12th Group Army
| 71st Group Army | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1949– |
| Country |
 People's Republic of China
|
| Part of | Eastern Theater Command |
| Garrison/HQ | Xuzhou, Jiangsu |
| Engagements |
Second Sino-Japanese War Chinese Civil War Korean War(Battle of Triangle Hill) |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
Major General Wang Yinfang |
| Notable commanders |
Zeng Shaoshan |
The 71st Group Army, formerly the 12th (Group) Army, was one of the three group armies of the Chinese People's Liberation Army's Eastern Theater Command (formerly Nanjing Military Region).
It was disbanded and redesignated in mid 2017 as the 71st Group Army.
The origin of the 12th Army lies in the surrender of the 74th Division of the Chinese Nationalist National Revolutionary Army, as well as with the sixth column of the Second Field Army.
On 9 February 1949, the 34th, 35th and the 36th Divisions were incorporated into the Twelfth Army. On 29 November 1949, Chongqing was captured and later the Battle of Chengdu was fought.
In December 1950, the 12th Army entered the Korean War. The People's Republic of China's (PRC) 31st Division of the 11th Army was incorporated into the 12th Army. The 11th Army returned to China in 1954.
From August 1, 1983, the 2nd Tank Division was attached to the 12th Army Corps.
In 1985, the 12th Army was re-formed as a Group Army. It was incorporated into the "60 June 179" division. The re-organization also involved the 2nd Tank Division and an artillery brigade.
In May 1989, the 12th Army's 34th, 36th and 110th Divisions, Artillery Brigade, and Anti-Aircraft Battalion were deployed to Beijing to enforce martial law and suppress the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.
In 1998, the first 34th division of the 12th Army was re-deployed as a motorised infantry brigade (divorced from the 2nd tank division). The 35th division was moved to the Jiangsu military region. At a later stage, the 36th and the 179th divisions were motorised.
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