Hua Guofeng (华国锋 Hanyu Pinyin: Huá Guōfēng, Wade-Giles: Hua Kuo-feng; born 1921), to the surprise and dismay of Jiang Qing and the rest of the Gang of Four, became the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party and undisputed leader of the People's Republic of China following the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, as designated by Mao himself.
Born in Jiaocheng (交城县), a county beside a mountain in Shanxi, Hua joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1938 as a part of counter-Japanese resistance.
He became Premier of the People's Republic of China following Zhou Enlai's death, in January 1976, and Chairman of the Communist Party of China when Mao died, in September 1976 (although this was not announced to the world until October 12).
During his relatively short leadership, Hua was credited for quickly ousting the Gang of Four from political power and thus became the leader whose emergence marked the official end to the Cultural Revolution. As Deng Xiaoping gradually regained control over the CPC, Hua was replaced by Zhao Ziyang as Premier in 1980, and by Hu Yaobang as Party Chairman in 1981. He was demoted to junior Vice Chairman, and when this post was abolished in 1982 he became an ordinary member of the Central Committee, being reelected in 1987.
It was reported that Hua Guofeng quit the Chinese Communist Party in October 2001 for "health reasons". But the report is not confirmed by the Chinese government.
See also: Politics of China
| Preceded By: Zhou Enlai |
Premier of the PRC |
Succeeded By: Zhao Ziyang |