Long March 1934-35, The

Every nation has its founding myth, and for modern China it is the Long March. In the autumn of 1934, the Chinese Nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek routed the Chinese Communists, and some 80,000 men, women and children left their homes to walk with Mao Zedong into the unknown. Mao's force had to endure starvation, harsh climates, and challenging terrain whilst under constant aerial bombardment and threatened by daily skirmishes. The Long March survivors had to cross 24 rivers and 18 mountain ranges, through freezing snow and disease-ridden wilderness to reach their haven of Yan'an. In military terms, the Long March was the longest continuous march in the history of warfare, and it came as a terrible cost – after one year, 6,000 miles and countless battles, fewer than 4,000 of the original marchers were left.