Chen Yi (marshal)

Chinese Communist military commander, politician, and one of the Ten Marshals

Chen Yi was born into a moderately wealthy magistrate's family of Hakka descent in Lezhi County, Sichuan.^[1] He died in Beijing on 6 January 1972 at age 70 from colorectal cancer.^[2] Chen Yi held the positions of Shanghai's mayor, a Vice Premier, and the Foreign Minister for the People's Republic of China.^[3][4]

Last updated 2026-09-30 from the source article.

Quick Facts

Birth name: Chen Shijun (陈世俊)
Born: 26 August 1901
Died: 6 January 1972
Birthplace: Lezhi County, Sichuan Province, Qing Empire
Place of death: Beijing, People's Republic of China
Children: Chen Haosu, Chen Xiaolu
Relations: Wang Guangya
Took office: September 1954

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Chen Yi and Su Yu spearheaded the Shandong counter-offensive during the Chinese Civil War.^[3] He commanded Communist armies that defeated KMT forces in the Huaihai Campaign and conquered the lower Yangtze region in 1948–49.^[3] After capturing Shanghai, he remained as Director of the Shanghai Military Control Commission and then Mayor, overseeing the city's stabilisation and reconstruction.^[3] In 1950, he offered to command the People's Volunteer Army in Korea, but Mao declined.^[3]

In August 1960, Chen Yi attempted to ease Sino-Soviet tensions, telling the Soviet Ambassador that Moscow should stop "severing the friendship between the two nations"^[4] In June 1958, Chen was made head of the newly established Foreign Affairs Group.^[5] Between 1954 and 1972 he was a Vice Premier, and from 1958 to 1972 he also acted as Foreign Minister.^[4] Within the February Countercurrent during the Cultural Revolution, Chen Yi was a prominent critic who spoke out against the social chaos and leadership damage the movement caused.^[6]

The consequence for Chen Yi was that he had to ask for a leave of absence and write a self-criticism; however, he was never removed from his post.^[6] Following Lin Biao's 1971 death, Chen Yi regained some favor, but his previous level of authority was not restored.^[2]

What the cited sources add

The Current Intelligence Bulletin began production on 28 February 1951 and remained the president's daily digest format through Dwight Eisenhower's two terms.^[7] The same document records that the Daily Summary was produced from February 1946 until February 1951.^[7]

References

Wikipedia, "Chen Yi (marshal)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Erbaugh, "The Secret History of the Hakkas: The Chinese Revolution as a Hakka Enterprise", The China Quarterly, 1992, p. 937–968 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Chen Yi (marshal)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Stewart, "CHINA ANNOUNCES DEATH OF CHEN YI", The New York Times, 1972-01-11; Perlez, "A Leader in Mao's Cultural Revolution Faces His Past", New York Times, 6 December 2013 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Chen Yi (marshal)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "毛泽东亲点陈毅任上海市长：我们打不得一点儿败仗", dangshi.people.com.cn, April 7, 2013 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Chen Yi (marshal)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Shu Guang Zhang, 2010, The Sino-Soviet alliance and the Cold War in Asia, 1954-1962. The Cambridge History of the Cold War, Vol 1, p.371. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Chen Yi (marshal)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Chen, "Zhou Enlai: A Life", Harvard University Press, 2024; Chen, "Zhou Enlai: A Life", Harvard University Press, 2024 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Chen Yi (marshal)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hou, "Building for Oil: Daqing and the Formation of the Chinese Socialist State", Harvard University Asia Center, 2021; Hou, "Building for Oil: Daqing and the Formation of the Chinese Socialist State", Harvard University Asia Center, 2021 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
"1. Bình-Trị-Thiên Front; 2. Projected departure of general Hoàng Sâm to Korea", Central Intelligence Agency, July 23, 1951. facts only, no text reused. cia.gov

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Chen Yi (marshal) (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.