Interactive | From revolutionary guerrillas to the world's largest army: 90 years of China’s People’s Liberation Army
How the Chinese military evolved from workers and peasants into a modern army
On August 1, 1927, the Communist Party of China launched an armed uprising in Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi Province. This motley collection of communists, peasants, Kuomintang deserters, and bandits was known as the First Workers’ and Peasants’ Army, or Red Army. Over the next 90 years it would evolve into the People’s Liberation Army, eventually becoming the world‘s largest military force.
Today the PLA has a clear mission. Former Chairman, Hu Jintao, explained the military’s role as being the consolidation of Communist Party rule, supplying domestic security and helping to establish world peace.
Armed conflicts, domestic and foreign wars, international politics and a multitude of other events, have helped shape the PLA. To better understand the impact of these consequences the following timeline shows how China’s army has evolved from a popular uprising to a modern military power.
The current structure of China’s armed forces is the result of reforms made last year. Prior to 2016, China was divided into seven regions, Shenyang, Jinan and Beijing in the north, Lanzhou in the west, Nanjing in the east, and Chengdu and Guangzhou in the south. This southern division covered the garrisons of Hong Kong SAR and Macau SAR.