The song was originally written as March of the Eighth Route Army (simplified Chinese: 八路军进行曲; traditional Chinese: 八路軍進行曲; pinyin: Bālùjūn Jìnxíngqǔ), and was one of the six songs in the Chorus of Eighth Route Army (simplified Chinese: 八路军大合唱; traditional Chinese: 八路軍大合唱; pinyin: Bālùjūn Dàhéchàng), all of which had Gong Mu as song writer and Zheng Lücheng as the composer.

The lyrics were re-edited by the General Political Department in 1951 and the song renamed to March of the Chinese PLA in 1965.

On July 25, 1988, the Central Military Commission decided to use the song as the official anthem of the People's Liberation Army.

From 1949 onwards, this has been the march past tune of the PLA in every military parade.

从无畏惧，绝不屈服，英勇战斗， Cōng wú wèijù, juébù qūfú, yīngyǒng zhàndòu, Fearless, unyielding, to fight bravely 直到把反动派消灭干净， Zhídào bǎ fǎndòngpài xiāomiè gānjìng, Until we exterminate all counter-revolutionaries.

同志们整齐步伐奔向解放的战场， Tóngzhìmen zhěngqí bùfá bēnxiàng jiěfàng de zhànchǎng Comrades, march forth united to the battlefields of liberation; 同志们整齐步伐奔赴祖国的边疆， Tóngzhìmen zhěngqí bùfá bēnfù zǔguó de biānjiāng.