Mao Zedong was one of the founders of the Red Army, and in 1945 of the PLA. His initial legacy was not only a Marxist theory of war applied to Chinese conditions, but also an army based on equality, democracy and extensive ties with the masses. At the same time it reflected the continuous wider debates over the approach to socialist development. As different concepts and practices of socialism were put forward from 1949 through the present, so did the PLA change its theoretical foundations, internal and external organizational relations and missions. This presentation will cover the changing relations both within the PLA and with the masses during crucial periods before and after the Korean war, during the Cultural Revolution and the post-1978 Reforms. The "primacy of politics" vs. "the primacy of military modernization" will be examined in light of broader debates concerning emphasis on the political and ideological superstructure vs. economic development. Additionally, the talk will touch upon China's contemporary political-military strategy as a rising power.