Cultural Revolution Group
Encyclopedia
The Cultural Revolution Group (CRG) was formed in May 1966 as a replacement organisation to the Central Committee Secretariat
and the "Five Man Group
", and was initially directly responsible to the Standing Committee of the Politburo
. It consisted mainly of radical supporters of Mao, including Chen Boda
, the Chairman's wife Jiang Qing
, Kang Sheng
, Yao Wenyuan
, Zhang Chunqiao
, Wang Li
and Xie Fuzhi
. The CRG had a central role to play in the Cultural Revolution
's first few years, and for a period of time the group replaced the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) as the de facto top power organ of China. Its members were also involved in many of the major events of the Cultural Revolution.
called on the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP) to implement a 'Cultural Revolution' in China. The meeting established a body known as the "Five Man Group" (chaired by Peng Zhen
, the fifth ranking member of the Politburo), whose aim was oversee the beginnings of the Cultural Revolution
. Of the members of the group, only Kang Sheng
was a supporter of Mao. However, the group remained relatively inactive until the Spring of 1966, when it censored the writings of Yao Wenyuan
and other radicals for making an academic debate on the play 'Hai Rui Dismissed from Office
', into a political one (a move which Mao had been encouraging).
Unhappy over what he perceived to be an obstruction of the course of the Cultural Revolution
, Mao returned to the capital in the Spring of 1966, and the "Five Man Group" was formally dissolved in the Central Committee's May 16 Circular:
The 'Five Man Group' was dissolved immediately and Peng Zhen was charged with allegedly obstructing the course of the Cultural Revolution. Soon after May 16, he was dismissed from all his offices and the control of the capital passed into the hands of followers of Mao. Chen Boda
was chosen to head the newly formed 'Cultural Revolution Group', which would report to the Politburo Standing Committee. Consisting originally of between fifteen and twenty people, the CRG included, amongst others, Jiang Qing (the wife of Chairman Mao) as vice-chairman, Kang Sheng as the Group Adviser, Yao Wenyuan
, Zhang Chunqiao
, Qi Benyu
, Wang Li
and Xie Fuzhi
. There were also several less well-known members. However, Chen Boda did not chair the CRG's meetings- this fell to Zhou Enlai
, who held a position of control over the group, and could speak on behalf of the entire group without needing to consult it.
(PLA) to restore order to China, it was signed by the CRG as well as the Central Committee, the State Council and the Military Affairs Commission. In addition, the CRG had theoretical control over the People's Liberation Army, although very soon army commanders wielded enough political power to often act independently of the CRG. The CRG was also given the entire of the Beijing Diaoyutai compound (built to house foreign visitors to tenth anniversary celebration of the People's Republic of China
(PRC) in 1959) to use at its offices until 1969. All documents from Mao were sent for approval to the CRG (as well as Lin Biao
and Zhou Enlai), while other members of the Politburo Standing Committee were not sent these documents. Gradually, through examples like this, the CRG began to overtake the PSC in its political stature and importance.
Throughout the early years of the Cultural Revolution, the CRG acted as a body that directed the course the movement should take. Due to Mao's backing of the group, its orders were of significant importance. For example, after the Wuhan Incident
, Jiang Qing
suggested in a speech that the Red Guards
should 'defend with weapons', leading to a surge in the seizure of PLA armaments by rebel groups. In addition, Wang Li
and other CRG radicals (taking their cue from Jiang Qing) called for the removal of 'revisionist' elements in the PLA. The radical CRG, however, often found it had to contend with the more conservative view of how the Cultural Revolution
should progress promoted by Zhou Enlai
and his supporters, who were as interested in stability and the maintenance of some form of government as they were in revolution.
The CRG also had several supplementary functions. Its Art and Literature Group, headed by Jiang Qing, took over the responsibilities of the Ministry of Culture when the latter was dissolved in May 1967. Furthermore, the group worked closely with the Central Case Examination Group
(CCEG), an organisation established in 1966 that investigated the alleged crimes and errors of higher-ranking members of the Party. Practically all the members of the CRG were also members of the CCEG.
