Luo Ronghuan (1902-1963)

Proletarian revolutionary, political and military leader; one of the founders of the People's Liberation Army and the People's Republic of China; founder of the political work in the People's Liberation Army; Marshal of the People's Republic of China; one of the outstanding leaders of the Party, the State and the Army. His original name was Hao Zongren, and his courtesy name was Yahuai. He was born in Hengshan County (currently belongs to Hengdong), within Hunan Province. In the spring of 1927, he joined the Communist Youth League of China and became a member of the Communist Party of China.

After the important August 7th Meeting in 1927, Hubei’s Provincial Committee of the CPC sent him to Southern Hubei to participate in the uprising and was appointed as the person in charge of Party affairs in the Revolutionary Peasant Army which was active in Tongcheng County. In September 1927, he led his battalion in participating the Autumn Harvest Uprising at the border of Hunan-Jiangxi, then with his troops marched into to Jinggang Mountains, he successively served as the staff officer of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants’ Revolutionary Army. and as the Party director within the special secret task column. In 1928, he successively served as the Party’s political director at the corps level and later at the army level, of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants’ Revolutionary Army. In March 1929, he served as the Party representative of the Ninth Division of the Third Corps of the Fourth Red Army. In December 1929, he was elected as a member of the Frontline Committee of the CPC at the Ninth Party Congress of the Fourth Red Army (Gutian Conference). He served as the political commissar of the Second Corps of the Fourth Red Army in January 1930, in April 1930 he became acting deputy political commissar at the Army level and soon after he was promoted as the Head of the Political Department of the Fourth Red Army. Since March 1932, he served as the Head of the Political Department of the First Front Red Army. In May 1933, he successively served as the Director of the Political Department the General Headquarter of the Jiangxi Military Region, Inspector of the Central Political Department and as the Director of the Armed Mobilization Department and other posts.

In September 1934, he was appointed as the Director of Political Department of the Eighth Red Army Corps in September 1934 and participated in the Long March in October of the same year. Luo Ronghuan served as the security chief of the Red Army during the Long March and later became the director of the political department of the Military Commission of the Rear Area. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he served as the director of the Political Department of the 115th Division of the Eighth Route Army. He became a member of Shandong Bureau of the CPC Central Committee in September 1939. In August 1941, he served as the Secretary of Shandong Military and Political Commission. Between September 1943 and autumn 1945, he served as the Secretary of Shandong Branch of the CPC Central Committee, Secretary of the Anti-Traitor Committee and as the President of the Party School. In September 1945, he led his troops and marched to the Northeast, he successively served as the second political commissar of the Northeast People's Autonomous Army and the deputy political commissar of the Northeast Democratic United Forces. Between June 1946 and May 1949, he served as Deputy Secretary of the Northeast Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. In August 1948, he served as the first deputy political commissar of the Northeast Military Region and political commissar of the Northeast Field Army (Northeast People's Liberation Army) and participated in the command of the Liaoshen (Liaoning-Shenyang Campaign)and the Pingjin Campaigns. Since March 1949, he has served as a political commissar of the Fourth Field Army of the PLA, as the the Second Secretary of the Central China Bureau (later the Central-South Bureau), and the Director of the political Department of the Central China Military Region (later the Central-South Military Region), and the political Commissar of the Central China Military and Political University.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he became the Council member committee of the Central People's Government and Chief Procurator of the Supreme People's Procuratorate. In April 1950, he was appointed as the Director of the General Political Department of the People's Liberation Army and since November 1950 he concurrently served as the Director of the General Cadre Department of the PLA. In June 1954, he served as Vice-Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Central People's Government, and in September 1954, as Member of the Central Military Commission of the Central Committee of the CPC and Vice-Chairman of the First and Second National Defense Commissions. He was elected as theVice-Chairmen of the Standing Committee of the First National People's Congress in September 1954. Between November 1954 and December 1961, he served as the President of the Military-Political Academy of the PLA.

In September 1955, he was appointed as the Secretary of the Supervisory Commission of the PLA Supervisory Committee in September 1955. In September 1955, he was awarded the rank of Marshal of the People's Republic of China, the First-Class Medal of Independence and Freedom, and the First-Class Medal of Liberation. He was elected to the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee in September 1956. In April 1959, he was electedVice-Chairmen of the Standing Committee of the Second National People's Congress. In September, he was elected as the member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and also served as the member and Standing Committee of the Central Military Commission. In January 1961, he was reappointed as the Director of the General Political Department of the PLA, First Secretary of the Party Committee of the General Political Department, and in March 1961 as the Secretary of the Supervision Committee of the PLA. He served as a member of the Seventh and Eighth Central Committees of the CPC and as a member of the Political Bureau of the Eighth Central Committee. He died in Beijing on December 16, 1963 at the age of 61. His main works are collected as Selected military works of Luo Ronghuan.