[2] Wang, a native of Jing County, Anhui, was born into a landlord family and attended an English missionary school in Wuhu.

[1] One month later he joined the Youth League, and was soon en route to the Soviet Union, studying at the Moscow Sun Yat-sen University.

This institution was established under Sun Yat-Sen's policy of alliance with the Soviet Union and the CCP, and named after him to train revolutionaries who would return to China.

Wang Jiaxiang was one of the early defectors from the 'Bolsheviks', coming over to Mao's camp during the Zunyi conference in 1935 with other members Zhang Wentian and Yang Shangkun.

Bo Gu was dismissed as general secretary and replaced by Zhang (though he remained a member of the Politburo), and Wang Jiaxiang rose to control the Red Army along with Mao and Zhou Enlai.

In 1943 Wang was the first to promote the concept of Maoism, co-heading (with Mao) the Central Study Group in Yan'an which oversaw the mobilisation meetings which forced all Politburo members to speak.

After the establishment of People's Republic of China in 1949, Wang was appointed as first Chinese Ambassador to Soviet Union, and then Under Secretary of Foreign Ministry.