Li Lisan

Lǐ Lìsān (Chinese: 李立三; pinyin: Lǐ Lìsān; November 18, 1899 – June 22, 1967) was an early leader of the Chinese communists, and the top leader of the Chinese Communist Party from 1928 to 1930, member of the Politburo, and later a member of the Central Committee.

Early years

Li was born in Liling, Hunan province in China in 1899, under the name of Li Rongzhi. His father, a teacher, taught Li Chinese traditional poems and classics. In 1915, he arrived at Changsha for high school and saw an advertisement in a newspaper written by a student from First Normal School of Changsha with the pen name 28 Strokes. Li met, and then became friends with, the young man whose real name was Mao Zedong. Later, Li joined the army of a local warlord in Hunan. One of the Division Commanders, Cheng Qian, who was both Li's father's townsman and alumni, sponsored Li to study in Beijing.

Beginning career

France

When Li reached Beijing, he applied to study in France and arrived there in 1920. He worked part-time as assistant to a boilermaker to earn his tuition. His boss was a member of Communist Party, and Li was influenced in accepting Communism, taking part actively in the struggles for Chinese labor rights in France. For his active and fearless revolutionary work, Li was labelled as a trouble-maker. In 1921, Li was expelled with more than 100 other Chinese by the French authorities.