Speech at the Reception for the Southward Detachment[1]

(September 27, 1946)

You have not feared hardship, not feared sacrifice, have been brave and tenacious, have penetrated deep into the enemy’s heartland, have dared to struggle against the enemy, have smashed the encirclement and suppression by the hundred-thousand-strong army of the Kuomintang reactionaries, and have returned victoriously to Yan’an. This is the second Long March in the history of our Party. Although you have sacrificed not a few comrades, you have gloriously fulfilled the tasks entrusted by the Party. You are the precious wealth of the Party, and you can also be called outstanding university students graduated from the university of war.

On June 26, 1946, the Kuomintang launched a massive offensive against the Central Plains Liberated Area. The 359th Brigade broke through the encirclement under the command of the Central Plains Military Region and returned to Yan’an on September 27. The photo shows officers and soldiers of the 359th Brigade returning to Yan’an after a long journey.

In 1946, Mao Zedong posed for a group photo with cadres of the 359th Brigade who had broken through the encirclement in the Central Plains and returned to Yan’an.

--- Notes

[1] This is part of Mao Zedong’s speech at the reception for the Southward Detachment that returned victoriously to Yan’an.