The Wuhan Incident marked the first time a PLA military commander defied central Cultural Revolution orders, prompting Mao to moderate the movement's most radical elements.
Key Facts
- Date
- July 20, 1967
- Million Heroes faction size
- ~500,000 members
- Workers' HQ faction size
- ~500,000 members
- PLA commander
- General Chen Zaidao, Wuhan Military Region
- Beijing's endorsed faction
- Wuhan Workers' General Headquarters
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
At the height of the Cultural Revolution in 1967, two mass factions — the 'Million Heroes,' backed by local PLA forces under General Chen Zaidao, and the 'Wuhan Workers' General Headquarters,' composed of workers and Red Guard students — competed for control of Wuhan through an extensive propaganda war and armed confrontations.
In July 1967, the conflict escalated into open armed clashes in Wuhan. Beijing's central authorities intervened, declaring the Workers' General Headquarters the legitimate revolutionary faction and publicly reprimanding General Chen Zaidao for supporting the Million Heroes, the first instance of a PLA military commander defying the Cultural Revolution Group's directives.
The incident alarmed Mao Zedong and his close associates, who feared a broader rebellion within the People's Liberation Army. In response, the central leadership began scaling back the most radical elements of the Cultural Revolution, marking a significant shift in the movement's trajectory.
Political Outcome
Beijing endorsed the Wuhan Workers' General Headquarters as the legitimate faction; General Chen Zaidao was reprimanded; Mao moderated the Cultural Revolution's most radical components.
Local PLA under Chen Zaidao supported the Million Heroes faction against central directives
Central authorities reasserted primacy; PLA military defiance curbed; Cultural Revolution radicalism scaled back