Peng Zhen
Encyclopedia
Peng Zhen was a leading member of the Communist Party of China
.
(a town in Shanxi
province), Peng was originally named Fu Maogong.
He joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1923 as a founding member of the Shanxi
Province CP. Arrested in 1929, he continued underground political activities while imprisoned. He was released from prison in 1935 and began organizing a resistance movement against the invading Japan
ese forces. Around the same time, he was appointed the Organization Department Director of the North Bureau of CPC. He is credited with substantial efforts towards the 1948 capture of Beijing
by Communist forces in the Chinese Civil War
.
Peng was a member of multiple Central Committees and the Secretariat of the Central Committee
. He also held the positions of First Secretary of the Beijing Municipal Committee, and Mayor of Beijing (1951).
Peng fell out of favor with Mao Zedong
in the April 1966
when he attacked Mao's belief that all literature
should support the state, but survived to be rehabilitated under Deng Xiaoping
. He subsequently became Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission CPC Central Committee (1980). As Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress
(1983), he sought to increase the NPC's power. Peng retired from his leading political positions in 1988.
He is considered one of the Eight Immortals of the Communist Party of China.
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...
.
Biography
Born in HoumaHouma, Shanxi
Houma is a city in the Shanxi province on the People's Republic of China, on the Fen River south of Linfen. It is 274 km large and has a population of 102,400....
(a town in Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
province), Peng was originally named Fu Maogong.
He joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1923 as a founding member of the Shanxi
Shanxi
' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
Province CP. Arrested in 1929, he continued underground political activities while imprisoned. He was released from prison in 1935 and began organizing a resistance movement against the invading Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese forces. Around the same time, he was appointed the Organization Department Director of the North Bureau of CPC. He is credited with substantial efforts towards the 1948 capture of Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
by Communist forces in the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
.
Peng was a member of multiple Central Committees and the Secretariat of the Central Committee
Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China is the highest authority within the Communist Party of China. Its approximately 350 members and alternates are selected once every five years by the National Party Congress....
. He also held the positions of First Secretary of the Beijing Municipal Committee, and Mayor of Beijing (1951).
Peng fell out of favor with Mao Zedong
Mao 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...
in the April 1966
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...
when he attacked Mao's belief that all literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
should support the state, but survived to be rehabilitated under Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese politician, statesman, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng was a reformer who led China towards a market economy...
. He subsequently became Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission CPC Central Committee (1980). As Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress
Standing Committee of the National People's Congress
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress is a committee of about 150 members of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China , which is convened between plenary sessions of the NPC. It has the constitutional authority to modify legislation within limits set by...
(1983), he sought to increase the NPC's power. Peng retired from his leading political positions in 1988.
He is considered one of the Eight Immortals of the Communist Party of China.