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Communist Military Leaders of the Korean War
6. Marshal Chen Yi
Background and History Chen Yi was born in 1901 in Lochi near Chengdu, Sichuan, into a moderately wealthy magistrate's family. Proclamation of the People's Republic of China At the founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China, on October 1st, 1949, Chen Yi was on the reviewing stand with Chairman Mao. After the declaration of the People's Republic he became the Chief of Shanghai and later the first Foreign Minister. Activities in Korean War In December, 1950, Chen Yi, former commander of the field armies making up the 9th Army Group, arrived in Korea on a fact-finding mission. Mao wants to know why the 9th has performed so miserly. Yi meets with General Zhang Renchu Commander of the 26th Army and Nie Fengche Commander of the 278th Army. Yi concludes that the blame lies on the failure of: (1) bad weather -- the Chinese armies had not been properly clothed for the extreme cold and tens of thousands froze to death; (2) inadequate supply -- soldiers ran out of ammunition and grenades at critical points and had to break off their attack; (3) lack of air cover resulted in unnecessary delays and deaths; (4) lack of artillery -- the troops had to rely on small arms, grenades and satchel charges which often failed to explode due to the cold. |