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How did Lin Biao’s alliance with Mao Zedong affect Liu Shaoqi’s position in the Chinese Communist Party?

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Lin Biao, Zhou Enlai, and other Chinese officials stand in uniform, holding up Little Red Books during a 1967 Red Guard rally in China. — Lin Biao At a 1967 Red Guard rally, Lin Biao (left) and Zhou Enlai publicly display copies of *The Little Red Book*.

Lin Biao’s alliance with Mao Zedong played a critical role in the downfall of Liu Shaoqi, who had long served as Mao’s heir apparent and second-in-command.

As Minister of Defense, Lin Biao utilized the People’s Liberation Army to promote Mao’s ideology, turning the military into a model for the rest of society to emulate. This movement to "learn from the People’s Liberation Army" evolved into the Cultural Revolution, a period of intense political purging. During this upheaval, Lin Biao’s influence grew as he actively supported Mao’s efforts to remove perceived "revisionist" challengers within the Chinese Communist Party.12

In August 1966, Lin Biao officially replaced Liu Shaoqi as Mao’s designated successor. By October 1968, Liu was stripped of his party positions, labeled a "renegade, traitor, and scab," and eventually purged from the leadership hierarchy entirely. Lin’s rise was further formalized in 1969, when he was officially named Mao’s successor in the new party constitution, cementing the displacement of Liu Shaoqi and the military's dominance over the party during that period.132