Establishment of the Subei Army and the Shandong Army[1]

(January 30, 1948)

To the East China Bureau, with information to Su, Chen, Liu, Deng,[2] the Handan Bureau, and the Central Working Committee:

Your telegram of the 29th has been received. The following decisions are hereby made: (1) Wei Guoqing[3] shall lead the 2nd Column to Subei in late February to join forces with the 11th and 12th Columns and establish the Subei Army. Wei Guoqing shall serve as commander of the Subei Army, and Chen Pixian[4] as political commissar, though in practice he shall continue to oversee the work of the Working Committee. Ji Luo[5] shall serve as deputy political commissar and, together with Wei Guoqing, take charge of military affairs. The responsible personnel for the 2nd, 11th, and 12th Columns shall be assigned by the East China Bureau after due consideration and reported to us. The Subei Army shall be under the command of Chen and Su.[6] (2) Xu and Tan[7] shall lead the 7th, 9th, and 13th Columns as the Shandong Army, undertaking combat missions on the Shandong battlefield. It shall be under the authority of the East China Bureau. Its plans for operations, rest and reorganization, and replenishment shall be submitted to the Military Commission for consideration through the East China Bureau and shall be implemented only after approval by the Military Commission. At present, efforts should be made to complete the rest and reorganization tasks before February 20, and new operational actions shall commence in late February. A portion of the forces shall monitor the enemy in Jiaodong, while the main force shall maneuver toward the western section of the Jiaoji Railway. (3) Preparations shall be made to establish a new column in three to four months to join the combat operations of the Shandong Army.

The Military Commission
January 30

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[1] This telegram was drafted by Mao Zedong for the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China and addressed to the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.
[2] Su and Chen refer to Su Yu and Chen Shiju, who were then respectively deputy commander and chief of staff of the East China Field Army. Liu and Deng refer to Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, who were then respectively commander and political commissar of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army.
[3] Wei Guoqing was then commander and concurrently political commissar of the 2nd Column of the East China Field Army.
[4] Chen Pixian was then political commissar of the Subei Military District.
[5] Ji Luo, namely Ji Pengfei, was then political commissar of the 11th Column of the East China Field Army.
[6] Chen and Su refer to Chen Yi and Su Yu, who were then respectively commander and concurrently political commissar, and deputy commander of the East China Field Army.
[7] Xu and Tan refer to Xu Shiyou and Tan Zhenlin, who were then respectively commander and political commissar of the Eastern Army of the East China Field Army. The Eastern Army was subsequently renamed the Shandong Army.