Milestones

Biographical Sketch of Chen Yun

Chen Yun was born in Qingpu County in Jiangsu Province (currently known as Liantang Town, Qingpu District, Shanghai) on June 13, 1905.

Chen Yun led the strike of the Commercial Press workers in Shanghai in 1925 and joined the CPC subsequently.

Chen Yun took office as Secretary of the CPC Qingpu County Committee in November 1927; and led peasants’ armed uprisings in the areas of Xiaozheng Township in Qingpu County in 1928.

Chen Yun held office as Minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Songpu Special Committee in September 1928.

Took office as a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committee and Secretary of Agricultural Commission in 1929.

Elected as an alternate member of the CPC Central Committee via by-election at the Third Plenary Session of the 6th CPC Central Committee in September 1930, Chen Yun elected as a member of the CPC Central Committee and the Secretary of both the Party and Youth League of All-China Federation of Trade Unions at the Fourth Plenary Session of the 6th CPC Central Committee in 1931.

Chen Yun took office as a member of the Provisional Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee and was appointed as the Secretary of both the Party and Youth League of All-China Federation of Trade Unions in 1932.

Chen Yun worked in the Central Soviet Area in Jiangxi Province in 1933.

Elected as a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and the Standing Committee and Minister of the Work Department in White Areas (KMT-controlled areas during the Second Revolutionary Civil War, 1927-1937) at the Fifth Plenary Session of the 6th CPC Central Committee in January 1934, Chen Yun was designated as a central delegate of the Fifth Front Army of Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army and joined the Long March in October; and soon was appointed as the Political Commissar of the Column of the Central Military Commission.

Chen Yun attended Zunyi Meeting in January 1935; and went to Moscow and reported on the results of Zunyi Meeting to the Third International in September.

Chen Yun published The Log of the Long March to the West in 1936, which was the first book introducing to the world the Long March of the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army.

Designated as the representative of the CPC Central Committee in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in April 1937, Chen Yun aided the rest of the West Army of the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army to enter Dihua (currently known as Urumqi) in May; and was by-elected as a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and appointed as the Minister of the Organization Department of the CPC after his arrival to Yan'an in November.

Chen Yun took office as Secretary of the Youth Working Committee of the CPC Central Committee in 1938.

Chen Yun participated in the Yan'an Rectification Movement in 1942.

Chen Yun held office as a member of the Northwest Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Deputy Director of the Northwest Economic and Financial Office and Director of the Political Department in 1944.

Elected as a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee at the First Plenary Session of the 7th CPC Central Committee in 1945, Chen Yun was elected as an alternate member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee in August; he took office as a member of the Northeast Bureau of the CPC Central Committee in September; and was appointed as the Secretary of the CPC North Manchuria (a region in Northeast China) Sub-branch and Political Commissar of the North Manchuria Military Region in November.

Chen Yun held office as Deputy Secretary of the Northeast Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Deputy Political Commissar of the Northeast Democratic United Army in June 1946; he took office as the Secretary of the CPC South Manchuria Sub-branch and Political Commissar of the South Manchuria Military Region in October, commanding the Northeast Democratic United Army in the Linjiang Campaign (a series of four failed offensives launched by the KMT-led nationalists in attempt to eliminate the communist base south of Songhua River during the Chinese Civil War) with Xiao Jinguang (one of the ten senior commanders of the PLA).

Chen Yun held office as the Director of the Northeast Economic and Financial Committee in July 1948; he was appointed as the Chairman of All-China Federation of Trade Unions in October and took office as the Director of the Shenyang Special City Military Administrative Committee in November.

Chen Yun took office as Vice Premier of the Government Administration Council of the Central People's Government (valid from 1949 to 1954) and was appointed as a member of the Secretariat of Financial and Economic Affairs Committee after the founding of the People’s Republic of China in October 1949.

Chen Yun chaired the National Financial Work Conference in February 1950 and decided to centralize and manage nationwide financial affairs; he took office as a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee in October.

Chen Yun delivered a report on unified purchase and sale on the National Food Policy Conference in October 1953.

Designated as the head of the task group of the CPC Central Committee drafting the outline of the First Five-Year Plan in April 1954, Chen Yun   took office as Vice Premier of the State Council in September.

Chen Yun delivered the report themed on New Conditions and New Tasks of the   Transformation of Capitalist Industry and Commerce at the meeting discussing socialist transformation of capitalist industry and commerce held by the CPC Central Committee in 1955.

Chen Yun gave the speech of New Issues after the Basic Completion of Socialist Transformation on the 8th CPC National Congress in September 1956; elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Chairman of the CPC Central Committee at the First Plenary Session of the 8th CPC Central Committee.

Designated as the head of the CPC Central Committee Economic Work Five-Person Group in 1957, Chen Yun put forward the idea that “the construction scale should match the national strength”.

In 1959, commissioned by Chairman Mao Zedong, Chen Yun studied and adjusted the overambitious targets for steel production, which could greatly affect China’s overall national economy at that time.

Chen Yun delivered the report titled The Current Financial and Economic Situation and Some Methods for Overcoming Difficulties at a meeting attended by CPC members from ministries and commissions under the State Council in February, 1962.

Chen Yun was criticized mistakenly after the launch of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (a sociopolitical movement in China from 1966 to1976) in 1966,, and merely a nominal member of the CPC Central Committee was remained for him.  

Chen Yun was transferred to Nanchang and worked at Jiangxi Petrochemical Machinery Plant (now known as Jianglian Heavy Industry Group Co., Ltd.) in 1969.

Commissioned by Zhou Enlai, Chen Yun studied the world economic situation and foreign trade in 1973.  

Chen Yun was elected as Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the 4th National People's Congress in 1975.

Chen Yun actively supported the fight against the Gang of Four (a political faction composed of four CPC officials with Jiang Qing as the leading figure) in 1976.

Chen Yun suggested at the Working Conference of the CPC Central Committee that Deng Xiaoping should be allowed to return to work at the CPC Central Committee in 1977.  

Chen Yun delivered a speech to members in the Northeast Group at the Working Conference of the CPC Central Committee, taking the lead in suggesting redressing unjust, false and wrongful cases in November, 1978. In December, he was reelected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Chairman of the CPC Central Committee, and elected as First Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection at the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee.

Chen Yun took office as Director of the Financial and Economic Committee of the State Council (the department had been revoked in September, 1954) in 1979.

Chen Yun put forward the idea that the conduct as the Party in power is a life or death issue for the Party in November, 1980.

Chen Yun participated in and guided the drafting of Resolution on Certain Questions in the History of Our Party Since the Founding of the People's Republic of China, and brought up that China’s top priority was to cultivate and promote young and middle-aged cadres in March, 1981.  

Chen Yun pointed out it is important to well handle the handover of CPC cadres at the 12th CPC National Congress in 1982. He was elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee at the 1st Plenary Session of the 12th CPC Central Committee, and was also elected as First Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

Chen Yun pointed out that equal importance should be attached to both material and spiritual civilization at the National Experience-Sharing Meeting on Improving the Party's Conduct in June, 1985.

Chen Yun took office as Chairman of the CPC Central Advisory Commission after the 13th CPC National Congress in1987.

In 1989, Chen Yun supported the CPC and the Central Government in quelling the political turmoil between the spring and summer of 1989.

Chen Yun retired after the 14th CPC National Congress in 1992.

Chen Yun died of illness in Beijing on April 10, 1995. In that June, Volumes I, II and III of Selected Works of Chen Yun were published after revision and supplementation.