Background and History Born in Liling County, Hunan Province, in 1911, Yang joined the CCP and the Red Army in 1928. Promoted from a squad, platoon, company, and regimental commander to a division commander, he participated in the Long March of 1934-1935. He became the commander of the 344th Brigade, 115th Division, and the Second Column of the Eighth Route Army during the Anti-Japanese War, 1937-1945. In the Chinese civil war he served as commander of the PLA's Second and Nineteenth Army Groups in the Northern China Military District. He died in 1994.

Proclamation of the People's Republic of China After the founding of the Peoples' Republic of China in 1949, he was the commander of the PLA's Shanxi Military District, Jinan Military Command, Wuhan Military Regional Command, and Kunming Military Regional Command. General Yang was also appointed as vice minister of Defense Ministry, chief of PLA General Staff, and deputy secretary general of the CCP Central Military Commission.

Activities in Korean War General Yang Dezhi was the commander of the CPVF Nineteenth Army Group, the deputy commander in charge of combat operations, and then the CPVF commander during the Korean War from November 1954 to October 1958. He was given the rank of General in 1955.