The Birth of China's Naval Power - How the PLA Built a Navy

Origins of the PLA Navy:
The PLA Navy was only formally established in April 1949, as the Communist forces realized they had to fight in a maritime theater after crossing the Yangtze. The retreating Nationalists held Taiwan and many offshore islands, forcing Mao’s agrarian army to build a navy rapidly
Zhang Aiping – Founder of the East China Navy
Zhang Aiping, a Long March veteran and political commissar, was handpicked by Mao to lead the East China Navy despite lacking naval training. His strength lay in personnel management and persuasion, skills developed in United Front work
“Building While Fighting”
The PLA Navy was created amid ongoing amphibious campaigns, forcing leaders to develop doctrine, personnel, and equipment under fire -“fighting while building, building while fighting”
Recruiting Nationalist Personnel
The PLA absorbed Nationalist officers and sailors left behind on the mainland, some through amnesty programs and persuasion. A major coup was the mutiny of the Nationalist Second Squadron, which handed over 30 ships and 1,200 men.
Managing Loyalty and Ideological Tensions
Former Nationalists were better educated, urban, and cosmopolitan compared to the PLA’s rural cadre. To secure loyalty, the CCP pragmatically bent its egalitarian principles by offering higher pay, better food, and leadership roles to ex-Nationalists
Improvised Fleet and Logistics
The new navy inherited old, damaged, and mismatched ships — many sabotaged by retreating Nationalists. Civilian fishing boats and trawlers were conscripted for amphibious transport, underscoring PLA improvisation.
The First Flagship
The PLA Navy’s first flagship was originally a Japanese gunship, captured by mutiny, scuttled to avoid air strikes, later salvaged, and crewed by a former Nationalist officer.
Doctrinal Development
The PLA synthesized multiple sources:
Guerrilla warfare lessons (night attacks, close engagements, civilian integration).
Western naval practices via absorbed Nationalist officers trained abroad.
Soviet technical assistance, though selectively adapted to Chinese conditions
Institutional Independence
Debate surrounded whether the Navy should remain subordinate to the Army. Commander Xiao Jinguang argued successfully for the PLAN to be a strategic independent service, coequal to the Army and Air Force, headquartered in Beijing to ensure political influence
The origin story left a lasting “institutional personality”: improvisation, pragmatism, reliance on civilian integration, and selective borrowing from foreign powers.

00:00 – PLA Navy history and Chinese Civil War context
00:06 – How the PLA built a navy from scratch during the Chinese Civil War
01:01 – Guest expert: Dr. Toshi Yoshihara – author of Red Star Over the Pacific & Mao’s Army Goes to Sea
01:27 – Why study the PLA Navy? Yoshihara’s research into China’s naval strategy
02:37 – China’s rise to sea power: key findings from Red Star Over the Pacific
03:10 – Why the PLA Navy’s origin story shapes its modern DNA and strategy
04:03 – Founding the PLA Navy in 1949: aftermath of the Chinese Civil War
05:02 – Mao Zedong’s challenge: crossing the Yangtze and preparing for a maritime theatre
05:56 – Lessons for institutions: how armies adapt to maritime operations
07:07 – Zhang Aiping biography: founder of the East China Navy
08:05 – United Front work and Zhang Aiping’s rise to naval leadership
09:47 – Zhang Aiping’s later career: Ijiangshan campaign, nuclear program, Defence Minister
11:32 – Mao appoints Zhang Aiping to create the PLA Navy from scratch
13:03 – Building the East China Navy with no ships, funds, or personnel
13:26 – Fighting while building: creating a navy during civil war operations
13:44 – How the PLA Navy recruited sailors: absorbing Nationalists and mutineers
15:31 – Yangtze River crossing and the defection of the Nationalist 2nd Squadron
17:47 – Ensuring loyalty: integrating ex-Nationalist officers into the PLA Navy
19:43 – Pragmatic integration: better pay, food, and advisory roles for ex-Nationalists
20:38 – Mao meets ex-Nationalist officers in 1949 to secure loyalty
22:12 – How the PLA Navy acquired ships: improvisation and salvaging
24:04 – The PLA’s hodgepodge fleet: old ships, fishing boats, and civilian vessels
24:49 – First flagship of the PLA Navy: from Japanese gunship to Communist control
26:02 – Developing PLA Navy doctrine: guerrilla warfare at sea and civil-military fusion
27:13 – Western influence: Nationalist officers trained in the US and Europe
29:01 – Soviet advisors and selective borrowing for PLA Navy doctrine
31:07 – PLA Navy command structure: independent service vs. Army control
32:10 – Xiao Jinguang as the first naval commander and strategist
32:57 – Why the PLA Navy became an independent strategic service
33:45 – Western misconceptions about the “People’s Liberation Army Navy” label
35:18 – Key lessons: PLA Navy’s ambitious founding vision
36:01 – Preview of Part Two: Jinmen & Hainan amphibious campaigns