Qu Qiubai

Qu Qiubai (; 29 January 1899 – 18 June 1935) was a Chinese writer, poet, translator, and political activist. In the late 1920s and early 1930s he was the de facto leader of the Chinese Communist Party. In 1935, he was arrested and executed by the Republic of China Government led by the Kuomintang in Changting, Fujian.

Early life

Qu was born in Changzhou, Jiangsu. His family lived in Tianxiang Lou () located on Qingguo Lane (). Qu's father, Qu Shiwei (), was born in a family that was once powerful. He was good at painting and fencing and acquired much medical knowledge, but had no interest in politics and business. Qu's mother, Jin Xuan (), the daughter of an elite government official, was skilled in poetry. Qu had five brothers and one sister, he being the eldest. When Qu was young, his family lived in his uncle's house and was supported financially by relatives. Though Qu's father took a job as teacher, he was not able to support his family due to his addiction to opium. In 1915, Qu's mother, overcome by her life's mounting difficulties and debts, committed suicide.

In 1916, Qu went to Hankou (today Wuhan) and entered Wuchang Foreign Language School to learn English with the support of his cousin. In the spring of 1917, Qu went to Beijing to apply for a job, but did not pass the general civil service examination. Not having enough money to pay for a regular university tuition, Qu enrolled in the newly established Russian Language Institute () under the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, since it did not require payment of fee. The institute also offered a stipend and promised him a job upon graduation.

In January 1923, Qu accepted the invitation from Chen Duxiu, leader of the Chinese Communist Party at that time, to come back from Russia to join in his cause. After returning, Qu was responsible for the propaganda work of Chinese Communist Party. In 1927 after the fall of Chen Duxiu, he became acting Chairman of the CCP Politburo and the de facto leader of the party. The CCP followed an insurrectionary policy and organised actions such as the Autumn Harvest Uprising or the Guangzhou Uprising of December 11, 1927. All of these were crushed which caused the CCP to lose all links with the urban proletariat and forced the CCP to retreat to rural enclaves.

In April 1928, Qu went to Moscow once again and worked as a delegate of the Chinese Communist Party for two years. During the Sixth Party Congress of the CCP held there from June 18 to July 11, his tactics were criticized as a "putchist left deviation".

Arrested in Changting, Fujian in 1934, Qu was sentenced to death by Kuomintang a year later. During his arrest, Qu was tortured by the KMT government, who adopted various means to induce him to capitulate, but he was persistent in his beliefs and refused.

In 1935, Qu wrote the essay Superfluous Words, in which he described his development as a revolutionary and candidly addressed his vulnerabilities and uncertainties.

On 18 June 1935, Qu walked calmly toward the execution place, Zhongshan Park in Changting, singing "The Internationale", the "Red Army Song", and shouting "Down with the Kuomintang", "Long live the Chinese Communist Party", "Long live the victory of the Chinese revolution", "Long live communism" and other slogans. After reaching Luohanling, a small hill in Zhongshan Park, Qu chose a place to sit down on the grass, smiled, and nodded to the executioner, saying "very good here!" Qu was only 36 when he was shot dead.

Influence and legacy

Ding Ling's 1930 novel Wei Hu was based on Qu's relationship with Ding's close friend Wang Jianhong. Qu also translated The Internationale into Chinese, with his version recognised as the official one and used as the anthem of the Chinese Communist Party.

Qu was one of the major Chinese intellectuals to emerge from the May 4th Movement, and one of early Communist Party members who established the spirit of the revolutionary movement in China. He is also widely remembered as an emotive poet.

Early life

Influence and legacy

References

Further reading