The Long March was far more than just a chapter of military history, but an epic trek of endurance, faith and transformation that continues to inspire new generations, according to international observers interviewed by China Central Television (CCTV).
British translator David Ferguson, who is also the Honorary Chief English Editor of the Foreign Languages Press in China, said he still found it hard to fathom the sheer hardship ordinary soldiers endured day after day.
"I've seen what they had to go through. I find it difficult still to imagine day to day what it was like for the individuals, how much hardship they actually had to endure, and I was looking at this site and seeing how were they able to do these things," said Ferguson.
"The only experience they had of an army was the local landlord's army, or the local warlord's army, who came to steal their stuff and make their lives miserable. And all of a sudden the Red Army arrives and they're talking about solidarity, unity and of the people and for the people. And from the perspective of these peasants, that must have been a totally revolutionary thing, completely transforming the vision of life and the potential future. It's a big contribution to why people were willing to go hungry themselves to help the Red Army to eat, and hundreds and thousands of them joined up," he said.
To veterans of the route and longtime chroniclers of China's revolution, the meaning of the Long March lies not only in survival, but in the power it forged against overwhelming odds — a spirit now carried into new journeys of development and understanding.
"What I think the Long March did was to create a sense of the courage of the Communist Party of China, of its will, of the heroism. History needs legends, needs inspirations, and the Long March was exactly that kind of inspiration. It lives on. Here we are celebrating its anniversary, not just in China but around the world. People know about, have heard about the Long March and they think of it very much as associated obviously, with the Chinese Communist Party and the achievements historically," said British scholar Martin Jacques.
"I am very fond of the saying of 'every generation has its own Long March'. No quitting, keep moving forward. Regardless of the circumstances, one must press on and strive -- this has been the spirit of the Chinese people since ancient times," said William Brown, an American business studies professor at Xiamen University, who retraced the Long March route in 2026.
Int'l observers hail Long March’s enduring legacy