The members of the CRG also had important individual roles in two of the important events of the Cultural Revolution
, the Shanghai Commune and the Wuhan Incident.
Two members of the CRG played a significant part in the affair over the Shanghai Commune. Due to his connections with the city (he had been secretary of the Shanghai Party Committee until July 1966), Zhang Chunqiao
was dispatched from the centre in November 1966 to mediate the crisis over the siege of some worker's groups at Anting. Early in January the next year, Zhang Chunqiao was to return again to Shanghai
with his CRG colleague Yao Wenyuan
to lead the new order established after the fall of the old Party apparatus, and in early February he was to become head of the newly formed Shanghai Commune. However, the combination of questions over the legitimacy of the Commune's leadership, and a change in attitudes to communes in general at the centre, meant that the Shanghai Commune was to last less than a month.
Despite the CRG's 1967 orders forbidding violence, in July 1967 the city of Wuhan
became a battleground for two large rival rebel groups- the 'Million Heroes' and the 'Wuhan Workers' General Headquarters' (WWGH). The 400,000 strong WWGH was besieged by the 'Million Heroes', who were being supplied with weapons and manpower by the local PLA commander Chen Zaidao
. When Zhou Enlai
's orders that the siege to be lifted were ignored by Chen Zaidao
, Wang Li and Xie Fuzhi were dispatched to Wuhan to resolve the crisis. On 19 July the pair instructed the PLA to switch its allegiance from the 'Million Heroes' to the WWGH. In the early hours of the next day however, Xie Fuzhi
was arrested by the PLA while Wang Li
was kidnapped by the 'Million Heroes' and beaten. After a failed attempt by Zhou Enlai to resolve the crisis, it took a show of military force by other PLA units for Chen Zaidao to eventually surrender, and Xie and Wang returned to Beijing as heroes.
and the CRG, due to the PLA's gradual suppression of the CRG-backed rebel groups and Red Guards. By the October of 1967, the PLA had reached the peak of its ascendancy, which meant the end of the CRG. In November 1967, the Group's radical party journal, Red Flag, was ordered to stop publication. In addition, the leading members of the CRG quickly became scapegoats for the problems of the summer of 1967, when armed conflict between rebel groups, other groups and the PLA had been the norm. Individuals including Wang Li
were soon connected with the "May Sixteenth Corps", a supposed group that exploited divisions in the Cultural Revolution to cause the anarchy and was plotting to seize power. Although there is evidence that Wang Li and others formed a faction within the CRG that employed the term "May Sixteenth", and that the CRG did exploit divisions in the movement, there is little evidence known to suggest a plot to seize power.
The fall of the CRG has also been attributed by some to the fact that Mao had become increasingly moderate in his view of the Cultural Revolution since February 1967, and that others (like the CRG) who were still committed to the original aims of the movement remained exposed on the left-wing while Mao moved towards the centre. Comparably, they were now far enough on the left to be considered too radical for comfort.
In September, some of the CRG radicals including Wang Li and Guan Feng were arrested on the orders of Mao, but by the end of the Cultural Revolution the new drive to eradicate 'ultra-leftists' would see the arrest of nearly all of the CRG's members (Jiang Qing
would survive until the death of Mao).
After the 1967 arrest of some of its leading members, the CRG continued to play a role in the Cultural Revolution, but this was limited. For example, the remaining members were asked to attend the Twelfth Plenum of the Eighth Central Committee in October 1968, where Liu Shaoqi
was officially expelled from the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP) forever. The group was never formally dissolved, but ceased to exist at some point after the CCP's Ninth Congress in the Spring of 1969. The CRG's remaining former members - including Jiang Qing and Kang Sheng
- were left to fight their individual political battles in the years that followed.
