Ep. 363 | The Lin Biao Incident (Part 2)

The China History Podcast

Laszlo Montgomery

Places & Travel, Society & Culture, History

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 30 April 2025

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This is only a 2-parter, so this exciting episode will bring the curtain down on Lin Biao and his famous "Incident." We resume the story following the 1970 Lushan Plenum. Lin, or Lin's ambitious manipulators, pushed Chairman Mao just a bit too much at this meeting, and he decided to take immediate action. This whole 913 Incident, as you will hear, was a huge embarrassment to the Chinese Communist Party. Therefore, it's not surprising that they circled the wagons and went beyond the call of duty to cover up what could still be covered up. Mao had to be careful. With a history filled with men like Wang Mang, Zhu Wen, Zhao Kuangyin, and Yuan Shikai, he knew he had to watch these generals. So here's all the various fun bits of speculation surrounding the days of September 12-13, 1971. No Beatles references in this episode, though I was tempted to mention that Stella McCartney was born on the exact day of the plane crash that ended Lin Biao's life. Thanks everyone, for listening. This episode was posted to Patreon and CHP Premium back in February. Consider joining. You'd have my everlasting appreciation.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi everyone, welcome back to the China History podcast. Lazzlo Montgomery here, thanks again for making time.
0:06.6	I promise you, you're going to get your money's worth today.
0:10.2	Last time we looked at Lin Piao's life from his birth in Hubei province, growing up in Shanghai and getting bitten by the revolutionary bug.
0:19.5	He enrolled at the Wampoa Military Academy and was part of the
0:23.5	history made during the northern expedition to rid China of its decade-long warlord problem.
0:30.1	He also participated in the disaster that the Nanchang uprising ended up being. And when these shell-shocked communists
0:40.1	regrouped elsewhere, Lin ended up in the Jingkang Mountains, birthplace of the Chinese Red Army,
0:46.9	rebranded in 1948 as the People's Liberation Army. And as I highlighted, Lin Biao played one of the
0:53.9	leading roles in the communist military victory of the Nationalists. And as I highlighted, Lin Biao played one of the leading roles in the communist military
0:56.2	victory of the Nationalists, and he became a national hero. And he was no political hack
1:02.3	masquerading in a military officer's uniform. Lin Biao was the real deal, neither willingly or
1:09.7	unwillingly in 1969. Lynn was pulled into the center
1:14.9	ring of Communist Party politics, and we ended last time with Mao having a serious case of
1:21.5	buyer's remorse where Lynn was concerned. And in this concluding episode, we'll see what
1:27.3	happened following the fateful second plenary
1:30.8	session of the Ninth Central Committee held at Lushan, August 23rd to September 6th, 1970.
1:39.4	The first thing Mao did upon having this change of heart was to start taking back the army.
1:45.3	Not all at once, little by little. He had allowed the PLA to become top-heavy with too many
1:51.7	Lin-Piao people and they all had to be either weeded out one by one or given a talking to.
1:58.8	There was a lot to dismantle before Mao could ready-ame fire.
2:04.0	Lin and Ye Chun were both feeling Mao's icy cold shoulder,
2:08.6	and he let them dangle and ponder their situation.
	...

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