Song Wenhan (; June 1939 – 30 March 2024) was a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

in the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...

of China who served as chief of staff of the

Guangzhou Military Region The Guangzhou Military Region was from 1955 to 2016 one of the People's Liberation Army PLA Military Regions, located in the south of the People's Republic of China. In May 1949, the Central China (Hua Zhong) Military Region (MR) was formed. In M ...

from 1996 to 2002. He was promoted to the rank of major general ('' shaojiang'') in July 1990 and

('' zhongjiang'') in July 1998. He was a delegate to the

9th National People's Congress The 9th National People's Congress (NPC) was in session from 1998 to 2003 across five plenary sessions. It followed the final session of the 8th National People's Congress. There were 2,979 deputies to this Congress. Background This was the f ...

and a member of the 10th National Committee of the

Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s United front (China), united front system. Its members adv ...

Biography

Song was born in the town of

Jinshi ''Jinshi'' () was the highest and final degree in the imperial examination in Imperial China. The examination was usually taken in the imperial capital in the palace, and was also called the Metropolitan Exam. Recipients are sometimes referre ...

, in Xiangxiang County (now Xiangxiang),

Hunan Hunan is an inland Provinces of China, province in Central China. Located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze watershed, it borders the Administrative divisions of China, province-level divisions of Hubei to the north, Jiangxi to the east, Gu ...

, in June 1939. He enlisted in the

(PLA) in 1958, and joined the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

(CCP) in 1960. In May 1983, he became deputy chief of staff of the 41st Army, rising to chief of staff in August 1985. He was appointed chief of staff of the 42nd Army in July 1988. He served as deputy chief of staff of the

in June 1990, and was promoted to the chief of staff position in November 1996. In January 2002, he was commissioned as deputy commander of the Guangzhou Military Region, but having held the position for only six months. He retired in July 2008. On 30 March 2024, he died in

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

Guangdong ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

, at the age of 84.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Song, Wenhan 1939 births 2024 deaths People from Xiangxiang People's Liberation Army generals from Hunan People's Republic of China politicians from Hunan Chinese Communist Party politicians from Hunan Delegates to the 9th National People's Congress Members of the 10th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conferenceò