Compiled by Li Nan, photos by Xinhua

When they began the Long March 80 years ago, these Red Army soldiers were all youngsters.

Encircled by the Kuomintang (KMT), then ruling party of China, decimated by KMT troops and deciding to retreat to a base in the northwest, the Red Army led by the Communist Party of China (CPC), the forerunner of the People's Liberation Army, conducted a daring military maneuver from October 1934 to October 1936. It came to be known as the Long March.

It was a heroic odyssey through gunfire, starvation and freezing cold, creating a saga of courage and faith.

Now, the survivors are in their 90s or centuries. This collage focuses on their valiant sacrifices.

Copyedited by Sudeshna Sarkar

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