In May 1949, the Central China (Hua Zhong) Military Region (MR) was formed.

[1] In March 1955, it was divided into two, the Guangzhou MR and the Wuhan Military Region.

The Hong Kong and Macau garrisons were within the Guangzhou MR area but reported directly to the Central Military Commission.

There were two Group Armies within the Region, the 41st Group Army and 42nd Group Army, and in 2006 the International Institute for Strategic Studies said the region had some 180,000 personnel, one mechanised division, three motorised infantry divisions, one artillery division, two armoured brigades, one artillery brigade, and two anti-aircraft brigades.

Organizations affiliated with the Guangzhou Military Region often used the nickname "warrior" (Chinese: 战士; pinyin: zhànshì; lit.