Background
In January 1965, at a meeting of the Politburo, Mao Zedong called on the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to implement a 'Cultural Revolution' in China. The meeting established a body known as the "Five Man Group" (chaired by Peng Zhen, the fifth ranking member of the Politburo), whose aim was oversee the beginnings of the Cultural Revolution. Of the members of the group, only Kang Sheng was a supporter of Mao. However, the group remained relatively inactive until the Spring of 1966, when it censored the writings of Yao Wenyuan and other radicals for making an academic debate on the play 'Hai Rui Dismissed from Office', into a political one (a move which Mao had been encouraging).
Unhappy over what he perceived to be an obstruction of the course of the Cultural Revolution, Mao returned to the capital in the Spring of 1966, and the "Five Man Group" was formally dissolved in the Central Committee's May 16 Circular:
The Central Committee has decided to... dissolve the 'Group of Five in Charge of the Cultural Revolution', and to set up a new Cultural Revolution group directly under the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau.
The 'Five Man Group' was dissolved immediately and Peng Zhen was charged with allegedly obstructing the course of the Cultural Revolution. Soon after May 16, he was dismissed from all his offices and the control of the capital passed into the hands of followers of Mao. Chen Boda was chosen to head the newly formed 'Cultural Revolution Group', which would report to the Politburo Standing Committee. Consisting originally of between fifteen and twenty people, the CRG included, amongst others, Jiang Qing (the wife of Chairman Mao) as vice-chairman, Kang Sheng as the Group Adviser, Yao Wenyuan, Zhang Chunqiao, Qi Benyu, Wang Li and Xie Fuzhi. There were also several less well-known members. However, Chen Boda did not chair the CRG's meetings- this fell to Zhou Enlai, who held a position of control over the group, and could speak on behalf of the entire group without needing to consult it.
Read more about this topic: Cultural Revolution Group
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