How a Daring Bridge Crossing Saved the Red Army
13 May 2026, 14:11 GMT
Source URL: https://news.cgtn.com/news/2026-05-13/How-a-Daring-Bridge-Crossing-Saved-the-Red-Army-1N78ah60UXm/p.html?UTM_Source=cgtn&UTM_Medium=rss&UTM_Campaign=Documentary
With the Nationalist Army in hot pursuit, the Red Army found itself in a precarious situation in late May of 1935 as it reached the Dadu River in western Sichuan. The only viable crossing, the Luding Bridge was a chain bridge from which all planks had been removed. A vanguard regiment had marched around 120 kilometers in a single day to reach it. On the morning of May 29, 22 volunteer soldiers crawled across these bare iron chains under heavy machine-gun fire, storming the enemy-held east bank, and securing a vital victory on the Long March.