Secretariat of the Communist Party of China Central Committee
The Secretariat of the Communist Party of China Central Committee is the permanent bureaucracy of the Communist Party of China and forms a parallel structure to state organizations in the People's Republic of China....
and the "Five Man Group
Five Man Group
The Five Man Group was an organisation established in the People's Republic of China in early 1965 to oversee the beginnings of the Cultural Revolution. The group was led by Peng Zhen , the fifth most senior member of the Politburo...
", and was initially directly responsible to the Standing Committee of the Politburo
Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China
The Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China is a committee consisting of the top leadership of the Communist Party of China, whose membership varies between 5 and 9 people. The inner workings of the PSC are not well known, although it is believed that decisions of the PSC are...
. It consisted mainly of radical supporters of Mao, including Chen Boda
Chen Boda
Chen Boda was born in 1904 in Hui'an and died on 20 September 1989 in Beijing.He was a member of the Chinese Communist Party, a secretary to Mao Zedong and a prominent member of the leadership during the Cultural Revolution, chairing the Cultural Revolution Group.-Early life:Chen Boda was born...
, the Chairman's wife Jiang Qing
Jiang Qing
Jiang Qing was the pseudonym that was used by Chinese leader Mao Zedong's last wife and major Communist Party of China power figure. She went by the stage name Lan Ping during her acting career, and was known by various other names during her life...
, Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng , Communist Party of China official, oversaw the work of the People's Republic of China's security and intelligence apparatus at the height of the Cultural Revolution in the late 1960s. He was a close associate of Mao Zedong and remained at or near the pinnacle of power for decades...
, Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan was a Chinese literary critic, a politician, and a member of the "Gang of Four" during China's Cultural Revolution.-Biography:...
, Zhang Chunqiao
Zhang Chunqiao
Zhang Chunqiao was a prominent Chinese political theorist, writer, and politician...
, Wang Li
Wang Li (politician)
Wang Li was a propagandist and prominent member of the Cultural Revolution Group. Arrested by Chen Zaidao during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967 he was purged for "ultra-leftism" shortly afterwards....
and Xie Fuzhi
Xie Fuzhi
Xie Fuzhi was a Communist Party of China military commander, political commissar, and national security specialist. He was born in 1909 in Hong'an County, Hubei and died in Beijing in 1972. He was married to Liu Xiangping...
. The CRG had a central role to play in the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
's first few years, and for a period of time the group replaced the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) as the de facto top power organ of China. Its members were also involved in many of the major events of the Cultural Revolution.
Background
In January 1965, at a meeting of the Politburo, Mao ZedongMao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
called on the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
(CCP) to implement a 'Cultural Revolution' in China. The meeting established a body known as the "Five Man Group" (chaired by Peng Zhen
Peng Zhen
Peng Zhen was a leading member of the Communist Party of China.-Biography:Born in Houma , Peng was originally named Fu Maogong....
, the fifth ranking member of the Politburo), whose aim was oversee the beginnings of the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
. Of the members of the group, only Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng , Communist Party of China official, oversaw the work of the People's Republic of China's security and intelligence apparatus at the height of the Cultural Revolution in the late 1960s. He was a close associate of Mao Zedong and remained at or near the pinnacle of power for decades...
was a supporter of Mao. However, the group remained relatively inactive until the Spring of 1966, when it censored the writings of Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan was a Chinese literary critic, a politician, and a member of the "Gang of Four" during China's Cultural Revolution.-Biography:...
and other radicals for making an academic debate on the play 'Hai Rui Dismissed from Office
Hai Rui Dismissed from Office
Hai Rui Dismissed from Office is a theatre play notable for its involvement in Chinese politics during the Cultural Revolution.Wu Han, who wrote the play, was a historian who focused on the Ming Dynasty. Wu Han wrote an article portraying Hai Rui, a Ming minister who was imprisoned for criticizing...
', into a political one (a move which Mao had been encouraging).
