Telegram in Reply to the Fourth Front Army on the Joining of Forces[1]

(June 16, 1935)

We have received your telegram with great joy. The joining of the two main forces of the Chinese Soviet movement creates a new record in the history of the Chinese revolution and unfolds a new stage in the Chinese revolution, striking terror and trembling into our enemies, the imperialists and the Kuomintang. We have long heard of your glorious battle achievements, and each time we received your telegrams of victory, we were overjoyed. This joining of forces makes us even more elated. Henceforth, we shall join hands with you to fight and win great battles, to wipe out Chiang Kai-shek, Liu Xiang,[2] Hu Zongnan,[3] Deng Xihou,[4] and other warlords, and to sovietize northwestern Sichuan. Our eight-month long march was a struggle for the Soviets. We pledge to struggle for the Soviets to the very end together with you. We hereby send this telegram in reply.

[1] This is a reply telegram sent by Mao Zedong, Zhu De, Zhou Enlai, and Zhang Wentian, together with all the commanding officers and fighters of the Central Red Army, to Zhang Guotao, principal leader of the Fourth Front Army of the Red Army and chairman of the Northwest Revolutionary Military Commission, Xu Xiangqian, commander-in-chief of the Fourth Front Army, and Chen Changhao, political commissar, to be relayed to all the commanding officers and fighters of the Fourth Front Army, after the vanguard units of the Central Red Army and the Fourth Front Army of the Red Army had joined forces.

[2] Liu Xiang was a member of the local strength faction in Sichuan. He was then chairman of the Kuomintang Sichuan Provincial Government, Sichuan Rehabilitation Commissioner, commander-in-chief of the Sichuan "Bandit Suppression" Army, and concurrently commander of the 21st Army (Sichuan Army).

[3] Hu Zongnan was then commander of the 1st Division of the Kuomintang and commander of the 2nd Column of the 3rd Route Army of the "Bandit Suppression" Forces.

[4] Deng Xihou was then commander of the 45th Army (Sichuan Army) of the Kuomintang, concurrently commander of the 128th Division, and commander-in-chief of the 1st Route of the Sichuan "Bandit Suppression" Army.