What did Mao's long march accomplish? Why was it successful?

For Mao, the long March strengthened his position as a leader of the party, and added to his personal prestige. One reason for this was that Mao ordered his solders not to harm the villages they were meeting, something that the soldiers often did. It was subsequently taught in schools and gained an important place in the modern history of China.

The more general accomplishment was that the participants of the long march were about to be captured by their enemies, the Kuomintang. The Long March was a retreat of Mao and his followers, which meant that after the long march they were free, and not captured. This allowed the communist army to recuperate from the fights and prepare for further actions.