Podcasts about chiang kai shek

Last time we spoke about Operation Chahar. In July 1937, the tensions between Japan and China erupted into a full-scale conflict, ignited by the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. Following a series of aggressive Japanese military maneuvers, Chiang Kai-shek, then enjoying a brief respite at Kuling, learned of the escalating clashes and prepared for battle. Confident that China was primed for resistance, he rallied his nation, demanding that Japan accept responsibility and respect China's sovereignty. The Japanese launched their offensive, rapidly capturing key positions in Northern China. Notably, fierce battle ensued in Jinghai, where Chinese soldiers, led by Brigade Commander Li Zhiyuan, valiantly defended against overwhelming forces using guerrilla tactics and direct assaults. Their spirit was symbolized by a courageous “death squad” that charged the enemy, inflicting serious casualties despite facing dire odds. As weeks passed, the conflict intensified with brutal assaults on Nankou. Chinese defenses, though valiant, were ultimately overwhelmed, leading to heavy casualties on both sides. Despite losing Nankou, the indomitable Chinese spirit inspired continued resistance against the Japanese invaders, foreshadowing a long, brutal war that would reshape East Asia.   #156 The Battle of Shanghai Part 1: The Beginning of the Battle of Shanghai Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. On August 9, a bullet riddled sedan screeched to an abrupt halt at the entrance to the Hongqiao airport along Monument Road. The gruesome scene on the dashboard revealed that one of the victims had died in the car. He had been dragged out and subjected to brutal slashing, kicking, and beating until his body was a mangled mess. Half of his face was missing, and his stomach had been cut open, exposing the sickly pallor of his intestines, faintly glimmering in the night. The other man had managed to escape the vehicle but only got a few paces away before he was gunned down. A short distance away lay a third body, dressed in a Chinese uniform. Investigators swiftly identified the badly mangled body as belonging to 27-year-old Sub-Lieutenant Oyama Isao, while the other deceased Japanese man was his driver, First Class Seaman Saito Yozo. The identity of the Chinese victim remained a mystery. At first glance, the scene appeared to be the aftermath of a straightforward shootout. However, numerous questions lingered: What were the Japanese doing at a military airfield miles from their barracks? Who had fired the first shot, and what had prompted that decision? The Chinese investigators and their Japanese counterparts were at odds over the answers to these questions. As they walked the crime scene, searching for evidence, loud arguments erupted repeatedly. By the time the sun began to rise, they concluded their investigation without reaching any consensus on what had transpired. They climbed into their cars and made their way back to the city. The investigators were acutely aware of the repercussions if they failed to handle their delicate task with the necessary finesse. Despite their hopes for peace, it was evident that Shanghai was a city bracing for war. As they drove through the dimly lit suburbs on their way from Hongqiao back to their downtown offices, their headlights illuminated whitewashed trees, interspersed with sandbag defenses and the silhouettes of solitary Chinese sentries. Officially, these sentries were part of the Peace Preservation Corps,  a paramilitary unit that, due to an international agreement reached a few years earlier, was the only Chinese force allowed to remain in the Shanghai area. In the hours that followed, both sides presented their versions of the incident. According to the Chinese account, the Japanese vehicle attempted to force its way through the airport gate. When members of the Peace Preservation Corps stationed at the entrance signaled for Saito, the driver, to stop, he abruptly turned the car around. Sub-Lieutenant Oyama then fired at the Chinese guards with an automatic pistol. Only then did the Chinese return fire, killing Oyama in a hail of bullets. Saito managed to jump out before he, too, was gunned down. The commander of the Chinese guards told a Western reporter that this wasn't the first time someone Japanese had attempted to enter the airport. Such incidents had occurred repeatedly in the past two months, leading them to believe that the Japanese were “obviously undertaking espionage.” The Japanese account, predictably, placed the blame for the entire incident squarely on China. It asserted that Oyama had been driving along a road bordering the airfield with no intention of entering. Suddenly, the vehicle was stopped and surrounded by Peace Preservation Corps troops, who opened fire with rifles and machine guns without warning. Oyama had no opportunity to return fire. The Japanese statement argued that the two men had every right to use the road, which was part of the International Settlement, and labeled the incident a clear violation of the 1932 peace agreement. “We demand that the Chinese bear responsibility for this illegal act,”. Regardless of either side, it seemed likely to everyone in the region, war would soon engulf Shanghai.  Meanwhile, as the Marco Polo Bridge Incident escalated into a full blown in the far north, General Zhang Fakui was attending a routine training mission at Mount Lu in southeastern Jiangxi. A short and small man, not considered too handsome either, Zhang had earned his place in China's leadership through physical courage, once taking a stand on a bridge and single handedly facing down an enemy army. He was 41 years old in 1937, having spent half his life fighting Warlords, Communists and sometimes even Nationalists. In the recent years he had tossed his lot in with a rebel campaign against Chiang Kai-Shek, who surprisingly went on the forgive him and placed him in charge of anti communist operations in the area due south of Shanghai. However now the enemy seemed to have changed.  As the war spread to Beijing, on July 16th, Zhang was sent to Chiang Kai-Shek's summer residence at Mount Lu alongside 150 members of China's political and military elites. They were all there to brainstorm how to fight the Japanese. Years prior the Generalissimo had made it doctrine to appease the Japanese but now he made grandiose statements such as “this time we must fight to the end”. Afterwards Chiang dealt missions to all his commanders and Zhang Fakui was told to prepare for operations in the Shanghai area.  It had been apparent for weeks that both China and Japan were preparing for war in central China. The Japanese had been diverting naval troops from the north to strengthen their forces in Shanghai, and by early August, they had assembled over 8,000 troops. A few days later, approximately thirty-two naval vessels arrived. On July 31, Chiang declared that “all hope for peace has been lost.” Chiang had been reluctant to commit his best forces to defend northern China, an area he had never truly controlled. In contrast, Shanghai was central to his strategy for the war against Japan. Chiang decided to deploy his finest troops, the 87th and 88th Divisions, which were trained by generals under the guidance of the German advisor von Falkenhausen, who had high hopes for their performance against the Japanese. In doing so, Chiang aimed to demonstrate to both his own people and the wider world that the Chinese could and would resist the invader. Meanwhile, Chiang's spy chief, Dai Li, was busy gathering intelligence on Japanese intentions regarding Shanghai, a challenging task given his focus in recent years. Dai, one of the most sinister figures in modern Chinese history, had devoted far more energy and resources to suppressing the Communists than to countering the Japanese. As a result, by the critical summer of 1937, he had built only a sparse network of agents in “Little Tokyo,” the Hongkou area of Shanghai dominated by Japanese businesses. One agent was a pawnshop owner, while the rest were double agents employed as local staff within the Japanese security apparatus. Unfortunately, they could provide little more than snippets, rumors, and hearsay. While some of this information sounded alarmingly dire, there was almost no actionable intelligence. Chiang did not take the decision to open a new front in Shanghai lightly. Built on both banks of the Huangpu River, the city served as the junction between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the great Yangtze River, which wound thousands of kilometers inland to the west. Shanghai embodied everything that represented modern China, from its industry and labor relations to its connections with the outside world. While foreign diplomatic presence was concentrated in nearby Nanjing, the capital, it was in Shanghai that the foreign community gauged the country's mood. Foreigners in the city's two “concession” areas nthe French Concession and the British-affiliated International Settlement often dismissed towns beyond Shanghai as mere “outstations.” Chiang Kai-shek would throw 650,000 troops into the battle for the city and its environs as well as his modest air force of 200 aircraft. Chiang, whose forces were being advised by German officers led by General Alexander von Falkenhausen, was finally confident that his forces could take on the Japanese. A German officer told a British diplomat, “If the Chinese Army follows the advice of the German advisers, it is capable of driving the Japanese over the Great Wall.”   While Chiang was groping in the dark, deprived of the eyes and ears of an efficient intelligence service, he did have at his disposal an army that was better prepared for battle than it had been in 1932. Stung by the experience of previous conflicts with the Japanese, Chiang had initiated a modernization program aimed at equipping the armed forces not only to suppress Communist rebels but also to confront a modern fighting force equipped with tanks, artillery, and aircraft. He had made progress, but it was insufficient. Serious weaknesses persisted, and now there was no time for any remedial action. While China appeared to be a formidable power in sheer numbers, the figures were misleading. On the eve of war, the Chinese military was comprised of a total of 176 divisions, which were theoretically organized into two brigades of two regiments each. However, only about 20 divisions maintained full peacetime strength of 10,000 soldiers and officers; the rest typically held around 5,000 men. Moreover, Chiang controlled only 31 divisions personally, and he could not count on the loyalty of the others. To successfully resist Japan, Chiang would need to rely not only on his military command skills but also on his ability to forge fragile coalitions among Warlord generals with strong local loyalties. Equipment posed another significant challenge. The modernization drive was not set to complete until late 1938, and the impact of this delay was evident. In every category of weaponry, from rifles to field artillery, the Chinese were outmatched by their Japanese adversaries, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Domestically manufactured artillery pieces had shorter ranges, and substandard steel-making technology caused gun barrels to overheat, increasing the risk of explosions. Some arms even dated back to imperial times. A large proportion of the Chinese infantry had received no proper training in basic tactics, let alone in coordinated operations involving armor and artillery. The chief of the German advisory corps was General Alexander von Falkenhausen, a figure hard to rival in terms of qualifications for the role. Although the 58-year-old's narrow shoulders, curved back, and bald, vulture-like head gave him an unmilitary, almost avian appearance, his exterior belied a tough character. In 1918, he had earned his nation's highest military honor, the Pour le Mérite, while assisting Germany's Ottoman allies against the British in Palestine. Few, if any, German officers knew Asia as well as he did. His experience in the region dated back to the turn of the century. As a young lieutenant in the Third East Asian Infantry Regiment, he participated in the international coalition of colonial powers that quelled the Boxer Rebellion in 1900. A decade later, he traveled through Korea, Manchuria, and northern China with his wife, keenly observing and learning as a curious tourist. From 1912 to 1914, he served as the German Kaiser's military attaché in Tokyo. He was poised to put his extensive knowledge to good use in the months ahead. Chiang believed that Shanghai should be the location of the first battle. This decision was heavily influenced by Falkenhausen and was strategically sound. Chiang Kai-shek could not hope to win a war against Japan unless he could unify the nation behind him, particularly the many fractious warlords who had battled his forces repeatedly over the past decade. Everyone understood that the territory Japan was demanding in the far north did not need to be held for any genuine military necessity; it was land that could be negotiated. The warlords occupying that territory were unpredictable and all too willing to engage in bargaining. In contrast, China's economic heartland held different significance. By choosing to fight for the center of the country and deploying his strongest military units, Chiang Kai-shek signaled to both China's warlords and potential foreign allies that he had a vested interest in the outcome.  There were also several operational reasons for preferring a conflict in the Yangtze River basin over a campaign in northern China. The rivers, lakes, and rice paddies of the Yangtze delta were much better suited for defensive warfare against Japan's mechanized forces than the flat plains of North China. By forcing the Japanese to commit troops to central China, the Nationalists bought themselves the time needed to rally and reinforce their faltering defenses in the north. By initiating hostilities in the Shanghai area, Japan would be forced to divert its attention from the northern front, thereby stalling a potential Japanese advance toward the crucial city of Wuhan. It would also help safeguard potential supply routes from the Soviet Union, the most likely source of material assistance due to Moscow's own animosity toward Japan. It was a clever plan, and surprisingly, the Japanese did not anticipate it. Intelligence officers in Tokyo were convinced that Chiang would send his troops northward instead. Again in late July, Chiang convened his commanders, and here he gave Zhang Fukai more detailed instructions for his operation. Fukai was placed in charge of the right wing of the army which was currently preparing for action in the metropolitan area. Fukai would oversee the forces east of the Huangpu River in the area known as Pudong. Pudong was full of warehouses, factories and rice fields, quite precarious to fight in. Meanwhile General Zhang Zhizhong, a quiet and sickly looking man who had previously led the Central Military Academy was to command the left wing of the Huangpu. All of the officers agreed the plan to force the battle to the Shanghai area was logical as the northern region near Beijing was far too open, giving the advantage to tank warfare, which they could not hope to contest Japan upon. The Shanghai area, full of rivers, creaks and urban environments favored them much more. Zhang Zhizhong seemed an ideal pick to lead troops in downtown Shanghai where most of the fighting would take place. His position of commandant of the military academy allowed him to establish connections with junior officers earmarked for rapid promotion. This meant that he personally knew the generals of both the 87th and 88th Divisions, which were to form the core of Zhang Zhizhong's newly established 9th Army Group and become his primary assets in the early phases of the Shanghai campaign. Moreover, Zhang Zhizhong had the right aggressive instincts. He believed that China's confrontation with Japan had evolved through three stages: in the first stage, the Japanese invaded the northeast in 1931, and China remained passive; in the second stage, during the first battle of Shanghai in 1932, Japan struck, but China fought back. Zhang argued that this would be the third stage, where Japan was preparing to attack, but China would strike first.   It seems that Zhang Zhizhong did not expect to survive this final showdown with his Japanese adversary. He took the fight very personally, even ordering his daughter to interrupt her education in England and return home to serve her country in the war. However, he was not the strong commander he appeared to be, as he was seriously ill. Although he never disclosed the true extent of his condition, it seemed he was on the verge of a physical and mental breakdown after years in high-stress positions. In fact, he had recently taken a leave of absence from his role at the military academy in the spring of 1937. When the war broke out, he was at a hospital in the northern port city of Qingdao, preparing to go abroad for convalescence. He canceled those plans to contribute to the struggle against Japan. When his daughter returned from England and saw him on the eve of battle, she was alarmed by how emaciated he had become. From the outset, doubts about his physical fitness to command loomed large. At 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 10, a group of officers emerged from the Japanese Consulate along the banks of the Huangpu River. This team was a hastily assembled Sino-Japanese joint investigation unit tasked with quickly resolving the shooting incident at the Hongqiao Aerodrome of the previous night. They understood the urgency of reaching an agreement swiftly to prevent any escalation. As they drove to the airport, they passed armed guards of the Chinese Peace Preservation Corps stationed behind sandbag barricades that had been erected only hours earlier. Upon arriving at Hongqiao, the officers walked up and down the scene of the incident under the scorching sun, attempting to piece together a shared understanding of what had transpired. However, this proved to be nearly impossible, as the evidence failed to align into a coherent account acceptable to both parties. The Japanese were unconvinced that any shootout had occurred at all. Oyama, the officer who had been in the car, had left his pistol at the marine headquarters in Hongkou and had been unarmed the night before. They insisted that whoever shot and killed the man in the Chinese uniform could not have been him. By 6:00 pm the investigators returned to the city. Foreign correspondents, eager for information, knew exactly whom to approach. The newly appointed Shanghai Mayor, Yu Hongjun, with a quick wit and proficiency in English, Yu represented the city's cosmopolitan image. However, that evening, he had little to offer the reporters, except for a plea directed at both the Japanese and Chinese factions “Both sides should maintain a calm demeanor to prevent the situation from escalating.” Mayor Yu however was, in fact, at the center of a complex act of deception that nearly succeeded. Nearly eight decades later, Zhang Fakui attributed the incident to members of the 88th Division, led by General Sun Yuanliang. “A small group of Sun Yuanliang's men disguised themselves as members of the Peace Preservation Corps,” Zhang Fakui recounted years later in his old age. “On August 9, 1937, they encountered two Japanese servicemen on the road near the Hongqiao military aerodrome and accused them of forcing their way into the area. A clash ensued, resulting in the deaths of the Japanese soldiers.” This created a delicate dilemma for their superiors. The two dead Japanese soldiers were difficult to explain away. Mayor Yu, likely informed of the predicament by military officials, conferred with Tong Yuanliang, chief of staff of the Songhu Garrison Command, a unit established after the fighting in 1932. Together, they devised a quick and cynical plan to portray the situation as one of self-defense by the Chinese guards. Under their orders, soldiers marched a Chinese death row inmate to the airport gate, dressed him in a paramilitary guard's uniform, and executed him. While this desperate ruse might have worked initially, it quickly unraveled due to the discrepancies raised by the condition of the Chinese body. The Japanese did not believe the story, and the entire plan began to fall apart. Any remaining mutual trust swiftly evaporated. Instead of preventing a confrontation, the cover-up was accelerating the slide into war.  Late on August 10, Mayor Yu sent a secret cable to Nanjing, warning that the Japanese had ominously declared they would not allow the two deaths at the airport to go unpunished. The following day, the Japanese Consul General Okamoto Suemasa paid a visit to the mayor, demanding the complete withdrawal of the Peace Preservation Corps from the Shanghai area and the dismantling of all fortifications established by the corps. For the Chinese, acquiescing to these demands was nearly impossible. From their perspective, it appeared that the Japanese aimed to leave Shanghai defenseless while simultaneously bolstering their own military presence in the city. Twenty vessels, including cruisers and destroyers, sailed up the Huangpu River and docked at wharves near "Little Tokyo." Japanese marines in olive-green uniforms marched ashore down the gangplanks, while women from the local Japanese community, dressed in kimonos, greeted the troops with delighted smiles and bows to the flags of the Rising Sun that proudly adorned the sterns of the battleships. In fact, Japan had planned to deploy additional troops to Shanghai even before the shooting at Hongqiao Aerodrome. This decision was deemed necessary to reinforce the small contingent of 2,500 marines permanently stationed in the city. More troops were required to assist in protecting Japanese nationals who were being hastily evacuated from the larger cities along the Yangtze River. These actions were primarily defensive maneuvers, as the Japanese military seemed hesitant to open a second front in Shanghai, for the same reasons that the Chinese preferred an extension of hostilities to that area. Diverting Japanese troops from the strategically critical north and the Soviet threat across China's border would weaken their position, especially given that urban warfare would diminish the advantages of their technological superiority in tanks and aircraft. While officers in the Japanese Navy believed it was becoming increasingly difficult to prevent the war from spreading to Shanghai, they were willing to give diplomacy one last chance. Conversely, the Japanese Army was eager to wage war in northern China but displayed little inclination to engage in hostilities in Shanghai. Should the situation worsen, the Army preferred to withdraw all Japanese nationals from the city. Ultimately, when it agreed to formulate plans for dispatching an expeditionary force to Shanghai, it did so reluctantly, primarily to avoid accusations of neglecting its responsibilities. Amongst many commanders longing for a swift confrontation with Japan was Zhang Zhizhong. By the end of July, he was growing increasingly impatient, waiting with his troops in the Suzhou area west of Shanghai and questioning whether a unique opportunity was being squandered. On July 30, he sent a telegram to Nanjing requesting permission to strike first. He argued that if Japan were allowed to launch an attack on Shanghai, he would waste valuable time moving his troops from their position more than 50 miles away. Nanjing responded with a promise that his wishes would be fulfilled but urged him to exercise patience: “We should indeed seize the initiative over the enemy, but we must wait until the right opportunity arises. Await further orders.” That opportunity arose on August 11, with the Japanese display of force on the Huangpu River and their public demand for the withdrawal of China's paramilitary police. Japan had sufficiently revealed itself as the aggressor in the eyes of both domestic and international audiences, making it safe for China to take action. At 9:00 p.m. that evening, Zhang Zhizhong received orders from Nanjing to move his troops toward Shanghai. He acted with remarkable speed, capitalizing on the extensive transportation network in the region. The soldiers of the 87th Division quickly boarded 300 trucks that had been prepared in advance. Meanwhile, civilian passengers on trains were unceremoniously ordered off to make room for the 88th Division, which boarded the carriages heading for Shanghai. In total, over 20,000 motivated and well-equipped troops were on their way to battle.  On August 12, representatives from the United Kingdom, France, the United States, Italy, Japan, and China gathered for a joint conference in Shanghai to discuss ceasefire terms. Japan demanded the withdrawal of Chinese troops from Shanghai, while the Chinese representative, Yu Hung-chun, dismissed the Japanese demand, stating that the terms of the ceasefire had already been violated by Japan. The major powers were keen to avoid a repeat of the January 28 Incident, which had significantly disrupted foreign economic activities in Shanghai. Meanwhile, Chinese citizens fervently welcomed the presence of Chinese troops in the city. In Nanjing, Chinese and Japanese representatives convened for the last time in a final effort to negotiate. The Japanese insisted that all Peace Preservation Corps and regular troops be withdrawn from the vicinity of Shanghai. The Chinese, however, deemed the demand for a unilateral withdrawal unacceptable, given that the two nations were already engaged in conflict in North China. Ultimately, Mayor Yu made it clear that the most the Chinese government would concede was that Chinese troops would not fire unless fired upon. Conversely, Japan placed all responsibility on China, citing the deployment of Chinese troops around Shanghai as the cause of the escalating tensions. Negotiations proved impossible, leaving no alternative but for the war to spread into Central China. On that same morning of Thursday, August 12, residents near Shanghai's North Train Station, also known as Zhabei Station, just a few blocks from "Little Tokyo," awoke to an unusual sight: thousands of soldiers dressed in the khaki uniforms of the Chinese Nationalists, wearing German-style helmets and carrying stick grenades slung across their chests. “Where do you come from?” the Shanghai citizens asked. “How did you get here so fast?” Zhang Zhizhong issued detailed orders to each unit under his command, instructing the 88th Division specifically to travel by train and deploy in a line from the town of Zhenru to Dachang village, both located a few miles west of Shanghai. Only later was the division supposed to advance toward a position stretching from the Zhabei district to the town of Jiangwan, placing it closer to the city boundaries. Zhang Zhizhong was the embodiment of belligerence, but he faced even more aggressive officers among his ranks. On the morning of August 12, he was approached by Liu Jingchi, the chief of operations at the Songhu Garrison Command. Liu argued that the battle of 1932 had gone poorly for the Chinese because they had hesitated and failed to strike first. This time, he insisted, should be different, and Zhang should order an all-out assault on the Japanese positions that very evening. Zhang countered that he had clear and unmistakable orders from Chiang Kai-shek to let the Japanese fire first, emphasizing the importance of maintaining China's image on the world stage. “That's easy,” Liu retorted. “Once all the units are deployed and ready to attack, we can just change some people into mufti and send them in to fire a few shots. We attack, and simultaneously, we report that the enemy's offensive has begun.” Zhang Zhizhong did not like this idea. “We can't go behind our leader's back like that,” he replied. Zhang Zhizhong's position was far from enviable. Forced to rein in eager and capable officers, he found himself acting against his own personal desires. Ultimately, he decided to seek the freedom to act as he saw fit. In a secret cable to Nanjing, he requested permission to launch an all-out attack on the Japanese positions in Shanghai the following day, Friday, August 13. He argued that this was a unique opportunity to capitalize on the momentum created by the movement of troops; any further delay would only lead to stagnation. He proposed a coordinated assault that would also involve the Chinese Air Force. However, the reply from Chiang Kai-shek was brief and unwavering: “Await further orders.” Even as Chiang's troops poured into Shanghai, Chinese and Japanese officials continued their discussions. Ostensibly, this was in hopes of reaching a last-minute solution, but in reality, it was a performance. Both sides wanted to claim the moral high ground in a battle that now seemed inevitable. They understood that whoever openly declared an end to negotiations would automatically be perceived as the aggressor. During talks at the Shanghai Municipal Council, Japanese Consul General Okamoto argued that if China truly wanted peace, it would have withdrawn its troops to a position that would prevent clashes. Mayor Yu responded by highlighting the increasing presence of Japanese forces in the city. “Under such circumstances, China must adopt such measures as necessary for self-defense,” he stated. Late on August 13, 1937, Chiang Kai-shek instructed his forces to defend Shanghai, commanding them to "divert the enemy at sea, secure the coast, and resist landings."  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. In July 1937, tensions between Japan and China escalated into war following the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. Confident in his country's resolve, Chiang Kai-shek rallied the Chinese against Japanese aggression. On August 9, a deadly confrontation at Hongqiao Airport resulted in the deaths of Japanese soldiers, igniting further hostilities. As both sides blamed each other, the atmosphere became tense. Ultimately, negotiations failed, and the stage was set for a brutal conflict in Shanghai, marking the beginning of a long and devastating war.

Last time we spoke about the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. On July 7, 1937, tensions escalated between Japan and China as the Japanese military conducted a training exercise near the Marco Polo Bridge. During the exercise, gunfire erupted, sowing confusion and leading to the unexplained disappearance of one soldier. This incident prompted Japan to demand permission to search the nearby city of Wanping, which was denied by Chinese forces, escalating tensions further. By the next day, Japanese troops attacked, resulting in fierce fighting at the bridge. Under heavy assault, Chinese defenders fought valiantly but faced overwhelming force. As the conflict intensified, both sides struggled with heavy casualties, leading to the full-scale Sino-Japanese War. The Japanese military's aggressive maneuvers and the determined Chinese resistance marked the beginning of a brutal conflict, forever altering the landscape of East Asia. The profound toll on both nations foreshadowed the horrors of war that were to come, as China prepared to defend its sovereignty against a relentless enemy.   #155 Operation Chahar 1937 Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. By the end of July of 1937 the Japanese had overwhelmed the Beiping-Tianjin region. It's pretty understandable as to how this came so fast. As we have discussed thoroughly in this series, the Japanese had gradually seized control over Northern China going back to Operation Nekka in 1933. Little by little they had carved it out. Typically when you pull out a map of a war between two nations, one nation pierces into the other and gradually seizes control of key locations until it archives victory. However with the case of the outset of the Second Sino-Japanese War its more like the Japanese are starting at multiple key locations where they have concessions, treaties or where there are autonomous regions. Thus its honestly a huge headache to follow. When the Marco Polo Bridge Incident broke out, Chiang Kai-Shek had been in Kuling, a mountain top resort where he spent his summer vacations. He received the news with composure, but his message to the nation conveyed a sense of optimism and anticipation. The embarrassment of the Sian mutiny was a thing of the past. Although he wasn't overly confident, he believed that this was the pivotal moment China had been preparing for, more so than at any time in recent years. For nearly three weeks, efforts were made to resolve the situation through diplomatic means. For the first time, Chiang was in a position to make demands. He understood they would likely be rejected, but that wasn't the main point. He asked Japan to acknowledge its responsibility for the recent turmoil, to issue an apology, and to provide compensation. After making that request, he addressed his nation with a formal commitment: China would not accept any settlement that compromised its sovereign rights or territorial integrity. No changes would be permitted regarding the status of the Hubei-Chahar Council, and local officials would not be reassigned at the request of any foreign government. Any restrictions on the Twenty-ninth Army's positions would be unacceptable. He declared that the era of Japanese expansion in North China had come to a definitive end. The Japanese army achieved significant victories on the battlefield in China, leading to the inevitable expansion of the conflict. The first major campaign following the Nanyuan victory unfolded along the mountainous border marked by the inner Great Wall, separating northern Hubei from Chahar. On the Jinpu Railway, just south of Tianjin, lies a small station known as Jinghai. Adjacent to this station is the Jian River, which had swollen to a width of 20 meters due to intermittent heavy rains in northern China after the Japanese army's occupation of Tianjin. The embankments on either side of the river were overgrown with dense reeds and grass, and a wooden arch bridge spanned the river. After landing at Dagukou in Tianjin, the 10th Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Rensuke Isogai, advanced south along the Jinpu Railway. However, as the vanguard, the 10th Regiment of the 33rd Brigade made its way through the muddy terrain towards the Jian River's wooden bridge, they were suddenly taken aback. A group of Chinese soldiers appeared, their faces vividly painted red and armed with long-handled broadswords, a sight reminiscent of the legendary Chinese figure Guan Yu, as depicted in many traditional portraits. These soldiers belonged to the 26th Independent Brigade of the 38th Division of the 29th Army, who were in retreat from Tianjin. Following the city's fall, they had retreated southward to Jinghai Station, where they prepared to make a stand. Brigade Commander Li Zhiyuan recognized their inferior numbers and weaponry compared to the Japanese forces. Drawing from painful lessons learned during the positional battles in Tianjin, he decided to divide his troops strategically: one battalion would defend the station, another would protect the county town, and a third would engage in guerrilla tactics along the Jinpu Road. If faced with a small number of Japanese soldiers, they would fight fiercely; if overwhelmed, they would attempt to encircle the attackers to prevent a direct assault on their main position. Despite the Japanese army's attempts to advance, including efforts to send an armored train into Jinghai Station, the Chinese soldiers cleverly laid straw on the tracks and buried mines, thwarting the train's progress. Once Japanese troops disembarked to mount an offensive, they were ambushed by the battalion executing guerrilla tactics, resulting in a chaotic retreat that left behind several dozen casualties. Over the course of weeks, the divisional headquarters ordered a battalion of Japanese troops to move south along the Jinpu Road, requiring them to cross the Jian River at the wooden bridge. The 26th Independent Brigade was assigned to halt this advance, and they managed to hold their ground for over 20 days. Recognizing the gravity of their situation, Brigade Commander Li Zhiyuan gathered his group and battalion commanders to emphasize the necessity of pushing back the Japanese forces. He passionately rallied them, declaring, “We must defend this river to the death. Each regiment will select a death squad. Each member will carry a long-handled broadsword and four grenades, paint their faces red and rush across the bridge to engage in melee combat!” When Li asked for volunteers to lead the death squad, the regiment commander, Zhu, eagerly stepped forward, quickly gathering a group that followed him, uniting passionately in their cause. The death squad charged across the bridge, catching the Japanese off guard with their war paint and weapons. The sudden attack left the Japanese soldiers dazed, leading to a chaotic retreat as they struggled through the muddy terrain. In the tumult, more than 200 long-handled swords struck down a significant number of Japanese troops. Those advancing from behind panicked at the sight of their retreating comrades. An officer, dismounted during the chaos, was left behind, and the Chinese soldiers, filled with zeal, pressed forward, ignoring the orders from Brigade Commander Li Zhiyuan to fall back for their own safety. Despite moments of heroism, many fell that day by the Jian River, as the officers and soldiers burned their boats and set fire to the wooden bridge, rendering retreat impossible. As the Japanese military consolidated its power in the Pingjin region, many leaders underestimated the tenacity of Chinese resistance. Plans were made to defeat the Chinese army and air force swiftly, aiming to resolve the issue in North China decisively, with no diplomatic negotiations or external interventions allowed during military operations. Now, in late July to early August, Chiang Kai-shek issued orders to improve defenses at Nankou. He mobilized Tang Enbo's 13th Army in Suidong for battle readiness, tasked Liu Ruming to sabotage railways, and directed Fu Zuoyi and Yan Xishan in Suiyuan to prepare for conflict. Troops were reorganized rapidly, with divisions merging to strengthen the 17th Army under Liu Ruming's command. Chiang insisted that Nankou's defenses be deep and wide to thwart enemy cavalry and tank assaults, rendering Japanese mechanized advantages ineffective. He called for close cooperation among commanders and a resolute defense. Tang Enbo's 13th Army, consisted of the 4th and 89th Divisions, whom established defensive positions along the Peiping-Suiyuan Railway at Nankou, with additional units positioned further back at Juyongguan. The 13th Army, was 20,000 men strong, all motivated soldiers committed to fighting the Japanese, but their equipment was woefully inadequate. The 89th Division had a few outdated artillery pieces, whilst other units were in even worse condition, hampering their effectiveness against the well-armed Japanese forces. Liu's 17th Army stationed its 84th Division at Chihcheng, Yanqing, and Longguan, effectively securing the flank of the 13th Army against potential Japanese advances from Chahar. The 21st Division was deployed in Huailai, situated along the railway to the rear of Tang's forces. Additionally, Zhao Chengshou's 1st Cavalry Army, Liu 's 143rd Division, and two Peace Preservation Brigades commenced an offensive against Mongol forces in northern Chahar. As the Japanese launched initial assaults on Nankou on August 4, fierce fighting erupted. The Chinese defenders fought valiantly, but heavy bombardments by artillery and air raids took a toll. The Japanese began using tanks to support their infantry, yet the 530th Regiment successfully repelled an attack at Deshengkou. Meanwhile, the Japanese intensified their efforts, culminating in poison gas assaults that overwhelmed Chinese positions on Longhutai, leading to significant losses. Despite the escalating pressure and casualties, the determination to hold Nankou was unwavering. On August 5, the Kwantung Army requested permission for the advance guard to move to Changpei, arguing that the Central Army's invasion of Chahar had jeopardized the security of Manchukuo. This request was denied, yet the advance guard proceeded to Changpei on August 8. This unauthorized movement by the Kwantung Army was a serious act of defiance, as Tolun lay outside Manchukuo's borders, and troop deployments required imperial authorization. Although imperial sanction had been obtained for the move to Tolun on July 28, permission for the advance guard to proceed was only granted retroactively, with the stipulation that they would not advance further into Inner Mongolia. Nevertheless, this unauthorized action ultimately compelled the high command to approve the advance to Changpei. On August 7, the Japanese army launched a large assault on Nankou with its three main divisions, aiming to breach the Great Wall and advance westward along the Pingsui Railway to flank the strategic city of Shanxi. By August 8, the Japanese forces that had captured Beiping and Tianjin deployed the entire 20th Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Kawagishi Fumisaburo, and supplemented their efforts with the 5th and 10th Divisions, along with the Sakai Brigade, to attack Nankou along the Pingsui Railway. On August 8, the Japanese 11th Independent Mixed Brigade, led by General Shigiyasu Suzuki, initiated an attack on the left flank of the 13th Corps' position at Nankou. However, their efforts were halted after three days due to challenging terrain and the determined resistance from Chinese forces.  On the same day, Chiang Kai-shek ordered the activation of the 14th Group Army, comprising the 10th, 83rd, and 85th Divisions, under General Wei Lihuang. Elements of the 14th Group Army traveled by rail from Yingchia-chuang to Yi County and then embarked on a ten-day march through the plains west of Beiping to flank and support Tang Enbo's forces. Meanwhile, the Chinese 1st Army Region launched attacks against the Japanese in Liangxiang and Chaili to divert their attention and dispatched a detachment to Heilung Pass to cover the advance of the 14th Group Army. On August 9, the central high command ordered the China Garrison Army to eliminate resistance in the area and instructed Kwantung Army Commander Ueda Kenkichi to send reinforcements from Jehol and Inner Mongolia to support the operation. The China Garrison Army deployed its 11th Independent Mixed Brigade and the 5th Division, recently arrived from Hiroshima under Lieutenant-General Itagaki Seishirö, to launch an attack on the mountainous regions around Nankou and Pataling within the Great Wall. Following intense fighting, they succeeded in crossing into Chahar.    The Kwantung Army aimed to conquer Chahar and, upon receiving approval from the Japanese General Staff, established an expeditionary headquarters on August 14, led by its chief of staff, Lieutenant General Tojo Hideki. Yes that Tojo. Tokyo's objective was to secure the strategic flank of Manchukuo, while the Kwantung Army sought to create puppet regimes in northern China and integrate the occupied territories into a Japanese sphere of influence. The Chahar Expeditionary Force comprised three mixed brigades, including Japan's only fully mechanized unit, which was equipped with medium tanks, heavy and light armored vehicles, and light tanks. The Japanese troops shifted their main attack toward Zhangjiakou via the Pingsui Railway due to pressures from the Kwantung Army eager to occupy Inner Mongolia, Suiyuan, and Chahar. They sought to eliminate threats from the rear before launching further operations along the Pinghan Line and Jinpu Line. The 11th Independent Mixed Brigade of the 20th Division of the Chinese Garrison Army was ordered to assault Chinese defenders in the Nankou area, with the goal of capturing key locations on the Great Wall, like Badaling, to facilitate the Fifth Division's advance. The Chinese assessed the Japanese strategy, believing they would first secure critical points along the Pingsui route to facilitate further incursions into Shanxi and Zhengding. They understood that holding the Nankou line was vital for both logistical support and tactical maneuvering. Nankou, a key town on the Pingsui Railway connecting Beijing to Zhangjiakou and Baotou, was surrounded by mountains and the Great Wall, marking it a significant natural defense line. As the Japanese army aimed to capture Zhangjiakou and divide their forces into Shanxi and Suiyuan, the Chinese army's control over Nankou became crucial. A renewed assault on August 11, bolstered by tanks and aircraft, successfully captured Nankou Station, allowing General Suzuki's brigade to advance toward Juyong Pass. On August 12, Tang Enbo's army launched a counterattack, encircling the Japanese forces and severing their supply and communication lines. That day, Tang Enbo sent a telegram to Luo Fanggui: “Brother Fanggui, Commander Luo of the 529th Regiment, I have received your telegram. Your regiment has recently defeated formidable enemies, laying the groundwork for our army's future victories. Your efforts bring me great relief! The Nankou position is critical to our nation's war of resistance. Despite the enemy's numerical superiority and fierce artillery fire, we cannot surrender this area. It is our fighting spirit, not our numbers or advanced weaponry, that will help us withstand these powerful foes. We vow never to abandon our positions. Life is transient, and we must embrace our fate. A hero perishing on the battlefield is the glorious destiny of a soldier.” On the same day, he also sent a telegram to Wang Zhonglian: “Brother Jieren Wang, commander of the 89th Division, I have read your telegram. Brigade Li has triumphed against formidable foes, establishing a precedent for our army's victory. Your successes bring me much comfort! The Nankou position is our glorious objective. If I perish, the country lives on. If I survive, the country perishes. We would rather die defending this position than live in disgrace. Please convey to all the officers and soldiers of your division, who share in this struggle, the importance of striving for victory!” On August 13, Tang Enbo ordered the defensive positions at Nankou to be abandoned as the remaining troops pulled back to stronger positions at Badaling and Juyongguan. Renowned journalist Fan Changjiang noted Tang Enbo's physical and emotional toll, describing him as a mere shadow of his former self after enduring relentless battles without rest. His subsequent thoughts and fears reflected the despair of facing insurmountable odds, with the Japanese army overwhelming the Nankou defenses. Casualty reports from the Battle of Nankou reveal stark discrepancies; average estimates suggest Chinese losses neared 26,000, while Japanese casualties were around 2,600,an alarming ratio of 10 to 1. Despite the devastating defeat, Tang Enbo's leadership gained national recognition for his efforts, though he viewed the loss of Nankou as a blemish on an otherwise honorable defense. The indomitable spirit displayed during the relentless struggle at Nankou, despite the defeat and challenges faced, inspired a sense of resilience among the Chinese people, reminding them that even in dire circumstances, they would not yield to oppression. Meanwhile in response to having their supply and communication lines severed, on August 14, Seishirō Itagaki dispatched the 5th Division to relieve the 11th Independent Mixed Brigade at Juyonggua. Fu Zuoyi's troops attacked Chahar from Suidong. Dong Qiwu 's troops attacked Shangdu and recaptured it on the 14th, while Shi Yushan 's troops attacked Dehua and recaptured it on the 16th. By the 16, Itagaki had arrived at Nankou and initiated an enveloping assault targeting the right flank of the 13th Army, executing a five-pronged attack at Huanglaoyuan. In anticipation, the 7th Brigade of the 4th Division, commanded by Shi Jue, was positioned to counter this maneuver. Reinforcements, including Li Xianzhou's 21st Division and Zhu Huaibing's 94th Division, were brought in, resulting in several days of intense fighting. On August 17, General Yan Xishan, Director of the Taiyuan Pacification Headquarters, ordered the 7th Group Army, commanded by Fu Zuoyi, to move the 72nd Division and three additional brigades by rail from Datong to Huailai to support Tang Enbo's forces. Chiang Kai-shek urged steadfastness in the face of adversity, emphasizing that retreat was not an option. But with communication breakdowns and logistical challenges, Tang Enbo faced dilemmas that would lead him to issue the order for his troops to break out on August 26. As the Japanese army occupied Huailai and Yanqing, Tang Enbo's forces executed a withdrawal, retreating via various routes before suffering further losses.  Meanwhile Liu Ruming's troops of the 143rd Division of the 29th Army took Zhangbei from Zhangjiakou . Proceed to Wanquan Dam , the junction of Wanquan and Zhangbei. The members of the pseudo-Mongolian military government fled to Duolun under the leadership of King De . In order to relieve the danger in Zhangjiakou, Liu Ruming's troops began to attack the enemy in Zhangbei. On August 20, they captured key points such as Bolicai Village outside Zhangbei City. At this time, the mechanized troops of the Japanese Kwantung Army led by Hideki Tojo rushed from Rehe to support Zhangbei. When passing through Guyuan, they were divided into two groups: one group of Japanese troops, the Suzuki Brigade and Homma Brigade went south to attack Zhangjiakou. On the night of August 21, the Chinese army retreated to Shenweitai, 25 kilometers south of Zhangbei County. On August 22, the Japanese army began its attack. Shenwei Tower fell at midnight on the 23rd. At the same time, another part of the Japanese army launched a roundabout attack on Wanquan County. On the morning of August 24, they captured Wanquan County, and then headed straight for Zhangjiakou along the highway with an infantry regiment and an artillery battalion. From August 25 to 27, the Japanese army attacked Bajiaotai, the highest point of Cir Mountain west of Zhangjiakou. At noon on the 27th, Zhangjiakou fell. Gao Guizi's 17th Army marched to Dushikou to resist the enemy from Duolun Akagi and Longguan and intercepted the Pingsui Railway. Gao Guizi's troops failed to withstand the Japanese attack, and the 301st Regiment of the 29th Army stationed in Xuanhua also retreated southward. On August 28, Xuanhua fell into the hands of the enemy. Meanwhile, in northern Chahar, the Chinese 1st Cavalry Army successfully captured Shangdu, Nanhaochan, Shangyi, and Huade from the puppet Mongolian Army led by Demchugdongrub. Elements of the 143rd Division secured Zhongli, while the main force advanced to Zhangbei. During this Chinese offensive, the Japanese Chahar Expeditionary Force, consisting of the mechanized 1st Independent Mixed Brigade along with the 2nd and 15th Mixed Brigades, prepared for a counteroffensive from Zhangbei to Kalgan. Tojo personally commanded the units of the 1st Independent Mixed Brigade during Operation Chahar, which would serve as his only real combat service for his career. From August 18 to 19, the Chahar Expeditionary Force launched a counterattack from Zhangbei, capturing Shenweitaiko on the Great Wall and the Hanno Dam. The scattered and ill-equipped Chinese forces were unable to halt the Japanese advance, which now threatened the Peking–Suiyuan Railway at Kalgan. On August 20, General Fu Zuoyi's 7th Group Army diverted its 200th and 211th Brigades, which had been moving south by rail to join General Tang Enbo's forces, back to defend Kalgan. Fu's remaining 72nd Division arrived to reinforce Chenpien, while his 7th Separate Brigade was dispatched to protect the railhead at Huailai.On August 21, the Japanese forces breached the defenses at the villages of Henglingcheng and Chenbiancheng. General Tang Enbo's forces, awaiting reinforcements but having suffered over 50% casualties, continued to defend Huailai, Juyong Pass, and Yanqing. Liu Ruming's 143rd Division retreated to safeguard Kalgan from the advancing Japanese troops. On August 23, as Seishirō Itagaki's 5th Division advanced toward Huailai from Chenpien against Ma Yenshou's 7th Separate Brigade, advance elements of the 14th Army Group arrived on the Japanese flank at Chingpaikou. They successfully drove off the Japanese outpost and made contact with Japanese forces advancing toward Chenpien. However, delays in crossing the Yongding River postponed their attack until it was too late to halt the Japanese advance. Due to poor communications, they also failed to coordinate with General Tang Enbo's forces during the battle. After eight days and nights of fierce fighting, on August 24, Itagaki linked up with the Kwantung Army's 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade at Xiahuayuan. By August 24, the Japanese army breached the defensive line of the Chinese defenders' Wang Wanling Division along the western Hengling, crossed the Great Wall, and advanced into the Huailai area. At this time, the Japanese forces attacking Zhangjiakou from Chabei also secured control of the railway line west of Zhangjiakou, posing a significant threat to the Chinese defenders at Nankou. On August 25, the Chinese defenders were compelled to withdraw from Nankou and retreat to Juyongguan. By August 27, they received orders to break out and relocate southward, completely evacuating the Nankou battlefield. Since Wei Lihuang's troops lost their intended target for reinforcement and Baoding along the Pinghan Line was in a state of emergency, they engaged the enemy in the Wanping area for over a month before retreating south. Following the abandonment of both Nankou and Juyongguan, the Japanese army invaded Huailai City on the night of August 27. The Chinese army suffered over 16,000 casualties, while the Japanese army reported more than 15,000 casualties. On August 26, General Tang Enbo's forces were ordered to break out toward the Sangchien River, while Liu Ruming's troops were directed to withdraw to the opposite side of the Hsiang-yang River. On August 29, a Japanese unit known as the Oui Column by the Chinese and the Ohizumi Detachment by the Japanese launched an attack. According to Hsu Long-hsuen, this unit moved south from Tushihkou, and on August 30, it attacked Yenching via Chihcheng but was repelled by the Chinese 17th Army. The unit had moved to Guyuan by August 25 and reached Xuanhua by September 7, effectively cutting the railway behind Tang's forces and east of the Chinese defenders along the Great Wall. Following the repulsion of the Oui Column's attack, the Chinese 17th Army withdrew to join the rest of Tang Enbo's forces on the far side of the Sangchien River. Kalgan fell to the Japanese on August 27. After General Fu Zuoyi's 200th and 211th Brigades failed in their counterattack to recapture Kalgan, Fu's forces retreated to the west to defend the railway to Suiyuan at Chaikoupao.  