Unhappy over what he perceived to be an obstruction of the course of the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
, Mao returned to the capital in the Spring of 1966, and the "Five Man Group" was formally dissolved in the Central Committee's May 16 Circular:
The Central Committee has decided to... dissolve the 'Group of Five in Charge of the Cultural Revolution', and to set up a new Cultural Revolution group directly under the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau.
The 'Five Man Group' was dissolved immediately and Peng Zhen was charged with allegedly obstructing the course of the Cultural Revolution. Soon after May 16, he was dismissed from all his offices and the control of the capital passed into the hands of followers of Mao. Chen Boda
Chen Boda
Chen Boda was born in 1904 in Hui'an and died on 20 September 1989 in Beijing.He was a member of the Chinese Communist Party, a secretary to Mao Zedong and a prominent member of the leadership during the Cultural Revolution, chairing the Cultural Revolution Group.-Early life:Chen Boda was born...
was chosen to head the newly formed 'Cultural Revolution Group', which would report to the Politburo Standing Committee. Consisting originally of between fifteen and twenty people, the CRG included, amongst others, Jiang Qing (the wife of Chairman Mao) as vice-chairman, Kang Sheng as the Group Adviser, Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan was a Chinese literary critic, a politician, and a member of the "Gang of Four" during China's Cultural Revolution.-Biography:...
, Zhang Chunqiao
Zhang Chunqiao
Zhang Chunqiao was a prominent Chinese political theorist, writer, and politician...
, Qi Benyu
Qi Benyu
Qi Benyu is an ultraleft theoretist und propagandist, mainly active during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. He was member of the Cultural Revolution Group, Head of the Xinfang-Department and Vice-Chairman of the General Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China...
, Wang Li
Wang Li (politician)
Wang Li was a propagandist and prominent member of the Cultural Revolution Group. Arrested by Chen Zaidao during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967 he was purged for "ultra-leftism" shortly afterwards....
and Xie Fuzhi
Xie Fuzhi
Xie Fuzhi was a Communist Party of China military commander, political commissar, and national security specialist. He was born in 1909 in Hong'an County, Hubei and died in Beijing in 1972. He was married to Liu Xiangping...
. There were also several less well-known members. However, Chen Boda did not chair the CRG's meetings- this fell to Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
, who held a position of control over the group, and could speak on behalf of the entire group without needing to consult it.
Role in the Cultural Revolution
The mandate given to the CRG on its formation was to guide the Cultural Revolution, and it was given many of the powers and the political prestige of the Central Committee and the Politburo. For example, when the order, on 5 September 1967, was issued instructing the People's Liberation ArmyPeople's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
(PLA) to restore order to China, it was signed by the CRG as well as the Central Committee, the State Council and the Military Affairs Commission. In addition, the CRG had theoretical control over the People's Liberation Army, although very soon army commanders wielded enough political power to often act independently of the CRG. The CRG was also given the entire of the Beijing Diaoyutai compound (built to house foreign visitors to tenth anniversary celebration of the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
(PRC) in 1959) to use at its offices until 1969. All documents from Mao were sent for approval to the CRG (as well as Lin Biao
Lin Biao
Lin Biao was a major Chinese Communist military leader who was pivotal in the communist victory in the Chinese Civil War, especially in Northeastern China...
and Zhou Enlai), while other members of the Politburo Standing Committee were not sent these documents. Gradually, through examples like this, the CRG began to overtake the PSC in its political stature and importance.
Throughout the early years of the Cultural Revolution, the CRG acted as a body that directed the course the movement should take. Due to Mao's backing of the group, its orders were of significant importance. For example, after the Wuhan Incident
Wuhan Incident
The Wuhan Incident was an armed conflict in the People's Republic of China between two hostile groups who were fighting for control over the city of Wuhan in July 1967, at the height of the Cultural Revolution...
