Zedong, dressed in Zhongshan uniform, awarded the order of the rank of marshal of the republic and the medal to the 7 marshals present in turn.
He Long saluted Chairman Mao with a military salute, and then solemnly accepted this lofty honor given by the party, the state, and the people.
He Long's Marshal Order number is 001, but the number of other medals is not 001.
Taking the August 1st Medal of the First Class as an example, it is said that the original intention was to award the first three to Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and Liu Shaoqi respectively, but none of these three later participated in the evaluation of military ranks or accepted the medal, so the medal was issued from No. 004.
The medal number 004 was awarded to Marshal Zhu De, and Marshal He Long's August 1st Medal number 009.
Of course, the numbering is only a symbolic meaning in the end, these heroes who have made immortal merits for the country and the nation have long put life and death aside, they are high and bright, and they pursue the interests of the country and the people for a lifetime, and they will not worry about the ranking of a few numbers.
Chairman Mao Zedong, in particular, was expected to become a grand marshal when his rank was evaluated. Grand Marshal is a rank above marshal, and only the Supreme Commander is eligible for this rank.
But Chairman Mao only waved his hand when he heard the news, "I am not the Grand Marshal," and the position of Grand Marshal was thus vacant.
Chairman Mao did not wear the uniform of the Grand Marshal specially prepared for him from the time it was made to the time it was put in the museum.
(Note: Marshal He Long's uniform)
Under Chairman Mao's example, many people took the initiative to demand not to participate in the evaluation of ranks or to lower their ranks, such as Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping and others who refused the rank of marshal, Zhang Dingcheng, Deng Zihui and others gave up the rank of general, and Lieutenant General Sun Yi asked to demote his rank to major general.
These revolutionaries of the older generation can not care about the numbers on the certificate or medal without the rank. Marshal Zhu De's certificate number is not 001, but it still does not affect his status in the eyes of the people of the whole country, and he is also the beloved "Commander-in-Chief Zhu" of the military and the people of the country;
Marshal He Long will not be complacent because the certificate number is 001, he will still bring his trademark pipe to people to talk and laugh.
He Long, who was awarded the rank of marshal in 1955, later continued to work in foreign affairs, national defense and sports, just as he did when he joined the revolution, and has always been conscientious and dedicated, continuing to contribute his strength to the country and the people until the last moment of his life.
Content Source:
Dong Preservation: To whom was the 001 of the Order of the Rank of Marshal of the Republic issued to whom? Fujian Party History Monthly, 2018
Dong Preservation: "Before and After the First Title Was Awarded in 1955", Xiangchao (First Half of the Month), No. 4, 2017
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