On August 30, the army high command ordered the task force and the China Garrison Army to occupy Chahar Province. The North China Area Army deployed Lieutenant General Itagaki Seishiro's Fifth Division, the theater's strategic reserve, for this operation. The Japanese forces relied on armored units to breach Chinese defenses and utilized rail lines to transport troops and supplies effectively to critical locations throughout Chahar. Although the First Independent Mixed Brigade's tanks and armored cars demonstrated proficiency, the Kwantung Army's assessment of the operation criticized the armored units for their lack of shock effect and frequent mechanical breakdowns. Additionally, these vehicles required significant supplies and maintenance, leading the army to deem them ineffective in combat situations. The Second Air Group provided crucial support for the ground offensive in Chahar. From mid-August, this air group, stationed in Chengde and Jingzhou, conducted bombing raids on enemy positions and transport routes, performed reconnaissance missions, and even airdropped supplies to encircled Japanese forces. To match the rapid advance of the mechanized ground forces, air units were repositioned to advanced airfields. After bombing Taiyuan in late August, some units returned to their home bases, leaving behind two fighter squadrons and two heavy bomber squadrons, which formed a provisional air regiment. By mid-September, the Fifth Division and the Chahar Expeditionary Force were advancing southwest through the rugged mountains of Shanxi Province and captured Datong on September 13. Five days later, anticipating a decisive battle, Lieutenant General Katsuki ordered the Fifth Division to pivot southeast toward Baoding to encircle the retreating Chinese forces. Shortly after repositioning, Itagaki learned from aerial reconnaissance that Chinese units were assembling near Pingxingguan (Dayingzhen) Pass. Concerned that these forces might advance eastward through the pass and threaten his rear, Itagaki dispatched a regimental-sized task force under the command of Major General Miura Keiji, leader of the Twenty-first Brigade, to disperse the enemy troops and control the road on both sides of the pass. Miura's task force departed by truck in the mid-afternoon of the following day, but the overland movement proved much slower and more challenging than anticipated. Travelling along a single rutted dirt track through steep mountains, the forty-nine trucks carrying his infantry and heavy weapons, including crew-served machine guns and battalion artillery, could only manage a speed of seven miles per hour. By late afternoon, the lead elements were still about five miles east of the pass when they encountered a few hundred Chinese troops who had retreated after a brief firefight. As night fell, the Japanese moved cautiously forward and reached a village approximately a mile from the pass, where they encountered stiff resistance, including mortar and automatic weapons fire. After successfully repelling a counterattack by the Chinese Seventy-third Division, Miura launched a night assault. Supported by pack artillery and heavy machine guns, two Japanese companies pushed through the pass and seized the high ground on its west side by early morning. However, Chinese reinforcements soon arrived and attempted to reclaim the lost territory, resulting in ongoing fighting for the heights on September 24. Meanwhile, the Chinese Communist 115th Division, comprising the 685th, 686th, and 687th regiments of the Eighth Route Army, consisting of around 6,000 effective troops under the command of twenty-nine-year-old Lin Biao, maneuvered south around the Japanese rear. By September 24, they had interposed themselves on the road east of the pass, effectively cutting off Miura's task force from its supply base. That same day, the Central Army's Seventy-first Division launched several sharp counterattacks against Miura's outnumbered forces west of the pass, threatening to overrun the Japanese positions. Central Army and Communist forces had planned to attack both flanks of the Japanese at dawn on September 25, but torrential rains delayed the advance of the Central Army reserves. The downpour also muffled the sounds of an approaching Japanese night assault. Utilizing the poor night security of the Chinese, Japanese assault parties surprised the Seventy-first and Eighty-fourth divisions, pushing them from their positions west of the pass. Miura mistakenly believed he controlled both sides of the pass and assumed the Chinese forces were in full retreat. Unbeknownst to him, Lin Biao's troops had blocked the eastern entrance to the pass, prompting him to order a resupply column with rations and ammunition forward from about fifteen miles east of the pass to replenish his depleted task force. The supply train, consisting of seventy horse-drawn wagons and eighty trucks, struggled to make progress along the single dirt track, where sections had become muddy bogs due to the heavy rains. Most of the hundred-plus soldiers handling the horses and wagons were untrained and unarmed. The few regular service corps soldiers carried only ten cavalry carbines, while a single infantry platoon of thirty men provided security. The eighty trucks transported another 176 men, most of whom were not infantry. Therefore, the resupply column was ill-prepared for any trouble. Following a sunken road worn down by centuries of caravans, the column approached the pass through a narrow man-made defile, with its sides rising as high as thirty-five feet above the track. Around mid-morning, about four miles east of the pass, the Chinese Communist 115th Division launched an ambush. Communist troops rained grenades and small-arms fire from the high ground overlooking the road onto the trapped convoy. Although the Japanese fought back desperately, the combination of surprise, advantageous terrain, and overwhelming numbers turned the road into a killing ground. The ambush decimated almost all of the teamsters and the infantrymen who protected the wagons. At his field headquarters, Miura heard the heavy gunfire and explosions and quickly ordered a battalion-sized rescue force to assist the convoy. However, the Chinese 685th Regiment, blocking the only road to the trapped supply train, halted the Japanese battalion. Elements of the 685th and 686th regiments then finished off the motorized convoy, with only five trucks at the rear escaping. After looting weapons, equipment, and clothing, the Communists burned the remaining vehicles and withdrew southwest into the rugged mountains. Although the Communists claimed to have killed 3,000 Japanese troops, the more realistic number is around 200. Nonetheless, Lin Biao's guerrillas had achieved a significant tactical success. While the 115th Division destroyed the Japanese resupply column east of the pass, the Central Army's Sixth and Seventh Army Groups, including the Seventy-first Division, launched a series of day and night assaults against Miura's dispersed units west of the pass. Both sides incurred heavy losses, and the Japanese struggled to maintain control of the high ground as the Chinese fanned out through the valleys and attacked from all sides. Isolated and under heavy attack, the Japanese were low on ammunition, food, and water, lacked proper cold-weather clothing in the frigid mountains, and were greatly outnumbered. They resorted to scavenging ammunition and weapons from fallen Chinese soldiers. Itagaki promptly ordered his 41st and 21st infantry regiments, supported by an infantry regiment from the Kwantung Army located about fifty miles northeast of the pass, to rescue the beleaguered task force. These regiments moved along a narrow mountain road amidst heavy rain, which slowed their progress. The relief force split up about forty miles north of Pingxingguan, with the Twenty-first Regiment swinging westward to outflank the Chinese, while the other two regiments continued toward the pass. To the northwest, the Fifteenth Brigade of the Chahar Expeditionary Force advanced southeastward from Datong to encircle the Chinese. Central Army forces defending along the inner Great Wall, about fifty miles northwest of Pingxingguan, inflicted substantial casualties on the Japanese. The Japanese Forty-first Regiment finally reached Miura on September 28, and on the same day, the Twenty-first Regiment dislodged the stubborn defenders along the Inner Great Wall, roughly forty miles northwest of the pass, disrupting the entire Chinese defense and threatening to surround the besieging forces. Nonetheless, fighting continued through September 29, when the Second Brigade broke through the Chinese Central Army's defenses and advanced westward. Facing potential encirclement and certain destruction, the Japanese Sixth Army Group withdrew southwest the following day. Japanese accounts do not specify overall losses, but Chinese reports claim nearly 3,000 Japanese casualties while acknowledging they suffered ten times that number. After five days of intense fighting in rugged terrain, Miura's forces managed to hold their ground, but their heavy losses and those sustained by relief columns rendered it a Pyrrhic victory. Both Communist and Nationalist Chinese forces retreated southwest, surviving to fight another day. The determination of the Chinese Central Army in both offensive and defensive maneuvers, combined with the skillful hit-and-run tactics of the 115th Division, inflicted significant damage on the Japanese and became a cornerstone of Chinese propaganda. On October 1, the Japanese General Staff ordered the North China Area Army to destroy the Chinese forces in Shanxi Province, which were estimated to number over twenty divisions from either the Shanxi Army or the Central Army, and were fortifying positions in Taiyuan, Yangquan, and Yuanpingzhen. The Japanese Fifth and Twentieth Divisions advanced toward Taiyuan, while the Fifteenth Division, reinforced by a mixed brigade, launched an assault south from Yuanpingzhen on October 13. The Fifteenth Division quickly encountered strong Chinese resistance from well-prepared defenses, which halted its advance. From October 19 to 26, the Twentieth Division faced thirteen Chinese divisions entrenched near Jiuguan. Although they successfully repelled numerous fierce counterattacks, the division was unable to breach the Chinese lines. A maneuver by one of its regiments to the rear of the Chinese defenses forced a withdrawal of Chinese troops. The reconstituted Fifth Division joined the pursuit of the retreating Chinese forces on November 3, reaching Taiyuan five days later. Meanwhile, the Twentieth Division, moving westward, inflicted heavy losses on the Chinese units that were withdrawing from Taiyuan. Overall, given that the offensive aimed to secure territory, it can be considered a tactical and operational success. Shortly thereafter, all Japanese forces, except for the Twentieth Division, withdrew from Shanxi Province. The Chahar campaign concluded with the Kwantung Army in control of Chahar, Suiyuan, and the northern half of Shanxi Province. The Japanese quickly established puppet regimes in the captured territories. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. In July 1937, tensions between Japan and China erupted following the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, leading to fierce fighting as Japanese troops attacked. Chinese defenders, under command of Chiang Kai-shek, bravely resisted despite overwhelming odds, determined to protect their sovereignty. The Battle of Nankou saw relentless assaults, tank warfare, and desperate defense tactics, revealing the depth of Chinese resolve. 

This week Seth Paridon and co-host Jon Parshall take a look at the war in China from 1937-1940. Major clashes occurred in 1937, most notably at Nanking, where the guys get into both the battle and the Rape of Nanking, both catastrophes that grabbed the world's attention with both hands. Following that, we get into the negotiations, such as they were, between Chiang Kai Shek's China and Imperial Japan, looking to bring an end to the war that would have no clear end for several years. Next, the guys get into the largely unknown (because that's what we do) Battle of Wuhan in which hundreds of thousands of Chinese and Japanese met in a pitch battle that lasted weeks on end and cost the lives of over half a million Chinese. Tune in and get the low-down on this vastly underrepresented portion of WWII history.   #wwiihistory #wwiihistory #ww2 #usnavy #usa #usarmy #medalofhonor #enterprise #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #cv6 #midway #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #worldwar2 #usnavy #usnavyseals #usmc #usmarines #saipan #usa #usarmy #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #battleship #battleships #ussenterprise #aircraftcarriers #museum #essex #halsey #taskforce38 #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #usnavy #usa #usarmy #medalofhonor #enterprise #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #cv6 #midway #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #worldwar2 #usnavy #usnavyseals #usmc #usmarines #saipan #usa #usarmy #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #battleship #battleships #ussenterprise #aircraftcarriers #museum #hollywood #movie #movies #books #mastersoftheair #8thairforce #mightyeighth #100thbombgroup #bloodyhundredth #b17 #boeing #airforce wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #usnavy #usa #usarmy #medalofhonor #enterprise #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #cv6 #midway #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #worldwar2 #usnavy #usnavyseals #usmc #usmarines #saipan #usa #usarmy #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #battleship #battleships #ussenterprise #aircraftcarriers #museum #hollywood #movie #movies #books #oldbreed #1stMarineDivision #thepacific #Peleliu #army #marines #marinecorps #worldwar2 #worldwar #worldwarii #leytegulf #battleofleytegulf #rodserling #twilightzone #liberation #blacksheep #power #prisoner #prisonerofwar #typhoon #hurricane #weather #iwojima#bullhalsey #ace #p47 #p38 #fighter #fighterpilot #b29 #strategicstudying #tokyo #boeing #incendiary #usa #franklin #okinawa #yamato #kamikaze #Q&A #questions #questionsandanswers #history #jaws #atomicbomb #nuclear #nationalarchives #nara #johnford #hollywood #nanking

In this episode of Battleground 45, Saul is joined by, Professor Alexander V. Pantsov, a renowned historian and author specialising in 20th-century Chinese history. Together, they delve into the complex and often controversial figure of Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Nationalist Party of China and a pivotal player in the tumultuous events of World War II and the Chinese Civil War. If you have any thoughts or questions, you can send them to - podbattleground@gmail.com Producer: James Hodgson X (Twitter): @PodBattleground Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Last time we spoke about Japan's preparations for War. In late 1936, tensions soared in China as Nationalist General Chiang Kai-shek was detained by dissenting commanders who were frustrated with his focus on communism instead of the growing Japanese threat. Faced with escalating Japanese aggression, these leaders forced Chiang into a reluctant alliance with the Chinese Communist Party, marking a pivotal shift in China's strategy. Despite this union, China remained unprepared, lacking sufficient military supplies and modern equipment. Conversely, Japan, wary of Chinese modernization efforts, pushed for a preemptive strike to dismantle Chiang's regime before it could pose a serious threat. As aggressive military exercises intensified, Japan underestimated Chinese resilience. By spring 1937, both nations found themselves on the brink of war, with Japan's divided military leadership struggling to formulate a coherent strategy. Ultimately, these miscalculations would lead to the full-scale Sino-Japanese War, altering the course of history in East Asia.   #154 The Marco Polo Bridge Incident  Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Here we are at last, the beginning of the absolute cataclysm between China and Japan. Now as many of you know I run the Pacific War week by week podcast, which technically covers the second sino-japanese war, nearly to a T. So for this podcast I want to try and portray the event from the Chinese and Japanese point of view, but not in the rather dry manner of the other podcast. In the other podcast I am hampered by the week by week format and can never dig deep into the nitty gritty as they say. On the same hand I don't want to simply regurgitate every single battle of this conflict, it would be absolutely nuts. So bear with me friends as we fall down in the rabbit hole of madness together, who knows how long it will take to get out. On the night of July 7, 1937, at approximately 19:30, the 8th Squadron of the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Hebian Brigade of the Japanese Army, stationed in Fengtai and led by Squadron Leader Shimizu Seiro, conducted a military exercise, heading toward Lungwangmiao, approximately just under a mile northwest of the Marco Polo Bridge The exercise simulated an operation to capture the bridge. As you may have guessed it was named after the Italian explorer Marco Polo, who described it in his travels, the bridge is renowned for its intricate carvings of lions and other sculptures. However after 1937, the Marco Polo Bridge would be far less known for its history dealing with the venetian explorer and more so with an event that many would contend to be the start of WW2. At that time, troops from Japan, Britain, France, and Italy were stationed near Peiping in accordance with the Boxer Protocol of 1901. The Japanese China Garrison Army, comprising around 4,000 soldiers and commanded by Lieutenant-General Tashiro Kan'ichirō, was based in Tientsin. Its mission was to "maintain communication lines between Peiping and the seaports in the Gulf of Chihli and to protect Japanese citizens living in key areas of North China." The protocol also permitted the garrison forces of the signatory nations to conduct field drills and rifle practice without notifying the Chinese authorities, with the exception of cases involving live fire. During this period, Japanese troops were conducting nightly exercises in anticipation of a scheduled review on July 9. The night maneuver was within the army's rights under the Boxer Protocol and was not an illegal act, as later claimed by the Chinese. However, the Japanese army had courteously informed the Chinese authorities about its training plans in advance. Despite this, the atmosphere was charged with tension, and the Japanese decision to use blank ammunition during their night exercise further escalated the already volatile situation. Earlier that evening, Captain Shimizu Setsurö, a company commander, arrived at the banks of the Yungting River, where the maneuver was to take place. He noticed that the site looked different since the last exercise had occurred; Chinese troops had recently constructed new trenches and parapets from the embankment to the Lungwangmiao shelter. While eating his dinner and surveying the area, Shimizu felt a sense of unease, harboring a premonition that “something might happen that night.” After completing the first stage of the maneuver around 10:30 PM, several live rounds were fired into the assembled company from the direction of the riverbank. Shimizu immediately conducted a roll call and found one soldier missing. He promptly sent a messenger to inform the battalion commander. The exercise was then called off, and the company moved eastward to await further orders at Hsiwulitien. Battalion Commander Itsuki Kiyonaho, upon receiving the report, deemed the situation serious. Aside from the gunfire heard in the darkness from an unknown source, he expressed concern over the soldier's disappearance and sought permission from Regiment Commander Mutaguchi Renya, an absolute moron, if you listen to the pacific war podcast, well you know. Anyways to relocate the battalion to the area where the shots had been fired and to establish surveillance. As dawn approached, the troops heard several more gunshots. Within twenty minutes of the soldier's disappearance, he returned to his ranks, but Shimizu did not report this update until four hours later. Meanwhile, midnight negotiations included a Japanese request for permission to search the city of Wanping, leading both sides to believe the incident was significant. Around 11:00 PM, the Japanese forces falsely reported that one of their soldiers had gone missing during the drill and demanded permission to enter the city for a search. This request was firmly denied by Ji Xingwen, the commander of the 219th Regiment of the 37th Division of the Chinese Army. In response, Japanese troops swiftly surrounded Wanping County. To prevent further escalation, at 2:00 AM the following morning, Qin Dechun, deputy commander of the 29th Army and mayor of Beiping, agreed with the Japanese to allow both sides to send personnel for an investigation. While Matsui, the head of the Japanese secret service in Peiping, was negotiating with North Chinese authorities based on unverified reports from Japanese troops in Fengtai, Ikki Kiyonao, the battalion commander of the Japanese garrison in Fengtai, had already reported to his regiment commander, Mutaguchi Lianya. The latter approved orders for the Japanese troops in Fengtai to “immediately move out” to the Marco Polo Bridge.  On July 8, a large contingent of Japanese troops appeared at Lugou Bridge. Shen Zhongming, the platoon leader of the 10th Company of the Reserve Force of the 3rd Battalion of the 219th Regiment of the 37th Division of the 29th Army, was assisting in guarding the bridgehead. He jumped out of the trench, stood in front of the bunker, and raised his right hand to halt the advancing Japanese troops. However, the Japanese military threatened to search for their missing soldiers, pushed forward, and opened fire. Shen Zhongming was shot and died on the spot. At 4:50 AM, the Japanese army launched a fierce assault on Wanping County, capturing Shagang in the northeast of Wanping and firing the first shot of the siege. Unable to withstand the aggression, the Chinese defenders mounted a counterattack. That day, the Japanese army assaulted Wanping City three times, targeting the Pinghan Railway Bridge and the Chinese defenders at the Huilong Temple position on the left. He Jifeng, the commander of the 110th Brigade of the Chinese defenders, issued a resolute order to “live and die with the bridge” and personally commanded the front-line battle. The Chinese defenders engaged in fierce combat, fighting valiantly despite exhausting their ammunition and resorting to hand-to-hand combat with swords against the Japanese soldiers. Tragically, over 80 Chinese defenders from two platoons were killed at the bridgehead. On the same day, the Beijing authorities instructed the garrison to hold firm at the Marco Polo Bridge. Song Queyuan sent a telegram to Chiang Kai-shek to report the true events of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. The National Government's Ministry of Foreign Affairs lodged a verbal protest with the Japanese ambassador regarding the incident. Additionally, the CPC Central Committee issued a telegram urging all Chinese soldiers and civilians to unite and resist Japanese aggression. The Japanese cabinet, in a bid to mislead global public opinion, proposed a so-called policy of “resolving the incident locally without escalating it,” aiming to paralyze the KMT authorities and buy time to mobilize additional forces. In the wake of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, generals of the 29th Army, including Qin Dechun, Feng Zhian, and Zhang Zizhong, convened an emergency meeting. Following their discussions, they issued a statement demanding that their troops withdraw from the Marco Polo Bridge to de-escalate tensions. However, they expressed deep concerns about national sovereignty, stating, “We cannot simply back down. If they continue to oppress us, we will do our utmost to defend ourselves.” Concurrently, the 29th Army commanded the troops defending the Marco Polo Bridge: “The Marco Polo Bridge is your grave. You must live and die with the bridge and must not retreat.” Brigade Commander He Jifeng reinforced three directives for the defenders:  1. Do not allow the Japanese army to enter the city;  2. Firmly counterattack if the Japanese invade;  3. You are responsible for defending the territory and will never yield. If you abandon your position, you will face military law. On July 9, the 29th Army successfully eliminated a Japanese squadron and reclaimed control of the railway bridge and Longwang Temple. A temporary lull settled over the Marco Polo Bridge battlefield, during which the Japanese military made false claims that "missing Japanese soldiers had returned to their units" and described the situation as a misunderstanding that could be resolved peacefully. Subsequently, Chinese and Japanese representatives in Beijing and Tianjin engaged in negotiations. The Beijing authorities reached an agreement with the Japanese forces, which included:  (1) an immediate cessation of hostilities by both parties;  (2) the Japanese army withdrawing to the left bank of the Yongding River while the Chinese army retreated to the right bank; and  (3) the defense of Lugou Bridge being assigned to Shi Yousan's unit of the Hebei Security Team. However, the following day, while the Chinese army withdrew as agreed, the Japanese army not only failed to uphold its commitments but also dispatched a significant number of troops to launch an offensive against the Chinese forces. Reports on July 10 indicated that the Japanese army had arrived from Tianjin, Gubeikou, Yuguan, and other locations, advancing toward the Lugou Bridge with artillery and tanks, and had occupied Dajing Village and Wulidian, signaling that another outbreak of conflict was imminent. On July 11, the Japanese Cabinet decided to deploy seven divisions from the Kwantung Army, the Korean Army, and Japan to North China. On the same day, the Beiping-Tianjin authorities reached a localized agreement with the Japanese army, which entailed:  (1) a formal apology from a representative of the 29th Army to the Japanese forces, along with assurances that those responsible for the initial conflict would be held accountable;  (2) a ban on anti-Japanese activities conducted by the Communist Party, the Blue Shirts Society, and other resistance groups; and  (3) an agreement ensuring that no Chinese troops would be stationed east of the Yongding River. Concurrently, the Japanese army positioned their forces at strategic points in Wuqing, Fengtai, Wanping, and Changping, effectively encircling the city of Beijing and continuing to advance troops into its surrounding suburbs. Starting on July 11, the Japanese army began bombarding Wanping City and its surrounding areas with artillery, resulting in numerous casualties among the local population. Following the injury of regiment commander Ji Xingwen, residents were evacuated to safer locations outside the city. The conflict then spread to Babaoshan, Changxindian, Langfang, Yangcun, and other areas, with the 29th Army being deployed to various locations to confront the enemy. The Japanese military also dispatched aircraft for reconnaissance and strafing missions, leading to intermittent fighting. On July 13, Mao Zedong urged "every Communist Party member and anti-Japanese revolutionary to be prepared to mobilize to the frontline of the anti-Japanese war at any time" from Yan'an. By July 15, a CPC representative presented the "Communist Party Declaration on Cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party" to Chiang Kai-shek, proposing that this declaration serve as the political foundation for cooperation between the two parties and be publicly issued by the Kuomintang. Zhou Enlai, Qin Bangxian, and Lin Boqu continued negotiations with Chiang Kai-shek, Shao Lizi, and Zhang Chong in Lushan. Although Chiang Kai-shek recognized the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region, disagreements remained regarding the reorganization of the Red Army. On July 16, the Five Ministers Conference in Tokyo resolved to mobilize 400,000 Japanese troops to invade China and to enforce a policy aimed at rapidly destroying the entire country. The following day, more than 100 Japanese soldiers arrived in Shunyi and Changping, where they reinforced fortifications on the city wall of Changping. On July 18, the Japanese army invaded Changping, Tongzhou, and other counties in the pseudo-border areas by maneuvering through various passes of the Great Wall. Japanese plainclothes teams were reported to be active in the Xiaotangshan area of Changping, raising alert levels within the Chinese army. On July 20, the Kuomintang Military and Political Department became aware that the Japanese army intended to first occupy strategic locations such as the Indigo Factory, Wanshou Mountain, and Balizhuang in the Pingxi area, before cutting off the Pingsui Road and controlling the route from Beiping to Changping. On July 21, the Japanese army violated the agreement by bombarding Wanping County and the garrison at Changxindian.  On the night of July 25, a confrontation took place at the railway station in Langfang, located between Peiping and Tientsin. The clash involved Chinese troops and a Japanese company dispatched to repair telegraph lines. General Kazuki promptly sought Tokyo's permission to respond with military force, believing that the situation required immediate action. Without waiting for authorization, he ordered a regiment from Tientsin to engage the Chinese forces and issued an ultimatum to Sung Che-yuan, stating that if the 37th Division did not completely withdraw from Peiping by noon on July 28, the Garrison Army would take unilateral action. The 77th Infantry Regiment of the 20th Division was dispatched with the Gonoi Squadron to escort a repair team to Langfang Station. Stationed near Langfang were the headquarters of the 113th Brigade of the 38th Division, along with the main force of the 226th Regiment, led by Brigade Commander Liu Zhensan and Regiment Commander Cui Zhenlun. Although the leadership of the 29th Army adopted a passive stance in the war of resistance, the forces in Langfang prepared for conflict in an organized manner. They not only evacuated the families of servicemen and relocated the regiment headquarters, but also built fortifications and deployed plainclothes teams at Wanzhuang Station, Luofa Station, and Langfang Station to swiftly destroy the railway if necessary. Despite their preparations, the commanders of the 38th Division adhered to Song Queyuan's directives. When the 5th Company, stationed at Yangcun, observed Japanese supply units continually moving toward Lugou Bridge, they sought permission to engage the enemy. However, the 38th Division later reassigned this company. The Bac Ninh Line, established after the Boxer Protocol, had granted the Japanese the right to station troops, placing the 38th Division in a vulnerable position and preventing them from stopping the Japanese before they reached Langfang. Upon the arrival of Japanese forces at Langfang Station, Chinese guards initiated negotiations, requesting the Japanese to withdraw quickly after completing their mission. The Japanese, however, insisted on establishing camps outside the station, leading to repeated arguments. As tensions mounted, the Japanese began constructing positions near the station, ultimately forcing Chinese troops to retreat and escalating the conflict. The situation reached a boiling point around 11:10 pm, when fierce gunfire and explosions erupted near Langfang Station. The Japanese army claimed they were defending the station from an attack by Chinese forces armed with rifles, machine guns, and mortars throughout the night. According to Cui Zhenlun, the head of the 226th Regiment, it was the 9th and 10th companies that could no longer tolerate the Japanese provocation and fired first, catching the enemy off guard. As the battle intensified, reinforcements from the main force of the 77th Infantry Regiment “Li Deng Unit” arrived at the scene after receiving reports of the skirmish and gradually joined the fight after 6:30 am on July 26. When dawn broke, Japanese troops stationed at Langfang began to rush out to counterattack, seeing their reinforcements arrive. Recognizing they could not eliminate the Japanese presence at the station quickly, the 226th Regiment faced heavy bombardment from the Japanese Air Force later that morning. Consequently, the headquarters of the 113th Brigade and the primary forces of the 226th Regiment hastily retreated to Tongbai Town, suffering significant losses in equipment during their withdrawal. That night, Kazuki made the unilateral decision to abandon the policy of restraint and decided to use force on July 28 "to punish the Chinese troops in the Peiping-Tientsin area." On the morning of July 27, the army high command endorsed his decision and submitted a plan to the cabinet for mobilizing divisions in Japan. The cabinet agreed, and imperial approval was sought. At that time, the Chinese army was gathering in significant numbers in Baoding and Shijiazhuang in southern Hebei, as well as in Datong, Shanxi. They had effectively surrounded the Japanese army on all sides in the Fengtai District. Meanwhile, newly mobilized units of the Kwantung Army and the Japanese Korean Army were en route to the Tianjin and Beiping areas. The 2nd Battalion of the 2nd China Garrison Infantry Regiment, commanded by Major Hirobe, was dispatched with 26 trucks to the Japanese barracks within the walls of Beiping to ensure the protection of Japanese residents. Prior discussions had taken place between Takuro Matsui, head of the Special Service Agency, and officials from the Hebei–Chahar Political Council regarding the passage of troops through the Guang'anmen gate just outside Beiping. The mayor, Qin Dechun, had granted approval for this movement. However, when Major Tokutaro Sakurai, a military and political advisor to the Council, arrived at Guang'anmen, a famous gate to Beiping, around 6:00 pm to establish contact, he found that the Chinese troops on guard had closed the gate. After further negotiations, the gates were opened at approximately 7:30 pm, allowing the Japanese units to begin passing through. Unfortunately, as the first three trucks crossed, the Chinese opened fire on them. Two-thirds of the units managed to get through before the gate was abruptly shut, leaving a portion of Hirobe's troops trapped both inside and outside. As they faced unexpectedly heavy fire from machine guns and grenades, efforts by Japanese and Chinese advisors to pacify the Chinese troops proved futile. By 8:00 pm, the Japanese launched a counterattack from both sides of the gate. The Chinese received reinforcements and encircled the Japanese forces. Despite a relief column being dispatched by Brigadier Masakazu Kawabe, commander of the brigade in the Fengtai District, by 9:30 pm, negotiations with the Chinese yielded a proposal for de-escalation: the Chinese army would maintain a distance while the Japanese inside the gate would relocate to the grounds of their legation, and those outside would return to Fengtai. Fighting ceased shortly after 10:00 pm, and at approximately 2:00 am the following day, Hirobe's unit successfully entered the barracks in the legation. The total casualties reported for the Japanese army during these confrontations were 2 dead and 17 wounded. Both fatalities were superior privates. The wounded included one major, one captain, one sergeant, two superior privates, one private first class, seven privates second class, two attached civilians, and one news reporter. Additionally, the interpreter accompanying Tokutaro Sakurai was also killed in action. On July 27, the Japanese army launched attacks on the 29th Army garrisons in Tongxian, Tuanhe, Xiaotangshan, and other locations, forcing the defenders to retreat to Nanyuan and Beiyuan. At 8:00 am on July 28, under the command of Army Commander Kiyoshi Kozuki, the Japanese army initiated a general assault on the 29th Army in the Beiping area. The primary attacking force, the 20th Division, supported by aircraft and artillery, targeted the 29th Army Special Brigade, the 114th Brigade of the 38th Division, and the 9th Cavalry Division stationed in Nanyuan. Overwhelmed by the Japanese assault, Nanyuan's defenders struggled to maintain command, leading to chaotic individual combat. Meanwhile, the main Japanese garrison brigade in Fengtai advanced to Dahongmen, effectively cutting off the Nanyuan troops' route to the city and blocking their retreat. The battle for Nanyuan concluded at 1:00 pm, resulting in the deaths of Tong Lingge, deputy commander of the 29th Army, and Zhao Dengyu, commander of the 132nd Division. As this unfolded, elements of the 37th Division of the 29th Army launched an attack on the Japanese forces in Fengtai but were repulsed by Japanese reinforcements. On that day, the Japanese Army's 1st Independent Mixed Brigade captured Qinghe Town, prompting the 2nd Brigade of the Hebei-Northern Security Force, stationed there, to retreat to Huangsi. The Japanese also occupied Shahe. In the afternoon of July 28, Song Qeyuan appointed Zhang Zizhong as the acting chairman of the Hebei-Chahar Political Affairs Committee and director of the Hebei-Chahar Pacification Office, as well as the mayor of Beiping, before leaving the city for Baoding that evening. The 37th Division was ordered to retreat to Baoding. On July 29th, a significant mutiny broke out at Tongzhou. If you remember our episode covering the Tanggu truce, Tongzhou had become the capital of the East Hubei Anti-Communist Autonomous Government headed by Yin Jukeng. In response Chiang Kai-Shek had established the East Hebei Administrative Affairs Committee, chaired by Song Queyuan. In Tongzhou, Japanese troops were stationed under the pretext of protecting Japanese residents, as stipulated by the Boxer Protocol. Initially, a unit was intended to be stationed in Tongzhou; however, Vice Minister of the Army Umezu Yoshijiro strongly opposed this plan, arguing that placing forces in Tongzhou, far from the Beiping-Tianjin Line was inconsistent with the spirit of the Boxer Protocol. Consequently, this unit was stationed in Fengtai, located southwest of Beiping. At the time of the Tongzhou Incident, the main force of the Japanese Second Regiment, which was responsible for defending Tongzhou, had been deployed to Nanyuan, south of Beijing. Consequently, only non-combat personnel remained in Tongzhou. Japan regarded the Jidong Anti-Communist Autonomous Government Security Force as a friendly ally. Back on July 27, the primary forces of the Japanese Army stationed in Tongzhou, comprising the Kayashima Unit and the Koyama Artillery Unit, received orders to advance toward Nanyuan, Beiping, leaving Tongzhou significantly under-defended. The following day, the Japanese launched a substantial attack on Nanyuan, employing aircraft to bomb Beiping. Sensing a critical opportunity, Zhang Qingyu conferred with Zhang Yantian and Shen Weigan to initiate an uprising that very night. The insurgent force included elements from the first and second corps and the teaching corps, totaling approximately 4,000 personnel. Zhang Qingyu orchestrated the uprising with a focused strategy: the first corps was divided into three groups targeting Japanese forces in Xicang, the puppet government, and various establishments such as opium dens, casinos, and brothels operated by Japanese ronin. Meanwhile, the second corps secured key intersections and facilities in Chengguan, and the teaching corps managed defenses against potential reinforcements at vital stations. At dawn on July 29, the gunfire signaling the uprising erupted. The second unit of the first corps launched an assault on the Xicang Barracks, which housed 120 troops and non-combat personnel, including the Tongzhou Guard, Yamada Motor Vehicle Unit, a Military Police Detachment, and a host of military and police units, totaling about 500 individuals. At around 3 a.m. on July 29, the sound of gunfire filled the air as the insurgents engaged the Japanese forces. Although equipped with only four field guns, several mortars, and a few heavy machine guns, the uprising's numerical superiority enabled simultaneous attacks from the east, south, and northwest. Despite their well-fortified positions and rigorous defense, the Japanese troops struggled against the relentless onslaught. For over six hours, fierce fighting ensued. The uprising troops escalated their firepower but failed to breach the Xicang Barracks initially. More than 200 members of the Japanese security forces lost their lives in the conflict. Concerned that reinforcements might arrive and flank the uprising, Zhang Qingyu ordered artillery assaults around 11 a.m., prompting a shift in the battle's dynamics. The artillery targeted a Japanese motor vehicle convoy transporting supplies and munitions, leading to the destruction of all 17 vehicles, triggering explosions that scattered bullets and shrapnel across the area. Subsequently, nearby fuel depots ignited, engulfing the surroundings in flames and creating chaos among Japanese ranks. The insurgent infantry capitalized on this confusion, wiping out most of the remaining Japanese forces, with only a handful managing to escape. As the uprising signal rang out, another faction of insurgents swiftly blocked access to Tongzhou, disrupting traffic and occupying the telecommunications bureau and radio station. They encircled the offices of the Jidong puppet government, capturing traitor Yin Rugeng, who was taken to the Beiguan Lu Zu Temple. Despite being urged to resist the Japanese, Yin hesitated and was subsequently imprisoned. The third group then targeted the Japanese secret service agency in Nishicang. Hosoki Shigeru, residing a mere lane away from the pseudo-office, responded to the gunfire by mobilizing a contingent of secret agents to confront the uprising. However, the insurgents swiftly overtook the secret service agency, resulting in Shigeru's death and the annihilation of all secret personnel. At 4:00 p.m. on July 29, the Japanese command dispatched reinforcements, compelling the insurgents to retreat from Tongzhou. The Japanese Chinese Garrison ordered air attacks on the uprising forces, with over ten bombers targeting Tongzhou. Concurrently, the Japanese Fengtai Infantry Brigade and the Second Regiment were mobilized for a rescue operation, arriving on the morning of July 30. The Japanese headquarters issued a night defense order requiring all units to be on high alert. By 5:30 p.m., commanding officers assembled to devise a strategy. With the uprising forces still positioned around the eastern, southern, and northern walls of the barracks, Tsujimura's troops implemented strict measures: all units were instructed to fortify defenses throughout the night, with the Tongzhou Guard directly protecting the barracks and the Yamada unit securing the warehouse and supply areas. They enforced silence, prohibiting any lights at night, coordinating operations under the code name "plum cherry." As the Japanese planes repeatedly bombed the area, the insurgents, lacking anti-aircraft defenses, could only mount futile counterattacks with machine guns, leading to disorder among their ranks. Many insurgents abandoned their uniforms and weapons and fled, prompting Zhang Qingyu to make the difficult decision to evacuate Tongzhou before Japanese reinforcements arrived, regrouping in Beiping with the remnants of the 29th Army. In the late hours of July 29, the security team retreated to Beiping in two groups. Upon arrival, they discovered the 29th Army had already evacuated, forcing them to retreat to Changxindian and Baoding. En route, they encountered part of the Suzuki Brigade of the Japanese Kwantung Army near Beiyuan and Xizhimen, where they faced concentrated attacks. Officers Shen Weigan and Zhang Hanming were both killed in the subsequent battles as they led their teams in desperate fights for survival. Amid the confusion, Yin Rugeng managed to escape when the convoy escorting him was broken up by Japanese forces. In a last-ditch effort, Zhang Qingyu ordered the army to split into small groups of 50 to 60, navigating through Mentougou to regroup with the 29th Army. By the time they reached Baoding, only about 4,000 personnel remained. On the morning of July 30, over a thousand troops from the Sakai Army entered Tongzhou City. They rounded up all men they encountered, searching residences for insurgents, and exhibited intentions of massacring the local population. By 4 p.m., the Kayashima Army arrived and sealed all city gates, deploying surveillance units to oversee the city and "restore public order." The Tsujimura Army removed perimeter defenses and concentrated their forces in barracks and storage facilities. Japanese troops combed through residences based on household registries, detaining those they deemed suspicious, with many later executed. As reported by the puppet county magistrate Wang Jizhang, roughly 700 to 800 individuals were executed within a few days. This brutal retaliation instilled terror throughout Tongzhou City, leading many to flee and seek refuge, often in American churches. The pervasive atmosphere of fear lasted for two to three months. The Japanese authorities framed their violent suppression as "restoring stability to East Asia" and derided the legitimate resistance of Chinese citizens as "communist harassment" and "treason." In response to the uprising, the Japanese embassy, concerned that it could trigger a repeat of the Temple Street Incident and instigate political upheaval at home, acted without government instructions. They appointed Morishima Morito to oversee negotiations with Chi Zongmo, who had replaced Yin Rugeng as the head of the "Hebei Anti-Communist Autonomous Government." On December 24, 1937, Chi submitted a formal apology to the Japanese embassy, committing to pay a total of 1.2 million yuan in reparations, with an immediate payment of 400,000 yuan, while the remaining 800,000 yuan would be disbursed by the "Provisional Government of the Republic of China." Furthermore, the Japanese demanded that the "Hebei Anti-Communist Autonomous Government" relinquish the territories where Japanese nationals had been killed and take responsibility for constructing "comfort towers." They compelled Chinese laborers to build these structures at the former site of the Governor's Office of Canal Transport in Shuiyueyuan Hutong, Nanmenli, and the northeastern corner of Xicang Square to commemorate Japanese casualties from the uprising. Additionally, they forcibly uprooted ancient trees from the Temple of Heaven, transplanting them around the "comfort towers." The Japanese military also demolished white marble guardrails at the Confucian Temple to erect a monument honoring their soldiers, resulting in the destruction of centuries-old cultural artifacts. On the morning of July 29, the Japanese Army's 11th Independent Mixed Brigade attacked Beiyuan and Huangsi. The Hebei-Northern Security Force, stationed in Huangsi, engaged the Japanese forces until 6:00 PM before retreating. Meanwhile, the 39th Independent Brigade, garrisoned in Beiyuan, fought the Japanese before withdrawing to Gucheng, eventually returning to Beiyuan. On July 31, this brigade was disarmed by the Japanese army, while the Independent 27th Brigade in the city was reorganized into a security team to maintain public order, later breaking through to Chahar Province a few days later and being assigned to the 143rd Division. Meanwhile, the 38th Division of the 29th Army, stationed in Tianjin, proactively attacked Japanese troops in Tianjin early on July 29, capturing the Japanese garrison at Tianjin General Station and launching an assault on the Japanese headquarters at Haiguang Temple and the Dongjuzi Airport. Initially, the battle progressed favorably; however, due to counterattacks from Japanese aircraft and artillery, the Chinese forces began to retreat around 3:00 PM, leading to the fall of Tianjin. Later that afternoon, the rebel forces evacuated Tong County and advanced toward Beiping. En route, they were attacked by the Japanese army north of the city and subsequently retreated to Baoding. As the 37th Division of the 29th Army received orders to retreat southward, the 110th Brigade covered the army headquarters and the Beiping troops from Wanping to Babaoshan, eventually retreating southward through Mentougou. After completing their task, they withdrew to Baoding on July 30. By the end of the 30th, the Japanese army had occupied both Beiping and Tianjin. The Japanese Independent Mixed Brigade No. 1 and the garrison brigade occupied high ground west of Changxindian and the area near Dahuichang on the evenings of the 30th and 31st, respectively. With this, the battles in Beiping and Tianjin effectively came to a close. China and Japan were at war. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. It has finally happened, China and Japan are officially at war. From 1931 until now, it had been an unofficial war between the two, yet another incident had finally broke the camel's back. There was no turning back as Japan would unleash horror upon the Chinese people. The fight for China's survival had begun. China was completely alone against a fierce enemy, how would she manage? 