, Jiang Qing
Jiang Qing
Jiang Qing was the pseudonym that was used by Chinese leader Mao Zedong's last wife and major Communist Party of China power figure. She went by the stage name Lan Ping during her acting career, and was known by various other names during her life...
suggested in a speech that the Red Guards
Red Guards (China)
Red Guards were a mass movement of civilians, mostly students and other young people in the People's Republic of China , who were mobilized by Mao Zedong in 1966 and 1967, during the Cultural Revolution.-Origins:...
should 'defend with weapons', leading to a surge in the seizure of PLA armaments by rebel groups. In addition, Wang Li
Wang Li (politician)
Wang Li was a propagandist and prominent member of the Cultural Revolution Group. Arrested by Chen Zaidao during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967 he was purged for "ultra-leftism" shortly afterwards....
and other CRG radicals (taking their cue from Jiang Qing) called for the removal of 'revisionist' elements in the PLA. The radical CRG, however, often found it had to contend with the more conservative view of how the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
should progress promoted by Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
and his supporters, who were as interested in stability and the maintenance of some form of government as they were in revolution.
The CRG also had several supplementary functions. Its Art and Literature Group, headed by Jiang Qing, took over the responsibilities of the Ministry of Culture when the latter was dissolved in May 1967. Furthermore, the group worked closely with the Central Case Examination Group
Central Case Examination Group
The Central Case Examination Group was a special organization established in the People's Republic of China in 1966 under the aegis of the Politburo Standing Committee to persecute those accused of "anti-party activities". It was compared by Wang Li to the Soviet Cheka, but he noted that the CCEG...
(CCEG), an organisation established in 1966 that investigated the alleged crimes and errors of higher-ranking members of the Party. Practically all the members of the CRG were also members of the CCEG.
The members of the CRG also had important individual roles in two of the important events of the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
, the Shanghai Commune and the Wuhan Incident.
The Shanghai Commune
See: Shanghai People's CommuneShanghai People's Commune
The Shanghai Commune was established during China's Cultural Revolution in early 1967.The Commune was modelled on the Paris Commune. All in all, the Commune lasted less than a month before it was replaced.-Background:...
Two members of the CRG played a significant part in the affair over the Shanghai Commune. Due to his connections with the city (he had been secretary of the Shanghai Party Committee until July 1966), Zhang Chunqiao
Zhang Chunqiao
Zhang Chunqiao was a prominent Chinese political theorist, writer, and politician...
was dispatched from the centre in November 1966 to mediate the crisis over the siege of some worker's groups at Anting. Early in January the next year, Zhang Chunqiao was to return again to Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
with his CRG colleague Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan
Yao Wenyuan was a Chinese literary critic, a politician, and a member of the "Gang of Four" during China's Cultural Revolution.-Biography:...
to lead the new order established after the fall of the old Party apparatus, and in early February he was to become head of the newly formed Shanghai Commune. However, the combination of questions over the legitimacy of the Commune's leadership, and a change in attitudes to communes in general at the centre, meant that the Shanghai Commune was to last less than a month.
The Wuhan Incident
See: Wuhan IncidentWuhan Incident
The Wuhan Incident was an armed conflict in the People's Republic of China between two hostile groups who were fighting for control over the city of Wuhan in July 1967, at the height of the Cultural Revolution...
Despite the CRG's 1967 orders forbidding violence, in July 1967 the city of Wuhan
Wuhan
Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...
became a battleground for two large rival rebel groups- the 'Million Heroes' and the 'Wuhan Workers' General Headquarters' (WWGH). The 400,000 strong WWGH was besieged by the 'Million Heroes', who were being supplied with weapons and manpower by the local PLA commander Chen Zaidao
Chen Zaidao
Chen Zaidao was a Chinese general in the People's Liberation Army, who commanded the Wuhan Military Region 1954-67. He is most noted for having arrested pro-Mao Xie Fuzhi and Wang Li during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967...
. When Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
's orders that the siege to be lifted were ignored by Chen Zaidao
Chen Zaidao
Chen Zaidao was a Chinese general in the People's Liberation Army, who commanded the Wuhan Military Region 1954-67. He is most noted for having arrested pro-Mao Xie Fuzhi and Wang Li during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967...
