Published : 2025-04-23
On April 23, 1949, the Navy of the East China Military Region of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) was established at Baima Temple in Taizhou, Jiangsu Province.
Taizhou was therefore known as the "Mother City of Sailors." Since then, the "People's Navy" has become a new branch of the PLA.
In 1949, following the victorious conclusion of the Huaihai and Pingjin campaigns, a million-strong PLA force was poised to cross the Yangtze River and head south.
The national political landscape underwent fundamental changes, and many Kuomintang (KMT) naval units successively revolted.
On March 4 of the same year, Deng Zhaoxiang (鄧兆祥), the captain of the KMT cruiser "Chongqing," led his unit to port at Huludao after the uprising.
On the 24th of the same month, Mao Zedong (毛澤東) and General Zhu De (朱德) jointly sent a commendation telegram to the officers and soldiers of the revolted cruiser "Chongqing," decisively ordering the immediate formation of a navy and assigning the task to the Third Field Army of the PLA with the name of the Military Commission.
In late March 1949, after attending the Yangtze River crossing operation meeting in Sunjiawei Town, Bengbu, Commander and political commissioner of the Third Field Army of the PLA, Chen Yi (陳毅), conveyed the decision of the CPC Central Committee and the Central Military Commission to Zhang Aiping (張愛萍), the former deputy commander of the Central China Military Region: The Third Field Army would form the navy, and Zhang Aiping would serve as commander and political commissioner.
Chen Yi stated, "With a navy, the preparation time for this crossing of the Yangtze River would not be so long." He also added, "To liberate the coastal islands in the future, we must have our own navy."
On April 4, 1949, under orders from the Central Military Commission, Deputy Commander of the Third Field Army Su Yu (粟裕) and Chief of Staff Zhang Zhen (張震) arrived at Baima Temple Township in Taixian County, Jiangsu Province.
Their mission was to establish a command for the Yangtze River crossing operation, accept Kuomintang's surrendered ships, and form a naval force to defend the coastal and riverside areas.
On April 23, 1949, with Zhang Aiping leading, the Navy of the Chinese PLA was officially established at Baima Temple in Taizhou, with only five officers and eight soldiers, a total of 13 people, witnessing the birth of the first People's Navy unit.
At its inception, the People's Navy members could be roughly divided into two categories: those selected from the PLA, who were valiant and industrious but lacked cultural and technical knowledge, and the restructured Kuomintang navy members, who had technical expertise.
However, the new Chinese navy still needed more personnel for its development.
To this end, Zhang Aiping published a "Recruitment Notice" in the Ta Kung Pao, mentioning the establishment of service offices for Kuomintang navy personnel. Anyone determined to serve the People's Navy could sign up and be appointed according to their abilities.
Offices were set up in Shanghai, Qingdao, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Xiamen, and other places, waiting for talented individuals.
Within a few months after the "Recruitment Notice" was issued, more than 1,100 people registered, including Kuomintang navy veteran Zeng Yiding (曾以鼎). With the addition of received Kuomintang vessels, the Chinese Navy gradually took shape.
After years of continuous development and expansion, the strength of the Chinese Navy has now become considerably strong.
Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Chinese Navy has entered a rapid development phase.
In just five years, more than 70 warships have been launched and commissioned according to publicly available reports, including domestically produced aircraft carriers, 055-type 10,000-tonne destroyers, new models of nuclear submarines, and other advanced armaments, marking a new starting point for the strategic transformation of the Chinese Navy.