This week Seth and co-host Jon Parshall take a look at...yes you read that correctly. More on that later. Seth and Jon take a look at what some historians say is the beginning of World War II, the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. The team dives into the lead-up to the shots being fired and then what happens next. Both Japan and China, especially Chiang Kai Shek, push for war against one another and by the end of the summer of 1937, both nations HAVE to fight, springing what was already a touchy situation in China after the invasion of Manchuria in 1931 to an all-out war in 1937. The guys go into the political situation and then get into the weeds in the Battle of Shanghai. The fight for the famous city, Shanghai, would be the largest and deadliest urban combat fight in history until Stalingrad and would set the stage for the barbarity that would follow. Bill had to reluctantly step away from the show, for how long--no one knows-- and delivers a touching farewell message to all of us in the beginning of this episode. We will miss Bill, but Jon and I will keep the ship sailing and will always have a warm seat ready for our brother when he is able to return. Speaking of Jon, I am very grateful that he stepped in and is going to be with me for the future (read permanently) and both excited and honored that he will be with me as we go through this exciting season together. #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #usnavy #usa #usarmy #medalofhonor #enterprise #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #cv6 #midway #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #worldwar2 #usnavy #usnavyseals #usmc #usmarines #saipan #usa #usarmy #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #battleship #battleships #ussenterprise #aircraftcarriers #museum #essex #halsey #taskforce38 #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #usnavy #usa #usarmy #medalofhonor #enterprise #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #cv6 #midway #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #worldwar2 #usnavy #usnavyseals #usmc #usmarines #saipan #usa #usarmy #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #battleship #battleships #ussenterprise #aircraftcarriers #museum #hollywood #movie #movies #books #mastersoftheair #8thairforce #mightyeighth #100thbombgroup #bloodyhundredth #b17 #boeing #airforce wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #usnavy #usa #usarmy #medalofhonor #enterprise #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #cv6 #midway #wwii #wwiihistory #ww2 #worldwar2 #usnavy #usnavyseals #usmc #usmarines #saipan #usa #usarmy #aircraft #aircraftcarrier #battleship #battleships #ussenterprise #aircraftcarriers #museum #hollywood #movie #movies #books #oldbreed #1stMarineDivision #thepacific #Peleliu #army #marines #marinecorps #worldwar2 #worldwar #worldwarii #leytegulf #battleofleytegulf #rodserling #twilightzone #liberation #blacksheep #power #prisoner #prisonerofwar #typhoon #hurricane #weather #iwojima#bullhalsey #ace #p47 #p38 #fighter #fighterpilot #b29 #strategicstudying #tokyo #boeing #incendiary #usa #franklin #okinawa #yamato #kamikaze #Q&A #questions #questionsandanswers #history #jaws #atomicbomb #nuclear

Last time we spoke about the Battle for the Great Wall of China. In 1933, the Kwantung Army faced logistical struggles and sought political deals with Chinese warlords to seize North China. Despite capturing key areas, chaos reigned as their unauthorized operations defied Tokyo's orders. When Emperor Hirohito demanded a withdrawal, the army reluctantly complied, derailing a coup attempt. Though peace talks followed, distrust persisted, and rogue Japanese commanders plotted fresh offensives. Amid international tensions and League of Nations' inaction, chaos loomed over China's battle-scarred plains. As tensions rose in North China, General Muto hesitated to advance without orders from Tokyo. With imperial approval, he launched a renewed offensive on May 3rd, leading the Japanese 6th and 8th Divisions to sweep through Chinese defenses. Despite Chinese concessions led by pro-Japanese Huang Fu, the Japanese pushed toward Peiping. Failed coups and desperate peace talks ensued. By May 25th, ceasefire talks began, but Japan's strengthened position left China scrambling to secure stability.   #148 The Tanggu Truce Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. As we last left off the IJA 6th and 8th Divisions had just taken up new positions threatening the Peiping-Tientsin area. Meanwhile the Tientsin Special service Agency had tried every scheme they could think of to establish a coup against Peiping. All of these actions were done to increase Japan's poker hand at the negotiating table. On May 17th Huang Fu arrived at a very panicked Peiping. Two days prior, the Japanese had taken an even harsher stance, demanding the Chinese forces withdraw to a line running between Shunyi, Paoti and Lutai. This demand would send the Chines further west than the line agreed upon for the ceasefire. So the Chinese ignored the demand and this inturn brought the negotiations to a standstill. On the 18th the Army General staff in Tokyo drew up a new draft titled “essentials for the Guidance of North China”. Having been chasing around the Kwantung Army like a dog chasing a car, Tokyo HQ wanted to finally draft some real legislation to reign in their unruly pet. On the 19th the General staff submited an ultimatum instructed the Kwantung Army to withdraw to Manchukuo after it reached an agreement with the Chinese, specifically to obtain the right to garrison specified locations within the Great Wall. On the 21st the Kwantung Army drew up its version of a ceasefire proposal, submitted it to the General staff who approved it. Here is a complete breakdown of it: “1) The cease-fire agreement is of a purely military nature and excludes political factors. For by returning to Manchukuo in general as quickly as possible, the imperial Japanese army will demonstrate that it acts in the cause of justice and fairness and will manifest the essence of the Japanese spirit.  2) The withdrawal line of the Chinese army and the cessation line of the Japanese army should conform generally to that referred to in the "Basic Outline" of the General Staff; that is, it should conform to the policy of the Kwantung Army and to Nagatsu's proposal. However, the return of the Japanese army to Manchukuo will be voluntary, after observance of the cease-fire terms by the Chinese army has been confirmed, and will not be specifically prescribed in the text of the agreement.  3) In order to prevent any delay in the establishment of a ceasefire, the designs of the Tientsin Special Service Agency will be terminated.  4) The site of the cease-fire agreement must be selected with consideration for the issuing of commands to military units in accord with the plans of the Japanese army command with respect to any situation which may necessitate military action at any time during the course of negotiations for cease-fire. Furthermore, a location convenient to the gathering of foreign diplomatic officials and press correspondents and to meddling intervention by third powers must be carefully avoided.” On the 22nd, the Kwantung Army ordered the Tientsin agency to discontinue their activities as the Japanese were now willing to accept a ceasefire. The Japanese and Chinese then agreed on a date and place, that being located along the Peiping-Shanhaiguan railway to sign a ceasefire agreement. For the talks, the Japanese naval attache at Peiping, Lt Commander Fujiwara Kiyoma was chosen who visited Huang Fu's residence on the 22nd. Talks began and by 2am the next day, He Yingqin received a letter officially instructing him to abide by the ceasefire terms. Thus the first step had been taken. On the 25th Chinese officials Li Zuyi and Xu Yenmu rode with Fujiwara to Miyun, then a temporary HQ for the IJA 8th Division. There they passed mounds of dead chinese placed specifically along the roadside, obviously to intimidate them. They arrived to Miyun at 4am to officially show the ceasefire proposal letter to General Nish of the 8th division. Then they got a slap in the face, a new demand was tossed at them.  "As the first step, in order to verify the compliance of the Chinese army, the Japanese army may at any time use airplanes or other means to inspect the withdrawal of the Chinese army. The Chinese authorities shall afford them the necessary protection and facilities."This last minute new demand was imposed because Tokyo HQ believed it was necessary to have aerial observation to make sure both parties did not breach the agreement. The two Chinese officials did not want to devolve the talks so they signed it and returned to Peiping. The official negotiations began on May 30th at Tangu. The Kwantung delegation was led by Major General Okamura Yasuji, their vice chief of staff. He was assisted by Colonel Kita Seiichi, Lt colonel Nagatsu Sahishige, Majors Kono Etsujiro, Endo Saburo and Fujimoto Tetsukuma, Captain Okabe Eiichi and Secretary Hayashide Kenjiro of the Japanese embassy in Manchukuo. The Chinese delegation was led by Lt General Xing Pin and assisted by Chen Zungzu, Xu Yenmu, Chang Xukuang, Li Zeyu and Li Shuzheng. At the offset the Chinese Army declared Tangu under martial law as the Japanese navy dispatched the battleship Kamoi with the 14th destroyer squadron to cruise offshore. The first session of the talks began at 4pm, only lasted some 30 minutes as both sides exchanged formal credentials and such. During that night both sides proded each other trying to figure out what either would accept. Nagatsu decided to show some of the Chinese delegates a document titled “annex document concerning the Organization of Police”. This had been drafted by the Kwantung Army to try establish a demilitarized zone in northeastern Hubei, whose security would be maintained by Chinese police units. The specifics of the document said such a feat would require a force no larger than 20,000 men, with no single units exceeding 200 and they should be armed with nothing stronger than a rifle, pistol or bayont. Nagatsu personally believed this was way to much to ask of the Chinese and advised changing the wording to what the Chinese police could wield as  "shall not be constituted of armed units hostile to Japanese feelings." After seeing the faces of the Chinese upon reading the document, Nagatsu would remark "This evening the Chinese appear to have gained the impression that our proposal will be excessively harsh."  The second session of talks began at 9am the next day whereupon General Okamura presented their draft accord:  “1) The Chinese army shall immediately withdraw to the regions west and south of the line from Yench'ing to Ch'angp'ing, Kaoliying, Shunyi, T'ungchou, Hsiangho, Paoti, Lint'ingk'ou, Ningho, and Lut'ai, and undertakes not to advance beyond that line and to avoid any provocation of hostilities.  2) The Japanese authorities may at any time use airplanes or other means to verify carrying out of the above article. The Chinese authorities shall afford them protection and facilities for such purpose.  3) The Japanese army, after ascertaining the withdrawal of the Chinese army to the line stated in Article 1, undertakes not to cross the said line and not to continue to attack the Chinese troops, and shall voluntarily withdraw, in general, to the Great Wall.  4) In the regions to the south of the Great Wall and to the north and east of the line defined in Article 1, the maintenance of peace and order shall be undertaken by the Chinese police force. The said police force shall not be constituted of armed units hostile to Japanese feelings. feelings.  5) The present agreement shall come into effect upon its signature.” To these demands Xing Pin stated that since the Chinese army had alrady withdrawn to or even beyond what was asked of them, the Japanese forces should respond promptly by withdrawing from the battle zone and to the Great Wall. Xing Pin added that he hoped his Japanese colleagues understood the Chinese Army might be required to help quell bandits that might disturb the vacuum caused by the Japanese withdrawal. To this the Japanese neither agreed nor disagreed and the meeting ended by 9:20. During the interlude the Chinese frantically sought to push further concessions. But the Japanese took a hard stance and stated they would accept nothing until their demands were signed upon. Talks officially resumed at 10:57 and within only 15 minutes both teams signed a truce agreement. Not a single change had been made in the draft the Kwantung Arym had presented. By 2 pm Xing Pin began a request that the Chinese Army be permitted to deal with bandits in the evacuated zone, as police alone most likely would not be enough.  Once the Tangu truce had been signed, the Chinese began to fear rebellious warlord types, particularly Feng Yuxiang might try to exploit the demilitarized region now that the Chinese Central Army had been withdrawn. The Japanese took a solid stance opposing any exceptions to their truce and would never allow Chinese Army units within the demilitarized region. The Japanese in response to the Chinese demands stated "In case there shall be in the Demilitarized Zone armed units disturbing peace and order which the police force shall be unable to cope with, the situation will be dealt with by common accord between the two parties." The Chinese had no choice but to agree to this. The final session resumed at 3:45 pm, whereupon the Chinese tried to obtain agreement on two specific aspects of the truce:  The Japanese reconnaissance aircraft would not conduct inspection flights without giving prior warning The Japanese Army would not misconstrue a move by the Chinese Army which had already withdrawn behind the line established in the truce agreement to return to the authorized line. The Japanese simply refused to even discuss these issues and a 4:05 pm the Chinese simply signed. The Japanese then submitted 4 new demands: 1) Withdraw the two cavalry divisions [formerly of the Northeastern Army] from the area southwest of Fengning in Jehol province.  2) Move the forty divisions of the Chinese Central Army presently in the Peiping-Tientsin region to some other appropriate region for the restoration of peace and order in that region.  3) Remove the entrenchments and military establishments of the Chinese army [used by Yii Hsueh-chung's army] in the area around the mouth of the Pai River.  4) Exercise strict control over anti-Japanese activities, which are the basic cause of Sino-Japanese conflict. To this the Chinese agreed with the last 3 demands and promised to “investigate” the first. At 4:10 the truce talks officially ended. As a consequence of the Tangu Truce, the Japanese Army had gained a foothold in northeastern Hubei. They would press further in the coming years, thus this truce was basically their first step in conquering north China. As you can imagine the Japanese were not done milking every drop from the Chinese. During the entire Tangu treaty talks, the Japanese had intentionally kept everything limited to military matters. The Japanese also sought to deal with what was expected to be a collosal anti-japanese movement in north china. To this end Foreign Minister Uchida Yasuya was given a list of demands to press upon the Chinese:   1) The Peiping Political Affairs Council will unreservedly suppress all anti-Japanese movements and other related anti-Japanese activities of the Kuomintang in the area under its jurisdiction.  2) The said Council will unreservedly suppress all activities that disturb the peace in the area along the Great Wall by the use of militia units, or other means, from the area under its jurisdiction.  3) The said Council will unreservedly remove all obstacles to legal peaceful traffic across the Great Wall.  4) The said Council will, with the agreement of the Japanese, establish facilities for the maintenance of order in the cease-fire district.  The Japanese preferred this be met by a written agreement, rather than a formal treaty that would only hurt the face of China further, thus creating even more anti-japanese movements. Real talks began at Dairen on July 3rd, where the Kwantung Army suggested that responsibility for civil administration and maintenance of order in the demilitarized region be transferred from the Hubei provincial government to the Political Affairs Council at Peiping. The reason as to why, because the Japanese believed they could easily control said body. When the IJA 6th and 8th Divisions withdrew from the demilitarized zone, they had left behind small units at Miyun, Chenchangying, Xiachangcheng, Fengtai and Yutien who went to work exerted silent pressure upon the Chinese during these future negotiations happening at Dairen. The Chinese at Dairen were represented by Li Shuzheng, the director of the Peiping-Lioaning Railway; Yin Tung and Xue Qiyen of the Political affairs council and Li Qichen the head of the Mukden-Shanhaiguan Railway Bureau. General Okamura and Colonel Kita came to the meetings, but only in capacity for observation. Included in the agenda of conversation was the disposal of pro-manchukuo militia forces in the demilitarized region and railway service between China proper and Manchukuo. Now the idea to transfer administrative responsibility over the demilitarized region to the Political affairs council in Peiping offered numerous challenges. The council was essentially an organ of the Executive Yuan of the Nanjing government. Their purpose was to overlook negotiations for Nanjing. Moreover their membership lacked prestige and they commanded no military forces, thus had little influence over Northern China. If they tried to influence the demilitarized region, a single army, such as one led by Li Qichen would easily overpower their authority. Northern China was still very much warlord dominated by this period. Li Qichen was a particularly strong warlord in the region. By December of 1932 he had begun recruiting men in the Qinxi district of Liaoning where he was receiving aid from the Japanese. His men assisted the Kwantung Army at Xumenzhai and later fought under the guidance of Captain Okada Kikusaburo at Shanhaiguan. However by Japanese standards, Li Qichengs army was nothing more than a bandit force. Thus after the Tanggu Truce, the Kwantung Army chose to distance itself from Li Qicheng and instead focus all their efforts in cooperating with the Political affairs council.  Ironically one of the first things the Kwantung Army consulted with the council was a new policy to dispose of Li Qichens Army and others. Thus 4000 of Li Qichen's forces were reorganized into a peace preservation corps with the rest simply disbanded. The finer details on how this would occur were negotiated between Li Qichen and the council, meditated by Kwantung officers at Tangshan on July 16th. It was also decided the Kwantung Army would set up an office at Tangshan headed by Li Qichen who would overlook the dispersal of militia units in the demilitarized region. By August 12th, the peace preservation corps was fully established. Many pro-manchukuo militia units were reorganized via the first Dairen conference as it became known. Xu Yuan's army at Qinhuangdao was reorganized into a  reserve peace preservation corps under the direct guidance of Lt Colonel Nakano Hidemitsu. They would be stationed at Yutien. Another force station near Qinhuangdao which had been recruited by the Kwantung army during Operation Nekka was ordered to transfer 2000 of its troops to Manchukuo and have the rest disbanded. Additionally there existed some 15,000 bandits operating in the demilitarized region. The largest of these bands was the East Asia Federation Combined Forces led by Guo Yazhou. He was in league with Xu Yusan and equipped like a regular Chinese Army. Once the ceasefire had been in effect, his men were conscripted in Manchukuo and would be used unofficially by the Kwantung Army. Another large bandit army was led by Lao Haozu, known colloquially as the “old rat”. Many of these bandit groups were made up of discharged troops and deserters from pro-Manchukuo militia units. After much discussion the Political affairs council took over the civil administration for the demilitarized zone, excluding the area consisting of the Great Wall. Another large item of discussion at the first Dairen conference was the restoration of train services between China Proper and Manchukuo. During the conflict the Chinese Army had ripped up a ton of railway track between Peiping and Shanhaiguan. By April 21st trains from Peiping could only operate as far as Tanggu. Meanwhile Mancukuo's Mukden to Shanhaiguan railway was operating 3 trains a day between Shanhaiguan and Tangshan after numerous repair efforts by June 1st. Service between Tanggu and Tangshan was only restored by July 3rd when the Japanese garrison at Tientsin began guarding operations between the two cities. At Dairen both sides agreed to rapidly restore the railway service between Mukden and Peiping while making Tangshan the temporary connecting point.  The section between Shanhaiguan and Tangshan was to be administered by the Mukden- Shanhaiguan railway, thus by Manchukuo while from Peiping to Tangshan would be retained by the Chinese governed Peiping-Liaoning railway. The Chinese argued that once the railway lines were all restored, management over Tangshan to Shanhaiguan should be returned to the Chinese. However the Manchukuo representatives instead argued for joint control over the railway from Peiping to Shanhaiguan.  Despite all the agreements met at Dairen, so much remained unresolved with the demilitarized region. The area immediately adjacent to the Great Wall had not been turned over to the political affairs coucil, the demilitarized region was still infested with bandits, many council members were not keen on any of the ongoings and relations between them and the Kwantung Army were anything but cooperative. Given all of this, in October of 1933, Huang Fu and He Yingqin came to the Japanese asking if they could form more official dialogue to deal with the problems and this led to the Peiping conference of November 1933. The Chinese were led by Huang Fu, He Yingqin, Yin Zung, Yin Juken and Cao Shangming. The Japanese were led by General Okamura, Colonels Kita ad Kikuchi Monya, Lt Colonels Nemoto Hiroshi and Shibayama Kaneshiro and Secretaries Nakayama and Hanawa Yoshitaka of the Peiping Legation. Because the talks had been opened by the Chinese, they had hoped they would control the agenda and in that they were sorely mistaken. The Japanese immediately pounced upon them and brought forth such demands. “1) The Kwantung Army hopes the Political Affairs Council will, as it solidifies its ability to maintain law and order, quickly and 5 safely assume administration in the area south and west of the Great Wall, exclusive of the Great Wall.  2) For the time being, the Political Affairs Council recognizes, in the area under its jurisdiction, the various agencies designated by the Kwantung Army as necessary for the handling of transportation, economic matters, and other affairs. The council will provide assistance in the operation of these agencies.  3) For the time being, the council agrees to lease to the Japanese army the land and buildings in the area under its jurisdiction which are needed for the purpose of stationing Japanese troops.  4) To provide facilities for trade, transportation, and communications in the area south of the Great Wall, the Political Affairs Council will appoint a delegate who will immediately begin consultations with a delegate designated by the Kwantung Army.” The Chinese agreed to the second demand allowing for the establishment by the Kwantung Army at Shanhaiguan, Gubeikou, Xifengkou, Panqiaokou, Lengkou and Qielingkou that Japanese garrisons could be stationed at Shanhaiguan, Xumenzhai, Chenchangying, Taitouying, Lengkou, Xifengkou, Malankuan and Gubeikou. The Chinese also agreed to part 4 in regards to airline connections. Thus with that the Japanese had effectively taken away China's ability to defend the Great Wall. Furthermore on the pretex of guarding said Great Wall, the Kwantung Army had forced the Chinese to recognize its right to garrison troops along the area just inside the Great Wall. Fully satisfied, the Japanese delegation departed Peiping on November 10th. The Kwantung Army still sought to extend the Peiping-Liaoing railway services to Mukden, but this inevitably raised the issue of China Proper recognizing Manchukuo. In December Yin Zung, head of the Peiping-Liaoning Railway, traveled to Nanjing to discuss said issue, but would return to Peiping empty handed. Additionally Sun Fu who led a faction within the KMT, began persuading the Central Political Council to pass some legislation specifically withholding Huang Fu from holding authority in handling issues involving North China, because it was feared amongst many it would lead to a mistake that would see recognition of Manchukuo. On April 11th of 1934, Huang Fu attempted a discussion at Nanchang between himself, Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei. The result of this discussion was him receiving greater authority over matters involving postal services, train services and tariffs. Despite this, the anti-Japanese part of the Nanjing government continued their efforts to hamper the efforts of Haung Fu and Yin Zung.  In May, Major General Ushiroku Jun of the Kwantung Army, Attache Shibayama and Usami Kanji the chief of the Manchukuo railways Bureau, began secret talks with Yin Zung over at Shanhaiguan. They all agreed to establish a new corporation, the Eastern Travel Bureau, who would receive a million yuan provided in equal shares by the Mukden-Shanhaiguan railway bureau in Manchukuo and the Peiping-Liaoning Railway Bureau. Profits and losses would be shared equally; the general manager would be chosen from one bureau with the assistant manager chosen from the other and trains would run daily from Mukden and Peiping performing a transfer at Shanhaiguan. This idea was bitterly fought over at Nanjing, but after specific amendments would be ratified by July 1st. The first train departed Peiping on July 1st and ironically it would be interrupted midway between Tanggu and Lutai by a bomb explosion on the track. Many Chinese civilians were hurt, but no incident broke out. And we all know that little bomb had to be part of some grand false flag scheme.  The establishment of air services between China Proper and Manchukuo would prove to be the most difficult one to settle. During the talks in Peiping, the Chinese agreed to provide transportation facilities that would include airline connections. But this did not materialize until February of 1935 when the Kwantung Army came up with a draft for a Sino-Japanese corporation. It would be funded equally by both sides, the Chinese would furnish the airfields and facilities, while the Kwantung Army would supply pilots and crews through the Manchukuo Aviation Corporation. The Kwantung Army also had a nefarious plot involved in this deal. By securing the civilian airline service they hoped to provide pilots and crews who at the flip of a coin could become covert military operators, providing direct flights into China Proper.  At first the Chinese showed no interest in such plans, so the Kwantung Army began military transport flights to Peiping from Jinzhou to twist their arm. By June the agreement extended to airfields at Paoting, Xuzhou and Qingdao. The Chinese fought these demands as best they could, but would continuously be outplayed. Still the Kwantung Army was impatient to implement the civilian airline change and presented a new deal in June of 1935 offering to provide 55 percent of the funding from their side. To this the Chinese counter proposed the airfields be located along the border, but the Japanese would not agree to this. By August China sent conditions to ratify the idea: “1) two-thirds of the capital investment would be provided by China and one-third by Japan 2) airport facilities would be restricted to the Peiping-Tientsin region; and  3) flight operations would be entrusted to the aviation department of the Eastern Travel Bureau.” The Japanese still made demands, now seeking flights to all 5 provinces of North China. To this the Chinese officials stated they would await instructions from Nanjing. The Kwantung Army broke off the talks and stated they would do whatever action they considered necessary to resolve the issue. By early September Fu Zuoyi, the governor of Suiyuan province authorized a military flight to Paotou, then on September 28th and October 10th, Japan conducted civilian test flights between Tiantsin, Tsinan and Qingdao.  Following the resolutions over the railway issues, on July 9th of 1934 Yin Zung went to Shanghai with Huang Fu and then to Dairen by July 23rd to meet with General Okumara, Colonel Kita and Attache Shibayama to make deals over other issues. One issue was Japanese control over the entrance of Korean and Japanese into the demilitarized region; the transfer to the Chinese of the Qing Dynasty's mausoleum in Malanyu; the disposition of the peace preservation units and the need for a postal service between China and Manchukuo. While this all sounds perhaps stupid to even mention, every single issue discussed was basically indanger of the Chinese accidentally recognizing Manchukuo, which was the crux of it all. In the end the Japanese made enormous inroads into North China through these negotiations. They forced the accommodation on rail and communication services between China Proper and Manchukuo, to normalize most trade between them and place their loyal proteges within the demilitarized region as so called police units. This was all accomplished through the Peiping Political Affairs Council who de facto had recognized Manchukuo. All of this severely weakened the position of Nanjing in North China and enhanced Japan. But it was not Japan proper, but the Kwantung Army really running the show. However there was absolute chaos going on in Japan during the times, known as “government by assassination”. Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated on May 15th of 1932, leading to the collapse of his cabinet. On May 26th a unity cabinet was formed under Admiral Saito Makoto. Civilian politicians were being knocked out by the military, particularly right-wing military figures. Admiral Saito Makoto selected Uchida Yasuya for foreign minister. At the time he was a retired diplomat and president of the South Manchuria Railway Company. Saito was plunged into the wild times of Kwantung insubordination. To meet the chaos he advocated 3 general principals: “(a) its separation from policy toward Manchukuo and Mongolia (b) an emphasis on economic measures; and  (c) cooperation with the western powers” By reading not so between the lines, you can see the official Japanese policy was basically to let the Kwantung run amok and plan accordingly for what seemed to be an enormous annexation program targeting North China and Inner Mongolia. It was to be an extremely volatile balancing act of encroaching upon Nanjing, but not enough so to bring the wrath of the western great powers down upon Japan. Minister Uchia had served a foreign minister for 4 cabinets. In 1928 he signs the Kellogg-Briand Pact and during the Manchuria crisis he tried to fight the Kwantung Army, pushing them to stop their invasion. Yet it was also he who helped recognize Manchukuo in 1932 and he who withdrew from the League of Nations in 1933. He oversaw Operation Nekka and the resulting Tanggu Truce. All of this spat in the face of international cooperation and basically showcased Japan to be a bully. Thus he was really failing his initial goals and resigned in 1933 due to old age. He was succeeded by Hirota Koki who initially began his tenure advocating for establishing better relations with the US, USSR and China and specifically to normalize Sino-Japanese relations. Hirota was also confronted with a naval disarmament conference scheduled for 1935. There Japan would be asked to make conciliatory moves with the US. Alongside this a lot of problems were brewing with the USSR because of the establishment of Manchukuo. On the other side, Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei continued their appeasement stance, only to see Japan seize more and more from China. Yet Chiang Kai-Shek was adament, they must finish off the internal communist threat before embarking on what seemed to be an existential threat in the form of Japan. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Kwantung Army was not only efficient at slicing up China with its dagger, but rather capable with the pen as well. Continuous negotiations were leading the Chinese to hand more and more over to Japan. How long could the Chinese people continue to support their seemingly incapable government during these times of crises?

