Li Dazhao's life information and the writing background of "Memories Sixteen Years Ago"

Text introduction:

This article was written by Comrade Li Xinghua, Li Dazhao’s daughter, in 1943. It was the 16th anniversary of Comrade Li Dazhao’s death, so it was titled “Memories from Sixteen Years Ago”. This article is a good teaching material for educating students on revolutionary traditions. At the beginning of the article, it was mentioned that April 28, 1927, sixteen years ago, was the day when my father was killed. At the end, it was emphasized that my mother told me to remember the day when my father was killed. Such echoes from beginning to end fully demonstrate the ferocity of the enemy and the heroism of the revolutionaries.

Era background:

In 1927, with the support of imperialism, the warlord Zhang Zuolin led his troops into the pass, occupied Hebei, Shandong and other places, and threatened the people of the victorious Bei clan with force The revolutionary army also ordered the arrest of Comrade Li Dazhao, who persisted in the revolutionary struggle in Beijing. However, Comrade Li Dazhao was not afraid and remained in Beijing to engage in revolutionary work despite extremely dangerous circumstances. He was arrested by Zhang Zuolin on April 9, 1927. He was tortured but remained unyielding and continued to lead the party's work in prison. He was hanged by the enemy on April 28.

Introduction to Li Dazhao:

Li Dazhao, courtesy name Shouchang, was born in Laoting County, Hebei Province on October 29, 1889.

In 1907, he was admitted to Tianjin Beiyang Law and Political College to study political economy. In the winter of 1913, Li Dazhao traveled east to Japan with a feeling of concern for the country and the people, and was admitted to Tokyo's Waseda University for a bachelor's degree in politics. When the Japanese imperialists proposed to Yuan Shikai the "Twenty-One Points" for the destruction of China, he actively participated in the patriotic struggle of the Overseas Students Association in Japan. The "Letter to the Elders of the Nation" drafted by him quickly spread throughout the country, and he became a A nationally renowned patriot. After Li Dazhao returned to China in 1916, he actively participated in the emerging New Culture Movement.

The victory of the October Socialist Revolution in Russia greatly inspired and inspired Li Dazhao. He successively published "A Comparative View of the French and Russian Revolutions", "The Victory of the Common People" and "The Victory of Bolshevism" Wait for articles and speeches. He declared: "If you look at the world in the future, it will definitely be a world with red flags!" In 1919, he published dozens of articles to promote Marxism, including "New Era", "My View of Marxism", "Rediscussing Issues and Isism", etc. article.

In March 1920, Li Dazhao initiated the Marxist Theory Research Society at Peking University. In October, under the initiative of Li Dazhao, the Beijing Communist Group was established.

After the founding of the Communist Party of China in 1921, Li Dazhao guided the work in the north on behalf of the Party Central Committee. He was elected as a member of the Central Committee at the Second, Third and Fourth National Congress of the Party.

In March 1926, Li Dazhao led and personally participated in the Beijing People's Opposition Day, British imperialism and the struggle against the warlords Zhang Zuolin and Wu Peifu. The Beiyang warlord Duan Qirui's government caused the "March 18th" tragedy, and Beijing was plunged into white terror. Li Dazhao continued to lead the party's northern organization to persist in the revolutionary struggle under extremely dangerous and difficult circumstances. On April 6, 1927, the warlord Zhang Zuolin colluded with imperialism, broke into the residence of the Soviet embassy, ??and arrested more than 80 people including Li Dazhao. Li Dazhao was tortured. In prison and in court, he always remained upright and unyielding. On April 28, the warlords disregarded the strong opposition and condemnation of the broad masses of the people and public opinion and brazenly strangled 20 revolutionaries including Li Dazhao in the Jingshi Detention Center in Xijiaominxiang. Li Dazhao was the first to go to the gallows and died calmly at the age of 38.