Zhou enlai biography of william

Premier of China from 1949 to 1976

In this Chinese name, the family name is Zhou.

Zhou Enlai (Chinese: 周恩来; pinyin: Zhōu Ēnlái; Wade–Giles: Chou¹ Ên¹-lai²; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman, diplomat, and revolutionary who served as the inaugural premier of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 1949 until his death in 1976, and concurrently as the inaugural Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1949 to 1958.

Zhou was a key figure in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and ally of Mao Zedong during the Chinese Civil War, later helping consolidate its control, form its foreign policy, and develop the economy.

Born in Jiangsu, as a student Zhou was involved in the 1919 May Fourth Movement, and in the early 1920s studied in France, where he joined the newly-founded CCP.

During the party's alliance with the Kuomintang (KMT), he worked in the political department of the Whampoa Military Academy. In 1927, Zhou led