Last time we spoke about the Battle for the Great Wall of China. In 1933, the Kwantung Army faced logistical struggles and sought political deals with Chinese warlords to seize North China. Despite capturing key areas, chaos reigned as their unauthorized operations defied Tokyo's orders. When Emperor Hirohito demanded a withdrawal, the army reluctantly complied, derailing a coup attempt. Though peace talks followed, distrust persisted, and rogue Japanese commanders plotted fresh offensives. The Tanggu truce was anything but fair to China. The Japanese followed it up with continuous negotiations aimed at slicing more and more out of China. By 1935 North China was practically annexed if but all in official terms. The Japanese seized postal rights, train rights, airline rights, set up puppets to police a new demilitarized zone and seemed never appeased fully. Yet they did not only have their eye on Northern China.    #149 Incidents in North China: Operation Chahar Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. May 1935, marked the peak of Sino-Japanese efforts at reconciliation. Yet this quickly fell apart in June as the Kwantung Army continued to encroach in North China. More specifically they began to look at Chahar province. Between January and May of 1935 some 50 instances of anti-Japanese violence had broken out in North China and behind these outbursts seemed to be Yu Xuecheng, the chairman of Hubei's provincial Government. He was not alone in his efforts as many KMT members, generals in the Central Army and Blue Shirt Society also had helping hands to play. The Japanese were particularly infuriated by incessant attacks from the bandit army led by Sun Yungqin and the assassinations of two pro-Japanese figures operating in Tientsin, Pai Yuhuan and Hu Enpu. Even with th support of the Kwantung Army, maintaining law and order in the demilitarized region established by the Tanggu Trace proved a serious undertaking. The Nanjing government tried exploit the situation, encouraging Sun Yungqin's bandits to create chaos in the demilitarized region. Sun Yungqin's bandit frequently crossed the Great Wall into Rehe in raids. Each time the Kwantung Army attempted to catch them as they fled into the demilitarized region. They particularly liked to do so in the Zunhua district where the official He Xiaoyi supplied the bandits with munitions and provisions. On May 17th, the Kwantung Army was fed up and elected to cross the Great Wall to crush Sun Yungqin once and for all. The Japanese army attache at Peiping, Major Takahasi Tan, notified the Chinese authorities of this decision, claiming the Kwantung Army had the authority to do so under certain provisions within the Tanggu agreement. Beginning on May 20th, the Sugihara Mixed Brigade began its hunt and claimed to have uncovered evidence that Yu Xuecheng had helped guide Sun Yingqin's bandits away from their force. The Japanese also argued the bandits were operating in Manchuria and were calling themselves the “Northeastern Patriotic Volunteers” led by General He Yingqing, the current chairman of the Peiping Branch Military Council.  The bandits were said to have been completely crushed within 5 days by a single brigade. The Japanese also forced the resignation of Yu Xuecheng who refused to organize an anti-chiang kai-shek movement. Shortly before the operation launched, two pro-Japanese newspaper publishers, secretly supported by the Japanese Special Service Agency were assassinated in Tientsin. On May 2nd, Hu Enpu of the Kuochuan pao “national rights” was shot in bed at the Peiyang Hotel in the Japanese concession. That same night, Pai Yuhuan of Chen Pa was murdered in his home. Consul General Kawagoe reported to Tokyo, Hu Enpu and Pai Yuhuan were performing a mission through their newspapers to arouse anti-chiang Kai-shek sentiment in North China. As stated by Kawagoe "Hu and Pai did not have a particularly close personal relationship, but they were regarded with extreme suspicion by the Chinese. Since they were assassinated on the same night, we immediately suspected there was some political intrigue behind these crimes."   Japanese police looked into the matter and discovered the criminals had used a car bearing the plate number 1063 which was owned by Shen Qucheng who was a resident of the Japanese concession. Many suspects were interrogated, and given what they were saying, the Japanese suspected the man behind the assassinations was General Yang Hu, the peace preservation commissioners of Shanghai and an alleged member of the Blue Shirt Society. The Japanese also believed Yang Hu was hiding in the French concessions in Shanghai. In protest of this, the Japanese invoked the Boxer Protocol and Tanggu Truce: “1) The Sun incident and the assassinations of the pro-Japan, proManchukuo newspaperpublishers violated the North China [T'angku] Cease-fire Agreement of May 1933. The North China Cease-fire Agreement stipulated that China would not take any action disturbing the peac e on either side of a line from Lut'ai to Paoti and T'ungchou. The above provision extends to all of China and should of course be applied to any defiant deeds of Chines e officials that threaten the peac e in the Peiping-Tientsin region. The Sun incident and the assassinations of Pai and Hu are clearly contrary to the above agreement.  2) The official note exchanged by China and Japan upon the return of Tientsin in 1902 is applicabl e to the murder of Pai Yühuan. This note stated: "In the event a Chines e national who is employed by a foreign army is accused of disobeying the law, the commander of the army that employs the said Chines e national, in order that the matter may be decided in the most suitable manner has the option of punishing him personally or voluntarily delivering him to the appropriate Chinese authorities. Your government must agree to this arrangement.” Since Pai, as already stated, was in the employ of the Japanese army, his murder is clearly a deed which violates the above note."  Thus the Japanese invoked the right that the commander of the Tientsin garrison had the authority to maintain security and try any criminals. Because the Japanese Army claimed it had authority to conduct investigations, trials and deal punishment within two miles of the Peiping-Shanhaigaun rail line it insisted to do so given the recent events. This actually distorted some of the specifics of the Tanggu Treaty, thus the Japanese were on loose grounds. On May 25th, Tokyo HQ was forewarned of the actions the Kwantung Army would undertake in North China. So Tokyo sent Colonel Sakai Takashi the Tientsin army chief of staff and attache Takahasi Tan called upon Yu Qiaqi, the secretary general of the Political affairs council and General He Yingqin. In fact Sakai backed this up with a threatening public statement: “The execution of anti-Manchukuo plots under the direction of the Chinese authorities, assistance to the "Chinese Patriotic Volunteer Forces," and various acts of terrorism directed against Japan are destructive of the cease-fire agreement. The headquarters for these crimes are in Tientsin and Peiping. Should this state of affairs continue, it will become necessary to incorporate the above two cities in the demilitarized zone. The murders of Hu and Pai are violations of the provisions of the Boxer Settlement and a challenge to Japan. If similar acts hereafter occur, Japan will, on the basis of its treaty rights, be forced to consider what action is necessary for the defense of its rights”. Additionally, Sakai demanded the withdrawal of all KMT aligned units, Blue Shirt Society members, the Political Training Corps of the Peiping Branch Military Council and the 3rd Regiment Military Police from North China. He also wanted Yu Xuecheng dismissed as chairman of Hubei. The next day in a move to intimidate Yu Xuecheng, the Tientsin Army deployed armored vehicles, artillery and machine guns directly in front of his official residence. It seemed now the Japanese sought to incorporate all of Hubei into the new demilitarized region. To make this happen, Sakai had independently put forward these demands, but they were recognized as an ultimatum from Japan, one for which for now had no deadline.  Chiang Kai-Shek, Wang Jingwei, Huang Fu and He Yingqin conferred over the situation and chose to informally talk with the Japanese while they kept the press quiet on the matter. The Chinese took their time, so to pressure them further, the Kwantung Army deployed a infantry battalion and one cavalry brigade at Shanhaiguan, while the Kawaguchi detachment concentrated around Gubeikou and two air force squadrons were brought over to Jinzhou. The Tientsin Army readied two battalions at Tientsin and Tangshan, both prepared to advance to Peiping at a moments notice. After sending numerous orders not to escalate things, Tokyo HQ sent Colonel Kita Seiichi, the chief of its China desk to demand the Kwantung Army not use anymore force. Meanwhile the Imperial Japanese Navy, under the fear of Anglo-American intervention avoided escalating the situation, but kept the 3rd fleet on full alert.  Under immense pressure the Chinese buckled. At 6pm on June 10th, He Yingqin orally advised Major Takahashi that Nanjing would issue a directive ordered the immediate withdrawal of local KMT organs from Hubei; that the 51st NRA Army would depart by rail from Hubei between June 11th and 25th; that the end and 25th NRA divisions of the Central Army would also depart Hubei and that the KMT would issue a directive prohibiting anti-japanese activities throughout China. It was an incredibly embarrassing act and became known as the He-Umezu agreement. Under its provisions the Japanese had expelled the Central Army from North China, Yu Xuecheng's forces, all anti-Japanese organizations of any sort and all anti-Japanese officials were removed. The Japanese had heavily capitalized on the assassinations in Tientsin, however other incidents enabled our good friend Doihara to cause further mayhem.  Following the Tanggu truce, Song Queyuan's 29th Army, consisting of the 37th, 38th and 132nd divisions had been deployed throughout Chahar with his headquarters based at Kalgan. His troops understandably displayed a lot of anti-japanese attitude and behaviors. Like a broken record, it was only a matter of time until an incident organically presented itself. One of the first ones broke out in Changpei. According to the Japanese, so get your grains of salt ready, a group of 8 led by staff officer Kawaguchi Kiyotake of the Tientsin garrison and Ikeda Katsumi of the consulate at Kalga and planned an excursion to Inner Mongolia late October 1934. After completing all the necessary paperwork and procedures, such as securing visas and giving advance notice to the Chinese officials in the areas they would voyage, the Japanese departed Kalgan for Tolun on October 27th. Upon entering Changpei's south gate they were suddenly stopped by troops under Song Queyuans 132nd division alongside some Peace Preservation Corps men. Their commanding officer punched Ikeda as the rest of the party were threatened with Dao swords and rifles. After 40 minutes a Chinese security officer showed up to allow them all to pass through the South Gate.  The Japanese foreign Ministry and Army were obviously outraged by this incident. The vice Consul at Kalgan, Hashimoto Masayasu complained to the chief of staff of the 132nd division and Major Takahasi at Peiping lodged an official complaint with Song Queyuan. On November 25th, Song Queyuan ordered the general commanding the 132nd division, Chao Tengyu, to apologize and dismissed the officer who punched Ikeda. Song Queyuan then guaranteed safe travel for all Japanese throughout Chahar, without any inspection of their possession and he promised to withdraw his troops west of the Great Wall. All of this because a guy was punched, you can really get the sense the Chinese were walking on eggshells. In late 1934, a large contingent of Song Queyuan's cavalry had deployed to the area around Fengning in Rehe. They were defending strategic positions and establishing large peace preservation corps. The Kwantung Army repeatedly demanded they withdraw from the area and the Chinese had made promises as to such by December 31st. Rather than comply, the Chinese launched an offensive and captured 40 Manchukuo militiamen. Song Queyuan rewarded his men with a bounty of 300 silver yuan and ordered the arms of the enemy by handed to the district government of Kuyuan.  On January 17th, the Kwantung Army moved the Nagami detachment of the IJA 8th Division from Chengde to launch a punitive expedition against Song Queyuan's forces in the Kuyuan area. On the 20th the Peiping Branch Military Council informed the Kwantung Army Song Queyuan was already withdrawing his men. Thus the Nagami detachment who had advanced as far as Tat'an turned around for the Great Wall on the 22nd, when they were suddenly attacked by Song Queyuan's troops near Hungnit'an. The Kwantung Army were outraged by what they were calling the first incident in western Rehe. The so-called incident would be resolved on February 2nd nar Ta'an when Zhang Yueting acting on behalf of the NRA 37th division and Major General Tani Hisao on behalf of the IJA 7th division agreed to the following terms: “1) In the future China will strictly prohibit actions that antagonize the Japanese army and will neither move troops into Manchukuo nor adopt a threatening attitude toward Manchukuo. The Chinese will completely suspend their current spying activities, such as scouting the movements of the Kwantung Army.  2) If China violates the above pledges in the future, the Japanese  army will act independently and firmly, but the responsibility will be borne by the Chinese . If the Chinese forces increase their military strength or contemplate strengthening their fortifications, the Japanese army will regard these moves as hostile acts.  3) China is to have the government of Kuyuan district return all arms confiscated (from the Manchukuo militia and turn them over to the Japanese army at Nanweitzu by February 7.  4) The outcome of this conference will be jointly announced on February 4. In particular, the Chinese should be careful that in making their announcement they do not distort the contents of the agreement or engage in counterpropaganda”. Can you imagine there was a second incident at Changpei? 4 members of the Japanese Special Services Agency based out of Abga, some 40 miles northwest of Tolun had come to the same southgate around 4pm on June 5th, traveling to Kalgan. There they were detained by units of the 132nd division who refused to recognize their identification papers. They were apparently held without proper bedding or food, threatened with Dao swords and bayonets. The Japanese claimed it was all done under orders from Song Queyuan's chief of staff and that their officials were interrogated by the chief of military police at Changpei. On June 11th, Lt Colonel Matsui Gennosuke, the head of the Japanese Special Service Agency at Kalgan, demanded an apology from Song Queyuan and for the men responsible to be punished and for further guarantees for safe travel. Matsui also insinuated that unless Song Queyuan severed ties to Nanjing and became Pro-Japanese he might suffer the same fate that had befallen Yu Xuecheng. Clearly the Kwantung Army was looking to remove Song Queyuan's army from Chahar province. There were two major reasons for such a thing, so they could better protect the northwestern flank of Manchukuo and to support Prince De who was attempting a campaign to make Inner Mongolia independent from China.  On June 11th the Kwantung Army directed the Mukden Special Service Agency chief of staff, our old buddy, Doihara, currently in Peiping, to confer with the army attache there and with the Tientsin garrison. They were to push for Song Queyuan's army to be withdrawn south of the Yellow River as rapidly as possible. Tokyo HQ always keeping a close eye on their troublesome Kwantung Officers dispatch this notice to Doihara "Although we desire the evacuation of Song Queyuan's army from Chahar province, we disagree that we should, at this time, demand its withdrawal south of the Yellow River. Rather, its transfer to the Peiping-Hankow Railway line would be advisable." On June 13th, the General Staff advised the Kwantung Army the same message. The General staff then ordered every detachment in North China to act discreetly "If we shun excessive publicity at this time, we should, in view of the present situation, be able to achieve practical results without publicity." Since they were already getting their way in Hubei, Tokyo HQ did not want to risk rocking the boat in Chahar concurrently.  Then came a second western Rehe incident, according to the Chengde Special Service Agency, "On June 11, when a party led by a senior official of Fengning hsien was about to enter the town of Tungchatzu [in Manchukuo, about eight kilometers north of Tushihk'ou], it was attacked by rifle fire from Sung Che-yuan's troops stationed at Tushihk'ou. The next day, June 12, a member of the border police force in Hsiaoch'ang [in Manchukuo, about fifteen kilometers north of Tushihk'ou] was also fired upon by the same troops of Sung in the vicinity of Hsiaoch'ang."  On June 17th, the Kwantung Army General Minami Jiro met with the Tientsin Army chief of staff Sakai and the Special Service Agency chief at Kalgan, Matsui for a full report on the incident. After reviewing it, Minami drafted a policy to guide the Kwantung Army:  “The withdrawal of Sung Che-yuan's army will worsen the confusion in the Peiping-Tientsin region. This incident should be handled separately from the North China problem and should be negotiated locally with Sung Che-yuan. Our demands will be limited to the following:  1) withdrawal of the troops invading Manchukuo, together with their advance unit at Tolun;  2) removal of the forces back to the Kalgan area;  3) an apology by Sung Che-yuan;  4) punishment of those directly responsible for the Changpei incident; and  5) prohibition of anti-Japanese actions in the future.” The Chinese realized they needed to reach a quick settlement with the Kwantung Army. On the 18th He Yingqin met with Consul General Suma over in Nanjing. Suma was presented with a set of harsh demands from the Kwantung Army and that same day reported to the Executive Yuan he had decided to relieve Song Queyuan of his posts as governor and commander of the 29th Army. He then appointed as acting governor and provincial commissioner of civil affairs, Qin Dechun, who would take the 132nd division implicated in the Changpei incident south. The message was relayed to the Japanese military attache in Nanjing, Lt Colonel Amamiya Tatsumi. The man who relayed the message was Vice Foreign Minister Tang Yujen who also stated this "In view of the fact that China has moved voluntarily to dismiss Sung Che-yuan, to transfer his army, and to punish those responsible, we request that we not be confronted with an ultimatum in the form of various demands from the Kwantung Army with a deadline for reply." On June 19th, Nanjing officially implemented the promises made by He Yingqin and Tang Yujen and in turn the Kwantung Army wired Doihara in Peiping to stand down and wait to see if the Chinese did what they said they would. Doihara was probably disappointed he could not perform his 100th false flag operation he must have been cooking up. For any of you who watch my Youtube content, I used clips from the Chinese WW2 Drama series “Young Marshal” that depicts Doihara hilariously. You can check it out in my long format documentary on the Japanese invasion of Manchuria, its meme gold Doihara's clips, freaking out and smashing phones and such.  At 10 pm on June 23rd, Doihara, alongside Matsui and Takahasi visited Qin Dechen at his residence to negotiate a final understanding. There Doihara demanded China implement several measures to promote better relations with Japan such as withdrawing Song Queyuan's army southwest; give an apology for the Changpei incident; punish all those responsible; dissolve all the anti-japanese organizations in the region; ban Chinese immigration into Inner Mongolia; cease any oppressive actions against Mongolians and cooperate and encourage trade between Manchukuo, Inner Mongolia, North China; and appoint more Japanese military and political advisers. Just a laundry list he had worked up. So Qin Dechen apologized for the Changpei incident, stated they were already withdrawing Song Queyuan's men and dissolving all the anti-japanese organizations. Now he was orally agreeing to all of this, but he refused to put it in writing, prior to receiving the greenlight from Nanjing. Doihara understood and gave him time to talk to his government. The next day however another incident occurred, this time near Tuxukou. There a contingent of Song Queyuan's withdrawing troops fired upon Manchukuo police forces and in response the Tolun Special Service Agency dispatched a Mongolian unit led by Li Shuxin. It was not really much of an incident, just a minor confrontation all things given, so the Kwantung Army told Doihara to deal with Qin Dechen in private about it.On June 27th, Qin Dechen sent a formal reply to Doihara's demands in what became known as the Qin-Doihara agreement. It conformed with all the demands, seeing Song Queyuan's troops depart southwest while the security of Chahar was entrusted to two peace preservation units. One unit was responsible for the Chinese population, the other over the Mongolian. On August 28th, Song Queyuan was appointed garrison commander over the Peiping-Tientsin region with his 29th division joining Chao Tengyu's 132nd division and Liu Juming's 2nd division. Thus after the He-Umezu and Qin-Doihara agreements the Japanese had now expanded their influence into both Hubei and Chahar. 1935 saw a wave of incidents break out in the demilitarized region, prompting the Japanese to go into numerous negotiations with the Chinese to clamp down on anything they didn't like. Then on October 4th, Japan unleashed a document titled  “Concerning Policy towards China”: “The goal of our foreign policy is the development of East Asia and the maintenance of the security of East Asia through the cooperative concert of Japan, Manchukuo, and China, with Japan as the nucleus; this is likewise the objective of our policy toward China. To realize this objective on the basis of the outline below, the central and regional authorities of China must, by fair and just means, adjust their relations with Japan and Manchukuo so as to bring about an environment favorable to the establishment of basic relations between Japan, Manchukuo, and China.  1) China should adopt a good neighbor policy toward Japan, thoroughly suppress anti-Japanese activities, and abandon its policy of reliance on Europe and the United States. It should put this policy into practice and as a matter of course cooperate with Imperial Japan on practical problems.  2) Although China must eventually extend formal recognition to Manchukuo, until then it must recognize de facto the independence of Manchukuo and abandon its anti-Manchukuo policy. At least in North China, which borders on Manchukuo, the Chinese should promote economic and cultural cooperation with Manchukuo.  3) In view of the Communist threat emanating from Outer Mongolia and posing a common menace to Japan, Manchukuo, and China, China should cooperate in measures aimed at eliminating this menace from the region bordering Outer Mongolia.  4) When the above points have been put into effect and we recognize the good faith of China concerning friendly cooperation with Japan and Manchukuo, we shall first conclude comprehensive agreements on friendly cooperative relations between China and Japan, and thereafter draw up the agreement needed for regulating new relations between Japan, Manchukuo, and China” To this Chiang Kai-Shek replied could not recognize Manchukuo but that his government would do whatever it could peacefully to maintain economic activity between the people north and south of the Great Wall. He also stated no other country on earth was more concerned with the Communist menace in Mongolia than China. All of the appeasement efforts had brought Wang Jingwei to his boiling point and on August 8th he departed for Shanghai as he and his entire cabinet resigned. Chiang Kai-Shek personally came over and asked Wang Jingwei to withdraw his resignation given he offered him further support, and Wang Jingwei relented. Then on the morning of November 1st, after attending a meeting, Wang Jingwei was shot by a Chinese reporter for the Chenkuang Press, a company notably associated with Chiang Kai-Shek. Rumors spread the assassination attempt was inspired by anti-japanese elements such as Generals Yang Qi and Tang Shengzhi. With Wang Jingwei in the hospital, Chiang Kai-Shek was forced to take a larger role with the North China situation. Then Wang Jingwei departed for Europe seeking better medical care and wired his resignation on November 29th. Thus Chiang Kai-Shek succeeded him as president of the Executive Yuan and the coalition between him and Wang Jingwei had officially ended. With Chiang Kai-Shek now the only funnel from which action could be directed, the Japanese sent Ambassador Ariyoshi to China to persuade Chiang Kai-Shek to grant some form of autonomy for North China. By this point autonomy for North China had become part of Japan's national policy. Chiang Kai-Shek in response to this growing threat went to Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi, to meet with Yan Xishan. There he proposed that if Yan Xishan could unite the Northern Warlords, Chiang Kai-Shek would appoint him chairman of the political affairs council, with added authority over finances and diplomacy. Chiang Kai-Shek urged him to come attend the 6th plenum of the Kuomintang Central Executive Committee scheduled for November 1st. At this time Yan Xishan's Shanxi was struggling financially so he reconciled with Chiang Kai-Shek. To this effect Chiang Kai-Shek sent his vice chief of the Army General Staff Xing Pin to tour the north trying to persuade those like Song Queyuan and Han Fuju to not support the North China autonomy movement. The Japanese interpreted these efforts to thwart the autonomy movement as the underlying cause of all the anti-japanese incidents breaking out continuously. To this the Nanjing government disclaimed no responsibility and insisted they were doing everything the Japanese asked of them.  The Japanese began a massive campaign aimed at all the important leaders in North China. One man they managed to gain influence over was Yin Jukeng who on November 25th at Tungzhou, announced the inauguration of the East Hubei Anti-Communist Autonomous Council, claiming autonomy for the entire demilitarized region. Yin Jukeng's council consisted of 9 members whereupon he was chairman and took charge of foreign relations and military affairs. As you can imagine Nanjing immediately labeled him a traitor and ordered his arrest. Chiang Kai-Shek then rapidly sent word to the Japanese an official response to their “Concerning Policy towards China” document:  “To satisfy the various demands from the Japanese side, there should first of all be established in Hopei province an autonomous political administration; ultimately, this administration should be similar to that governing the southwestern region. Whether or not this administration should be extended to other regions will be determined after the results in Hopei have been ascertained.  1) Although the campaign to wipe out the Communists is progressing, the Communist bandits have fled toward Kansu. Since this raises the danger that the Communists may spread into Inner Mongolia, the defense against the Communists in North China should be conducted jointly.  2) Certain aspects of the new monetary system are not suited to North China, and appropriate modifications will be made in this respect.  3) Efforts are to be made to harmonize economic interchange among the people on both sides of the Great Wall.  4) To meet the special needs of the region, the local administration should be given authority to enable it to exercise suitable control over financial matters in North China.  5) Pending issues are to be settled locally in a rational manner.  6) The aim will be to employ talented people to carry out the above tasks and to establish an ideal government.” Chiang Kai-Shek dispatched He Yingqin to reign in the situation at Peiping, but upon his arrival he believed the situation was beyond his control. He Yingqin reported that it was his belief the only way for Nanjing to retain some degree of authority in the region was to create a new political organ to do so. Thus on December 11th, the Nationalist government established the Hubei-Chahar Political Council chaired by Song Queyuan. Song Queyuan declared the new council would assume all responsibility for administering Hubei and Chahar and promised  "to respect the wishes of the people, endeavor in particular to relieve the economic distress of the region, and maintain the peace of East Asia on the basis of Sino-Japanese amity."  Thus within all this madness now two autonomous regimes co-existed in North China. The East Hubei Anti-Communist Autonomous Council would administer 22 prefectures while the Hubei-Chahar Political Council would administer Hubei, Chahar, Peiping and Tientsin. As you might imagine, relations between these two councils was complex and ambiguous. The 22 prefectures the former administered were under the jurisdiction of the other. One was a Japanese puppet, the other was controlled by Nanjing who refused to recognize the other. Japan immediately exploited their newfound chaotic gains in North China. In May of 1936 the 2000 troops of the Tientsin garrison army was boosted to 5600 led by General Tashiro Kan'ichiro. This was done under the guise it was to defend against communists and protect Japanese citizens. The position of the commander of the Tientsin garrison was officially promoted to encompass full responsibility for the situation in North China, exactly the same as the Kwantung Army's role over Manchukuo. Thuse both the Kwantung Army and what was henceforth called the China Garrison had clearly defined roles. One would be responsible for Manchukuo, the other over North China. Japan had neutralized Rehe, Chahar and Hubei, all of whom would fall directly under their influence. But was Japan satisfied?  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Its not always through military means that nations can encroach upon other nations. Japan was showcasing how it could bully away parts of China through threats alone it was working miracles. How long could Chiang Kai-Shek carry on like this? Would it be Japan or his own people that would hang him for losing China?

Last time we spoke about Operation Nekka, the Invasion of Rehe Province. In 1932, the Kwantung Army eyed Rehe province as vital for Manchukuo's success. General Tang Yulin, ruling Rehe, initially favored Japanese interests due to economic ties, particularly in opium. Tensions escalated after a Japanese civilian was abducted, prompting military actions that led to skirmishes in Shanhaiguan. Amidst growing conflict, Zhang Xueliang mobilized forces against Tang, who eventually conceded. As Japan prepared for invasion, both sides strategized, with Chiang Kai-Shek reluctant to engage directly, fearing Japanese influence over his rivals. Operation Nekka commenced, showcasing the Kwantung Army's efficiency as they swiftly routed Chinese forces in Rehe. By March 4th, key passes were captured, but fierce resistance emerged. General Nishi faced counterattacks, leading to strategic retreats. Meanwhile, Chiang Kai-Shek struggled with internal conflicts while managing the Japanese threat. As the Kwantung Army pushed beyond the Great Wall, logistical issues arose, prompting political maneuvers to secure local warlord alliances. However, plans faltered when Zhang Qingyao, a potential ally, was assassinated.   #147 The Battle for the Great Wall of China Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Thus in the previous episode, Operation Nekka had been unleashed. The Kwangtung Army tossed 2 divisions into Rehe province with the intent of forcing its annexation into Manchukuo. They were under strict orders to not extend operations past the Great Wall of China. However they believed it was necessary to seize the main gateways along the Great Wall of China to establish their new borders, and in order to do so this absolutely required going past them. Yet military operations were not the only means to secure their goals. The Japanese forces faced significant logistical challenges, including a shortage of troops, having advanced into Rehe with only 20,000 men. Even the most resolute general in the Kwantung Army doubted that their military strength could prevail against the vast numbers of Chinese troops in the plains of Hubei. As a result, they needed to supplement their military efforts with political strategies targeting regional warlords. The tactic of bribing local elites had proven highly effective during the pacification of Manchuria, and there was no reason to think it wouldn't work in North China as well. All of these actions were carried out without any oversight from Tokyo headquarters.   On February 13, 1933, Itagaki Seishiro, who was then the head of the Mukden Special Service Agency, was transferred to the General Staff without any formal announcement of his promotion. He took up a position in Tientsin specifically to initiate political maneuvers in eastern Hubei, leading to the establishment of the Tientsin Special Service Agency. Initially, this agency sought to engage various competing warlords in North China, including Duan Qirui, Wu Peifu, and Sun Chuanfang, but eventually focused on Zhang Qingyao. Zhang had previously been a protégé of Duan Qirui, serving as the civil and military governor of Henan province. He had fought against Zhang Zuolin in 1925 before shifting his allegiance to Wu Peifu. During the second phase of the Northern Expedition, Zhang Qingyao again battled Zhang Zuolin, who was then in control of the National Pacification Army. After the Northern Expedition concluded, he allied with Yan Xishan's forces in Shanxi. So yeah it would seem he was not a man of principles nor loyalties of any kind. The Tientsin Special Service Agency initially aimed to approach Zhang Qingyao in hopes that he could orchestrate a coup d'état against Chiang Kai-Shek. They also hoped to persuade other figures such as Song Queyuan, Zhang Zuoxiang, Fang Chenwu, Xu Yusan, Zhang Tingshu, Sun Tienying, and Feng Zhanhai to join in. If successful, this could lead to a swift takeover of North China as they were advancing towards Peiping after taking the Great Wall. However, on May 7, Zhang Qingyao was assassinated, completely derailing their plans. With Zhang Qingyao dead, the agency concentrated their efforts instead to instigate riots in the Peiping-Tientsin region. They also began encouraging and propping up new political organizations that sought to form an independent northern regime. One scheme they were performing was to form a committee composed of Northern Warlords headed by Lu Zengyu, a banker who had studied in Japan. The idea was to form an anti-Chiang Kai-Shek coalition to carve out north china. The agency received a significant amount of funds to make ends meet. Itagaki alone would spend over 50,000 yen to try and bring about an anti-Chiang regime in the north. Some sources indicated over 3 billion yen being allocated to the IJA to be dished out to various Chinese warlords and elites in the form of bribes.  Meanwhile operations in the district east of the Luan River saw attacks formed against the Xumenzhai and Lengkou gateways. On April 1st, the Kwantung Army issued Order 491, seeing the Iwata detachment of the IJA 6th Division storm through the Xumenzhai gate and succeed in securing a supply route behind the great wall to help with the assaults against the other gateways in the region. By April 10th, the IJA 6th Division was making steady progress against the Lengkou gate. The next day they stormed through and captured Qienqangying, pursuing the retreating Chinese to the banks of the Luan River. Meanwhile the IJA 8th Division were facing a much more difficult situation. On the 12th, they captured Xifengkou, but their assault against Quehlingkou was going nowhere. After repeated assaults, the Chinese finally retreated, allowing the Japanese to focus on Taitouying. Thus from the 10th to the 23rd the gateways in northeastern Hubei were all falling into Japanese hands. The Kawahara Brigade was well on its way towards Nantienmen. The Operations within the Great Wall area had been fully authorized by Generals Nishi and Sakamoto. However there still existed limits upon the operations. For example, Operations order 495 issued by General Muto given on the 11th stated "Without specific orders, pursuit by the main force of ground troops is to be limited to the line connecting Hotung, Chiench'angying, and T'ait'ouying; but air units are to be limited to the Luan River."  Meanwhile the Special Service Agency in Tientsin had reported that Zhang Qingyao would stage a coup on the 21st and this prompted Song Queyuans troops to prevent the Central Army forces from fleeing towards Peiping. The Agency requested that the Kwantung Army not return to the Great Wall and instead perform a feint attack towards Peiping and Tientsin to scare the Chinese. As the plot was reaching its climax, on the 18th the Kwantung Army chief of staff, General Koiso Kuniaki issued a order for the 8th Division to strike in full force against the Gubeikou area. The Kwantung Army's plan was to bomb Miyun while launching their feint attack in combination with an all out effort to break Gubeikou. However on the night of the 18th, all of these plans changed dramatically. Suddenly General Muto issued Operations Order 498, hastily ordering all forces to withdraw to the Great Wall. Emperor Hirohito had decided to put his foot down. In Tokyo the emperor asked the vice chief of the General Staff, Lieutenant-General Mazaki Jinzaburö, "Has the Kwantung Army withdrawn from the Luan River line?" The vice chief retired from the imperial presence with a sense of guilt and wrote a confidential letter to the commander of the Kwantung Army. It was personally carried by Infantry Captain Katö [Michio] of the General Staff, who on April 19 arrived at the capital [of Manchukuo] bearing an imperial rescript. The vice chief also cabled to the chief of staff of the Kwantung Army a highly confidential dispatch, the main point of which stated, "Withdraw your troops immediately, or an imperial command will be issued." Thereupon the chief of staff of the Kwantung Army directed staff officer Endò Saburò to draft the withdrawal order. Thus as a result, the Kwantung Army began a withdrawal on the 21st, the same day the Peiping coup was to be unleashed. Those around Emperor Hirohito at this time have gone on the record to state it seemed to them, the emperor had hesitated heavily on issuing the withdrawal order. His motivations for giving the order are simply, the Kwantung Army had gone against his decrees, it was an identical situation to what had happened at Mukden in 1931. The Kwantung Army had no choice but to submit to what essentially was him “asking them to stop”. With that, operations east of the Luan River were over, for now. The order was certainly a critical blow to the Agency in Tientsin. How did they react? They doubled down on the coup effort. Likewise Koiso did not stop the 8th Division operation at Gubeikou. Instead the 8th Division was given orders "to maintain a menacing attitude toward hostile forces in North China." In accordance, the 3800 man Kawahara Brigade on direct orders from General Nishi, launched an attack against two Central Army Divisions numbered nearly 30,000 men stationed at Nantienmen. After a brutal week of battle the Kawahara Brigade seized the town. Meanwhile a battalion of 280 men led by Colonel Shimmura Eijiro attacked a central army force around 4000 strong at Xinglong. They suffered a 38% rate of casualties by the night of the 27th. The Battalion was nearly annihilated when suddenly the Chinese withdrew enabling the Japanese to slip by. Meanwhile the Piping coup did not materialize as planned on the 21st. Instead a secondary coup was initiated by Zhang Zuoxiang on the 26, but this misfired greatly. Reports began to emerge that troops led by Zhang Tingxu, Sun Tienying, Feng Zhanhai and Xu Yusan were willing to rebel in response to the failed coup attempts, but this proved completely false. A report issued on the 30th stated troops under Fang Chenwu were rebelling against Chiang Kai-Shek. However in reality Fang Chenwu only advanced his force north on May 10th and it was to join the anti-Japanese forces.  From mid April to mid May, the United States, Britain, France and Germany finally entered the fray in North China. It was an extremely chaotic situation for everyone. The Japanese military in Tokyo had no control nor idea what the Kwantung Army was doing, so when they tried to explain their actions to the international community, they continuously were walking over rakes. All the talk from Tokyo seemed incomprehensible to the other great powers. The Chinese were clamouring the entire time for a ceasefire agreement, but lacked the means to force the Japanese to do so. Japan had left the League of Nations, thus was extremely isolated and insecure in regards to foreign relations. Thus if a nation like Britain or the US had actually put their foot down, the Japanese more than likely would have backed off. Another element to this debacle was the stance of the Imperial Japanese Navy, who had made it adamantly clear they had zero intention of fighting off the British or Americans because of their unruly siblings within the Army. However, both Britain and America were too preoccupied with internal strife, mostly the result of the Great Depression, to devote considerable effort to the crisis in China. The League of Nations remained completely useless during the North China incident, similarly to how they were useless with the Manchurian incident. The Lytton Commission had performed an on the spot inquiry, and it did play a role in establishing a ceasefire by the time of the Shanghai incident, but did nothing to really help China. China had begun appealing to the League when Shanhaiguan was attacked and this prompted the nations of the league to rapidly agree to the Lytton Commission report's recommendations. In turn this led Matsuoka Yosuke to walk out on the league. With Japan out of the League, Wellington Koo proposed harsh sanctions upon Japan in response to their invasion of Rehe province. Yet they did nothing. China would continuously make pleas, but it was to no avail.  Rather than rely upon the League, the Chinese began secret talks with Japanese officials aiming first for a ceasefire. Tang Erho, Lee Shuzheng and Wang Komin attempted talks, but failed. Then Chen Yi the political vice minister of military affairs, secretly spoke with Nemoto Hiroshi, an army attache at the Shanghai legation on April 27th. They established negotiations with Nemoto speaking on behalf of the Kwantung Army and Chen Yi on behalf of Ho Yingqin. The Chinese were clearly more eager than the Japanese for a ceasefire, but the Japanese no longer had a rationale to continue their operation. Regardless the Japanese took the victors stance and demanded the Chinese withdraw from the battlefield as a prerequisite to further Japanese advances. In the first meeting, Nemoto told Chen that the Kwantung Army had already withdrawn from the area east of the Luan River to give Ho Yingqin an opportunity to consider a ceasefire. He described the action as a friendly gesture and suggested the Chinese reciprocate it by withdrawing their troops. Chen countered this by claiming Ho Yingqin had shown his own sincerity at the battle of Nantienmen by ordering his troops to withdraw to a second line of defense, hoping this would allow the Japanese to pull away from Nantienmen. However by May 1st, the Japanese claimed they had captured and secured Nantienmen, so Nemoto informed Chen the Chinese forces north of the Great Wall should withdraw to a line connecting Miyun, Pinkou, Yutien and the Luan River. On May 2nd, the Chinese sent a reply to this, completely ignoring the line idea and instead referred to the recent battle at Xinglong and explained the local commander there was eager for a victory and refused to withdraw despite being asked twice to do so. The Chinese also notified Nemoto that a Political affairs council headed by Huang Fu was being established at Peiping, and it should be through that body that further negotiations were held. The Japanese welcomed this development. Just as it seemed the Shanghai talks were paving a way to a ceasefire, the leadership of the Kwantung Army abandoned their political maneuvers in favor of a settlement. On April 30th the Tientsin Special Service Agency insisted to their Japanese colleagues, the Chinese were just buying time and not sincere in their actions. That same day the Army General Staff and Foreign Ministry suddenly refused to initiate a ceasefire on the grounds the Chinese had agreed to an armistice only to save face. Lt Colonel Nagatsu Sahishige, the army attache at Peiping urged the 8th Division to rapidly strike southwards as far as Miyun to annihilate He Yingqin's planned counteroffensive. Such an action would immediately threaten the Peiping-Tientsin region. To push the envelope, the Japanese could toss a new Division into the mix and force further negotiations when the Chinese withdrew south of Miyun. Clearly the Japanese had their eyes set on Miyun now. As such General Nishi was secretly told to capture it without any direction from Tokyo HQ, nor from most of the Kwantung Army leadership. The Operations department of the Kwantung Army also independently elected to move troops east of the Luan River again. They argued "the enemy again advances east of the Luan River and persists in its defiant attitude. Therefore we must again deal them a crushing blow." The IJA 6th Division had been evacuated to the Great Wall back on April 23rd and along the way were closely pursued by Chinese forces. General Sakamoto sent a plan to the Kwantung Army headquarters "to again drive the enemy west of the Luan River,". A lot of chaos was reigning within the Japanese military because they were in echo chambers and not relaying information to another. When the Kwantung Army Operations department suddenly proposed a new advance east of the Luan River, on May 2nd a heated exchange took place between them and the Kwantung Army Intelligence Section: “INTELLIGENCE SECTION: The defiant attitude of the enemy is a matter of degree. While it is indisputable that some of their forces continue defiant, their main force is still stationed west of the Luan River. Therefore, a defiant attitude on the part of the enemy is not sufficient reason to deal them a crushing blow. The Kwantung Army withdrew from the Luan River line only ten days ago. As we understand it, the purpose was to comply with the imperial wish. If the army begins operations on a flimsy pretext at this time, inviting intervention by the central leadership, how can the honor of the commander in chief be maintained? What we should now attack are rather the enemy forces facing the 8th Division. For this, we should employ additional strength. By dealing a severe blow to the Chinese Central Army forces in this area, we can threaten Peiping and the operation should be all the more effective.  OPERATIONS SECTION: Due to the limitations of our supply capacity, we cannot use more than a certain level of forces against the enemy facing the 8th Division. Since the enemy east of the Luan River maintains a defiant attitude, they must be punished regardless of their strength.  INTELLIGENCE SECTION: Since the seizure of Nant'ienmen the 8th Division lacks the capability of pursuing the enemy. This is an unavoidable consequence of the small strength of its force from the outset of the operation. Isn't the First [Operations] Section uncertain that the enemy can be defeated even by the main force of the 8th Division, and doesn't it intend ultimately to deploy the 6th Division southward in concert with action by the 8th Division? If this is the case, it is understandable, and this section is not necessarily against it.   OPERATIONS SECTION: That is not what this section is considering.  INTELLIGENCE SECTION: In that case, there is no clear justification for launching the operation. The objective of the operation must be plainly spelled out to all concerned, from His Majesty at the top down to the lowest private. There must not be the slightest doubt about it.” After this conversation the Intelligence department debated amongst themselves before relaying another response at midnight, ultimately not approving it. The next day the Operations department sent a telegram to the negotiations team in Peiping: “1) Under present conditions, the Kwantung Army has no intention of accepting a cease-fire proposal for the time being, particularly because there are signs suggesting intervention by third countries in the matter.  2) Previously the Kwantung Army suggested the Miyun-Yiit'ienLuan River line as the retreat line for the Chinese army; but this did not mean it was to be their front line after a cease-fire. It rather indicated a line to which the Chinese army should immediately and voluntarily retreat as evidence of their sincerity. In other words, a cease-fire cannot be negotiated until they retreat to this line and abandon their provocative attitude, and until this is confirmed by the Kwantung Army. Their mere retreat to the indicated line, in today's circumstances, is not sufficient reason for us to respond to the cease-fire proposal. According to Peking telegram 483 [not identified], it appears that the intentions of our army have been somewhat misunderstood. Even if the Chinese retreat to the indicated line and display the sincerity of their intentions, we may possibly demand a retreat line farther south. We believe negotiations in this region should be handled by the central leadership in Tokyo rather than by the Kwantung Army. Act on this understanding.”   So after this message, the Intelligence department accused the Operations department of trying to find any excuse to renew the advance and sent a wire to Nemoto on April 29th "If the Chinese suddenly perceive their mistake, . . . we will not make war for the fun of it." However the Intelligence department was suddenly overruled by Colonel Kita who cabled the negotiators that the Operations department now had full approval from Kwantung Army vice chief of staff Okamura Yasuji. When General Muto received this notice he questioned "This draft order, states that the enemy has moved into the region east of the Luan River and is showing a provocative attitude. I did not receive such a report from the Second [Intelligence] Section before my departure from Hsinching. Does this mean there has been a subsequent change in the situation?" After being informed more so, Muto simply stated he wished to wait until the chief of staff could speak to him. Obviously Muto was getting wet feet and did not want to perform any actions not in accordance with Tokyo HQ, as Emperor Hirohito had put his foot down.  On May 3rd, General Koiso and Operations Department staff officer Endo Saburo spoke with Muto, indicating they had approval of Tokyo HQ general staff and even the Emperor. So Muto relented for a second advance and issued Order 503 on May 3rd to the IJA 6th and 8th Divisions. Now the Army General Staff were dragged into the Kwantung Army's debacle fully. So they drew up an emergency draft plan for measures in North China. To this aim:  “Through continuing pressure by the military might of the Kwantung Army, applied in concert with various political measures in North China, the Chinese forces in North China are to be compelled to make a substantia] surrender or to dissolve, thereby resulting in the withdrawal of the Chinese army along the China-Manchukuo border and in the establishment of peace in this area”.  Added to this the General Staff suggested a large counteroffensive be driven along the Great Wall and a formal truce agreement should be concluded once three conditions had been met: “(a) that Chinese forces had retreated voluntarily south and west of a line connecting Hsuanhua, Shunyi, Sanho, Yüt'ien, Luanchou, and Lot'ing; (b) that anti-Japanese activities had been controlled; and (c) that the preceding had been verified by the Japanese army”. Under immense pressure from the renewed Japanese advance, the Chinese government on May 3rd, had pushed for a new body to tackle the North China situation. That was the Peiping Political Affairs Council. It was composed of 22 members, headed by Huang Fu. Huang Fu was notably a pro-Japanese official, having been a graduate of the Tokyo Land Survey department training institute and had served early as a minister of foreign affairs. Since China had zero faith anymore in the League of Nations and believed if they failed to resolve the North China issue, this all might see a new civil war break out between Chiang Kai-Shek and Wang Jingwei. Thus everyone felt the time for active resistance was over and they must place all their effort into negotiations. Chiang Kai-Shek placed a great amount of authority upon Huang Fu and trusted the man. Huang Fu began his new task by speaking with all the political and financial leaders from both sides of the conflict to see how a real ceasefire could be met through dealmaking.  Meanwhile on May 6th the IJA 6th Division unleashed a new offensive south of the Great Wall and were followed by the 8th Division on the 11th. General Muto at this time made public statements blaming the Chinese for the renewed hostilities, making it seem the Japanese had intended to stay within the Great Wall area. The 6th Division swept across the sector east of the Luan River and by the 11th the Chinese defensive line collapsed. On the 12th the 6th Division crossed the Luan River, pursuing Yu Xuechengs 51st Army. In turn this threatened He Yingqin's main force who were facing the 8th Division. In the previous battles, Yu Xuechengs men had performed quite poorly and now even under direct command of He Yingqin were proving themselves helpless against the 6th division. Additionally Itagaki's agency over in Tientsin were using radio facilities to dispatch false directives from Chinese high command, ordering the forces to retreat from the front battle line. Two to three Chinese divisions were neutralized by these fake radio messages and in turn the Chinese became very demoralized at their lines. The 8th division had driven into the Gubeikou area on the 11th and it took them only a day to dislodge the Chinese from their line near Xuxiachen. By the 13th Xuxiachen had fallen completely. On the 11th and 12th, Japanese aircraft began flying over Peiping, as a demonstration of the terror they could deliver to the city at any moment. These developments altogether were pushing the Chinese civilians to demand of their politicians and generals that they appease the Japanese. Huang Fu proposed to Nemoto on the 12th that all Chinese troops could be withdrawn from Miyun to a line extending from Shunyi to Yutien and Tangshan. This was an enormous concession and nearly mirrored the line the Japanese had demanded.  The Japanese however, rejected the concession. To make matters worse for the Chinese, He Yingqin had been notified of the large concession proposal in advance and expected the Japanese to take it. Thus he had refrained from operating in strength at Miyun and did not significantly defend the path towards Peiping. It was the belief of the Japanese commanders, if they performed a full-scale attack towards Peiping now, He Yingqin would have no choice but to withdraw towards Shunyi. With this in mind the Japanese made a proposal on the 14th:  “1) According to the reports of the Peiping military attaché, the 8th Division should be prepared to advance in a single sweep to the southern limit of Miyun, if it is deemed necessary. Preparations for this attack should be expedited.  2) In conjunction with the above, front-line aircraft should take actions implying that a major Japanese offensive is about to begin.  3) In Tokyo, it should be announced publicly, in liaison with the Foreign Ministry, that the security of Jehol province cannot be guaranteed as long as the Chinese army remains in Miyun. Furthermore, every so often Japanese aircraft should make demonstration flights over the Shunyi-T'ungchou area.” Confronted with this, the Chinese were pretty screwed. The Chinese negotiations team were frantically searching for any way to force a ceasefire. Then the secretary of the Shanghai legation, Suma Yakichiro showed up to Peiping, which the Chinese viewed as a golden opportunity. The Chinese complained to him that the Kwantung Army had resumed their offensive and that a political agency in Tientsin were trying to enact coups. Suma bluntly told them the Japanese actions were backed fully by Tokyo and despite the Chinese belief that this was false or that Japan was facing a major financial deficit, this was all untrue.  While the dialogue continued to go nowhere, the 6th division had pursued the Chinese forces to the vicinity of Fengjun. Muto believed this had gone to far so he issued orders on May 13th limiting operations to the area north of a line connecting Miyun, Pingkou, Fegjun and Yungping. Now the 6th and 8th divisions were to assemble around Xuxiachen and Zunhua. Two days later he issued this statement to the public "If the Chinese army immediately abandons its hitherto provocative attitude and withdraws some distance from the border, our army will quickly return to the line of the Great Wall and pursue its regular task of maintaining security in Manchukuo." Likewise Muto ordered the Tientsin group to inform the Chinese that the Kwantung Army would return to the Great Wall if the Chinese forces retreated to the Shunyi-Yutien-Tangshan line. Nemoto forwarded all of this to Chen Yi. On May 15th He Yingqin ordered the withdrawal of the Chinese forces to a line between Malanyu, Linnantsang and Pamencheng.  With what seemed a imminent ceasefire at hand, the Kwantung Army HQ ordered the 6th and 8th divisions to take up positions strategically favorable for the negotiations to finally begin in ernest. On the 17th a draft ceasefire plan was drawn up. It envisioned the withdrawal of the Chinese forces to the Shunyi-Yutien-Tangshan line and in return the Japanese would pull back to the Great Wall area. Huang Fu was on his way back to Peiping from Shanghai for probably the 10th time in two weeks, when the Japanese captured Fengjun and Zhunhua, routing the Chinese across the Qi Canal to the right bank of the Pai River. The 6th Division then advanced towards Yutien and Xumenchen as the 8th division stood around Xuxiachn. When the Chinese began retreating from Miyun on May 18th, the 8th division suddenly converged upon Miyun. Muto was of course delighted by their new advantageous position and even briefly began talking to his colleagues about the prospect of just marching upon Peiping. Instead he decided to sweep through Miyun, Pingku and the Qi Canal, going even further west than he had stated he would back on the 13th.  With these new orders in hand, the 6th Division quickly captured Qixien on the 19th and further pursued retreating Chinese forces to Sanho. The 8th Division entered Miyun and two days later began advancing to Huaijou. By the 23rd Huaijou had fallen as the 6th Division reached the Qi Canal. These advances threatened the Peiping-Tientsin region. Both Japanese divisions halted on the 25th as the ceasefire was issued. With that last strike Muto felt he had significantly increased their poker hand going forward. Meanwhile Itagaki's team at Tientsin were still trying to bring about a coup. In tandem with the 8th Divisions attack on Miyun, the agency tried to engineer a revolt by the militia troops led by Song Queyuan, Fang Chenwu, Sun Tienying, amongst others. The idea was for these forces to occupy Peiping while wrecking havoc upon the Chinese central army within th region. The agency had attempting recruiting Wu Peifu, but the old jade marshal was unwilling, so they turned to this former protege, the chairman of Hubei, Yu Xuecheng. However he also declined. Yu Xuecheng was also approached by Hu Hanmin, looking to form an anti-Chiang Kai-Shek campaign in cooperation with Han Fuqu and Feng Yuxiang. To this Yu Xuecheng declined as well. Itagaki kept searching for disgruntled warlords, and then turned to Li Qiashan and Xu Yusan. Xu Yusan was a former ally to Feng Yuxiang with a history of anti-Chiang Kai-Shek actions. If they got the backing of his personal army, roughly 10,000 men strong at Tangshan they could do some real damage. On May 16th Xu Yusan declared independence and took up the Manchukuo 5 color flag in direct opposition to the Kuomintang. He began issuing the slogan “Hubi for the people of Hubei” as his army marched west along the Peiping-Shanhaiguan railway. His force reached the vicinity of Tangu whereupon they had increased to 30,000 and rumors emerged they would occupy Tientsin. This began a mass panic. . . for literally a day. His army collapsed into nothing more than a rabble as now had the stomach to actually fight their fellow countrymen.  Despite this grand failure, the Tientsin group continued with other plots. At 8 pm on May 19th, a Peiping bound train from Tangu, carrying Chinese soldiers was bombed around Tientsin station. The Japanese love bombing trains as we all know. This resulted in small incidents involving Japanese and Chinese officials, giving precedent for 600 Japanese troops led by Lt General Nakamura Kotaro to reinforce Tientsin on May 23rd. There were a few other incidents were supposedly Chinese agents were tossing grenades at Japanese officials. One of these officials was Major Mori Takeshi of the Japanese Army General Staff who was working in Tientsin. However the grenade thrown at him was a dud, and before the Japanese could seize it, some local Chinese grabbed it, finding a stamp on it bearing “Tokyo Artillery Arsenal”, oops.  These numerous incidents influenced the Chinese who feared Japan was trying to force an invasion into North China. To these rumors, He Yingqin insisted they mount a proper defense of Peiping, but many were arguing they had to further retreat. Meanwhile the Tientsin agency was told to stop performing incidents and instead secure northern warlords to their future cause. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The battle for the Great Wall of China was coming to a bitter end for the Chinese forces. The Japanese were using every deceptive measure to edge further and further into China proper. It seemed clear to the Chinese, nothing would stop Japanese encroachment upon their nation, while the rest of the world simply watched on doing nothing. 

