The Basic Policy Guiding the Operations of the
Fifteenth Army Group in Establishing Base
Areas in Northwest Shanxi
(March 22, 1936, 10:00 P.M.)
To Xu [Haidong] and Cheng [Zihua], and to be transmitted to Lin [Biao] and Nie
[Rongzhen]:
Directive on operational principles:
1. The Fifteenth Army Group has the tasks of creating soviet base areas in
northwestern Shanxi, and, in cooperation with the Twenty-eighth Army, which is
operating in Shen[mu] and Fu[gu], controlling one section of the Yellow River
and opening up communications with northern Shaanxi.


2. The area of operations includes all xian centered around Kelan and Lanxian, namely the xian of Jiaocheng, Jingle, Ningwu, Wuzhai, Hequ, Baode,
Xingxian, Linxian, and Fangshan, and includes the creation of soviet base areas
in these xian, with an emphasis on Kelan, Lanxian, Xingxian, and Linxian.


3. Within this region, wipe out the armed forces of the landlords, wipe out
any enemy forces that are smaller than ours on the northward march, and make
every possible effort in striving to get one or two xian towns into our hands.


4. Extensively expand propaganda, distribute various kinds of property, and
mobilize the broad masses to the point where guerrilla troops and political power
are widely established, and the land is distributed.


5. Vigorously expand the Red Army, striving to recruit 1,500 people within
one month.


6. There are no restrictions as to time of operations and work.


7. In case telegrams cannot get through, you should continue to operate in the
designated area, and we shall order Song Shilun¹ to lead the Seventh Platoon to
search for you. During the present period, however, Song Shilun and his troops
are still in the area centered around Shuitou engaging the enemy's attention and
carrying on their work.


Peng [Dehuai] Mao [Zedong]


We have translated this telegram from Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 1, pp. 494-95,
where it is reproduced from a copy in the Central Archives.



--- Notes



1. Song Shilun (1907-), a native of Hunan, had been trained at the Huangpu Military
Academy, and joined the Communist Party in 1927. During the early 1930s he held a
variety of increasingly important commands, and participated in the Long March. At this
time, he was head of the operational section in the headquarters of the Fifteenth Army
Group of the Red Army First Front Army.