Lu Sheng (; November 5, 1911 – September 23, 1997) was a People's Liberation Army

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. He was born in

Qionghai Qionghai, or in local Hainanese dialect as Kheng Hai, is one of the seven county-level cities of Hainan province, China. Although called a "city", Qionghai refers to a large land area in Hainan - an area which was once a county. Within this area ...

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

Province (then part of

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

Province).

Biography

Early Life

Lu Jiayang was born November 5th, 1911, to a peasant family in Fangling Village, Lehui County (now Qionghai City). Lu's parents died in his youth, and he was raised by his grandmother until her passing when he was 14 years old. Soon after, Lu would join the Peasant-Self Defense Army in 1927. Following defeats of the Qiongya Soviet^zh under the Kuomintang's encirclement and suppression campaigns, Lu would flee to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

, and work as a rubber worker and seaman. Lu would join the Communist Youth League of China in 1929, before returning to China in 1932 following his deportation from Singapore owed to his support for union activities.

Early Military Activities

In 1933, Lu would join the 3rd Regiment of the Southern Fujian Red Army, advancing to the rank of political commissar and platoon leader of the 4th Red Company. The 4th Red Company would remain in Southern Fujian following the main retreat of the

Chinese Red Army The Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army or Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army, commonly known as the Chinese Red Army or simply the Red Army, are the armed forces of the Chinese Communist Party. It was formed when Communis ...

from the

Jiangxi Soviet Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north into h ...

in the

Long March The Long March (, lit. ''Long Expedition'') was a military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the National Army of the Chinese ...

, attacking Yunxiao County. Lu would assist in guerilla efforts along the

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its cap ...

border region. Following the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War, Lu would serve in as the commander of the 4th Regiment under the 2nd Dettachment of the New Fourth Army, under Commander

Zhang Dingcheng Zhang Dingcheng (; December 1898 – December 16, 1981) was a politician of the People's Republic of China, Procurator–General of the Supreme People's Procuratorate from 1954 to 1975.

, stationed in Northern Jiangxi and

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

. Lu would later take various administrative and political positions within the New Fourth Army, participating in various battles against the Japanese Army around

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its ca ...

province. Following the resumption of the Chinese Civil War, Lu would participate in the Huaihai, Yangtze River Crossing, and

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

campaigns.

Involvement in Korean War and Later Life

Lu would lead the 23rd Army of the 9th Corps of the People's Liberation Army as political commissar. For his efforts in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

, Lu would be awarded the First-Class Medal of Freedom and Independence from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Following the end of the Korean War, Lu would return to study at a military military academy, and later work as a military advisor in Fuzhou. In 1955, he would receive the August 1st Medal, Order of Independence and Freedom, and

Order of Liberation The Order of Liberation (french: Ordre de la Libération) is a French Order which was awarded to heroes of the Liberation of France during World War II. It is a very high honour, second only after the ''Légion d’Honneur'' (Legion of Honour ...

for his military service. He would serve in the 4th and

6th National People's Congress The 6th National People's Congress () was in session from 1983 to 1988. It held five sessions in this period. Elections to the Congress This new Congress was the first under the current 1982 Constitution, and the first to be elected under the r ...

, and serve on the 5th Standing Committee of the

People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC, zh, 中国人民政治协商会议), also known as the People's PCC (, ) or simply the PCC (), is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of ...

. Lu Sheng would pass away in Fuzhou on September 23, 1997, at the age of 85.

References

{{China-mil-bio-stub 1911 births 1997 deaths People's Liberation Army generals from Hainan People from Qionghai