Last time we spoke about Manchukuo. In the early 1930s, Ishiwara Kanji sought to dominate Manchuria to secure resources and counter American influence. He envisioned Manchukuo as a Pan-Asian league promoting racial cooperation, despite it being a puppet state under Japan. With Puyi as a figurehead, Ishiwara aimed for autonomy, but his plans faced resistance from the Kwantung Army, which prioritized control. As conflicts arose, Ishiwara's vision of unity clashed with military interests, leading to his eventual isolation and reassignment, marking a tumultuous chapter in Manchukuo's history. In November 1931, Doihara orchestrated the "Tianjin Incident," facilitating the removal of Puyi from his home to establish the puppet state of "Manchukuo." By March 1932, Puyi was declared its ruler, but his authority was merely symbolic, overshadowed by Japanese control. Despite international condemnation, Japan solidified its grip on Manchuria, exploiting its resources and suppressing local resistance. By the late 1930s, Manchukuo became a colonial entity, suffering under harsh economic policies while Puyi's regime served as a facade for Japanese imperial ambitions.   #146 Operation Nekka: the Invasion of Rehe Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. From the very beginning of their consolidation of Manchukuo, the Kwantung Army regarded the province of Rehe, today's Jehol province, to be an integral part of it. According to some of the Kwantung Army leadership, all of Rehe would be necessary to consummate Manchukuo. In April of 1932, the IJA 8th Division based at Hirosaki in Aomori prefecture was transferred to Manchukuo under secret orders to prepare for an invasion of Rehe. Now Rehe province covers 160,00 square kilometers and back then held some 2.3 million people. Since 1926 it was ruled by General Tang Yulin. His direct command was over the NRA 36th division, consisting of 13,000 regular troops with a provincial militia of 8500 men. As was the Warlord practice of the time, Tang Yulin exploited his population. Now until July of 1932, Tang Yulin's attitude towards the emerging state of Manchukuo directly to his east was certainly favorable. That is because Tang Yulin favored the Japanese. During the debacle that was the invasion of Manchuria, Tang Yulin had done everything possible to prevent Zhang Xueliang from moving into Rehe whenever he was trying to consolidate forces there. Now Tang Yulin had no greater aspirations, its not like he loved Japan, or believed the Japanese were better leaders for his nation. What he was motivated by was a very practical concern, economics, more precisely the opium trade. Rehe number one source of income was opium, and they number one purchaser of it, was Manchuria. Thus as one can imagine, when Manchukuo was being formed, and the opium door closed on him, well he took heavy financial losses.  On July 17th of 1932, an incident broke out between the towns of Chaoyangxu and Nanling. A Japanese civilian employed by the Kwantung Army, Ishimoto Gonshiro was abducted by a Rehe militia group while taking the train from Jinzhou to Chaoyang. General Nishi Yoshikazu, the commander of the IJA 8th Division stationed at Jizhou, dispatched a small unit to rescue Ishimoto. In doing so they occupied Chaoyangxi, where they also protested the Rehe provincial government. This did not see Ishimoto handed over to them, so General Nishi bombarded Chaoyangxu and then had his forces advance upon Nanling. Even doing so, no Ishimoto to be found. So Nishi withdrew back to Jinzhou. The following year during what would become the invasion of Rehe, Ishimoto's body would be found at Chaoyangxu. Zhang Xueliang utilized this small incident to advance into Rehe. Claiming he was acting upon orders from Nanjing, he moved his Northeastern Army to the border of Rehe, due south of the Great Wall. Zhang Xueliang then threatened Tang Yulin and bribed his subordinates to defect over to him. Consequently, by late July, Tang Yulin tossed the towel and for the first time sanctioned passage of a volunteer army through Rehe. Come August Zhang Xueliang organized a volunteer force 40,000 strong, obviously all from his Northeastern army to advance from Gubeikou into Rehe, where he sought to confront the Kwantung Army if they advanced. Zhang Xueliang was heavily in contact with Chiang Kai-Shek during this period. Zhang Xueliang was making multiple proclamations about retaking Manchuria, and Chiang Kai-Shek was supporting him in that endeavor as best as he could. Meanwhile Tang Yulin was sort of stuck in the middle.  Between October 1932 to January 1933, Shanhaiguan, the strategic gateway and midpoint between Mukden and Beijing became the focal area of 3 major skirmishes.  The Boxer Protocol of 1901 dictated that some of the 8 nation alliance members, notably, France, Italy and Japan were allowed to maintain small contingents at Shanhaiguan. In 1932, the Japanese garrison there was 261, France had 61 men and Italy 69. After the establishment of Manchukuo, Japan had increased its garrison to have some more border guards in the town of Shanhaiguan itself. Of course the Chinese also had local troops, that was the 9th Independent Brigade commanded by Ho Chukuo, a force roughly of 9000 men. The first skirmish at Shanhaiguan broke out on October 1st, between Ho Chukuo's men and an armored train of troops from the IJA 8th Division. Another exact same event occurred on December 8th, both occasions were settled locally and peacefully with the Chinese offering an apology and indemnity payment. Then a third clash broke out on January 1st, but this one got out of hand.  The mastermind behind the third incident was Major Ochiai Jinkuro, the leader of the Japanese garrison at Shanhaiguan. Upon his orders, at 9pm, 3 Japanese soldiers tossed two hand grenades each into the backyard of the Japanese military police detachment and the railway track running in front of the Japanese garrison. This was of course immediately blamed upon the Chinese and at 11:30 pm Ochiai presented the local Chinese with 2 demands. The first was to evacuate the Chinese force and the second to allow the Japanese to occupy their south gate at Shanhaiguan for the time being. Now the Japanese had legitimate pretext for these demands based off the Boxer Protocol. It allowed them the right to ensure the security of the railway and telegraph lines and to defend their citizens and property within two miles of the railway zone. Since Ho Chukuo's troops allegedly disturbed the peace in said zone, the Japanese were in their right to ask them to depart.  According to Japanese sources, the Chinese refused at first then consented at 4:50 am on January 2nd. This effectively saw them surrender the south gate. However at 9:30 am the chief of staff for the Chinese Brigade requested that the takeover of said gate be postponed until the scheduled arrival of Ho Chukuo, coming over from Beiping. Ochiai turned down this request, whereupon the Chinese agreed that the south gate would be included within the area overseen by the Japanese. Yet at 10:50 am Japanese troops went to take over guarding the south gate whence Chinese guards tossed grenades at them. Yes, it is most certainly the Japanese who tossed those grenades. The Chinese account of this event is somewhat different. It asserts the Japanese attacked the gate while the issue of surrender was still being negotiated. By January 11th, China sent a formal appeal to Britain, France, the US and other signatories of the Boxer Protocol charging the Japanese for perverting the treaty to seize the south gate of Shanhaiguan. Meanwhile General Ho Chukuo called Ochiai from Qinhuangdao to tell him he would arrive by 8am on January 3rd to negotiate. But by 10am he failed to show up, as the Chinese and Japanese fired upon another. Ochiai thereupon resolved to take the south gate by force. By that point the IJA 8th Division had strengthened its position in front of Shanhaiguan. Two companies had become 10 and one air force company was made ready to strike. Additionally the commander of the 2nd China Fleet, Tsuda Shizue dispatched Hirado and the 16th Destroyer Squadron to Shanhaiguan and Qinhuangdao “to defend Japanese residents and assist the troops in case of hostilities”. At dawn on January 3rd, the Japanese launched a combined land, sea and air assault and by 2pm had taken Shanhaiguan. Ho Chukuo's forces were pushed to the Shih River where they were reinforced during the night and hastily constructed fortifications against the incoming Japanese. Henceforth a propaganda war emerged over Rehe. Japan charged that Zhang Xueliang was mobilizing large forces to advance into Rehe, while China claimed the same of the Japanese. The Chinese protested the Japanese seizure of Shanhaiguan, but none of the western powers would intervene. However the League of Nations constant condemnation of Japan ever since the Mukden incident provoked the Japanese on march 27th to simply walk out on the league. The ordeal also prompted Prince Saioji Kimmochi to dispatch Major General Umezu Yoshijiro, the chief of General affairs of the army general staff and Consul Tanaka Sotaro of the foreign ministry to go over and restrain the unruly troops at various positions in the Beiping-Tientsin region. Saionji's main concern was elevated by Army Minister Araki Sadao, who on March 6th stated to Harada Kumao “that if Japan were to land about 3 divisions at Qingdao and they strike into the Peiping-Tientsin region via Tsinan, Zhang Xueliang will probably flee even before they reach Tsinan. If we do anything at all, I'd like to act boldly and go that far”. Despite claims by various sources, mostly Chinese, the Shanhaiguan incident as it became known was not actually preplanned by the Kwantung Army, it really was an arbitrary act on the part of the garrison commander. How everything went down at Shanhaiguan provided vital intel on the Northeastern Army, and what to expect in Rehe. In December of 1932, the IJA 6th Division was dispatched to Manchuria and assigned security detail in southern Jilin province. They were given further secret orders to participate in what was going to be an operation in Rehe once they arrived to Manchuria. When the Shanhaiguan incident broke out, the Rehe operation was expedited rapidly. Therefore the IJA 6th and 8th Divisions west of the Liao River were immediately tossed into the operation. Given the foreign and domestic conditions, the Rehe operation was extremely dangerous. Tokyo HQ yet again sought to reign in the men, so they sent General Umezu to Manchuria to talk to the Kwantung leadership. The Kwantung leadership was adamant the operation be unleashed before the spring that, provided the operation did not extend beyond the Great Wall. To this Tokyo HQ yet again relented.  On January 27th of 1933, General Muto Nobuyoshi, then commander of the Kwantung Army, issued the following general order for the Rehe operation designated, Operation Nekka “The situation in Jehol has become increasingly serious day by day and has now developed into a state of affairs necessitating intervention. To strengthen the foundations of Manchukuo, the time is close at hand, as far as military operations by the Kwantung Army are concerned, to put the finishing touch on our sublime task. First, the affairs of Jehol province are unquestionably an internal problem of Manchukuo. They neither embrace nor are accompanied by any international implications. Because subjugation of the province is designed to strike a fatal blow to anti-Manchukuo, anti-Japan elements, these elements purposely confuse the distinction between Jehol and North China. They move troops into the province and, glossing over these matters, raise a loud outcry, propagandizing that Japan harbors designs of territorial aggression. In this manner they have endeavored to draw the restraining attention of the world, and every move of the Kwantung Army in Jehol—even the slightest raising of a hand or the stretching of a leg—is now the object of worldwide surveillance” At this stage the Kwantung Army treated the Rehe Operation as an internal matter of Manchukuo and did not openly talk about extending it beyond the Great Wall into Hubei. But their gunna. On January 26th, General Muto issued Order 466, kinda funny how its almost order 66, but I digress. This order directed the IJA 6th and 8th Divisions to prepare to invade Rehe. On February 9th, Muto drafted the “Rehe Subjugation Plan” to some staff officers. It stated “without specific orders, operations are not to be carid out in Hubei”. It also stipulated they should “foster and promote a climate leading to the downfall of Zhang Xueliang in North China, which is the strategic base for the disturbance of Manchukuo”. On February 27th, Muto issued Order 473 which repeated to the men again not to move into Hubei. On the 29th, Muto issued another  order “The subjugation of Jehol is purely and simply an internal problem of Manchukuo. In the light of our national policy, it must not develop into a provocation for war with China. This is why Kwantung Army Operations Order 473 stipulated that, unless specific orders are issued, operations are not to be conducted beyond the Great Wall in Hopei province. I fully expect you to issue strict orders to the various units under your command that, although our forces may act freely in Jehol, which is a part of Manchukuo, they are not, without an imperial command, allowed to take any action in Hopei province, which is separated from Jehol by the Great Wall. They should be admonished that, even in the light of local circumstances, they must never be blinded by tactical considerations and miss the main point of our national policy. (In particular, the garrison at Shanhaikuan should be doubly careful and not act beyond its authorized limits.) I have learned that His Imperial Majesty, the supreme commander, is gravely concerned about the foregoing and again issue these instructions in awe of His Majesty's concern”. Thus one can read between the lines here. Emperor Hirohito put his foot down and demanded no forces go past the great wall and to this the Kwantung Army obeyed. For Operation Nekka, the IJA 6th and 8th Division would have their own theaters of operation along a line running from Paotzu, the eastern most town in Rehe to Chaoyang. The northern zone was the IJA 6th divisions theater, the southern one was the 8th's. Geneal Sakamoto Masemon led the 6th Division and ordered his forces on February 23rd to advance north along the rail line between Tahushan and Tungliao, then on towards Tienshan, Xiawa and Chaoyang. Afterwards they would carry out operations in the Chifeng-Linxu-Tolun region.  General Nishi ordered his 8th Division, excluding one unit to advance along the border around Peipiao, towards Suichung on the 27th, then into the Lingyuan region. The other unit would secure as fast as possible the important gateways along the Great Wall of China: Qilingkou, Lenkou, Xufengkou, Lowenyukou and Manlankuan to protect their divisions flank. Afterwards they would seie Chengde and Gubeikou. However he also gave explicit orders "Without specific orders, operations must not be extended beyond the Great Wall into Hopei province,". So yeah, while they had direct orders to not advance beyond the Great Wall. . . they were going to basically capture all of the key passes of the Great Wall. Kind of playing with fire.  On the other side, on January 23rd, Zhang Xueliang was meeting with Chiang Kai-Shek and our old friend Duan Qirui to discuss how to prepare for what seemed to be an impending invasion of Rehe. Chiang Kai-Shek politely said to Duan Qirui "I sincerely hope that you will come south and give me your guidance at this time of national crisis,". The real reason he sent this request was because he did not want the Japanese to enlist their former lacky against him. At the meeting, according to a Japanese intelligence report, Zhang Xueliang insisted that Chiang Kai-Shek personally come north and assume direct command of the Northern troops. Chiang Kai-Shek refused on the grounds he had to deal with the communists in Jiangxi and sent in his place Yang Que, the current president of the Army Staff College and a graduate of the Japanese Army War College. Yang would arrive to Peiping with his staff on January 30th, where he devised a plan for joint operations with Zhang Xueliang. They anticipated the Kwantung Army would cross the Great Wall at Shanhaiguan, so their basic strategy was to concentrate a large force in its region, especially east of the Luan River. That forces mission would be to defend at all costs the front line at Qinhuangdao. The Japanese intelligence indicated the Chinese had roughly 50,000 men, including 7700 men of the 25th Division ld by Kuan Lincheng and 12800 men of the 2nd Division led by Yang Que who were sent to Miyun and Gubeikou. There were also reports that ancient art objects and documents from Peiping were being transported to Nanjing, beginning on January 10th. To the Chinese public this was shocking news as one could imagine. Operation Nekka was unleashed and showcased the rapid efficiency of the Kwantung Army. By March 2nd, the IJA 6th Division routed the 41st Army of General Sun Tienying; the IJA 14th Mixed Brigade of the IJA 8th Division captured the Lengkou pass on March 4th; while the Kawahara detachment captured Chengde near the border with Hubei. General Nishi then assembld his main force at Lingyuan as the 14th Mixed Brigade withdrew to Chapeng. On March 4th, Muto issued Order 480, directing the troops "to make preparations for operations in North China, firmly seizing the major passes along the Great Wall, mopping up resistance by remnant troops and bandits, and restoring peace and order in Jehol province." One unit of the IJA 8th Division was given the task of seizing the Gubeikou Pass and advanced to such on the 7th. Within the vicinity of Changshanyu, around 40 kilometers southwest of Chengde, they encountered 5000 advancing Chinese forces. Here one of the first of many fierce battles along the Great Wall came to be. Until roughly March 20th, the Kwantung Army was met with fierce counterattacks, coming from the main gateways of the Great Wall. Initially the fighting went tremendously wall for the Japanese, yet by March 10th, the 14th Mixed Brigade had taken Tungqiaku, Tiehmenkuan and Xifengkou. Two days later the IJA 8th Division began an assault upon Gubeikou. Nishi then sent the Hayakawa Brigade to seize Lowenyukou. Then on the 10th, after receiving reports the main passes were secured, General Muto took his HQ from Jinzhu to Changchun, believing everything was already won and done. However he would be very wrong, they had misjudged the Chinese strength.  On the 13th, Muti and Nishi received a report, that on the night of the 10th, the 14th Mixed Brigade at Xifengkou had come under heavy attack by a Chinese force led by General Song Qeyuang. Reinforcements were rapidly sent over, but they were unable to relieve the trapped brigade. On the 14th, Muto ordered Genera Sakamoto to lead the Mukai unit from the 6th Brigade to help out. With this the Chinese forces were driven off and then the Japanese began assaults upon Lengkou, Lowenyukou and Quehlingkou. On the 16th, the IJA 8th Division took Quehling, but the next day received a vicious counterattack by the NRA 116th Division. At Lowenyukou the Hayakawa Brigade was counterattacked by Song Cheyuan. The Hayakawa Brigade was still able to secure on portion of the Great Wall, it was constantly under attack and unable to progress further.  On the 22nd, Nishi was forced to order his Brigade to pull back to Chengde. Over at Lengkou, the Mukai unit managed to capture the town as the 14th Mixed Brigade at Xifengkou was attacked by the NRA 139th Division. Unable to repel the counterattacks, Nishi ordered his forces back 13 kilometers on the 24th. The battles at Quehlingkou and Lowenyukou were very intense. On March 18th, Muto realized the casualties were severe and taking the gateways was not showing progress. He therefore decided to divert the 6th Divisions attention to Lengkou in a flanking maneuver aimed at severing the Chinese supply lines to the gateways and as a result this would extend operations south of the Great Wall into the region east of the Luan River. Thus there we have it, they were going past the Great Wall against Emperor Hirohito's orders.  Operation Nekka, similar to Operation Jinzhou was deemed essential to establish and protect Manchukuo. However while the battles along the Great Wall were deemed necessary to create the borders for Manchukuo, their extension past that boundary literally brought them into the heart of North China. Unlike in Manchuria, the Chinese forces in North China held excellent morale, they were very willing to fight. On top of that, they had better logistics and were fighting on top of the Great Wall, which offered significant advantages. Thus from a tactical standpoint, the Japanese had to seize the gateways and flush out the Chinese from the areas. The Chinese remained defiant. Atop the walls the Chinese defenders would shout at the Japanese waving anti-Manchukuo and anti-Japanese flags.  Outside the ongoing battle, Chiang Kai-Shek had his own, perhaps in his mind, more important battle, the one with the communists. The encirclement campaigns had all gone to shit thus far. Added to this was the invasion of Manchuria and Shanghai. As Chiang Kai-Shek would later put it "tantamount to subjecting the Government to a pincer attack both from within and without." Basically Chiang Kai-Shek could choose to focus on the Japanese or communists. He figured going into a full war against Japan would be the end of himself and his government. Thus he worked to reach an agreement with the Japanese in May of 1932 which had ended the Shanghai incident. After doing so he released a slogan "first internal pacification, then resist external aggression". Upon doing so he unleashed his full attention upon the communists. As we have seen, Chiang Kai-Sheks last encirclement campaign proved successful. But as he was in the middle of it, Operation Nekka was unleashed. It looked extremely bad for Chiang Kai-Shek, for the KMT and for China in general. On March 20th, as a gesture to indicate to the masses Chiang Kai-Shek was doing his job, he dispatched 5 divisions, roughly 50,000 men from the Central Army north. Chiang Kai-Shek personally traveled north from Hankou to Beiping, but no further than that. Back on the 10th he had received the resignation of Zhang Xueliang, who had publicly been calling for a massive war against Japan so that Manchuria could be recovered. Chiang Kai-Shek had to replace him with General He Yingqin.  Another major development at this time, was our old and dear friend who never causes any trouble, Wang Jingwei returned from I believe his 20th time in exile. He came to resume his post as president of the Executive Yuan. Yet again Wang Jingwei was trying to reconcile with Chiang Kai-Shek. In reality and as many of you might guess, the only reason Chiang Kai-Shek never had this guy shot was because Wang Jingei had the firm backing of the left, thus in order to really grab the majority of the political class he had to play nice with him. For Wang Jingwei's part, much like starscream in transformers, yes I am using this as an analogy, hes just trying to overthrow megatron every chance he gets, but always fails like a dumb idiot. There was also the dichotomy between the two men. Wang Jingwei was seen as a civilian leader while Chiang Kai-Shek was seen as a military leader. So together they seemed like a perfect team, despite the fact they loathed each other. So Wang Jingwei became the civil administrator while Chiang Kai-Shek focused on the military. In regards to Japan, Wang Jingwei was following a conciliatory policy of "resistance on the one hand and negotiation on the other,” based on Chiang Kai-Sheks slogan "first internal pacification, then resist external aggression."  Following a fight with Zhang Xueliang in August of 1932 over the issue of defending Manchuria against the Kwantung Army, Wang Jingwei had resigned, trying to strongarm Chiang Kai-Shek to get rid of the young marshal. Thus like what had happened countless times before, Wang Jingwei said he was out on sick leave, and departed for Europe for supposed treatment. When he returned 6 months later, Operation Nekka had begun, although the Japanese troops had not yet then reached the Great Wall. Wang Jingwei immediately became acting foreign minister in place of Lu Wenkuan, a supporter of Zhang Xueliang, who was notably anti-japanese. Wang Jingwei kicked Lu Wenkuan over to Xinjiang to deal with some conflicts breaking out there, fun times for him as we know.  Meanwhile He Yingqin had been placed as the head of the Peiping branch military council, entrusted with control over all military matters in North China. He Yingqin went to work reorganizing the forces in north china in mid March, forming them into an effective battle order to face the Japanese. By bringing together the local, very disorganized forces into a unified command, He Yingqin hoped they would be capable alone to block the Japanese advance, leaving the central army out of the conflict. This was because Chiang Kai-Shek did not want to risk losing his central army, considered the most elite one in all of china. But Chiang Kai-Shek did come around to the idea of at least testing some units against the Kwantung forces. Above all Chiang Kai-Shek wanted to have his cake and eat it to. He wanted he population of China to think he was actively resisting, while in reality he was biding time. Central army units deployed around Gubeikou, the main gateway leading to the Peiping-Tientsin region. When the Kwantung army leaders were planning operation Nekka, they had believed it would not be necessary to go beyond the Great Wall, but once the fighting around the walls and gateways kicked off, they knew immediately they could not hope to take the wall areas without getting behind the enemy. Particularly they needed to get past the area east of the Luan River. Some 20 Chinese divisions had assembled in the Peiping-Tientsin region and were tossing endless counter attacks along the line of the Great Wall. In the Lengkou region a force of 7000 Central Chinese Army units had penetrated deep into Rehe and smashed the Mukai detachment of the IJA 8th Division. These counterattacks reaffirmed the Kwantung Army leadership it was necessary to go beyond the Great Wall. It should also be noted the Kwantung Army's operations in North China were not just military. The Japanese were plagued with logistical problems. There was a shortage of troops because they had driven into Rehe with only 20,000 men. Even the most determined Kwantung general did not believe their military prowess could overcome the plains of Hubei packed with an immeasurable amount of Chinese troops. Therefore they had to augment this military operation with political schemes aimed at the regional warlords. During the pacification of Manchuria, the tactic of bribing local elites had worked wonders and there was zero reason to believe it would not work in North China. All of this was done without any supervision from Tokyo HQ. On February 13th of 1933, Itagaki Seishiro, at the time chief of the Mukden Special Service Agency, was transferred to the General Staff without any official announcement of this promotion. He took a post in Tientsin, specifically to begin political maneuvers in eastern Hubei. This saw the birth of the Tientsin Special Service Agency. Initially this agency was attempting to lure all the competing warlords in North China, such as, Duan Qirui, Wu Peifu, Sun Chuanfang, but then began targeting Zhang Qingyao. Zhang Qingyao had once been the protege of Duan Qirui, acting as the civil and military governor of Henan province. He had fought against Zhang Zuolin in 1925 whereupon his allegiance had shifted over to Wu Peifu. During the second phase of the Northern Expedition, Zhang Qingyao had fought again against Zhang Zuolin, then controlling the National Pacification Army. When the Northern expedition was over, he joined Yan Xishans forces in Shanxi. Thus one could easily see he was not a man of many principals, nor any specific loyalties. The Tientsin Special Service Agency first proposed to reach out to Zhang Qingyao in the hopes he could organize a coup d'etat against Chiang Kai-Shek. It was further hoped he could get Song Queyuan, Zhang Zuoxiang, Fang Chenwu, Xu Yusan, Zhang Tingshu, Sun Tienying and Feng Zhanhai to join in. If they managed this, North China would fall in a single stroke. It was hoped this would be achieved as they were taking the Great Wall and were enroute towards Peiping. However on May 7th, Zhang Qingyao was assassinated, completely ruining the plan. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Operation Nekka had been unleashed with a large bang. 20,000 Japanese troops stormed Rehe province under strict orders not to go past the Great Wall of China. So they immediately began planning how to go past the Great Wall of China. Yet what they did not expect was the determination of the Chinese defenders, who were not going to allow them an easy time.

