The term "children's soldiers" has existed since ancient times, referring to the army composed of local strong and brave troops led by leading generals. Xiang Yu's 8 thousand "Jiangdong soldiers" once swept the world; Many troops composed of soldiers with local relations, such as Yue Jiajun in the Southern Song Dynasty and Qi Jiajun in the Ming Dynasty, are also famous for their bravery and good fighting skills. In modern times, the "baby soldier" has become a kind name of the people for their own troops. This name is said to come from the anti-Japanese base area behind enemy lines in Jinchaji led by Marshal Nie Rongzhen.
1937165438+10, Nie Rongzhen, commander and political commissar of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, led 3,000 armed men to establish the first anti-Japanese base behind enemy lines in the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei border region. After establishing the base area, Nie immediately set out to develop the people's armed forces. At that time, in Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei, there were many names of troops with regional colors, such as Fuping Battalion, Huimin Detachment, Lingshou Battalion and Pingshan Regiment. 1939 In May, Nie issued a general order. The Jiamian Pingshan regiment fought bravely and made many meritorious deeds. He is an "excellent Hirayama warrior who defends the nation, the border region and his hometown". This is the first time to use the term "child soldier" to refer to the people's armed forces under the leadership of the Party. At the end of 1939, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region won the campaign against "mopping-up" in winter, and a large number of congratulatory letters and telegrams were sent from all walks of life, praising General Nie for his good command and repeated achievements. Nie wrote back in the Anti-Enemy Newspaper, pointing out that Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei became a solid Great Wall against Japan behind enemy lines, which was "made by the flesh and blood of the elders and children in the whole border area". The Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region founded the Three Reports against the Enemy, which was also renamed the Children's Army. In this way, the term "soldiers" closely combines the tasks undertaken by the troops with the vital interests of the masses, and better embodies the deep friendship between the military and the people. When soldiers defend their hometown, they defend the border region and the motherland. Li Gongpu, a well-known democratic personage, wrote the book "Behind the Enemy Lines in North China-Shanxi-Chaji" (published in 1940) after inspecting Shanxi-Chaji in the spring of/kloc-0. The book praised: "Soldiers are the sons of ordinary people, and the brothers of the anti-Japanese troops who resolutely defeated the devils are the anti-Japanese troops who took root in Shanxi-Chaji." Later, the five characters "people's soldiers" became the people's cordial appellation for the revolutionary armed forces led by our party, which has been in use ever since.