| Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area was located in the Dabie mountainous area at the junction of Hubei,Henan and Anhui provinces,with the Jianghuai Plain in the east,the Pinghan Railway in the west,the Yangtze River in the south,the Huaihe River in the north,and the west of Hunan and Hubei,Hunan-Hubei-Jiangxi,and the Central Soviet Area,each other’s horns,echoed from afar,strategic position was very important.In its heyday,the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area was the second largest soviet area in China,second only to the Central Soviet Area.Rice,wheat,barley,peanut and various miscellaneous grains were the main edible crops planted in the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area,among which rice was the main food crop.In general,under the condition of social stability and appropriate policy,the grain production in Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area could meet the needs of self-sufficiency.However,the situation of grain supply in different parts of the soviet area was not balanced,Some places were just enough to provide for themselves,some had more than enough,and some were insufficient.Where there was a surplus,grain would be exported every year;where there was a shortage,it would need to be imported to meet its needs.Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area was facing food crisis for a long time.As early as its founding period,food crisis had occurred in Northeast Hubei,Southeast Henan and West Anhui respectively,and the people were living a miserable life.At the same time,the food supply of the Red Army and the Crowds of people who fled to escape the war was not guaranteed.In the period of consolidation and development,mainly in the spring and summer of 1931,a comprehensive food crisis broke out in the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area.Both Hubei and Henan Soviet Area and West Anhui Soviet Area were affected,and even the soviet government in West Anhui had no food to eat.In the period of persistent struggle,the food crisis in the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area became more and more serious.Not only did the masses starve to death in large numbers,but the food of the Red Army was not guaranteed at all.Seizing grain in the Kuomintang ruled area became the main way for the people in the soviet area and the Red Army to obtain grain.The occurrence of food crisis affected the consolidation and development of the soviet area,the main performance was that the work could not be carried out normally and the masses could not insist on the struggle.At the same time,the movement of the revolutionary armed forces was subject to the control of the food supply,and its fighting effectiveness was weakened.The occurrence of food crisis in Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area was caused not only by the Kuomintang,but also by the Communist Party of China itself and by the frequent natural disasters.The Kuomintang took the food crisis in the soviet area as an important means of attacking the soviet area,and realized this goal by destroying the grain production and storage and hindering the grain circulation in the soviet area.As far as the Communist Party of China itself was concerned,the food crisis was also caused by financial difficulties,improper land policies,the struggle against rich peasants,the contradiction between supply and demand of grain exacerbated by the increasing number of off-work workers,and the outflow of grain from the soviet area due to the low grain price.Especially,the long-term struggle against the rich peasants under the class policy greatly inhibited the production enthusiasm of the peasants in the soviet area.The frequent occurrence of natural disasters,such as flood,drought,insect and freezing,had a negative impact on food production and was also an important cause of food crisis.In 1928,1929 and 1934,severe droughts occurred in the area bordering Hubei,Henan and Anhui provinces,resulting in reduced grain production.Facing the serious food crisis,Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area attached great importance to,adopted a variety of measures to deal with actively.The first is to strengthen grain production by stabilizing farmers’ production mood,solving the problem of lack of labor force and means of production,improving the productivity of land,and carrying out a grain production campaign.Second,they actively raised food by collecting grain from the rich peasants and borrowing grain from the peasants,levying a progressive tax on agriculture,mobilizing the masses to support the Red Army’s grain and seizing the enemy’s grain.The third is to improve grain management by setting up grain management organizations,paying attention to grain storage and saving,strengthening grain transportation,carrying out grain relief,controlling grain circulation,ensuring grain supply for wounded soldiers and providing financial support.Fourth,they waged a variety of struggles for grain,including the compulsory borrowing of grain,the direct distribution of grain,the armed protection of grain,the resistance to rent and the reduction of rent.All these measures played a positive role,but there were also some problems,such as invading the middle peasants when collecting grain from the rich peasants,borrowing grain from the peasants without returning it,beating up local tyrants indiscriminately in the Kuomintang ruled area,and frequently mobilizing,forcing and ordering the masses to support the Red Army’s grain.In view of these problems,Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area had been corrected in time.In general,the response to the food crisis in Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area had achieved certain results.This was an important guarantee for the development and growth and the persistence of struggle of Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area.But in different periods,mainly due to the different objective environment,the effect of Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area to deal with the food crisis was different.Specifically,the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area successfully coped with the spring and summer food crisis in 1931,not only successfully passed the food crisis,but also the autumn grain harvest in that year.On the one hand,it was because that Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area attached great importance to and actively dealt with the food crisis,on the other hand,it was because the objective environment at that time was more favorable.Successfully coping with the food crisis brought many positive effects,which laid an important foundation for the formation of the heyday situation of Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area.However,it was difficult to fundamentally resolve the food crisis in the period of persistent struggle of Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area,and only managed to maintain.This was mainly because,a significant reduction in the labor force and a large area of land barren in the soviet area due to the destruction of the long-term war,in a short period of time can not be recovered,thus making the strengthening of food production,the fundamental way to deal with the food crisis impossible to achieve.Solving the food problem was always an important factor for the Twenty-fifth Red Army when choosing a new base.The food crisis in Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area could not be fundamentally solved all the time,which made the prospect of the development of the Army very bleak,which was an important reason why the Twenty-fifth Red Army was finally forced to go on a long march.The most important enlightenment from the food crisis in Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area is always to attach great importance to and make every effort to ensure food security.Not crushed by the crisis,blossom in suffering.In the face of the serious food crisis,the army and people of the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area had been indomitable,hard-working,and actively coping with it,which created and demonstrated the great spirit of the Dabie Mountains.The spirit of Dabie Mountains was the important spiritual support for Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet Area to deal with the food crisis,and is our precious spiritual wealth.Today,we should continue to vigorously carry forward the spirit of Dabie Mountains. |
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