Last time we spoke about the January 28th Incident. In January of 1932, tensions escalated in Shanghai as anti-Japanese sentiments surged after Japan's invasion of Manchuria. Orchestrated by Yoshiko Kawashima, a Japanese spy, a provocation led to violence, sparking outrage among Japanese expatriates. Japan demanded apologies and compensation from China, threatening military action if their demands were unmet. As the Japanese military amassed forces in Shanghai, the Chinese 19th Route Army prepared to resist, igniting the conflict known as the January 28th Incident, marking the beginning of a fierce struggle for control. Amidst chaos, the Nanjing government struggled to respond to Japan's escalating aggression in Shanghai. Chiang Kai-Shek prioritized avoiding war, urging a diplomatic approach to protect Shanghai's economy. Despite pressure, the 19th Route Army was ordered to withdraw, but tensions flared when Japan attacked the Chinese garrison. The 19th Route Army fiercely resisted, leading to intense battles. As Japan sent reinforcements, Chiang faced mounting protests and criticism for his passive stance, questioning whether he could maintain his strategy against the encroaching enemy.   #144 The First Battle of Shanghai 1932 Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the last episode we covered the January 28th Incident. At 11:30 pm on January 28, Japan ordered 2,300 Japanese Marines to advance westward along every branch road on the west side of North Sichuan Road, without waiting for a response. This road, which crosses into the northern area of the International Settlement and has frequently been designated as a Japanese defense zone, includes Target Road (now known as Wujin Road in Hongkou District, Shanghai), Qiujiang Road, and Yokohama Road. Their objective was to seize the Songhu Railway defense line at Tiantong'an Station. They faced strong resistance from the 19th Route Army, further escalating the conflict. In the early hours of the 29th, Japanese aircraft launched from the Notoro seaplane carrier, which was moored on the Huangpu River, attacked the Chinese district of Zhabei. Both the Commercial Press located at No. 584 Baoshan Road and the Oriental Library, the largest private library in China with over 300,000 books, were completely destroyed. That same day the 19th Route Army sent a telegram to the entire nation concerning the situation: Do forgive me it's a rough translation “Urgent. Dear Sir and Madam, the Japanese have occupied our three northeastern provinces, changing the color of our territory and making our nation perish. Recently, they have killed and set fire in Shanghai, and vagrants are everywhere, doing the most despicable and violent things in the world. Gunboats are coming one after another, and the Marines are all landed. At 12:00 a.m. on the 28th, they openly invaded our defense line in Zhabei, Shanghai, and challenged us. Guang Nai and others are soldiers, and they only know that it is their duty to defend themselves and defend their land. They cannot give up even an inch of land or an inch of grass. They resist to save the country and protect the race. Even if they sacrifice only one person and one bullet, they will never retreat and lose the personality of the soldiers of the Republic of China. This thing and this ambition are exposed to the sun and the sun and are known to the world. The spirits of our ancestors in heaven are truly relying on it”. On the morning of January 29, Chiang Kai-shek met with He Yingqin and Zhu Peide to discuss countermeasures. Simultaneously Zhu Peide convened a meeting with He Yingqin, Gu Zhutong, Li Jishen, Deng Shizeng, Lin Wei, and others to address issues such as defense deployment, the security of Nanjing and the Yangtze River, and resistance against Japan. Chiang Kai-Shek established the principles going forward for negotiations with Japan, emphasizing the need to prepare for talks while actively resisting. He stated that negotiations must have a clear final line of defense and a maximum limit that would not compromise administrative and territorial integrity, undermine the spirit of the Nine-Power Treaty, or jeopardize national sovereignty. If these limits were exceeded and unacceptable concessions were made, a decisive battle would be fought, even at the cost of defeat and death.  The defense and military strategy for Beijing and Shanghai included the 19th Route Army defending Shanghai with full strength, while the front guard army consisting of the 87th and 88th divisions would protect Nanjing. He Yingqin would remain in Nanjing, overseeing all party, government, and military personnel left behind. Chiang, along with the Central Political Council of the Kuomintang, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the National Government, and Chen Mingshu, all expressed their commitment to resisting Japanese aggression. Chiang also sent a telegram to He Chengjun, director of the Hubei Province Pacification Office, and Xu Tingyao, commander of the Fourth Division, stating "Last night, the Japanese invaders attacked our 19th Route Defense Line in Zhabei, Shanghai, and the battle is ongoing. Our army is determined to fight to the death. Their naval forces in Han and Xun will likely engage in military operations. We urge you to remain vigilant and defend yourselves, never yielding to them. The Fourth Division should concentrate on strict defense in Wuhan and avoid dispersal. If military funds become scarce, local governments will need to raise them independently." The National Government Military Committee appointed Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan, and Zhang Xueliang as members responsible for mobilizing the army and commanding the Shanghai War. Chiang Kai-Shek officially resumed power after resigning to prevent a surrender and committed to a prolonged resistance. On January 30, the Chinese Nationalist Government announced the relocation of the capital to Luoyang. Chiang Kai-shek sent a telegram urging resistance against the Japanese and dispatched the elite Fifth Army to reinforce Shanghai. That night, Dai Ji, the commander of the Songhu Garrison, took charge of military operations in Shanghai, overseeing the 19th Route Army. The commander-in-chief was Jiang Guangnai, with Cai Tingkai as the army commander and division commanders Qu Shounian, Mao Weishou, and Shen Guanghan. Chiang Kai-Shek then issued a telegram to his troops across the nation and again I apologize for the rough translation. "Since the Northeast Incident began, the Central Government has been enduring humiliation and maintaining peace in order to avoid war and protect the lifeline of the country. It hopes to use justice and fairness to awaken the Japanese pirates. Unexpectedly, the more we tolerate, the more arrogant they become. When the Shanghai Incident occurred, we accepted their demands with great pain, but the Japanese pirates still brazenly pressed on, repeatedly attacking our Shanghai Defense Force, bombing civilian houses, throwing bombs on the streets, and our compatriots were ravaged. The country is about to perish. Anyone with blood in his veins would rather endure it. Since the 19th Route Army has risen up to defend itself bravely, our entire army In this time of national destruction and extinction, when the revolutionary soldiers are facing imminent danger, they should fight for the dignity of the country, strive for the survival of the nation, fulfill their responsibilities for the revolution, and be determined to die rather than live in disgrace, so as to deal with the brutal Japan that destroys peace and despises faith and integrity... Chiang Kai-shek and his comrades have shared hardships for a long time. Although I am now in the opposition, I am willing to swear to live and die with the soldiers and fulfill my bounden duty. I am here to inform you in advance with my blood and sincerity, and ask you to be determined and work hard, share the same hatred with the enemy, do not be arrogant, maintain the spirit of sacrifice, stay ready to fight, and save the country from danger." From that day on, the various ministries, commissions and committees of the National Government began to move to Luoyang, but the Military Commission and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs remained in Nanjing . At the same time, the frontline troops were ordered to be jointly commanded by the Minister of Military Affairs He Yingqin and the Chief of the General Staff Zhu Peide.  Typically Chinese sources breakdown what is known as the First Battle of Shanghai into three phases. In the previous episode we looked through the event up until the point of the first phase. After the initial fighting, both the 19th route army and Japanese agreed to a ceasefire so they could strengthen their positions and at least allow some form of diplomacy to occur. This went into effect on the 29th. As we mentioned, immediately afterwards the Japanese rapidly began reinforcing their position in Shanghai. They first sent the Sasebo 26th Squadron on the 30th, bearing 474 troops of the Sasebo 3rd Special Marine Corps alongside supplies. The next day the aircraft carriers Kaga and Hosho came over with 30 aircraft from the 1st air fleet. Then the cruisers Naka, Yura and Abukuma alongside 4 torpedo boats came bearing another 2000 marines. On February 1st the Terukoku Maru brought over the Yokosuka 1st Special Marine corps, roughly 525 men who landed at Huishan Wharf. With all that said and done, roughly 7000 Japanese troops had been brought over. On February 1st, the IJN warships began bombarding Nanjing from the Yangtze River, prompting Yu Jishi to frantically demand Chiang Kai-Shek transfer more troops to Shanghai. That night the Japanese light cruiser Tenryu, the protected cruisers Hirado and Taima, and the seven ships of the Navy's 23rd Destroyer Squadron fired upon Nanjing using four 140mm guns, 12 152mm single-mounted rapid-fire guns, 12 120mm single-mounted guns, and 20 76mm single-mounted rapid-fire guns. The rich and officials fled the city for refuge, but the Japanese army did not land any men to follow up the attack. Simultaneously 40,000 Shanghai workers from over 20 Japanese owned cotton mills began an anti-Japanese strike, being heavily backed by Communists. The workers began aiding the 19th route army to blockade the Japanese in the factories and streets and sabotage what they could.  On February 2nd, the Japanese army attacked Wusong several times, but was repelled each time. On the 3rd the Japanese expanded their attacks against Zhabei, Baziqiao and other locations, but the Chinese defenders successfully repelled these assaults as well. On the 4th, the Japanese launched their first major offensive, which extended the conflict to Jiangwan and Wusong. Following a day of intense fighting, the Wusong fort was destroyed by enemy bombardment; however, the Japanese army was unable to land due to the determined resistance of the Chinese defenders. The anti-aircraft artillery company from the 88th Division, reassigned to the 4th Regiment of the 156th Brigade of the 19th Route Army, managed to shoot down a Japanese aircraft. After the failure of the general offensive, Yukiichi Shiozawa was dismissed and sent back to Japan. Vice Admiral Yoshisaburo Nomura, the newly appointed commander of the Third Fleet, succeeded Shiozawa. After Nomura assumed his role, the Japanese army began to bolster its forces. Japan had initially planned to deploy troops when tensions escalated in Shanghai, but the navy had opposed this move. However, as the situation deteriorated, the navy was compelled to seek assistance from the army. On February 2, the Japanese cabinet officially decided to send troops. In response to the urgent circumstances in Shanghai, they resolved to dispatch the Shanghai Dispatch Mixed Brigade, led by Brigade Commander Major General Shimomoto Kuma, along with the 9th Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Ueda Kenkichi. The Shanghai Dispatch Mixed Brigade and the Second Independent Tank Squadron were prioritized for transport. Concurrently, the Japanese Navy also sent the Yokosuka 2nd Special Marine Corps to Shanghai. The 24th Mixed Brigade landed in Wusong on the afternoon of February 7. By this time, the combined forces of the Japanese navy, army, and air force had exceeded 10,000 personnel. At dawn on February 8, the Japanese Army's 24th Mixed Brigade launched an attack on Zhanghuabang, Yunzaobang, and Wusong Town along three routes, but they were repelled by our forces. Meanwhile on February 4, the National Government Military Commission sent out a telegram that divided the country into four defense zones. The first zone, which includes the area north of the Yellow River, was assigned to Zhang Xueliang as the commander-in-chief. The second zone, covering the area south of the Yellow River, was placed under the command of Chiang Kai-shek. The third zone, encompassing the area south of the Yangtze River as well as Fujian and Zhejiang provinces, was led by He Yingqin. The fourth zone, which includes Guangdong and Guangxi, was commanded by Chen Jitang. The telegram also stated that, aside from maintaining troops for local stability, all commanders were to concentrate their forces within their respective defense zones to confront the aggressive Japanese. Additionally, a directive was issued for the provinces of Sichuan, Hunan, Guizhou, Hubei, Shaanxi, and Henan to send troops to serve as a general reserve. On February 5, upon learning that the Japanese army had been redeployed from mainland China to Shanghai, Chairman of the Military Commission Chiang Kai-shek sent a telegram from Luoyang to He Yingqin. He instructed that if the Japanese forces landed, the Chinese Air Force would engage in combat. Additionally, Chiang sent a message of condolence to Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, and Dai Ji of the 19th Route Army, stating "Brothers, you have been fighting valiantly for a week. Each time I reflect on the tremendous sacrifices made by the soldiers and their dedication, I feel a deep sadness... If necessary, Zhong (Zheng) can come to lead in person. When the Air Force enters the fray, the Army must establish various signals in advance to communicate with it and ensure coordinated efforts..." On the same day, the 88th Division arrived in Suzhou. On February 6, Chiang ordered the 261st Brigade of the 87th Division to move from Nanjing to reinforce Kunshan. The troops reached Kunshan on February 7. On February 8, Chiang directed He Yingqin to transfer an artillery battalion to support the 19th Route Army. Then, on February 9, Chiang Kai-shek mobilized the First Division, led by Commander Hu Zongnan, and the Seventh Division, commanded by Wang Jun, to prepare for reinforcement of the 19th Route Army in Shanghai. February 8th marks the second phase of the battle. On the 10th, to ensure that the 88th Division of the Central Army complied with the orders from the 19th Route Army of the Guangdong Army, Chiang Kai-shek sent a telegram to Yu Jishi insisting that "your troops must strictly follow the commands of Commander-in-Chief Chiang and coordinate their movements with allied forces." The Japanese Marine Corps, under Yukio Shiozawa, initiated a three-pronged encirclement attack from Hongkou. The National Army mounted a determined defense and ultimately repelled the Japanese forces, pursuing and destroying them, which significantly lowered their morale. On February 11, Chen Cheng, commander of the Central Army's 18th Army, sent a telegram to Chiang Kai-shek from Ji'an, Jiangxi, reporting that the troops had not been paid for nearly two months and were lacking food. At that time, the National Government was planning to redeploy the National Army that had been engaged in suppressing the Communists in Jiangxi to Zhejiang and Shanghai and to relocate the capital to Luoyang.  On February 12, following a battle at Caojiaqiao, the Japanese army's strategy to consolidate their forces was entirely disrupted. The next morning, February 13, the Japanese 24th Mixed Brigade crossed the Caojiaqiao Bridge in Zhuozaobang and engaged with the Nationalist army. Seizing the moment, the 19th Route Army Headquarters aimed to annihilate the Japanese forces. The Nationalist army surrounded the Japanese troops near the Yong'an Cotton Mill. Additionally, 60 members of a suicide squad launched a suicide attack, resulting in the complete destruction of 1,600 Japanese soldiers. The Japanese army faced significant losses, thwarting their attempt to swiftly capture Wusong. On February 14, Chiang ordered the 88th and 87th Divisions, which were already stationed in Nanxiang and Kunshan near Shanghai, to be reorganized into the Fifth Army. He appointed Zhang Zhizhong, a volunteer eager to fight against the Japanese, as the commander of the Fifth Army. This new army was placed under the unified command of the 19th Route Army and took over the defense line stretching from the northern end of Jiangwan through Miaoxing to the western end of Wusong. It served as the left-wing army, while the 19th Route Army acted as the right-wing, tasked with defending Jiangwan, the area south of Dachang, and the urban region of Shanghai. To replenish the 19th Route Army's losses, Chiang repeatedly ordered reinforcements from various locations. For instance, on February 15, Shangguan Yunxiang dispatched 500 active soldiers from Bengbu to the 19th Route Army; on February 17, Liang Guanying sent 500 unarmed soldiers from Qingjiangpu; and on February 19, Liu Zhi contributed 1,000 active unarmed soldiers from Henan. On February 16, Chiang Kai-shek communicated with Finance Minister Song Ziwen via telegram, stating, "Since the Japanese refuse to withdraw their troops from Shanghai, we must resist until the end. ... Food supplies in Jiangxi and Henan will dwindle, and assistance will be completely halted. Please arrange to deposit 10 million yuan in central banknotes in Nanchang and 20 million yuan in Zhengzhou. This will allow the government to continue functioning, the army to be sustained, and perhaps we can navigate this crisis and avert collapse. This is my final request. I hope you can find a way to assist." To prevent any friction between the Fifth Army and the Nineteenth Route Army over competing for military accolades, Chiang Kai-shek sent a telegram to Zhang Zhizhong and Yu Jishi on February 18. "The fight against Japan is a matter of national survival and is not a matter of honor for an individual or a certain unit. Our frontline officers and men should fully understand this. Therefore, the honor of the 19th Route Army is the honor of our entire National Revolutionary Army. There is absolutely no distinction between honor and disgrace. The Fifth Army's joining the front line is feared by the enemy and will also be slandered by the reactionaries (those who oppose the Nanjing Central Government). If we can continue to fight in the name of the 19th Route Army, it will be enough to demonstrate the strength of our National Revolutionary Army. We will share life and death, let alone honor and disgrace. I hope that this will be conveyed to the officers and men of the Fifth Army. They must unite and fight with our 19th Route Army and make no sacrifices to complete the revolutionary mission." Over on the other side, following reports of significant losses suffered by the Japanese army in Wusong, Tokyo received an imperial decree from Emperor Hirohito demanding the Shanghai incident get settled quick. In response, Chief of Staff Zairen urgently ordered the 9th Army Division, commanded by Ueda Kenkichi, to swiftly reinforce Shanghai. By the afternoon of February 13, the main contingent of the 9th Division had arrived at Shanghai Port, and by February 16, all personnel had disembarked in Wusong. Consequently, Lieutenant General Ueda took over command from Nomura. At this point, the Japanese invading forces comprised over 30,000 troops from naval, land, and air units, along with 60 to 70 field artillery pieces, more than 60 aircraft, and dozens of ships concentrated at the Wusong mouth. Ueda issued a statement late on the night of the 13th, asserting, "If anyone obstructs our division from fulfilling its mission, we will take decisive action without hesitation." On the 18th, he sent an ultimatum to Cai Tingkai, demanding, "Your army must immediately cease hostilities and withdraw from the following areas by 5:00 p.m. on February 20: on the west bank of the Huangpu River, retreat from areas connecting the western end of the concession, Caojiadu Town, Zhoujiaqiao Town, and Pushong Town to the north; on the east bank, withdraw from areas connecting Lannidu and Zhangjialou Town to the north, and retreat to a zone 20 kilometers away from the border of each concession Additionally, all military installations in the specified areas must be dismantled and no new ones established. If these demands are not met, the Japanese army will have no choice but to act freely against your forces, and your army will bear all resulting consequences." In response to Ueda's ultimatum, Tsai and Chiang ordered their front-line troops to fire heavily at Japanese positions as a warning. On the morning of February 20, Ueda commanded a full-scale attack across the front, employing tactics to break through the center while flanking from both sides. The 9th Division led the assault on the junction of Jiangwan and Miaohang, aiming to encircle Wusong from the north with the Kurume Brigade and Zhabei with the Marine Corps from the south. The Japanese began with artillery bombardments, followed by infantry and tank assaults on the Zhanghuabang and Yangshupu lines, both of which were successfully repelled by Chinese defenders. Over a thousand Japanese soldiers and several tanks in Zhabei were killed or wounded due to landmines. On February 21, Ueda personally directed thousands of infantry, supported by aircraft and artillery, to attack the Chinese defensive positions. Both sides incurred heavy casualties, and the battle continued until dawn on the 23rd. The Japanese forces attempted to encircle Jiangwan Town from Jiangwan Station, but the Chinese defenders fought valiantly, launching multiple charges and capturing Japanese Major Kong Sheng along with hundreds of soldiers. Ultimately, the Japanese army was unable to withstand the resistance and began to retreat. After the Japanese 9th Division arrived in Shanghai, it prepared to initiate a second major assault on the defenders of the city. The strategy involved a comprehensive attack stretching from Zhabei to Wusong to contain the Chinese army's strength, with primary forces concentrated on Jiangwan and Miaohang. The goal was to seize these two strategic points, achieve a breakthrough in the center, sever the link between the 5th Army and the 19th Route Army, and then defeat them individually. At dawn on February 20, the Japanese dispatched over ten aircraft for reconnaissance and bombing missions over the Miaohang area. Naval artillery and heavy army cannons heavily shelled the Miaohang positions. Simultaneously, Japanese artillery bombarded the Yunzaobang area in an effort to force a crossing and facilitate the Miaohang offensive.   By 9 am, part of the Japanese forces advanced towards the Xiaochang Temple and the Maijiazhai position, immediately conducting a fire search on our troops' positions. At noon, 3,000 Japanese soldiers launched an attack against our forces. The officers and soldiers of the 527th Regiment, defending the Maijiazhai and Zhuyuandun positions, mounted a counterattack, marking the beginning of the Battle of Miaohang. After three hours of intense fighting, the Japanese suffered significant casualties and were unable to continue, retreating to their original positions. Following this, over 2,000 Japanese troops attacked the Xiaochang Temple and Jinjiatang positions. The officers and soldiers of the 523rd Regiment, taking cover in the trenches, launched counterattacks and successfully repelled the Japanese forces. As dusk fell, the Japanese infantry halted their assaults, but naval and land artillery continued to bombard our positions in an attempt to weaken our defenses and personnel for a renewed attack the following day. On February 21, Japanese artillery relentlessly shelled the positions of the 88th Division of the Fifth Army in Miaohang. Following this, thousands of Japanese infantry launched an assault on the Yanjiazhai and Miaohang Town front. As the Japanese forces advanced, the officers and soldiers of the 523rd and 524th Regiments bravely counterattacked and successfully repelled them. However, a significant number of enemy troops coordinated a comprehensive assault on the Maijiazhai, Zhuyuandun, Xiaochangmiao, and Yanjiazhai lines south of Miaohang. Our 523rd, 524th, and 527th Regiments engaged in intense combat with the enemy, particularly at the Zhuyuandun front near Maijiazhai and Xu Xu, where the fighting was especially fierce. After a day of conflict, the enemy was temporarily pushed back. On February 22, the Japanese 9th Division launched a full-scale attack on the Miaohang position held by the 88th Division of the Fifth Army. Throughout the day, aircraft bombed the Chinese defenders, and thousands of artillery shells were fired at them. However, under the direct command of Zhang Zhizhong, the enemy faced a devastating defeat due to the coordinated three-pronged assault by the Sun Yuanliang Brigade, the Song Xilian Brigade, and the 61st Division of the 19th Route Army. The Miaohang position was ultimately saved from peril, inflicting heavy casualties on the elite forces of the Japanese 9th Division and the Kurume Mixed Brigade. This victory became known as the "Miaohang Victory." In the days that followed, the enemy continued their bombardment and attacks but were consistently repelled by the defenders. The Japanese army suffered significant losses, shifting from an all-out offensive to a more focused approach before ultimately halting their attacks. By the 25th, Ueda's overall offensive strategy had also failed. On February 24, the Japanese army decided to escalate the conflict once more, transferring the 11th and 14th divisions from Japan to join the Shanghai Expeditionary Force, which included troops already engaged in the war. At that time, the flagship of the Japanese Navy's Third Fleet, the Izumo, sustained damage from a bombing raid carried out by the suicide squad of the 19th Route Army, which sent shockwaves through Japan. Additionally, the large troop presence made a quick resolution to the war impossible. Consequently, on the 23rd, the Japanese cabinet decided to promptly reinforce the army. The General Staff then established the Shanghai Expeditionary Army Command, appointing General Shirakawa Yoshinori, the former Minister of War in the Tanaka Cabinet, to replace Ueda. They dispatched the 11th Division (led by Lieutenant General Atsutarou Atsuto), the 14th Division (led by Lieutenant General Naoaki Matsuki), and over 100 aircraft to China to initiate a larger-scale offensive in Shanghai. After several reinforcements, the Japanese forces in Shanghai, under Shirakawa's command, grew to over 90,000 troops, supported by 80 warships and 300 aircraft, significantly enhancing their combat effectiveness. In contrast, the total strength of the Chinese defenders was less than 50,000, with inadequate equipment. After a month of intense fighting, the Chinese forces had suffered heavy losses, leaving their river defenses in the Taicang Liuhe area vulnerable. Learning from the failures of the previous three commanders' frontal assaults, Shirakawa opted to land at Liuhe and flank the Songhu defenders. He directed the 9th Division and other units to launch a direct attack on Songhu and Shanghai while using the 3rd Fleet to escort the 11th Division into the Yangtze River estuary. They executed surprise landings at Liuhekou, Yanglinkou, and Qiyakou, quickly outflanking the defenders. On March 1, the Japanese forces initiated attacks in Naobei, Jiangwan, and Miaohang, employing heavy artillery, field guns, and aircraft for continuous bombardment. The infantry capitalized on this to engage in close-quarters combat, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. Meanwhile, Shirakawa secretly instructed the 11th Division to exploit the weakness of the Chinese troops in Liuhe, forcibly landing at Qiyakou, Yanglinkou, and Liubinkou, ultimately capturing Liuhe. The fall of Liuhe posed a significant threat to the flank and rear of the Chinese army, compelling the entire force to retreat to the second line of defense (the Jiading-Huangdu line) by the evening of March 1.  After 34 days of intense fighting, they were forced to retreat to their second line of defense. At this point, the war had entered its final phase, resulting in a stalemate between the two sides. On the 2nd, the Japanese army seized Shanghai, and by March 3, they occupied Zhenru and Nanxiang, subsequently announcing a ceasefire. Now while we have been focused on the Japanese and Chinese perspectives in this, the international community was also heavily involved in the background. After the outbreak of hostilities, the British and American consuls in Shanghai offered to mediate. However despite a ceasefire being implemented the hostilities continued. So on February 2nd, Britain, America, France, Italy and Germany sent a notice to China and Japan "proposing to stop the conflict; (1) both sides immediately stop all violent acts according to the following conditions; (2) there will be no mobilization or preparation for any hostile acts between the two countries; (3) the Chinese and Japanese combatants in Shanghai will withdraw from the contact points; (4) a neutral zone will be established to separate the combatants of both sides to protect the public concession. The area will be garrisoned by neutral military and police, and various methods will be formulated by the consular corps; (5) once the two countries accept the treaty, they will not make any demands or reservations in advance, but will quickly negotiate with the assistance of neutral observers or participants in accordance with the spirit of the Kellogg-War Pact and the December 9th League of Nations resolution to resolve all outstanding issues..." Nanjing generally accepted the terms, but Japan instead proposed non-military zones be established 20 miles around the major ports of Shanghai, Hankou, Tianjin, Qingdao and Guangzhou as a sort of counter proposal. Meanwhile at the League of Nations, Yan Huiqing was drawing attention to the Shanghai incident, obviously linking it to the Manchuria incident and advocated for Article 10 of the League of Nations Charter, which was in regards to respecting territorial integrity and political independence of league nations. The League of Nations agreed and organized a committee to investigate the Shanghai incident. On February 4th Chiang Kai-Shek would write in his diary "As long as we do not lose our national sovereignty and territory, and the Japanese invaders do not put forward unacceptable conditions, we can take advantage of the opportunity of British and American intervention to negotiate with them; we cannot take a tough stance when other countries intervene, which will lead to adverse effects." By late February US Secretary of State Henry Stimson warned Japan for the second time, that the Nine Power Treaty and other treaties had to be maintained. Then on the 23rd he sent a letter reiterating the nine-power treaty and Kellogg War Pact to the League of Nations in regards to the Shanghai situation. On the 29th, a four-point plan for mediating the Shanghai incident was adopted at the League of Nations. The objective was to swiftly establish a local ceasefire agreement with the assistance of civil and military officials from various countries present in Shanghai. Following this, a round-table meeting was to be convened with representatives from nations with vested interests in Shanghai to discuss security measures for the International Settlement, the French Concession, and the local residents, as well as to address other issues. Subsequently, representatives from Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, and other nations unanimously supported the plan, with Chinese representative Yan Huiqing and Japanese representative Sato Naotake also indicating their general agreement in principle. However, on March 2, the situation escalated when the Japanese army compelled the Chinese forces to retreat to their second line of defense. The Japanese side adopted a more aggressive stance, presenting four stringent conditions and insisting that the Chinese army withdraw first before halting their attacks. The Japanese forces were only willing to withdraw to the Shanghai and Wusong areas and refused to do so under the supervision of neutral countries, which the Chinese government firmly rejected. On March 3, the Japanese army launched another offensive. On that same day, U.S. Secretary of State Stimson summoned Japanese Ambassador to the United States Idebuchi, condemning Japan for accepting the League of Nations resolution on February 29 while simultaneously escalating military operations. On March 3rd a ceasefire came into effect as a formal meeting was held at the British consulate. The Chinese delegation was led by Guo Taiqi, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, along with military representatives Dai Ji, Huang Qiang, and seven others. The Japanese delegation included Shigemitsu Mamoru, Minister to China, and military representatives Ueda, Tashiro, and nine others. Officials from Britain, the United States, France, and other nations also participated in the meeting. During the negotiations, numerous contentious issues arose, particularly regarding the timing and location of the Japanese army's withdrawal. It would take until May 5th for a armistice agreement to be signed. The agreement designated Shanghai as a demilitarized zone, prohibiting China from stationing troops in the areas around Shanghai, Suzhou, and Kunshan, while permitting a limited number of Japanese units to remain in the city. China was permitted to maintain only a small police force within Shanghai. According to Chinese war reports, a total of 10,254 Japanese soldiers were killed or wounded in the Battle of Shanghai on January 28. According to Japanese data, a total of 3,091 Japanese soldiers were killed or wounded in the invasion of Shanghai: 620 Japanese soldiers were killed and 1,622 were wounded in the army; 149 Japanese soldiers were killed and 700 were wounded in the navy. Another Chinese report, stated the 19th Route Army and the Fifth Army suffered a total of 14,104 casualties 4,274 killed and 9,830 wounded. Among them, the 19th Route Army suffered 8,792 casualties, while the Fifth Army suffered 5,312 casualties. Shanghai residents faced bombardments from Japanese aircraft and artillery, resulting in over 6,080 fatalities, more than 2,000 injuries, 10,400 missing persons, and property losses totaling 1.6 billion yuan. At the onset of the war, the Japanese military intentionally targeted cultural institutions in Shanghai, such as the Commercial Press and the Oriental Library, leading to the total destruction of the Commercial Press, the oldest and largest publishing house in China. The Oriental Library, which housed millions of volumes, including over 100,000 rare ancient texts from the Song and Yuan dynasties and the Sikuquanshu compiled during the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty, was first devastated by artillery fire and then looted by Japanese forces. Reports from that time indicated that the Japanese army used trucks to transport the remaining books for seven consecutive days. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus what became known as the first battle of Shanghai had come to a not so swift end. Was its resolvement a victory for the League of Nations? Or was it just another indicator that the League of Nations was nothing but promises and pieces of paper? One man took notice of the Manchuria and Shanghai incidents, and he would soon bring Europe into a global war.  

Last time we spoke about the Jinzhou Operation and Defense of Harbin. After the Mukden Incident, Zhang Xueliang, despite commanding a large army, was pressured into non-resistance against Japan. As tensions escalated, the Japanese bombed Jinzhou to intimidate Zhang Xueliang and the Kwantung Army prepared to invade. By January 1, 1932, Zhang's forces retreated, marking a significant loss for China. Meanwhile, Ma Zhanshan emerged as a resistance hero, navigating complex alliances against Japanese aggression. In the face of Japanese aggression, Ding Chao rallied forces in Harbin, a crucial city in Northeast China. Together with Ma Zhanshan and other generals, they formed the Kirin self-defense army to resist the Japanese advance. Despite fierce battles, including victories at Shuiqu and Shulan, the Japanese ultimately launched a full-scale assault. After intense fighting, Harbin fell on February 5, 1932. The resistance crumbled, leading to Ma Zhanshan's defection and the establishment of the puppet state of Manchukuo.   #143 The January 28th Incident Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the words of Ron Burgundy, “phew, Boy, that escalated quickly... I mean, that really got out of hand fast”. Ishiwara Kanji unleashed the Mukden Incident, beginning a series of military conflicts. The Kwantung army invaded all three provinces of Manchuria, Ma Zhanshan tried to fight back at Heilongjiang, Ding Chao at Harbin and Zhang Xueliang at Jinhouz. All of this culminated in the conquest of Manchuria and the establishment of the new puppet state of Manchukuo. Yet another significant conflict also broke out in Shanghai of all places.  Now before we start this one I want to point out there are a lot of bias issues with how this incident began. It is known as the January 28th Incident or the First Battle of Shanghai. There are a few arguments as to how exactly it began, but the two main narratives are as such. During the invasion of Manchuria, anti-Japanese demonstrations broke out across China, particularly in large cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou. In most Japanese sources, these demonstrations got out of hand, requiring military action to defend Japanese citizens and property in Shanghai. Now as for Chinese sources, and I will say it here, I place a lot more credibility on the Chinese side on this one, during the Invasion of Manchuria, the League of Nations passed resolutions to get the Japanese to withdraw their troops and many of the members expressed support for China. Although the United States was not a member of the League, Secretary of State Stimson issued a "non-recognition" note in response to Japan's occupation of Jinzhou, aiming to pressure Japan. This isolation in the international arena heightened anxiety within the Japanese government and military, prompting them to seek conflicts in other regions of China to divert attention from their invasion of Manchuria.  Now a lot of trouble had been stirred up in Shanghai ever since the Mukden Incident broke out. Shanghai's business community initiated a boycott of Japanese trade, significantly impacting Japan's coastal and Yangtze River shipping industries. To give one example the "Nissin Steamship Company" halted all operations since the incident. Between July 1931 and the end of March 1932, Japanese merchants in Shanghai reportedly suffered losses amounting to 41,204,000 yen . To give you an idea, in 1930, Japanese goods accounted for 29% of Shanghai's average monthly imports, but by December 1931, this figure had plummeted to 3%. On October 5, 1931, the Japanese government convened a cabinet meeting, resolving that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would issue a stern warning to the National Government, with the Foreign Minister and Navy Minister overseeing the issue of ship deployment. Shanghai was the key hub for Western powers in China. It was here they made significant investments and maintained strong commercial interests in the region. The political and economic dynamics among these powers were intricate. Shanghai held the largest amount of foreign settlements and concessions. Any outbreak of war in Shanghai would inevitably capture international attention and prompt intervention from nations with vested interests, such as Britain, the United States, and France.  On October 1, Tanaka Takayoshi, the assistant military attaché at the Japanese Consulate in Shanghai and head of the Shanghai Secret Service, was summoned to Shenyang by Colonel Seishirō Itagaki who told him "Our next move is to occupy Harbin and make Manchuria independent. We have sent Colonel Doihara to pick up Puyi. If we succeed, the League of Nations will have a big fight and the Tokyo government will have a headache. I want you to do something in Shanghai to divert the attention of other countries. When you cause a commotion, we will take Manchuria." Tanaka promised to complete the task and said that he was "training an excellent spy who can bribe Chinese troublemakers in Shanghai to start this fake war".  Itagaki then withdrew 20,000 yen from the Kwantung Army's secret service funds and provided it to Tanaka for operational purposes. Now here it gets wild. Tanaka took the funds and paid a Japanese female spy named Kawashima Yoshiko, known also as Jin Bihui, but whose birthname was Aisin Giori Xianyu with the courtesy name of Dongzhen, meaning “eastern jewel”. Yes Manchu royalty, to be more precise the 14th daughter of Shanqi a Manchu prince of the Aisin Gioro clan of the former Qing Dynasty. Shanqi was a descendant of Hooge, the eldest son of Hong Taiji, it all comes full circle sometimes. After the Xinhai revolution, Xianyu was given up for adoption in 1915 to her fathers friend Naniwa Kawashima, a Japanese spy and adventurer. Thus here she took the name Yoshiko Kawashima. She was raised in Tokyo and excelled at judo and fencing. In 1922 he biological father Shanqi died and as Manchu royal tradition dictated, her biological mother committed suicide to join her husband in death. On November 22nd of 1925, Yoshiko stated the she “decided to cease being a woman forever”. Henceforth she stopped wearing a kimono, undid her traditional female hair style and took a final photo to commemorate “my farewell to life as a woman”. That same evening she went to a barbershop and got a crew cut and from there went to a men's clothing store. A photo of this dramatic transformation appeared 5 days later in the Asahi Shimbun under the headline "Kawashima Yoshiko's Beautiful Black Hair Completely Cut Off - Because of Unfounded 'Rumors,' Makes Firm Decision to Become a Man - Touching Secret Tale of Her Shooting Herself". This title was in reference to a prior scandal where she allegedly shot herself in the chest with a pistol given to her by Iwata Ainosuke. Historians believe it is much more likely she chose to become a man because of the death of her parents, failed romances or possibly sexual abuse from her foster father. Kawashima would go on to explain to a new reporter two days later "I was born with what the doctors call a tendency toward the third sex, and so I cannot pursue an ordinary woman's goals in life... Since I was young I've been dying to do the things that boys do. My impossible dream is to work hard like a man for China, for Asia." She was in fact something of a tomboy in her youth, despite being quite beautiful.  Now obviously the times being the times, those close to her were, lets just say not very receptive to this dramatic change. Thus in November of 1927, at the age of 20, her brother and adoptive father arranged her marriage in Port Arthur to one Ganjuurjab, the son of the Inner Mongolian Army General Babojab, who had led the Mongolian-Manchurian Independence Movement in 1911. The marriage lasted only three years, ending in divorce. Following this, she left Mongolia and began touring coastal cities of China before adopting a bohemian lifestyle back in Tokyo, where she had relationships with both men and women. She then moved to Shanghai's foreign concession, where she met the Japanese military attaché and intelligence officer Ryukichi Tanaka. This takes us back to our story at hand.  On the afternoon of January 18th, 1932, Yoshiko Kawashima orchestrated an incident by enlisting two Japanese Nichiren monks and three other Japanese supporters to stir up trouble at the Sanyou Industrial Company headquarters on Mayushan Road, located near the East District of the Shanghai International Settlement. The group of five Japanese individuals watched the worker volunteer army training outside the factory and threw stones to provoke a confrontation, intentionally sparking a conflict. Prior to this, Yoshiko Kawashima had also hired thugs disguised as workers to blend in with the crowd. During the altercation, the five Japanese individuals were attacked by unknown assailants. The Japanese Consulate General later reported that one of the Japanese individuals had died and another was seriously injured. However, the police were unable to apprehend the culprits, prompting Japan to accuse the Chinese factory patrol team of being behind the attack. This event became known as the "Japanese monk incident."   At 2:40 am on January 20, following orders from  Yoshiko, the military police captain Chiharu Shigeto led 32 members of the Shanghai "Japanese Youth Comrades Association in China" to sneak into the Sanyou Industrial Company factory. They brought guns, bayonets, and other weapons, along with flammable materials such as saltpeter and kerosene. Dozens of members of the Japanese Youth Association set fire to the Sanyou Industrial Society at night , and hacked to death and injured two Chinese policemen from the Municipal Council who came to organize firefighting. That afternoon, Tanaka Takayoshi instigated 1,200 Japanese expatriates to gather at the Japanese Residents' Association on Wenjianshi Road, and marched along Beichuan Road to the Japanese Marine Corps Headquarters at the north end of the road, demanding that the Japanese Marine Corps intervene. When they reached Qiujiang Road, they started rioting and attacked Chinese shops. In response, Shanghai Mayor Wu Tiecheng formally protested to Japan. Japan in return demanding a formal apology from the mayor and the apprehension of the person responsible for the death of the Japanese monk. Japan also insisted that China pay compensation for medical and funeral expenses, handle the anti-Japanese protests, and immediately disband any groups hostile to Japan. China had the option to firmly reject these unreasonable demands. On the morning of January 21, Japanese Consul General Murai Kuramatsu met with Shanghai Mayor Wu Tiecheng to express regret for the Japanese arson and the killing of Chinese police officers. He promised to arrest the Japanese ronin responsible for the fire. At the same time, he presented a formal protest regarding the "Japanese monk incident" and outlined four demands: (1) The mayor must issue an apology to the Consul General; (2) The authorities should swiftly and effectively search for, arrest, and punish the perpetrators; (3) The five victims should receive medical compensation and consolation money; (4) All illegal actions against Japan should be prohibited, with the Shanghai Anti-Japanese National Salvation Association and other anti-Japanese groups disbanded promptly.  Starting on January 22, Admiral Shiozawa of the Japanese Navy and Consul General Murai demanded that Shanghai Mayor Wu dissolve anti-Japanese groups and halt any boycott activities. Representatives of Japanese business conglomerates also filed complaints with the Shanghai International Settlement's Municipal Council, calling for an official apology from China for the offensive report and attacks on monks, and demanding that the attackers be punished. As tensions rose, the Japanese Residents Association urged Japanese naval forces in Shanghai to take measures to protect their safety. That same day Yukichi Shiozawa, Commander of the 1st Japanese Expeditionary Fleet in Shanghai, made a threatening declaration, stating that if the mayor of Shanghai failed to respond adequately to the four demands presented by Matsui, the Japanese Navy would take "appropriate action." Even before this the Japanese Navy had deployed troops and sent additional warships to Shanghai under the pretext of protecting its citizens In addition to the warships that arrived in Shanghai after the Mukden incident, the Japanese Navy sent the cruiser Oi and the 15th Destroyer Squadron (comprising four destroyers) from the mainland Wu Port on January 21. They carried over 450 personnel from the 1st Special Marine Corps along with a large supply of arms and arrived in Shanghai on January 23. The following day, the Notoro special service ship (an aircraft carrier of 14,000 tons, carrying six aircraft) anchored in Port Arthur, also arrived in Shanghai. On January 22, the Japanese government convened a meeting and decided to take appropriate measures, with Navy Minister Osumi Tsuneo handling the situation as deemed necessary. By January 25, the heads of the Japanese Navy Ministry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a joint session, where they agreed that if the Chinese side failed to demonstrate sincerity or meet Japan's demands, force would be used to ensure compliance. They also agreed on specific “emergency actions." On January 26, the Navy Ministry met again and resolved to demonstrate Japan's military strength within the next day or two. The proposed measures were as follows: (1) If the Shanghai garrison was insufficient, the Second Fleet would be deployed; (2) Japanese citizens in Shanghai would be directly protected; (3) The Japanese Navy would secure the route from Wusong to Shanghai; (4) All Chinese vessels would be detained outside Wusongkou; (5) Additional warships would be sent to ports in Nanjing, Hankou, Guangzhou, Shantou, Xiamen, and other locations, with civil unrest in those areas also being addressed. Emperor Hirohito authorized the Japanese Navy's military actions. On the 26th, Hirohito's military meeting, led by Chief of Staff Prince Kan'in (Prince Zaihito), ordered Yukichi Shiozawa in Shanghai to "exercise the right of self-defense." That same day, the Japanese Navy Ministry urgently deployed the 1st Torpedo Squadron (flagship "Yubari" cruiser, accompanied by the 22nd, 23rd, and 30th Destroyer Squadrons, totaling 12 destroyers), with over 460 personnel from the 2nd Special Marine Corps, which arrived in Shanghai on the afternoon of January 28. By this time, the Japanese military had gathered 24 warships, over 40 aircraft, more than 1,830 marines, and between 3,000 to 4,000 armed personnel in Shanghai, stationed across the Japanese concession and along the Huangpu River. On January 28, the Japanese Navy Ministry instructed the deployment of the aircraft carriers Kaga and Hosho, the cruisers Naka, Yura, and Abukuma, and four mine carriers from the mainland to Shanghai. Back on the 24th, 1932, Japanese intelligence agents set fire to the residence of the Japanese Ambassador to China, Shigemitsu Mamoru, in Shanghai, falsely accusing the Chinese of the act. On the 27th, Murai issued an ultimatum to the Shanghai authorities, demanding a satisfactory response to four conditions by 18:00 on the 28th, threatening necessary actions if the deadline was not met. Meanwhile, with threats and rumors of a Japanese naval landing circulating in Shanghai, the nearby 19th route army units moved closer to the International Settlement's Little Tokyo. The 19th Route Army of the Guangdong Army was in charge of defending Shanghai at the time, with Jiang Guangnai serving as the commander-in-chief and Cai Tingkai as the commander. Chen Mingshu, the leader of the 19th Route Army and commander of the Beijing-Shanghai garrison, was a strong proponent of responding to the Japanese army's provocations. The Chinese public, along with critics of the Nanjing government, called for punishment of the Manchurian warlord forces who had failed to halt the Kwantung Army's blitzkrieg, which encouraged officers of the 19th Route army to take a firm stance. As the Nanjing government had not enacted any policies, General Cai Tingkai and his colleagues convened an emergency meeting on January 23, pledging to resist any potential Japanese naval invasion of Shanghai at all costs. Now the Nanjing government response to this crisis was quite chaotic as you can imagine. There was still a anti communist campaign going on, Manchuria was being taken over and Chiang Kai-Shek fully understood they could ill afford an all out war with Japan. There was a general feeling things were getting out of hand, the league of nations were failing to do anything. Thus Chiang Kai-Shek retained his passive stance. On January 23rd after extensive consultations with Wang Jingwei and Chiang Kai-shek, newly appointed Executive Yuan President Sun Ke urgently telegraphed Shanghai Mayor Wu Tiecheng. "Our priority should be the preservation of Shanghai as the economic center, adopting a moderate stance towards Japan's demands. We must immediately gather all sectors to diplomatically explain our position and avoid conflict to prevent Shanghai from being seized by force." That same day, Minister of Military Affairs He Yingqin also sent a telegram to Wu Tiecheng, emphasizing, "Shanghai is our economic hub, and we must continue peaceful negotiations and avoid conflict." On that same day He Yingqin instructed the 19th Route Army to withdraw from Shanghai and relocate west of Nanxiang within five days. Zhang Jingjiang then invited Cai Tingkai to Du Yuesheng's home, where he convinced the 19th Route Army to "withdraw to the Nanxiang area to avoid confrontation with the Japanese." Upon learning of the Nationalist government's position, both Chiang Kai-shek and Cai Ying-ying were disappointed, but they expressed willingness to follow military orders and withdraw from Shanghai. As Chiang Guangnai put it, "We must simply obey the government's orders." On the afternoon of January 27, Chief of Staff Zhu Peide and Minister of Military Affairs He Yingqin deployed the 6th Military Police Regiment to assume responsibility for defending the 19th Route Army's positions in the Zhabei area of Shanghai. The regiment departed Nanjing Station at 8 pm on January 27, reaching Zhenru by noon on the 28th. The first battalion arrived at Shanghai North Station that afternoon, preparing to take over defense from the 6th Regiment of the 156th Brigade of the 78th Division of the 19th Route Army in Zhabei at dawn on January 29. Back on the 27th, after Murai issued an ultimatum to the Chinese authorities in Shanghai, Mayor Wu Tiecheng, responding to a request from both the Nanjing National Government and various sectors of Shanghai, sent a letter on the 28th at 13:45 accepting all the unreasonable demands made by the Japanese. Later, at 11:05 pm the Shanghai Public Security Bureau received a response from Murai, which was directed to both Mayor Wu Tiecheng and the head of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau. In the letter, Murai expressed "satisfaction" with Shanghai's acceptance of Japan's four demands, but also insisted on the withdrawal of Chinese troops from Zhabei, citing the need to protect overseas Chinese. Wu Tiecheng received this response at 11:25 pm At 11:30 pm, without waiting for a reply from the Chinese side, the Japanese military launched an attack on the Chinese garrison in Zhabei. In response, Weng Zhaoyuan's troops from the 156th Brigade of the 78th Division of the 19th Route Army, along with part of the 6th Regiment of the Military Police that had been sent to reinforce the defense, fought back.  