Shao Hua (30 October 1938 – 24 June 2008), formerly known as Zhang Shaohua (), was a Chinese photographer and a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

in the People's Liberation Army. She was the wife of

Mao Anqing Mao Anqing (; 23 November 1924 – 23 March 2007) was the last surviving son of Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party. He was the second son of Mao and his wife, Yang Kaihui. He had a mental illness, possibly schizophrenia. He w ...

, the second son of

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...

Biography

She was born as Chen Anyun () in October 1938 in

Yan'an Yan'an (; ), alternatively spelled as Yenan is a prefecture-level city in the Shaanbei region of Shaanxi province, China, bordering Shanxi to the east and Gansu to the west. It administers several counties, including Zhidan (formerly Bao'an) ...

, Shaanxi, the headquarters of Mao Zedong's Communist Party following the

Long March The Long March (, lit. ''Long Expedition'') was a military retreat undertaken by the Red Army of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, to evade the pursuit of the National Army of the Chinese ...

. Her father was Chen Zhenhua, who was from Shimin, Hunan. Her mother was Zhang Wenqiu, who was from

Jingshan County Jingshan is a county-level city of Jingmen City, in central Hubei Province, People's Republic of China. It is named after nearby Mount Jingyuan (). It is bordered on the north by the Dahong Mountain and on the south by the Jianghan Plain. The co ...

, Hubei. Shao began working as a photographer in the 1950s using a camera which had been brought to her from the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

by Mao Zedong's eldest son,

Mao Anying Mao Anying (; 24 October 1922 – 25 November 1950) was the eldest son of Mao Zedong and Yang Kaihui. Educated in Moscow and a veteran of multiple wars, Mao was killed in action by an air strike during the Korean War. Early life Mao was ...

. She traveled extensively throughout China following the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...

. The subjects of her photographs were often related to the government of the Communist movement, including factories and other

factors of production In economics, factors of production, resources, or inputs are what is used in the production process to produce output—that is, goods and services. The utilized amounts of the various inputs determine the quantity of output according to the rel ...

, army units, schools, and poor rural Chinese villages. She became the head of the China Photographers Association (CPA) in 2002 and served in that position until her death in 2008. Shao was a major general in the People's Liberation Army. She served as the director of the military encyclopedia department of the

PLA Academy of Military Sciences The Academy of Military Sciences () is the highest-level research institute of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). It is headquartered in Beijing. The academy was founded in March 1958 and as of 2002, its staff included approximately 500 resea ...

. Shao was a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) from 1988 to 2002, when she began displaying her photographs publicly. Shao married

, Mao Zedong's second son and a Russian

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

, in September 1960. The couple had one son,

Mao Xinyu Mao Xinyu (born 17 January 1970) is a grandson of Mao Zedong and a major general in the People's Liberation Army of the People's Republic of China. Early life and education Born the son of Mao Anqing in 1970, he is one of Mao Zedong's twelve ...

. Her husband had no active role in the Chinese government. Mao Anqing died on 23 March 2007, at the age of 84. Her son Mao Xinyu and his wife, Liu Bin, have one son Mao Dongdong who was born in 2003, the only great-grandson of Mao Zedong. Shao Hua died in Beijing due to

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a r ...

on 24 June 2008, at the age of 69.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shao, Hua 1938 births 2008 deaths Mao Zedong family Chinese photographers Chinese women photographers Members of the 7th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the 8th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the 9th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Members of the 10th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference People's Liberation Army generals from Shaanxi Politicians from Yan'an Artists from Shaanxi Chinese Communist Party politicians from Shaanxi People's Republic of China politicians from Shaanxi Peking University alumni Deaths from breast cancer Deaths from cancer in the People's Republic of China