Ye Jianying

Ye Jianying was born on April 28, 1897, into a Hakka merchant family in Meixian, Guangdong. Graduating from the Yunnan Military Academy in 1919, Ye served as an early military instructor at the Whampoa Military Academy under Sun Yat-sen and Zhou Enlai. Joining the Chinese Communist Party in 1927, he studied military science in Moscow before serving as Chief of Staff during the epic 1934–1935 Long March.

During the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, Ye earned widespread respect as a consummate military strategist and skilled diplomat, serving as chief negotiator alongside Zhou Enlai in peace talks with the Nationalist government. In 1955, in recognition of his foundational military leadership, he was created one of the Ten Marshals of the People's Republic of China.

Ye's most decisive historical moment occurred in October 1976 following the death of Mao Zedong. Serving as Minister of National Defense, Marshal Ye coordinated the arrest of the radical 'Gang of Four', effectively ending the turbulent Cultural Revolution. As Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (de facto Head of State) from 1978 to 1983, Ye championed the political rehabilitation of Deng Xiaoping, laying the institutional bedrock for China's modern economic miracle. He passed away in Beijing on October 22, 1986.