During the January 28 Incident, the 19th Route Army, stationed in the Beijing-Shanghai area, was the Chinese military force involved. Following the September 18 Incident, Chiang Kai-shek entered into negotiations with the Guangdong faction. As part of these discussions between Nanjing and Guangdong, the Guangdong side proposed that Chen Mingshu, a Cantonese leader, be appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Beijing-Shanghai garrison. On September 30, 1931, Chiang Kai-shek agreed to this proposal. Consequently, the 19th Route Army, under Chen Mingshu's command, was transferred from Ganzhou, Jiangxi, where it had been stationed after the September 18 Incident (following Chiang's decision to halt "suppressing the Communists"), to defend the Beijing-Shanghai area. By November, the army was fully deployed along the Beijing-Shanghai line. The military leadership included Jiang Guangnai as commander-in-chief, Cai Tingkai as army commander, and Dai Ji as the garrison commander. The army was composed of the 60th Division, led by Shen Guanghan, stationed in Suzhou and Changzhou; the 61st Division, led by Mao Weishou, stationed in Nanjing and Zhenjiang; and the 78th Division, led by Qu Shounian, stationed in Shanghai, Wusong, Kunshan, and Jiading. The total strength of the army was over 33,000 soldiers. By early November, after the 19th Route Army had secured the Beijing and Shanghai areas, the military leadership, influenced by the Shanghai populace's strong anti-Japanese sentiment, resolved to resist the impending Japanese invasion. On January 15th the 19th Route Army assessed intelligence indicating an inevitable Japanese attack and began preparing for defense, less than two weeks before the invasion. On th 19th Jiang Guangnai convened a meeting of the 19th Route Army officers in Shanghai. During the meeting, several strategic policies were decided, as recalled by Cai Tingkai. These included. Maintaining an invisible state of alert in response to potential enemy harassment. Ensuring that frontline units were adequately reinforced, with Qu Shounian's division tasked with holding for at least five days. Rapidly constructing fortifications in each defense zone, while rear units pre-select lines of resistance. Ensuring that the 60th and 61st divisions could reinforce Shanghai within five days of the start of hostilities. Establishing a stance on the Shanghai Concession. Issuing an order that, starting January 20, no officers or soldiers were to remain in the concession unless on official duty. On January 23, 1932, under mounting pressure from Japan, Chen Mingshu, Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, and others issued a "Letter to All Officers and Soldiers of the 19th Route Army," urging a great spirit of sacrifice. On the same day, the army issued a secret combat order, stating that they must be fully prepared for war to defend the nation. If the Japanese attacked, all efforts should be focused on repelling them. The 19th Route Army was poised to resist the Japanese invasion in the Songhu area.   On January 24, 1932, Cai Tingkai and his colleagues arrived in Suzhou and held an emergency meeting with senior garrison commanders, including Shen Guanghan, to communicate the secret order issued on January 23. The generals unanimously supported the directive. However, under pressure from the National Government to avoid war, Chiang, Cai, and others reluctantly agreed to comply with an order to withdraw from Shanghai. They ordered the Zhabei garrison to exchange duties with the 6th Military Police Regiment on the morning of January 29. Due to the tense situation, the commander of the 156th Brigade of the 78th Division instructed the 6th Regiment at Zhabei to remain on high alert. At 11:00 PM on January 28, Dai Ji also ordered strict vigilance to prevent the Japanese army from occupying Zhabei during the guard change, instructing all units to take their positions and be on high alert. At 11:30 pm on January 28, 1932, Major General Shiozawa and the Japanese Marine Corps unexpectedly attacked the Chinese garrison located on the west side of North Sichuan Road. In response, the 6th Regiment of the 156th Brigade of the 19th Route Army, commanded by Zhang Junsong, promptly initiated a strong counteroffensive. At that moment, the Japanese forces, spearheaded by over 20 armored vehicles, split into five groups and launched assaults from different intersections in Zhabei. Upon receiving news of the Japanese attack, Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, and Dai Ji hurried to Zhenru Station on foot during the night, established a temporary command center, and instructed the rear troops to advance swiftly to Shanghai as per the original plan. At dawn on the 29th, the Japanese forces launched a series of intense assaults, supported by armored vehicles. Aircraft from the carrier "Notoro" bombed the Zhabei and Nanshi districts, leading to rapid escalation of the conflict. The 156th Brigade of the defending forces fiercely resisted the Japanese advances, using cluster grenades against the enemy's armored units and organizing stealth squads to sabotage enemy vehicles. They held their positions and counterattacked at opportune moments under artillery cover, successfully repelling the relentless Japanese assaults. According to Japanese accounts, the battle was described as "extremely fierce, with fires raging everywhere, flames filling the sky, and the battlefield in a state of devastation." At around 10 am, Japanese aircraft dropped bombs, causing the Commercial Press and the Oriental Library to catch fire, resulting in the destruction of over 300,000 books, including many rare ancient texts. More than a thousand Japanese soldiers, shielded by heavy artillery and armored vehicles, launched a vigorous attack at the intersection of Baoshan Road and Qiujiang Road, aiming to seize the Shanghai North Railway Station. This station was a crucial land transport hub, and its control was vital for the safety of the entire Zhabei area. At 2 pm on the 29th, taking advantage of the chaos at the North Station, the Japanese forces mounted a fierce assault. A company from our military police engaged in combat with the Japanese for an hour before withdrawing from the station. By 5 pm on the 29th, the main force of the 156th Brigade entered the fray and launched a counteroffensive, reclaiming both the North Station and Tiantong'an Station. They pressed their advantage and captured the Japanese Shanghai Marine Corps Headquarters, forcing the Japanese troops to retreat east of North Sichuan Road and south of Target Road. The initial Japanese offensive ended in defeat. Following the setback, British and American consuls intervened to mediate in the afternoon of the 29th (the Shanghai government stated it was at the request of the Japanese consuls, while the League of Nations report indicated it was initiated by the mayor of Shanghai). The Chinese and Japanese forces agreed to cease hostilities at 8 pm that night. Although the 19th Route Army recognized this as a delaying tactic, they consented to the ceasefire to allow for troop redeployment. Concurrently, the 19th Route Army strengthened their positions, urgently ordering the 60th Division from east of Zhenjiang to move into Nanxiang and Zhenru, while transferring the 61st Division to Shanghai. The 78th Division, stationed in Shanghai, was fully mobilized to the front lines to bolster defenses and prepare for further combat. Following the ceasefire, the Japanese army made significant efforts to bolster its forces. The Japanese Navy Ministry promptly dispatched four destroyers from the Sasebo 26th Squadron, under the command of the cruiser "Tatsuta," to reach Shanghai on January 30 and dock at Huangpu Wharf. Accompanying the vessels were 474 soldiers from the Sasebo 3rd Special Marine Corps, along with a substantial supply of ammunition. On the morning of January 31, the Japanese aircraft carriers Kaga and Hosho reached Shanghai, bringing approximately 30 aircraft from the First Air Fleet. They anchored off the coast of the Ma'an Islands, about 130 kilometers east of Shanghai. By 4 pm, three cruisers Naka , Yura , and Abukuma along with four torpedo boats arrived in Shanghai, transporting over 2,000 marines who disembarked in groups. On February 1, the Japanese cruise ship "Terukoku Maru," carrying the Yokosuka 1st Special Marine Corps 525 men, docked at Shanghai Huishan Wharf. On the 2nd, the Japanese Navy Central Headquarters established the Third Fleet with ships from the First Overseas Fleet in the Yangtze River area, with the Izumo serving as the flagship (the Izumo arrived in Shanghai on February 6) under the command of Vice Admiral Yoshisaburo Nomura, to execute coordinated military operations. Following the reinforcement of Japanese forces, they resumed attacks on Chinese defenders in Zhabei, Baziqiao, and other locations on February 3 but were still repelled. On February 4, the Japanese launched their first major offensive, expanding the conflict to Jiangwan and Wusong. After a day of intense fighting, the Wusong open-air artillery fort suffered destruction from enemy bombardment, yet the Chinese defenders successfully prevented a Japanese landing. The anti-aircraft artillery unit from the 88th Division, assigned to the 4th Regiment of the 156th Brigade of the 19th Route Army, shot down a Japanese aircraft. Following the failure of the general offensive, Yukiichi Shiozawa was relieved of his command and sent back to Japan. Vice Admiral Yoshisaburo Nomura, the newly appointed commander of the Third Fleet, took over Shiozawa's position. Upon his appointment, the Japanese military began to bolster its forces. Even before the situation in Shanghai escalated, Japan had planned to deploy ground troops, but this was initially rejected by the navy. However, as the situation deteriorated, the navy had to request assistance from the army. On February 2, the Japanese cabinet officially decided to deploy ground forces. Due to the urgent circumstances in Shanghai, they resolved to send the Shanghai Dispatch Mixed Brigade, led by Major General Shimomoto Kuma and the 9th Division, led by Lieutenant General Ueda Kenkichi, with the Shanghai Dispatch Mixed Brigade and the Second Independent Tank Squadron being transported first. Concurrently, the Japanese Navy dispatched the Yokosuka 2nd Special Marine Corps to Shanghai. The 24th Mixed Brigade landed in Wusong on the afternoon of February 7.  Now within the backdrop of all of this Nanjing was certainly freaking out. What had started as a small incident, had escalated into a full blown battle. The Japanese were continuously sending reinforcements, and now so was China. Chiang Kai-Shek had recently resigned and came back as Generalissimo ushering in the slogan "first internal pacification, then external resistance." With that he had led a massive campaign against the Jiangxi Soviet, while avoiding a frontal war against Japan. Obviously this led to wide scale protest in China, which in turn contributed to this new incident in Shanghai. The Shanghai incident was certainly disrupting Chiang Kai-Shek's offensives against the communists, allowing those like Hu Hanmin's Guangdong based 19th Route Army to deal with the Japanese at Shanghai. Yet how long could Chiang Kai-Shek keep this up? Should he divert all attention to the Japanese? Will he step down again in shame for not facing the encroaching foreign empire?  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The January 28th Incident was yet another powder keg like moment for the very vulnerable and still fractured Chinese nation. Chiang Kai-Shek had internal enemies left-right and center and now the Empire of Japan was pressing its luck to keep seizing more and more from his nation. What was the Generalissimo to do in the face of these insurmountable odds?   

Last time we spoke about the first Tientsin Incident. In September 1931, as tensions rose between China and Japan, Commander Zhang Xueliang enjoyed an opera in Beiping, unaware of the impending Mukden Incident. With senior commanders absent, Japanese forces quickly gained local support. Chiang Kai-shek ordered non-resistance, fearing conflict would ruin Northeast China. Meanwhile, Japanese officials plotted to install Puyi as a puppet emperor. Covert riots erupted in Tianjin, orchestrated by the Japanese, leaving the city in chaos as Zhang's forces struggled to maintain order against the well-armed attackers. In a tense standoff at Haiguang Temple, the Japanese military issued an ultimatum to Chinese security forces, citing threats to overseas Chinese. Wang Shuchang ordered a strategic withdrawal, but the Japanese escalated with artillery fire. Despite fierce resistance, the plainclothes attackers regrouped, leading to ongoing skirmishes. Amidst the chaos, Puyi was covertly extracted by Japanese forces, paving the way for the establishment of the puppet state of Manchukuo. Ultimately, Japan's aggression continued, deepening tensions in China.   #142 the Jinzhou Operation  Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. When the Mukden Incident occurred, Zhang Xueliang was in Beiping serving in his capacity as the commander of the North China garrison. On the night of September 18, he was at the opera enjoying a performance by the famous singer Mei Lanfang. His deputies were also away from Shenyang: Wan Fulin was in Beiping, and Zhang Zuoxiang was attending his father's funeral in Jinzhou. With the absence of the senior provincial commanders during the Incident, the Japanese quickly gained cooperation from the acting commanders. In Shenyang, Yu Zhishan, the commander of the Eastern Borders Garrison, and in Changchun, acting provincial forces commander Xi Xia, both swiftly aligned themselves with the Japanese. Although the Northeastern Army had approximately 130,000 troops in the region compared to a Japanese force of 40,000 to 50,000, Chiang Kai-shek urgently issued a non-resistance order to the Northeastern troops, which Zhang Xueliang confirmed. It was actually his stance prior to September 18th, as there had been other incidents such as the Wanbaoshan Incident whereupon Zhang Xueliang sent a secret telegram to his subordinates starting on July 6, "If we go to war with Japan at this time, we will surely be defeated. If we lose, Japan will demand that we cede territory and pay compensation, and Northeast China will be ruined. We should avoid conflict as soon as possible and deal with it in the name of justice." A month after this Chiang Kai-Shek sent a telegram to Zhang Xueliang on August 16th "No matter how the Japanese army seeks trouble in Northeast China in the future, we should not resist and avoid conflict. My brother, please do not act out of anger and disregard the country and the nation. I hope you will follow my instructions." As the tensions between China and Japan increased on September 6th Zhang Xueliang sent this telegram to his subordinates "It has been found that the Japanese diplomatic situation is becoming increasingly tense. We must deal with everything and strive for stability. No matter how the Japanese try to cause trouble, we must be tolerant and not resist them to avoid causing trouble. I hope you will send a secret telegram to all your subordinates to pay close attention to this matter." Thus the Manchurian commanders were already well versed in what their stance would be. Chiang Kai-shek's hesitation to engage in combat is understandable; he was concerned about factions opposing him in South China, the potential reformation of the alliance between Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan in North China, and the threat posed by the CCP in Jiangxi, leaving him unable to confront another adversary. Zhang Xueliang's situation was also not as advantageous as it might seem. Although he commanded nearly 250,000 men, only 100,000 to 130,000 were stationed in the Northeast, with the remainder in Hebei. Both Chiang Kai-Shek and Zhang Xueliang most likely believed the League of Nations or the Wakatsuki government in Tokyo would restrain the occupiers eventually, so they were biding their time. According to Nelson Johnson, the American Minister in China, Counselor Yano of the Japanese Legation in Beiping had informal discussions with Zhang, suggesting that Jinzhou would inevitably succumb to the Japanese and that “the Tokyo Foreign Office would gain prestige and be better able to shape events to China's advantage if the Chinese avoided a clash by withdrawing voluntarily.” It was also implied that some of Zhang's supporters might be reinstated in official roles in the new government in Shenyang. Johnson concluded, “Chang is believed to have been led to his present decision by these inducements, along with the bitter hostility toward him at Nanking and the lack of support from that quarter.” In essence, Zhang was effectively coerced into non-resistance by both sides. Certainly, in December 1931, with no hope for international intervention and the Nanjing government in turmoil following Chiang Kai-shek's temporary resignation, Zhang's options were severely limited. The Kwantung Army received clear instructions not to move beyond the South Manchurian railway zone, which hindered the plans of Lt. Colonel Ishiwara Kanji, the architect of the Manchurian invasion. After securing the region around the South Manchurian railway, Ishiwara focused his attention on Jinzhou. Following the fall of Mukden, Jinzhou became the administrative headquarters and civil government of Zhang Xueliang, making it a focal point for Chinese forces. Jinzhou is the southernmost part of Liaoning province, directly enroute to Shanhaiguan, the critical pass that separates Manchuria from China proper. It was the furthest point Zhang Xueliang could establish an HQ while still holding foot within Manchuria and thus became the defacto “last stand” or “guanwai” outside the Shanhaiguan pass for Zhang Xueliangs Northeastern army. Japanese sources indicate that Zhang Xueliang began covertly instructing local governments in Manchuria to comply with and pay taxes to Jinzhou. He also dispatched spies to Japanese-occupied territories and was conspiring to assassinate Japanese officials and those opposed to Chiang Kai-shek. Obviously Jinzhou had to be seized to control Liaoning and thus all of Manchuria. The Japanese first tried to bully Jinzhou into submission by bombing it. On October 8th, Ishiwara commanded five captured Chinese aircraft from the 10th Independent Air Squadron, flying from Mukden to conduct a raid on Jinzhou, claiming it was merely a reconnaissance mission. They flew over Jinzhou at approximately 1:40 PM and dropped 75 bombs weighing 25 kg each, targeting the barracks of the 28th Division, government buildings, and Zhang Xueliang's residence. Additionally, they took photographs of the Chinese defensive positions. The attack served two main purposes: to intimidate Zhang Xueliang and to send a message to Tokyo HQ. The bombing of Jinzhou caused an uproar in Tokyo and shocked the League of Nations, which had previously been indifferent to the situation. Consequently, Tokyo HQ felt compelled to retroactively approve the Kwantung attacks while simultaneously demanding an end to further actions. Rumors began to circulate that Ishiwara and his associate Itagaki aimed to establish an independent Manchuria as a base for a coup d'état against the Japanese government, intending to initiate a Showa Restoration. On October 18th, War Minister Minami Jiro sent a telegram to the Kwantung Army, ordering them to halt offensives in Manchuria and dispatched Colonel Imamura Hitoshi to ensure Ishiwara and Itagaki ceased their reckless operations. However, when Hitoshi met with the two men at a restaurant in Mukden, they dismissed him. In reality, Ishiwara and Itagaki's plans were in jeopardy, but in early November, they found a pretext for action after Ma Zhanshan's forces damaged the Nenjiang railway bridge. This hostility provided them with justification to invade Heilongjiang alongside their allies, led by General Zhang Haipeng. Following the occupation of the north, a new opportunity arose in the southwest. The "first Tientsin incident" erupted on November 9th, initiated by Colonel Doihara Kenji with assistance from some Anti-Chiang Kai-shek Chinese. A small contingent launched an attack on the peace preservation corps in Tientsin. Doihara devised this plan with the intention of creating chaos to kidnap the former Manchu emperor Puyi, allowing the Kwantung army to later install him as the ruler of a new Manchurian state. Although Doihara sought reinforcements from Tokyo HQ, his request was denied, prompting him to turn to the Kwantung army for support. They agreed to coordinate an attack on Tientsin but insisted that a pretext be established first. To execute this plan, they would need to capture Jinzhou initially. A second Tientsin incident occurred on November 26th, when Chinese soldiers attacked the Japanese barracks in Tientsin at 8:20 PM, marking another false flag operation orchestrated by Doihara. Upon hearing the news, General Honjo Shigeru chose to support the Tientsin army, which they believed was in peril. The 4th Mixed Brigade and the 2nd Infantry Battalion of the 2nd Division, comprising 10,000 troops, advanced toward 13 armored vehicles stationed along the Peiping-Mukden railway. The Kwantung Army also requested assistance from the Korean Army, and Commander Hayashi organized a mixed brigade to cross the border. Of course in order to provide assistance at Tientsin meant heading through the Shanhaiguan pass and this meant going through Jinzhou. Tokyo General HQ was yet again thrown into consternation by the latest aggravation of the Manchurian crisis. Incensed by the Kwantung Army's “lack of sincerity in submitting to the discipline of Tokyo”. The force got within 30km of Jinzhou when War Minister General Jiro Minami ordered them to immediately withdraw to a line east of the Liao river. Ironically what actually made the Kwantung Army comply was not so much Tokyo's authority but rather the refusal or foot dragging of the Korea Army, who sent a message that they were unwilling to attack Jinzhou. The Kwantung army continued on getting into some skirmishes with Chinese defenders around the Taling River and Takushan as Tokyo HQ sent countless furious messages demanding they withdraw from the Jinzhou area and by the 28th they finally did. Facing the real possibility that the Jinzhou operation might devolve into a fiasco without reinforcements, Ishiwara relented, remarking at the time “Tokyo has collapsed before Jinzhou”. There was another factor at play as well. Some have speculated Ishiwara tossed his hand on the field initiative because he was playing for time, expecting the Japanese government to fall and the substitution of a new team at central army HQ, one perhaps more compliant to the aggressive Kwantung Army.    While the Japanese forces pulled back into the SMR zone, Prime Minister Wakatsuki Reijiro began negotiations with Chiang Kai-Shek's Nanjing government, through the League of Nations, suggesting the Jinzhou area be declared a neutral area. The Chinese initially refused, and while the Kwantung Army declared they would not attack, they still sent aircraft to circle Jinzhou. The Chinese, British, American, and French governments were willing to withdraw their troops from Jinzhou to Shanhaiguan if the Manchurian incident was resolved and Japan committed to not infringing upon the area.    Consequently, Tokyo's headquarters supported this approach and instructed the Kwantung Army to withdraw. Although Zhang Xueliang had assured that his forces would leave Jinzhou by December 7th, this did not occur. As a result, the Japanese began discussions to establish Jinzhou as a neutral zone. The Kwantung army intercepted two Chinese telegrams indicating Zhang Xueliang was strengthening the defenses at Jinzhou and that Nanjing was requesting he not pull his men out. The telegrams were sent to Tokyo HQ who agreed the Chinese were acting in a treacherous manner. The Japanese ambassador then told US Secretary Henry Stimson  “it would be very difficult to withhold the army from advancing again.” Stimson replied “ such actions would convince the American public that Japan's excuse for her incursions, namely that she was combating bandit attacks, was a ruse to destroy the last fragment of Chinese authority in Manchuria. It would be extremely difficult to ask China to withdraw her army from her own territory.” Thus began the Jinzhou Crisis.   On the same day the Japanese ambassador was meeting Stimson in Washington, the Nationalist minister of finance, T.V Soong sent a telegram to Zhang Xueliang advising “any Japanese attack on Jinzhou should be offered utmost resistance.” Also the American Minister in China, Nelson Johnson publicly expressed the view that Zhang Xueliang would resist at Jinzhou if attacked “if only to reassure the students and public in general, some of whom clamor for military action, despite the attitude of his old generals of the Fengtian clique who desire his resignation to enable them to sell out to the Japanese”.   It had become clear to all observers that the Japanese were intent on capturing Jinzhou, whether they were justified to do so or not. Their tactics of intimidation became even bolder as they began dropping air torpedoes on disused sections of railway track on December 10th, disrupting traffic along the Beiping-Shenyang rail route and hinting that the nearby populated areas might be next. Ishiwara's hopes came true on December 13th, whence Prime Minister Wakatsuki resigned on December 11th, having failed to control the Kwantung Army. A new cabinet was formed under Prime Minister Tsuyoshi Inukai, whom resumed negotiations with Nanjing, but then on December 15th, Chiang Kai-Shek resigned as chairman of the Nanjing government, leading Sun Ke to lead a weak interim government. Preoccupied with its own survival, the Nanjing government had no time to deal with the Jinzhou crisis.   Meanwhile War Minister Minami and Chief of staff Kanaya who had tried to moderate the Kwantung Army's aggressive initiatives had been replaced by Araki Sadao, a significantly more aggressive leader who happened to be the leading figure of the Kodoha faction. His counterpart was Prince Kan'in. With these new appointments, the atmosphere in Tokyo general HQ had changed dramatically. The new team elected to change the framing of the situation, they were not performing offensives against Chinese forces, but rather “suppressing bandits”. On December 15th, Tokyo HQ telegraphed Mukden instructing the Kwantung Army to “synchronize an assault on Jinzhou with an attack upon bandits”. Tokyo HQ even agreed to send some reinforcements from Korea and Japan. The 20th IJA division, the 38th mixed brigade of the 19th division crossed the border from Korea and the 8th mixed brigade, 10th division came over from Japan. With this the Kwantung army had been bolstered to around 60,450men.    On December 17th, the Japanese launched attacks on what they referred to as "soldier bandits" in Fak'u and Ch'angtuhsien, which was actually a precursor to their assault on Jinzhou. The following day, December 18th, Japanese aircraft bombed Daonglio, resulting in the deaths of three Chinese civilians and causing widespread panic in the city. The Japanese actions were all the more effective when concentrated with the absolute paralysis that had gripped China. Sun Ke was too preoccupied with the survival of his own government and had neither the time nor resources to spare for Manchuria. In addition, Stimson's strong words in private to the Japanese ambassador belied the State Department's public attitude toward interference in the conflict. On December 21st Hawkling Yen, the Chinese charge in Washington met with Stanley Hornback, the chief of the department of Far Eastern Affairs. Yen told Hornback that a Japanese attack on Jinzhou was imminent and asked the US to “protest in anticipate of it”. Hornbeck refused, stating the State Department was “already publicly on record with regard to the matter”. No other Western power was ready to advocate any strong measures against the Japanese either.   On the 22nd, the Japanese HQ at Shenyang announced they would soon begin an anti-bandit advance west of the Liao River and would remove any who interfered with said operation. They also added that if any Chinese forces at Jinzhou withdrew they would be left unmolested. By December 26th, all preparations for the assault on Jinzhou were finalized. On December 28th, Honjo initiated an "anti-bandit" campaign west of the Liao River. While Honjo publicly claimed they were merely "clearing the country of bandits,”. As the Japanese forces and their collaborationist allies spread across the South Manchurian railway area to eliminate remaining pockets of resistance, the 12th Division, led by Lt. General Jiro Tamon advanced from Mukden toward Jinzhou, supported by numerous bomber squadrons. Japanese intelligence estimated that Zhang Xueliang had 84,000 troops defending the city, along with 58 artillery pieces and two distinct defensive lines. The first line, located 20 miles north of Jinzhou, consisted of trenches designed to impede the Japanese advance at the Taling River Bridge on the Peiping-Mukden Railway. The second line was a series of earthworks and fortifications completely surrounding Jinzhou. The temperature was -30 degrees, and the Imperial Japanese Army troops were dressed in white winter camouflage uniforms. IJA reconnaissance aircraft reported approximately 3,000 Honghuzi were waiting to ambush them in Panshan County. Tamon's forces quickly overcame the alleged Honghuzi in a series of small skirmishes and continued their march toward Goubangzi, 50 km north of Jinzhou. It should be noted, many question whether the Honghuzi were real or simply local Chinese the Japanese coerced into action to justify their advance. By December 31, the Japanese vanguard had reached within 15 km of Jinzhou, along the banks of the Talin River. Tamon paused to allow the rest of the 2nd Division to catch up. Subsequently, Tamon's troops began setting up an intricate system of microphones to broadcast the sounds of the impending battle to Tokyo. This tactic appeared to be an attempt to demoralize the defenders, which proved effective as Zhang Xueliang's forces began to withdraw. On December 30, Zhang Xueliang had issued the order to retreat from Jinzhou. Two days later, the American Minister in China, Nelson Johnson, reported the following scene: “Jinzhou Railway station resembles beehive, every possible car being pressed into service and loaded with troops, animals, baggage, to last inch space.” The last Chinese troop train departed Jingzhou at 11 am on January 1st carrying away the final remnants of Zhang Xueliang's authority in Manchuria. The assault on Jinzhou occurred at a particularly inopportune moment for China. Chiang Kai-shek was temporarily out of office, lacking the full support of the Nanjing government and many generals. It is likely that Chiang Kai-shek understood that Zhang Xueliang's forces in Jinzhou would be significantly outmatched and could be annihilated. His priority was to prevent the situation from escalating into an official war, allowing him to strengthen China's military capabilities for a counteroffensive. Following the fall of Jinzhou, the northern China army retreated south of the Great Wall into Hebei Province. The Japanese then occupied Shanhaiguan, securing complete control over southern Manchuria. Despite the fall of Jinzhou there was still one last holdout in Manchuria. After Ma Zhanshan was driven out of Qiqihar by the Japanese, he led his troops northeast to establish a new HQ in Hailun where he was still technically ruling Heilongjiang province. Ma Zhanshan had gained international recognition as a resistance hero following his ill-fated battle at Qiqihar. The Kwantung Army took note of his fame and adjusted their strategies accordingly. Komai Tokuzo, the head of the Kwantung Board of Control, suggested that bringing Ma Zhanshan into their ranks would provide a significant propaganda advantage. To persuade him to negotiate with the Kwantung Army, they sent a local factory owner, Han Yunje. On December 7th, Colonel Itagaki Seishiro met with Ma Zhanshan in Hailun. Itagaki expressed that the Japanese aimed for two objectives: peace in East Asia and full cooperation between the Chinese and Japanese. He also mentioned that the officers of the Kwantung Army were impressed by Ma's remarkable bravery and were willing to grant him military command over Heilongjiang, provided they reached an agreement. In response, Ma Zhanshan stated that his forces had acted solely in self-defense and that he was bound by the orders of the Nanjing government. Itagaki then suggested Ma Zhanshan might be appointed military commander of the province under the provincial governor in Qiqihar, Zhang Jinghui. To this Ma Zhanshan replied “as Hailun is not very far from Harbin, he could consult with General Zhang Jinghui over the telephone or pay a call on the latter in person, and that a second trip to Hailun by the Japanese representative would not be necessary.” Despite Ma's position, Itagaki felt satisfied with the meeting, believing that Ma Zhanshan might align with them. However, he was constrained by anti-Japanese colleagues like his chief of staff Xie Ke and battalion commander Tang Fengjia. The situation shifted significantly for Ma Zhanshan when Zhang Xueliang withdrew his forces from Jinzhou. On December 7th, Itagaki and Ma met once more, during which Ma expressed his desire to serve as both the military leader and governor of Heilongjiang. Unbeknownst to the Japanese, Ma Zhanshan was secretly in discussions with another resistance leader, General Ding Chao. When Ma Zhanshan initiated his resistance against the Japanese, Ding Chao decided to take similar action in the northern city of Harbin. Harbin serves as the gateway to Northeast China and is the political, economic, and cultural hub of North Manchuria. It functions not only as the center of the Sino-Soviet co-managed Middle East Railway but also as an international marketplace where Chinese and foreigners coexist. The city houses the Special Administrative Region of the Three Eastern Provinces (with Daoli under this region and Daowai belonging to Jilin Province). Following the Mukden Incident, the Japanese army considered attacking Harbin; however, concerns about potential Soviet interference led to the plan being halted by Army Minister Minami Jiro. Harbin had largely remained peaceful, and the Japanese maintained control by appointing the puppet General Xi Qia as the governor of Kirin province. Together with Li Du, Xing Zhangqing, Zhao Yi, and Feng Zhanhai, Ding Chao formed the Kirin self-defense army to thwart the takeover of Harbin and Kirin province. Ma Zhanshan supported Ding Chao, and both generals kept in touch with Zhang Xueliang and Chiang Kai-shek, who could only offer limited support. In November of the same year, the Jilin Provincial Anti-Japanese Government, chaired by Cheng Yun, was established in Bin County. Feng Zhanhai, the head of the guard regiment at the Northeast Frontier Defense Army's deputy commander-in-chief office in Jilin, refused to surrender to the Japanese forces. He rallied over 3,000 members of his regiment to resist the Japanese and rebel forces. They marched from Yongji County in Jilin Province to Shulan County, where they joined forces with the national salvation armies led by Gong Changhai and Yao Bingqian, which were based on green forest armed groups, to create the Jilin Anti-Japanese National Salvation Army, with Feng as the commander. On November 12, the Jilin Provincial Provisional Government was established in Bin County . Feng Zhanhai was appointed as the garrison commander and commander of the 1st Brigade. The units led by Gong and Yao were reorganized into cavalry brigades under Feng's command. This series of anti-Japanese actions significantly boosted the fighting spirit of the people in Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces. To launch an attack on Harbin, the Japanese Kwantung Army first needed to "punish" the anti-Japanese armed forces by force. To eliminate Feng's anti-Japanese forces, the Japanese puppet authorities dispatched Yu Shencheng, the commander of the Jilin "bandit suppression" unit, to lead the puppet army in an offensive aimed at seizing Harbin as a base to control the Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces. Feng Zhanhai's troops strategically abandoned Shulan City to lure the enemy deeper into the area. The puppet army fell into a trap and launched a major assault on Yao Bingqian's brigade stationed in Shuiquliu, which fiercely resisted the attack. On the same day, Gong Changhai's brigade maneuvered around to the rear of the puppet army for a surprise attack, while Yao's brigade counterattacked from the front. The puppet army's Ma Xilin brigade retreated, unable to be halted by the Japanese supervisory team. At this point, Feng Zhanhai led another brigade into the fray, pursuing Ma's brigade. After another seven hours of intense fighting, Shulan was retaken. In this battle, the garrison inflicted nearly 1,000 casualties on Japanese and puppet troops, captured hundreds, and saw many puppet soldiers defect. The battles of Shuiqu and Shulan were thus victorious. On the 16th, Yu Shencheng's puppet forces were defeated by the 25th Brigade of the Northeast Army in Yushu. Due to the precarious situation in Shulan, Feng Zhanhai had no choice but to abandon Shulan City and retreat his troops north of Wuchang. On the 19th, seeking urgently needed funds for his troops, Feng Zhanhai led a battalion from Acheng to Lalinkang, where they were surrounded by a significant number of Japanese and puppet troops. The following day, with the help of reinforcements, they managed to repel the Japanese and puppet forces. However, the troops suffered over 200 casualties and were compelled to leave Lalinkang and return to Acheng. On the 25th, Feng and Li moved their forces to the eastern suburbs of Harbin, with the 22nd, 26th, and 28th Brigades announcing their support in succession.On the morning of the 26th, Feng and Li entered the city from four directions, forcibly disarming five police brigades and seizing more than 3,000 firearms along with a number of heavy weapons. They stationed the 26th and 28th Brigades and one regiment in the Shanghao area, while Feng Zhanhai's four brigades and two detachments were positioned in the Sankeshu and Nangang areas. The 22nd Brigade was assigned to Shuangchengbao, preparing to defend against a Japanese assault.  Meanwhile the Japanese were still trying to win over Ma Zhanshan. This prompted our old friend Doihara to ask Xi Qia to advance his new “Jilin Army” to Harbin and then to Hailun. However in their way was the Jilin Self-Defense force of General Ding Chao and General Li Du had deployed his forces between Xi Qia and Harbin. On the 24th, representatives from Li Du and Ding Chao participated in a meeting with Ma Zhanshan's officers, convincing them to attempt to retake Qiqihar and defend Harbin for the resistance. When Xiqia's "New Jilin Army" finally advanced to Shuangcheng on the 25th, Zhang Xueliang instructed Ma Zhanshan and Ding Chao to abandon negotiations and begin fighting on the morning of the 26th. Kenji Doihara ultimately failed to intimidate the Chinese further, as his ally Xicha's troops encountered stiff resistance from Ding Chao's troops. Later that afternoon, Japanese aircraft dropped leaflets over Harbin, openly demanding that the anti-Japanese forces withdraw from the city immediately. The Japanese Consulate in Harbin also issued a notice to various foreign consulates, stating that the Japanese army would enter Harbin at 3:00 PM on the 28th. As the New Jilin army advanced towards Shuangcheng, this signaled to the Chinese resistance fighters that an attack was imminent. Zhang Xueliang instructed Generals Ma Zhanshan and Ding Chao to halt negotiations and prepare to make a stand. By late January, the Kirin Self-Defense Corps had grown to 30,000 members, organized into six brigades. Ding Chao fortified defensive positions between General Xi Qia's advancing troops and Harbin. Xi Qia was caught off guard by the well-organized resistance forces, resulting in heavy losses for his army, which was unable to break through. In desperation, Xi Qia sought assistance from the Kwantung Army, but they needed a justification to intervene. Once again, Colonel Doihara Kenji orchestrated a false flag operation. He incited a riot in Harbin that resulted in the deaths of one Japanese individual and three Koreans. Using the pretext that Japanese citizens were in danger, the 2nd Division under Lt. General Jiro Tamon began its advance toward Harbin from Jinzhou on the 28th. However, severe winter weather delayed their transportation. To complicate matters further, the Soviets denied Japanese trains access to Harbin via their section of the Chinese Eastern Railway, citing a breach of neutrality. The entire Manchurian incident had escalated tensions between the USSR and Japan. When they invaded Heilongjiang, there were genuine concerns about potential Soviet intervention, especially with their presence in Harbin. However, at the last moment, the Soviets agreed to allow transit on January 30th. Back on the 26, 1932, Feng Zhanhai and Li Du, the commander of the Yilan garrison, entered Harbin. Early on the 27th, Yu Shencheng, the commander of the puppet Jilin "bandit suppression," ordered two brigades to attack the Shanghao, Sankeshu, and Nangang areas. Japanese aircraft bombed the Sankeshu and Nangang regions. The two brigades tasked with defending the area fought valiantly, resulting in intense combat. Soon after, Feng Zhanhai and his reserve team joined the fray, launching a political offensive alongside their fierce attacks. The puppet army struggled to hold its ground and retreated to Lalincang. The defending troops in Shanghao fought tenaciously, inflicting heavy casualties on both Japanese and puppet forces, shooting down one plane, and attempting to persuade puppet army commander Tian Desheng to lead a revolt. By evening, the puppet army had been driven back. On the morning of the 28th, the anti-Japanese forces advanced to the Jile Temple and Confucian Temple, capturing advantageous positions near Xinfatun with artillery support. The cavalry brigade flanked the puppet army and launched a vigorous assault, leading to the collapse and retreat of the puppet forces towards Acheng. Gong Changhai led the cavalry in pursuit for 15 kilometers, capturing a significant number of puppet troops. After two days of fierce fighting on the 27th and 28th, the initial invasion of Harbin by Japanese and puppet troops was successfully repelled. Due to the defeat of Yu Shencheng and other puppet forces, the Japanese Kwantung Army launched a direct assault on Harbin on the morning of the28th, under the pretext of "protecting overseas Chinese." They ordered Hasebe, commander of the 3rd Brigade of the Kwantung Army, to lead the 4th Regiment, an artillery battalion, and two tanks on a train from Changchun to Harbin for combat. On the29th, another combat order was issued: the 2nd Division was to assemble in Changchun and then be transported to Harbin by truck. Part of the 4th Mixed Brigade was also moved from Qiqihar to Anda and Zhaodong by truck to support the 2nd Division from the north of Harbin. The 1st, 3rd, 8th, and 9th Squadrons of the Kwantung Army Flying Team were tasked with covering the assembly, advance, and attack of the 2nd Division. Hasebe's 4th Regiment departed from Changchun by train, but due to extensive damage to the railway caused by the Northeast Army, their train was attacked by the Northeast Army at dawn on the 29th as it reached the Laoshaogou area on the south bank of the Songhua River. The Japanese forces quickly shifted to an offensive strategy and, despite ongoing resistance, managed to reach Shitouchengzi Village north of the Sancha River that night. On the night of January 29, Zhao Yi's brigade received word of the Japanese assault on Harbin and immediately prepared for battle. At dawn on January 30, Brigade Commander Zhao Yi led six battalions in a light advance, launching a surprise attack on Shilipu, where they decisively defeated the puppet army's Liu Baolin Brigade, capturing over 700 soldiers and seizing more than 600 weapons. They then returned to Shuangchengbao to prepare for the annihilation of the advancing Japanese forces. Around 8:00 PM, the 3rd Brigade of the Japanese Army, along with the Changgu Detachment and two military vehicles, arrived at Shuangcheng Station, intending to camp there and attack Harbin the following day. Zhao Yi's troops set up an ambush in the area. As the Japanese forces disembarked and assembled to plan their attack on Harbin, the ambushing troops took advantage of their unpreparedness, launching a surprise attack from three sides. They unleashed heavy firepower, forcing the enemy back onto the platform before engaging in close combat with bayonets and grenades. The Japanese were caught off guard and suffered significant casualties. The next day, the Japanese dispatched reinforcements from Changchun, supported by aircraft, artillery, and tanks, to assault Shuangchengbao. Brigade Zhao found himself trapped in the isolated city, suffering over 600 casualties, including the regiment commander, and was ultimately forced to abandon Shuangchengbao and retreat to Harbin. With Shuangcheng captured, Harbin was left vulnerable. The Self-Defense Army stationed the majority of its troops in the southern, southeastern, and southwestern regions of Harbin, including Guxiangyuetun, Bingyuan Street, Old Harbin City, and Lalatun. On the same day, several commanders convened: Li Du, the garrison commander of Yilan and leader of the 24th Brigade; Feng Zhanhai, commander of the Jilin Provincial Security Army; Xing Zhanqing, commander of the 26th Brigade; Zhao Yi, commander of the 22nd Brigade; Ding Chao, acting commander of the Railway Protection Army and leader of the 28th Brigade; and Wang Zhiyou, director of the Jilin Police Department. They agreed to establish the Jilin Provincial Self-Defense Army, appointing Li Du as commander, Feng Zhanhai as deputy commander, and Wang Zhiyou as the commander-in-chief of the front line. They decided to utilize the 22nd, 24th, 26th, and 28th Brigades for the defense of Harbin, while Feng Zhanhai would lead the 1st Brigade and other units in a flanking maneuver against Jilin and Changchun to thwart the Japanese advance. On February 3, 1932, various units of the Japanese 2nd Division arrived in the Weitanggou River area. Under the command of Duomen, the division initiated an assault on the Self-Defense Army's outposts located outside Harbin. The 3rd Infantry Brigade of the 2nd Division, alongside Yu Shencheng, the commander of the pseudo-Jilin "bandit suppression" forces, led an attack with five brigades as the right flank against Chinese defenders in the Qinjiagang, Nangang, and Shanghao regions. Meanwhile, the 15th Infantry Brigade of the Japanese Army formed the left flank, targeting Guxiangtun via Balibao along the Songhua River. Following the conflict, all outposts of the Self-Defense Army were lost, forcing them to retreat to their primary positions. On the morning of February 4th, the Japanese forces launched a full-scale attack, engaging the Self-Defense Army in battle. By afternoon, the Japanese had positioned themselves on both sides of the railway, south of Guxiang Yuetun, Yongfatun, and Yangmajia. The 3rd Brigade was stationed east of the railway, while the 15th Brigade took position to the west. After a preparatory artillery barrage, the Japanese forces commenced their assault. The Jilin Self-Defense Army defended tenaciously, utilizing fortifications and village structures, and concentrated their artillery fire on the advancing enemy, inflicting significant casualties.   Despite their efforts, the Japanese attack was initially repelled, prompting them to adopt a defensive stance. By 16:00, the area from Yangmajia to Yongfatun had fallen to the Japanese. The Self-Defense Army continued to resist fiercely, but the Japanese intensified their assaults. The left flank launched a vigorous attack on Guxiangtun. The 28th Brigade of the Self-Defense Army, defending this area, utilized civilian structures and walls for their defense. However, brigade commander Wang Ruihua fled under pressure, leading to a loss of command and forcing the troops to abandon their positions and retreat into the city. Simultaneously, the Japanese right flank aggressively targeted the defense of the 26th Brigade of the Self-Defense Army. Despite the desperate efforts of brigade commander Xing Zhanqing and his troops, they were ultimately compelled to retreat to the river dam at Shiliudao Street due to inferior equipment. Around this time, the western and southern defense lines under Wang Zhiyou's command began to fall one after another. In this critical situation, Commander-in-Chief Li Du personally went to the front lines to organize the troops and establish a third defensive line on the city's edge. They fought until nightfall, successfully halting the Japanese advance. At dawn on February 5th the Self-Defense Army initiated a counteroffensive. The artillery first conducted preparatory fire, targeting the positions of the Japanese 3rd Brigade located east of the railway. Following this, the infantry launched their attack. The Japanese troops on the front lines found themselves in a precarious situation. In response, Jiro Tamon, the commander of the 2nd Division, urgently ordered artillery to intercept the Self-Defense Army's counterattack and deployed the tank and reserve units to assist. Four squadrons from the air force took off from a temporary forward airfield in Shuangcheng, alternating between bombing and strafing to support the ground troops. The battle was intensely fierce, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. Lacking air support and facing significant threats from Japanese aircraft, the Self-Defense Army retreated to the area east of Harbin by the afternoon of the 5th. The Japanese forces then entered Harbin, leading to its immediate capture. On the 6th, the remaining self-defense forces learned of Harbin's fall and decided to abandon their original plan for a surprise attack against the Japanese army. Instead, they returned to Binxian and Fangzheng. During their retreat, they gathered some stragglers who had fled from Harbin and proceeded to Fangzheng County to regroup with Li Du. General Ding Chao's forces were compelled to retreat northeast along the Sungari River, while Japanese aircraft attacked them from above. After a grueling 17-hour battle, Ding Chao's army ultimately faced defeat. Following this loss, Ma Zhanshan made the decision to defect. On February 16, General Honjo held a conference for the Northeast Political Affairs Committee in Mukden, attended by senior Chinese officials of the new regime, including Zhang Jinghui, Ma Zhanshan, Zang Shiyi, Xi Qia, and others. The conference aimed to assign delegates to roles in the soon-to-be-established “Manchukuo.” On February 14, Ma Zhanshan was appointed governor of Heilongjiang province and received gold worth one million dollars. On February 27th, Ding Chao proposed a ceasefire, marking the official end of Chinese resistance in Manchuria. On March 1st, Puyi would be installed as the ruler of the new state of Manchukuo. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. With the fall of Jinzhou, Zhang Xueliang had effectively been kicked out of Manchuria. With the loss of Harbin, came the loss of any significant resistance to the Japanese invasion of Manchuria. Japan had conquered the northeast and now would enthrone the last Emperor of the Qing Dynasty forming the puppet state of Manchukuo. 

