Zhou Enlai

Zhou Enlai
周恩來
Premier of the People's Republic of China
In office 1 October 1949 – 8 January 1976
President	Mao Zedong (until 1959) Liu Shaoqi (until 1968) vacant and abolished
Leader	Mao Zedong (Chairman of the Communist Party of China)
1st vice-premier	Dong Biwu Chen Yun Lin Biao Deng Xiaoping
Succeeded by	Hua Guofeng
Vice Chairman of the Communist Party of China
In office 28 September 1956 – 1 August 1966
In office 30 August 1973 – 8 January 1976
Chairman	Mao Zedong
2nd Chairman of the National Committee Of the CPPCC
In office December 1954 – 8 January 1976
Honorary Chairman	Mao Zedong
Preceded by	Mao Zedong
Succeeded by	vacant (1976–1978) Deng Xiaoping
1st Foreign Minister of the People's Republic of China
In office 1949–1958
Premier	Himself
Preceded by	None
Succeeded by	Chen Yi
Personal details
Born	(1898-03-05)5 March 1898 Huai'an, Jiangsu, Qing China
Died	8 January 1976(1976-01-08) (aged 77) Beijing, People's Republic of China
Political party	Communist Party of China
Spouse(s)	Deng Yingchao (m. 1925–76)
Children	Sun Weishi, Wang Shu (both adopted)
Alma mater	Nankai University
Occupation	Politician Strategist Revolutionary Diplomat
Signature
Military service
Battles/wars	Eastern Expeditions Nanchang Uprising Encirclement Campaigns Second Sino-Japanese War Chinese Civil War

Zhou Enlai
"Zhou Enlai" in Simplified (top) and Traditional (bottom) Chinese characters
Simplified Chinese	周恩来
Traditional Chinese	周恩來
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhōu Ēnlái Wade–Giles Chou1 En1-lai2 IPA [ʈʂóu ə́n.lǎi]

Zhou Enlai (Chinese: 周恩来; Wade–Giles: Chou En-lai; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976. Zhou served under Chairman Mao Zedong and was instrumental in the Communist Party's rise to power, and later in consolidating its control, forming foreign policy, and developing the Chinese economy.

A skilled and able diplomat, Zhou served as the Chinese foreign minister from 1949 to 1958. Advocating peaceful coexistence with the West after the stalemated Korean War, he participated in the 1954 Geneva Conference and the 1955 Bandung Conference, and helped orchestrate Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to China. He helped devise policies regarding the bitter disputes with the U.S., Taiwan, the Soviet Union (after 1960), India and Vietnam.

Zhou survived the purges of other top officials during the Cultural Revolution. While Mao dedicated most of his later years to political struggle and ideological work, Zhou was the main driving force behind the affairs of state during much of the Cultural Revolution. His attempts at mitigating the Red Guards' damage and his efforts to protect others from their wrath made him immensely popular in the Cultural Revolution's later stages.

As Mao Zedong's health began to decline in 1971 and 1972, Zhou struggled against the Gang of Four internally over leadership of China. Zhou's health was also failing, however, and he died eight months before Mao on 8 January 1976. The massive public outpouring of grief in Beijing turned to anger towards the Gang of Four, leading to the Tiananmen Incident. Although succeeded by Hua Guofeng, it was Deng Xiaoping, Zhou's ally, who was able to outmaneuver the Gang of Four politically and eventually take Mao's place as paramount leader by 1978.