Page "Eighth Route Army" Paragraph 1

The communists ' Red Army ( later the People's Liberation Army ) had first been " formed " in 1927 when the Nationalist 27th Division mutinied.

After ten years of fighting, though, in 1937, Japan invaded China proper.

To counter this threat, the Communists and Nationalists formed the United Front.

Most Communist forces wore either Nationalist uniforms or civilian clothes.