Liu Xiansheng

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Liu was born in June 1901 into a poor peasant family in Shitan District, Xiangtan County, Hunan. In 1922, he participated in the Anyuan miners' strike and was elected as a workers' representative. He joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1924 and took part in the Autumn Harvest Uprising on the Hunan–Jiangxi border in 1927.^[2]

During the Chinese Civil War, Liu served in various command and political positions within the Chinese Red Army. He was consecutively a company commander in the 1st Division of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army, company commander and battalion commander in the 3rd Regiment of the 1st Independent Division of the Hunan–Jiangxi Soviet forces, and later director of adjutant affairs.^[3] He subsequently became general branch secretary of the direct forces of the Red 9th Corps, political commissar of a regiment, political commissar of the corps health department, and political commissar of the 52nd Regiment of the 18th Division of the Red 6th Corps. He also participated in the Long March.^[4]

During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Liu held a number of political and command posts in the New Fourth Army. He served as general branch secretary of a training unit and political instructor of the Third Political Team, director of the organization section of the training brigade, and later director of the political department of the Jiangnan People's Anti-Japanese Salvation Army.^[5] He subsequently became political commissar of the 1st Regiment, political commissar of the 3rd Column of the New Fourth Army's Northern Jiangsu Command, political commissar of the 3rd Brigade of the 1st Division of the New Fourth Army, and political commissar of the 4th Military Subdistrict of the Central Jiangsu Military District.^[6] He later served as brigade commander of the 18th Brigade and commander of the 1st Military Subdistrict of the Central Jiangsu Military District, before becoming chief of staff of the 1st Division of the New Fourth Army and later chief of staff of the Su-Zhe Military Region.^[7]

Following the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War, Liu served as chief of staff of the Central China Military Region and the Central China Field Army, and later as deputy chief of staff of the East China Field Army. He subsequently became deputy commander of the Northern Jiangsu Military District.^[8]

After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Liu served as commander of the Southern Jiangsu Military District, where he assisted local party and government authorities in suppressing remnant Kuomintang forces and bandit groups, ensuring the consolidation of Communist control in the region. In December 1952, he was appointed commander of the Jiangsu Military District.^[9]

From 1960 to 1969, Liu served as deputy commander of the Nanjing Military Region. During this period, he concurrently headed the military factory leadership group of the region and was responsible for military industrial production. He emphasized the development of military representative teams and improvements in weapons manufacturing quality, helping reverse long-term financial losses and advancing the trial production of new military equipment.^[10]

Because of chronic illness caused by years of military service during wartime, Liu repeatedly requested retirement. His final request was approved in August 1969. Liu died in Nanjing on October 12, 1977.^[11]

In 1955, Liu was awarded the rank of lieutenant general. He also received the Second Class Order of Bayi, the First Class Order of Independence and Freedom, and the First Class Order of Liberation.^[12]