, Wang Li and Xie Fuzhi were dispatched to Wuhan to resolve the crisis. On 19 July the pair instructed the PLA to switch its allegiance from the 'Million Heroes' to the WWGH. In the early hours of the next day however, Xie Fuzhi
Xie Fuzhi
Xie Fuzhi was a Communist Party of China military commander, political commissar, and national security specialist. He was born in 1909 in Hong'an County, Hubei and died in Beijing in 1972. He was married to Liu Xiangping...
was arrested by the PLA while Wang Li
Wang Li (politician)
Wang Li was a propagandist and prominent member of the Cultural Revolution Group. Arrested by Chen Zaidao during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967 he was purged for "ultra-leftism" shortly afterwards....
was kidnapped by the 'Million Heroes' and beaten. After a failed attempt by Zhou Enlai to resolve the crisis, it took a show of military force by other PLA units for Chen Zaidao to eventually surrender, and Xie and Wang returned to Beijing as heroes.
Fall of the Cultural Revolution Group
The first two years of the Cultural Revolution witnessed a continued growth in tensions between the People's Liberation ArmyPeople's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
and the CRG, due to the PLA's gradual suppression of the CRG-backed rebel groups and Red Guards. By the October of 1967, the PLA had reached the peak of its ascendancy, which meant the end of the CRG. In November 1967, the Group's radical party journal, Red Flag, was ordered to stop publication. In addition, the leading members of the CRG quickly became scapegoats for the problems of the summer of 1967, when armed conflict between rebel groups, other groups and the PLA had been the norm. Individuals including Wang Li
Wang Li (politician)
Wang Li was a propagandist and prominent member of the Cultural Revolution Group. Arrested by Chen Zaidao during the Wuhan Incident in July 1967 he was purged for "ultra-leftism" shortly afterwards....
were soon connected with the "May Sixteenth Corps", a supposed group that exploited divisions in the Cultural Revolution to cause the anarchy and was plotting to seize power. Although there is evidence that Wang Li and others formed a faction within the CRG that employed the term "May Sixteenth", and that the CRG did exploit divisions in the movement, there is little evidence known to suggest a plot to seize power.
The fall of the CRG has also been attributed by some to the fact that Mao had become increasingly moderate in his view of the Cultural Revolution since February 1967, and that others (like the CRG) who were still committed to the original aims of the movement remained exposed on the left-wing while Mao moved towards the centre. Comparably, they were now far enough on the left to be considered too radical for comfort.
In September, some of the CRG radicals including Wang Li and Guan Feng were arrested on the orders of Mao, but by the end of the Cultural Revolution the new drive to eradicate 'ultra-leftists' would see the arrest of nearly all of the CRG's members (Jiang Qing
Jiang Qing
Jiang Qing was the pseudonym that was used by Chinese leader Mao Zedong's last wife and major Communist Party of China power figure. She went by the stage name Lan Ping during her acting career, and was known by various other names during her life...
would survive until the death of Mao).
After the 1967 arrest of some of its leading members, the CRG continued to play a role in the Cultural Revolution, but this was limited. For example, the remaining members were asked to attend the Twelfth Plenum of the Eighth Central Committee in October 1968, where Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi was a Chinese revolutionary, statesman, and theorist. He was Chairman of the People's Republic of China, China's head of state, from 27 April 1959 to 31 October 1968, during which he implemented policies of economic reconstruction in China...
was officially expelled from the Chinese Communist Party
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
(CCP) forever. The group was never formally dissolved, but ceased to exist at some point after the CCP's Ninth Congress in the Spring of 1969. The CRG's remaining former members - including Jiang Qing and Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng
Kang Sheng , Communist Party of China official, oversaw the work of the People's Republic of China's security and intelligence apparatus at the height of the Cultural Revolution in the late 1960s. He was a close associate of Mao Zedong and remained at or near the pinnacle of power for decades...
- were left to fight their individual political battles in the years that followed.