Chiang Kai-shek (1887–1975) var Kinas ledare under en mycket svår period i landets moderna historia. Han ledde Republiken Kina i strider mot krigsherrar och japanska inkräktare, men förlorade sedan inbördeskriget mot kommunisterna. Efter nederlaget flydde han till ön Taiwan, där han förblev landets oinskränkte ledare fram till sin död 1975.Chiang Kai-shek är en kontroversiell historisk gestalt – alltid leende, men hänsynslös. Som ledare för Republiken Kina lyckades han förhindra att japanerna helt erövrade landet under andra världskriget. Samtidigt undergrävdes republiken av korruption och allvarliga militära misstag i inbördeskriget mot kommunisterna.I detta avsnitt av podden Historia Nu samtalar programledaren Urban Lindstedt med Ingemar Ottosson, docent i historia vid Lunds universitet, om den kinesiske nationalistledaren Chiang Kai-shek. Ingemar Ottosson har bland annat skrivit boken Möten i monsunen: Sverige och Kina genom tiderna.Chiang Kai-shek var son till en salthandlare från provinsen Zhejiang. I ett land där militären hade låg status utbildade han sig vid militärhögskolor i Kina och Japan. I Japan kom han i kontakt med den kinesiska nationaliströrelsen. Han deltog i Xinhairevolutionen, som avskaffade kejsardömet, och levde som ung ett utsvävande liv i Shanghai, där han knöt nära band till det kriminella nätverket Qingbang.Efter Sun Yat-sens död 1925 tog Chiang Kai-shek över ledarskapet för nationalistpartiet Kuomintang under en kaotisk tid i Kinas historia. Genom Nordfälttåget (1926–1928) erövrade han centrala Kina och upprättade en centralregering i Nanking, som erkändes av det internationella samfundet som Kinas lagliga regering.På grund av Japans invasion och det kinesiska inbördeskriget lyckades han aldrig upprätta full kontroll över hela Kina. Försvagad av åtta års krig, korruption och militära misslyckanden förlorade Chiang Kai-shek inbördeskriget mot kommunisterna och tvingades fly till Taiwan.Bild: Officiellt porträtt av Chiang Kai Shek från 1943, Wikipeida, Public Domain.Lyssna också på Änkekejsarinnan Cixi – konkubinen som blev världens mäktigaste kvinna.Musik: Cinematic Action Drums And Percussion With Dark Ambient Atmospheric Tension avMEDIA MUSIC GROUP, Storyblocks Audio Vill du stödja podden och samtidigt höra ännu mer av Historia Nu? Gå med i vårt gille genom att klicka här: https://plus.acast.com/s/historianu-med-urban-lindstedt. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last time we spoke about Gokokujo and Collaborators. In September 1931, the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters aimed to contain the Mukden Incident but faced resistance from the Kwantung Command. Led by General Honjo, Japanese forces quickly overwhelmed Chinese troops, seizing key cities in Manchuria. Despite Tokyo's disapproval, military leaders acted independently, invoking the Emperor's authority. Amidst the chaos, local Chinese leaders cooperated with the invaders, leading to a swift Japanese victory. As the military expanded its power, the civilian government struggled to regain control, illustrating the complexities of Japan's political landscape. In 1931, the Kwantung Army's officers, led by Ishiwara and Itegaki, aimed for a military occupation of Manchuria, initially allowing local officials autonomy. However, Tokyo's rejection of annexation forced them to claim Manchurian independence. Amidst confusion and infighting, Komai Tokuzo emerged as a key figure, manipulating local elites to establish control. The Japanese employed violence and persuasion, swiftly occupying cities while puppet leaders maintained a facade of governance. As resistance brewed, Zhang Xueliang and others sought to reclaim their homeland from Japanese dominance.   #140 The Jiangqiao Campaign: The Resistance of Ma Zhanshan Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. For quite some time we have spoken about countless variables involved with the conquest of Manchuria. More or less we broke down three sorts of players in this invasion: those Chinese who chose to collaborate with the Japanese, those who tried to act neutral and sit upon the fence and then there were those who resisted. The resistance against the Japanese was not unified, often it was pockets of groups trying to hold out as long as possible. The resistance took on various forms for various reasons. One of the resistance stories I always found more interesting than the rest was the story of Ma Zhanshan. Ma Zhanshan was born in 1885 in Gongzhuling of Jilin province to a poor shepherding family. Ma was of Manchu heritage as stated by his grandson Ma Zhiwei who became a member of the Chinese Peoples' political consultative conference. At a very young age, Ma joined a bandit group in Heihushan. This bandit group gradually was incorporated into some troops of Huaide county yamen. During the Russo-Japanese War, Ma was one of the many local soldiers who served under the Japanese. At the age of 20, as a result of his exceptional marksmanship and equestrianism, Ma was promoted to Guard Monitor of the 4th security Guard Battalion under Wu Junsheng. Wu Junsheng commanded the Tianhou Road Patrol and defense battalion for Mukden in 1908. In 1913 Ma was appointed as Major and Company commander over the 3rd company, 3rd regiment, 2nd Brigade of the Central Cavalry Army of Republic China. By 1920 he was promoted to Colonel and followed his superior Wu Junsheng who became a warlord. He gradually found himself serving Zhang Zuolin's Northeastern Army, serving as a brigade commander of the 5th cavalry brigade, 17th cavalry division. By 1927 he was transferred to Heilongjiang where he became a garrison commander at Heihe, along the Soviet border. After Zhang Zuolins death in 1928 Ma was nominated as Heilongjiang's Provincial Bandit Suppression Commander and the provincial cavalry commander in chief. During the Mukden Incident of September 18th, 1931, General Xie Ke, the deputy commander in chief of Qiqihar took a series of strategic measures to block the Japanese and their Chinese collaborationist troops from invading their territory. Xie Ke dispatched two battalions of infantry and an artillery regiment to defend Qiqihar under Park Bingshan; a regiment led by Zhu Fengyang from Xiaohaozi station to Tailai to guard in the direction of Taonan; the first cavalry brigade of Wu Shongli from Baiquan to Qiqihar; a guard regiment under Xu Baozhen, with a battalion of artillery, a company of engineers and a company of baggage, roughly 2000 people to take up a position north of Jiangqiao where they began building fortifications, laid minefields south of the critical Nenjiang bridge there and mounted 100 Czech made light machine guns to the front lines.  Now when the Mukden Incident broke out, the Governor of Heilongjiang province, Wan Fulin was in Beiping leaving no one of real authority in the province to take charge of its defenses against the Japanese. Meanwhile Liaoning and Jilin were basically trampled upon without much incident. From Beiping Zhang Xueliang telegraphed the Nanjing government to ask for instructions as what he should do, but in the meantime he appointed Ma Zhanshan as acting Governor and Military commander in chief of Heilongjiang Province on October 10th, 1931. Now a full General, Ma Zhanshan arrived at the capital Qiqihar on the 19th and began personally inspecting the troops and defensive positions. By this point Chiang Kai-Shek had made it known the stance of Nanjing was one of passiveness, to wait for negotiations to unfold to settle the matter. Zhang Xueliang loyally followed said commands, but multiple parties within Manchuria sought to either surrender, openly collaborate or resist the Japanese. Under the circumstances, Ma Zhanshan told his troops “I am appointed as Chairman of the Province, and I have the responsibility to defend the Province and I will never be a surrendering general". Thus Ma Zhanshan chose to disobey the Kuomintang's orders not to resist the Japanese. Meanwhile also during the month of October, General Zhang Haipeng of the 2nd Provincial Defense Brigade at Taonan had just been approached by the Japanese seeking collaboration. Zhang Haipeng had been a Honghuzi irregular cavalry commander during the first sino-japanese war. He later became a mercenary during the Russo-Japanese War and went on to study at the Northeast Military academy. After the Xinhai revolution he was assigned command of an infantry regiment, but was one of the morons who supported Zhang Xun's attempt to restore the Qing Dynasty in 1917. After that debacle he went to work for Zhang Zuolin and in 1923 was appointed a commissioner of the Chinese Eastern Railway. When the Japanese asked him to collaborate, Zhang Haipeng immediately seized command of the local forces including the Xing'an Reclamation Army to declare the district independent from China. He did this in return for a shipment of military supplies from the IJA. Upon taking charge on October 23, Zhang Haipeng dispatched 3 regiments from Baichengzi to attack Jiangqiao led by General Xu Jinglong. Xu Jinglong's advance guard with an engineering company was attacked by forces led by General Dou Lianfang defending the north bank around the Nenjiang Bridge. During the battle, Ma Zhanshan had his forces use dynamite to damage the Nenjiang railroad bridge. The Japanese began to repeatedly demand Ma Zhanshan allow them to repair the bridge, but he continuously refused and had his forces defend the area near Daxing preventing Zhang Haipengs men from proceeding north. By October the 15th, the Japanese provided some fighter-bomber support, but Zhang Haipengs forces suffered heavy casualties and were counterattacked until they retreated. At this time Ma Zhanshan was traveling from Heihe to Qiqihar. By the 20th Ma officially took office as the acting chairman of Heilongjiang and went to the front lines to encourage the men. He issued a reward for the head of Zhang Haipeng and announced the establishment of the Heilongjiang Army Provincial HQ. Xi Ke became his chief of staff and deputy commander. On October 22nd, Ma Zhanshan issued a declaration in response to the Japanese massing forces along the border of Heilongjiang. "In this difficult time for the country, two of the three provinces have been lost. Those who have a little conscience will all sleep on straw and taste gall, and swear to survive. Although our Heilongjiang is still a clean piece of land... From now on, anyone who invades our province will fight to the death." Ma Zhanshan then went to work, grabbing reports from his generals such as Xie Ke about the state of their defenses. He immediately began adjusting the deployment of forces: He appointed Pu Bingshan as the commander of the provincial capital garrison to enhance the defense of the area. Wang Nanping was designated as the commander of the Heihe garrison, taking over from Ma Zhanshan. Additionally, he organized three infantry regiments, one cavalry regiment, and one artillery battalion from the Northeast Reclamation Army into the 1st Infantry Brigade, positioning them south of Daxing. The cavalry unit was deployed to the west of Fulaerji to secure the Jingxing direction. By October 29, 1931, the establishment of three defensive positions, extending approximately 40 kilometers in depth and 10 kilometers in width from Jiangqiao to Yushutun and Ang'angxi, was largely completed, with the railway serving as the central axis. Liu Wankui, the former head of the Ning'an Public Security Bureau, led over 1,000 troops to be reorganized west of Ning'an on the 15th, forming the 5th Independent Regiment of the Self-Defense Army. Following the defeat of Zhang Haipeng's rebels, the Kwantung Army was prepared to deploy troops directly. They viewed the destruction of the Nenjiang Bridge by the Chinese army as a prime justification for action. Consequently, they decided to establish the Nenjiang Detachment, consisting of one infantry battalion, one artillery battalion, and an engineering squadron from the 16th Regiment of the 2nd Division, supported by the 8th Independent Flying Squadron. Their plan was to use military force to secure the bridge repair, incite trouble, and launch an attack. However, the Japanese Army Ministry and General Staff Headquarters were still wary of the Soviet Union at that time and did not endorse the Kwantung Army's offensive. Kanaya Nobumitsu sent a telegram to the Kwantung Army stating, "You may proceed to repair the river bridge. However, you are not permitted to deploy troops to North Manchuria, far from the Nenjiang River, without my approval, regardless of the circumstances." However, when Hirota Koki, the Japanese ambassador to the Soviet Union, learned from Soviet Deputy Foreign Minister Kajiekan on October 29 that the Soviet Union would not support either side in the conflict and would maintain a "strict non-interference policy," the stance of the Japanese Army Ministry shifted, leading them to back the Kwantung Army. On November 2, 1931, Honjo Shigeru instructed Hayashi Yoshihide, the head of the Qiqihar Japanese secret service, to deliver an ultimatum to Ma Zhanshan. The ultimatum demanded that Ma Zhanshan's troops withdraw to a location at least 10 kilometers from the Nenjiang Iron Bridge by noon on the 3rd, and refrain from entering the area until the Japanese army had completed repairs on the bridge. If these conditions were not met, the Japanese army would resort to force.  On November 4th Ma Zhanshan sent subordinates to accompany Major Hayashi Yoshihide “so that the Japanese might begin work, and so that I could order my army to start to retreat”. Ma Zhanshan gave assurances the Japanese repairing operation would not be interfered with, meanwhile teelgraming his subordinates “paint all Manchuria red with the blood of Japanese troops”. A force of 800 Japanese led by Major General Shogo Hasebe with repair crews came to the area to find Daxing a warzone. Shogo found Ma Zhanshans subordinate on the ground, Xu Baozhen and demanded the fighting cease so they could repair the bridge. Xu Baozhen said he never received any orders to cease fighting. The Japanese claim the nearby 2500 Chinese forces of Ma Zhanshan began opening fire upon them using rifles and machine guns. The Japanese retaliated likewise and Japanese aircraft began strafing the Chinese forcing them to retreat towards Qiqihar. The Chinese suffered 120 casualties, the Japanese 15. That day the Japanese Nenjiang Detachment's advance squadron moved northward from Jiangqiao Station, supported by aircraft. After crossing the Nenjiang Bridge, they launched an assault on the Chinese army positions south of Daxing Station. At that time, Xu Baozhen's and Zhang Jingdu's troops from Ma Zhanshan's Guard Regiment, totaling 2,700 soldiers, rose to confront the enemy and successfully repelled them. In the afternoon, the Japanese forces, now numbering around 4,000 and led by Colonel Hamamoto, attacked Jiangqiao with the support of aircraft, tanks, and heavy artillery. They initially penetrated the left flank of Jiangqiao before launching a fierce assault on the main Daxing Line position in front of the town. Despite the Chinese defenders' resistance, the Japanese managed to breach their positions, leading to intense hand-to-hand combat. Despite this the Japanese forces were forced to retreat to the riverbank, where they were ambushed by Chinese troops concealed in the reeds. As reinforcements for the Japanese arrived, they were quickly flanked by the defending cavalry, forcing them to retreat once more. By 20:00, the Japanese forces had completely pulled out, leaving behind over 400 casualties. That night, following a sustained artillery bombardment, the Japanese attempted a surprise boat attack. As their boats neared the northern bank, the Chinese troops hidden in the reeds opened fire, resulting in many Japanese soldiers falling into the water, either killed or wounded, while the remainder retreated. On that day, the Chinese army suffered over 300 casualties, while the Japanese and their puppet forces incurred more than 1,000 losses. Despite concentrating their forces and launching continuous attacks with air and artillery support, the Japanese were ultimately repelled by the defenders. Lieutenant Shinichiro Ojin, a Japanese pilot flying low and dropping bombs, was also injured during the conflict. The Japanese sent word to Ma Zhanshan, demanding he make true on his promise, but Ma Zhanshan responded that of his 15,000 troops he could only nominally control a third. Ma Zhanshan then sent a telegram to the League of Nations reading this “I am helpless. I have exhausted all attempts to preserve peace. I have strictly instructed my commanders to act only on the defensive, and that they must not attack. But Major Hayashi has seen this behavior by the Japanese military, and not only has not stopped it but, on the contrary, wants our army to withdraw from Heilongjiang province, so that they can carve up the whole lot... Since the 4th, the Japanese army has started to attack our army . . . They are coordinating land and air attacks, carrying out utterly horrible bombings!”  On the morning of the 5th, the Japanese army focused all its efforts on launching another assault. At 6 am., the Japanese forces bombarded the defenders' positions with numerous cannons. By 7 am, over 8,000 Japanese and puppet troops crossed the river via the central route, while additional puppet forces advanced from the left and right, shielded by artillery and aircraft. As the boats reached the midpoint of the river, the Chinese army mounted a vigorous counterattack. Despite suffering significant casualties, the Japanese and puppet troops persisted in their attempt to cross. By 10 am, the Japanese army had taken the frontline positions on the riverbank, forcing the defenders to retreat to the flanks. The Japanese then launched an assault on the second line of defense at Daxing, where they faced staunch resistance from the defenders. At noon, Ma Zhanshan arrived at the front lines to direct Wu Delin's and Xu Baozhen's regiments in a counteroffensive, urgently sending the Sabli Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Brigade to encircle the Japanese forces from both sides. The brutal fighting continued from 3pm until dusk. The Japanese acknowledged, "The Chinese army executed an encirclement counterattack using infantry and cavalry. The Japanese army suffered heavy losses and was compelled to retreat" . The Japanese forces were forced to shift from an offensive to a defensive stance, with many of their support units annihilated by our cavalry. In this engagement, the Chinese army incurred over 200 casualties, while the Japanese army lost 167 soldiers and sustained more than 600 injuries. That night, a battalion from the 29th Regiment of the Japanese Army arrived as reinforcements. Upon their arrival, they immediately launched an attack but were quickly surrounded by Ma Zhanshan's forces. In response, Honjo Shigeru urgently dispatched an infantry battalion and three artillery squadrons from the 16th Regiment to assist. On the morning of the 6th, Japanese reinforcements arrived and launched a vigorous assault, supported by aircraft that conducted strafing and bombing runs in an attempt to rescue the encircled Japanese forces. On that day, Ma Zhanshan personally visited the front lines to oversee the battle. Both sides incurred significant casualties. Despite the fierce resistance from Ma Zhanshan's troops, the Japanese offensive struggled to gain ground. In response, Honjo Shigeru ordered Tamon Jiro of the 2nd Division to lead the 29th Regiment, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, the 2nd Field Artillery Regiment, the Temporary Field Heavy Artillery Battalion, the Engineer Squadron, and a battalion from the 39th Mixed Brigade in the Shenyang area to rush to the vicinity of Kaijiang Bridge. Their objective was to reinforce their forces, attack the defenders, and capture the key position at Daxing. The Chinese army fought desperately, with the sounds of hand-to-hand combat echoing loudly as they repeatedly recaptured lost positions. That day, the Chinese forces suffered over 1,850 casualties, while inflicting more than 2,000 deaths on Japanese and puppet troops and shooting down one aircraft. The Japanese Hamamoto Detachment was nearly annihilated, and the Gaobo Cavalry Team sustained almost total losses. After three days and two nights of continuous fighting without reinforcements, the soldiers were extremely fatigued, and the Daxing position had been heavily damaged. General Ma Zhanshan then ordered the main forces to withdraw to the secondary position at Sanjianfang, located 18 kilometers from Daxing Station, to reorganize defenses alongside the 1st Cavalry Brigade and the 1st Infantry Brigade. On the morning of the 7th, a significant force of Japanese and puppet troops, supported by ten aircraft, launched an attack on the Nantangchi area of Sanjianfang. In response, a combined regiment from Zhang Dianjiu's Brigade and Su Bingwen's Brigade quickly mobilized to counterattack, successfully repelling the enemy by the afternoon. The Chinese forces incurred over 300 casualties, while the Japanese suffered more than 600 casualties, along with over 1,000 from the puppet troops. Notably, and take this one with a heavy grain of I am using a PRC source grain of salt quote “despite ongoing enemy air assaults and the lack of anti-aircraft artillery, the courageous soldiers displayed remarkable ingenuity by lying on the ground in groups of 20 and firing their rifles upward, ultimately managing to shoot down an enemy aircraft”. Upon inspection, the wreckage revealed 26 bullet holes in both wings, marking the first enemy plane downed in China's war against Japan. As a result, Japanese aircraft became hesitant to fly at low altitudes in subsequent battles. Observing the heavy losses inflicted on his forces, Honjo Shigeru ordered Duomen Jiro to halt their advance and return to their original positions. To conceal the reality of their defeat, the Japanese army circulated rumors claiming that the Soviet Union supplied ammunition to the defenders in Heilongjiang. They also propagated various falsehoods to downplay the number of Japanese casualties, worried that anti-war sentiments in Japan would gain momentum. In response, Ma Zhanshan sent a telegram to counter the Japanese army's claims. The Japanese army experienced significant losses during the initial phase of the battle. To resolve the stalemate quickly, they deployed additional troops and made every effort to prepare for a renewed attack. Simultaneously, they issued an ultimatum to Ma Zhanshan, pressuring him to resign, relinquish power, and withdraw Chinese forces from Qiqihar, but Ma Zhanshan firmly refused. The Kwantung Army recommended that the Japanese Army Central Department expedite the deployment of an extra division. In response, Honjo Shigeru ordered the "2nd Division to gather in Daxing with full force." By the 11th, the Japanese army had assembled the Hase Brigade Headquarters, the 16th Infantry Regiment, the 4th Regiment , the 1st Battalion of the 29th Regiment, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, and the 2nd Squadron of the 28th Regiment, along with the 2nd Field Artillery Regiment and the 2nd Engineer Squadron on the north bank of the Nenjiang River. On the south bank, they had the 3rd Battalion of the 26th Field Artillery Regiment and a Temporary Field Heavy Artillery Battalion, totaling over 30,000 troops. In response to the Japanese army's troop deployment, Ma Zhanshan convened a military meeting on the evening of the 7th to discuss strategies for countering the enemy and to reorganize troop placements, establishing three lines of defense. The first line of defense was located in Tangchi, Wunotou, and Xinlitun, with front-line positions at Houyiriba, Qianguandi, and Houguandi, defended by two regiments from Wu Songlin's 1st Cavalry Brigade. After the 14th, Lu Zhiyuan's 2nd Cavalry Brigade was fully deployed to engage in combat in Tangchi and surrounding areas. The second line of defense was situated in Yinglaofen, Sanjianfang, Daxingtun, Xiaoxingtun, and Huotuoqi, serving as the primary position for the black army's frontal defense. This line was manned by four regiments from Yuan Chonggu's 1st Brigade, Wu Delin's 2nd Infantry Brigade, Li Qingshan's 3rd Infantry Brigade, Wang Kezhen's 1st Cavalry Brigade, as well as Park Bingshan's artillery regiment and various engineering and support units. Following the 14th, Sun Hongyu's 1st Infantry Brigade and 2,000 personnel from the Suihua Security Battalion joined the frontal defense efforts. The third line of defense was established in Zhujiakan, Fulaerji, Ang'angxi, and Yushutun, defended by two regiments from Zhang Dianjiu's 1st Infantry Brigade, the entire 2nd Cavalry Brigade, and the Guard Regiment, totaling over 13,000 troops. Sanjianfang is a station located on the railway line from Taonan to Ang'angxi, situated 70 li north of Qiqihar and 60 li south of Nenjiang Bridge. It served as a crucial defensive site for the Chinese army in protecting the capital of Heilongjiang Province. For the Japanese army to take control of Heilongjiang Province, capturing Sanjianfang was essential for a direct route to Qiqihar. Consequently, the struggle for Sanjianfang became a central point in the second phase of the Battle of Jiangqiao. On the morning of the 12th, a vanguard of 500 Japanese infantry and cavalry launched an assault on Ma Zhanshan's frontier positions at Qianguandi, Houguandi, and Zhanghuayuan. The defending forces under Wu Songlin mounted a counterattack. By 1:00 pm, the Japanese army had taken control of the positions, forcing over 600 defenders to retreat to the front lines. At 5:00 am on the 13th more than 500 Japanese soldiers, supported by two aircraft, attacked Xinlitun, but they faced a strong counteroffensive from the defenders. By 10:00 am, the defenders had successfully repelled the attack. At noon that day, the damaged Nenjiang Bridge was repaired, creating advantageous conditions for a large-scale Japanese offensive. At this time, Kwantung Army commander Honjo Shigeru issued a third reinforcement order: "Deploy the remaining troops of the 2nd Division, along with three infantry battalions from the 39th Mixed Brigade and the rescue squad, to the vicinity of Daxing." He also instructed Lieutenant General Duomen, the commander of the 2nd Division, to lead the Nenjiang Detachment. In response, the Japanese headquarters hastily dispatched three air squadrons to Heilongjiang Province and redirected the 4th Mixed Brigade, initially set to land in Dalian, to Busan, Korea, for a swift deployment to Heilongjiang. In the afternoon, over 3,000 Japanese infantry and cavalry, supported by artillery, launched a vigorous attack on Tangchi, Unotou, and Xinlitun. The defenders fought back fiercely until midnight, when the Japanese finally occupied Unotou. On the morning of the 14th, the Japanese army launched an attack on the Tangchi position, supported by two aircraft and heavy artillery, but they were repelled by the forces of Ma Zhanshan. Around 10 a.m., over 2,000 Japanese troops, led by Hase, split into two units—infantry and cavalry—and employed a strategy of large encirclement to assault Tangchi from both the left and right flanks. The cavalry engaged in combat but eventually retreated. The intense fighting continued until the morning of the 15th, when the Japanese army targeted Shuanma. By this time, Ma Zhanshan had already dispatched two cavalry regiments to quietly encircle the enemy's flanks. At his command, the front guard regiment charged into the Japanese positions first, while the cavalry regiments surged from both sides, forcing the Japanese to retreat hastily. Ma Zhanshan's forces captured two artillery pieces and 70 horses, killed 300 Japanese soldiers, and took 200 prisoners, while the puppet army suffered over 2,000 casualties and fled with their weapons. To bolster their defensive capabilities, the defenders organized the 2,000 members of the Suihua Security Battalion into an independent regiment and integrated them into the frontline. On the 15th, following orders from Japanese Army Minister Minami Jiro, Honjo Shigeru presented three demands to Ma Zhanshan: that Ma's troops withdraw from south of the Chinese Eastern Railway, that the area be administered by the Taomao Bureau, and that Ma refrain from interference. However, Ma Zhanshan rejected these demands. At 7:30 a.m. on the 15th, Lieutenant General Tamon, the commander of the Japanese 2nd Division, led the main contingent of his division to the Daxing front. By 11:00 am on the 16th, with the backing of 10 aircraft, heavy artillery, and tanks, 4,000 Japanese infantry and cavalry launched a vigorous assault on positions including Xinlitun and Sanjiazi. The defenders fought valiantly and managed to repel the Japanese forces by 3:00 pm, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. At 10:10 a.m. on the 17th, Honjo Shigeru received orders from the Chief of Army General Staff to "advance north of Qiqihar and attempt to destabilize the enemy with bold maneuvers, and have the 2nd Division  capture Qiqihar in one decisive strike." He also instructed the 39th Mixed Brigade to "mobilize all remaining troops in Daxing, except for one infantry company and an engineering company, placing them under the command of the 2nd Division leader." At 1:00 p.m., Division Commander Duomen ordered the Japanese troops stationed at the Houyiriba train to launch a full-scale assault on the Black Army, particularly targeting Sanjianfang. By 10:00 pm on the 17th the Japanese forces, having received supplies and reinforcements, split into three groups and mounted a fierce attack on the Mabu position. Under Amano's command, the right-wing troops advanced from Wunotou to assault the left-wing positions in the Xinlitun area. Despite the Wu Songlin Brigade being exhausted from several days of fighting, they fiercely resisted the numerically superior enemy, repelling more than ten Japanese attacks. However, by early morning, most of the defenders' trenches had been destroyed, and their positions were compromised in numerous locations, forcing a retreat to the second line in the Daxingtun area. At 10:40 pm on the 17th, the left-wing Japanese forces, commanded by Hase, attacked the right-wing positions in the Tangchi area, where the Cheng Zhiyuan Brigade fought tenaciously. By 2:00 am the following day, the Japanese intensified their assault, deploying 8 tanks and over 30 artillery pieces. Unable to sustain their defense, the defenders retreated to the main position at Sanjianfang. At 3 am on the 18th, the Japanese army mobilized various units and moved to the designated staging area as planned. By 6:30, aircraft and artillery began a one-hour bombardment of the front-line positions at Sanjianfang, to which the defenders responded with their own artillery fire. The booming of the cannons echoed across the entire Shuobei wilderness. At that time, Japanese heavy artillery had a range of 30 kilometers, while the Ma army's heavy artillery could only reach 15 kilometers, resulting in significant losses. Around 8 o'clock, the Japanese forces launched a full-scale attack, supported by tanks. Despite the fierce fighting from the defenders, the Japanese advance was initially repelled. At 9:20, Duomen ordered reinforcements from the reserves and initiated another aggressive assault. By 10 o'clock, although the defenders on the right flank fought valiantly, they were unable to hold their ground and retreated to Mao Mao Creek. At 10:30, the left flank position at Xiaoxingtun fell, forcing the troops to fight their way back to Hongqiyingzi and Yushutun. At this point, Hase directed the infantry and cavalry to assault the main position at Sanjianfang with support from aircraft and tanks. The defending troops, including the Yuan Chonggu Brigade and Zhang Dianjiu Brigade, put up a fierce resistance. By 14:00, the Japanese 39th Mixed Brigade, followed by a regiment from Sanjiazi to the west of Sanjianfang, joined the fight. Together with the Hase Brigade launching a direct assault, they executed a coordinated pincer movement. After 15:00, the Japanese forces added 12 aircraft, 12 tanks, and over 30 artillery pieces, bombarding the trenches with intense fire. Due to insufficient reinforcements, the Japanese army captured Qiqihar on the 19th. Ma Zhanshan's army was on the brink of starvation after Japanese planes bombed their food storage facilities. The Chinese defenders, battling fiercely despite their empty stomachs, were undeterred by their enemy's overwhelming numbers. They engaged in hand-to-hand combat, fighting to the death, their battle cries echoing through the ground. Fighting in the Sanjianfang area continued throughout the night. Although the Chinese troops shared a common hatred and displayed "extraordinary bravery," many had gone several days without sleep due to relentless fighting, and their food supplies had been cut off, leaving them without reinforcements. The ammunition available at that time was part of a long-term stockpile from the Heilongjiang defenders, with much of it rendered unusable due to mold. Meanwhile, the invading forces were continuously bolstered by fresh supplies and reinforcements, creating a dire imbalance between the strong enemy and the weakened defenders. Furthermore, the position had been heavily damaged and was "truly unable to sustain" the fight. On the afternoon of the 18th, Ma Zhanshan was forced to make the difficult decision to order a withdrawal. By the 19th, over 5,000 Japanese troops had taken control of Qiqihar, marking the end of the Battle of Jiangqiao. The civilian population had pushed Ma Zhanshan to pull out, a long held Chinese tradition that did not mean losing face, but rather living to fight another day. On November the 18th, Ma Zhanshans forces evacuated Qiqihar and by the 19th he led them east to defend Baiquan and Hailun. His army suffered tremendous casualties, possibly up to 3000, with the Japanese claiming 300 casualties for themselves. Ma Zhanshans forces then retired to the Nonni river valley and eventually over the Soviet Border. The Japanese began an occupation of Qiqihar, thus securing the control of all three Manchurian provincial capitals. They quickly established a collaborist government under General Zhang Jinghui and secured control over the central section of the Chinese eastern railway. However the eastern section of the railway was still under the control of General Ting Chao operating in Harbin. Ting Chao would follow Ma Zhanshans example, inspiring local Chinese to aid and enlist in the resistance efforts.  Ma Zhanshan drew international attention through a series of telegrams he sent describing his campaign of resistance against the Japanese in Heilongjiang. His stand along the Nonni river near Qiqihar lionized him amongst the Chinese nationalists who sought to use his public image to shame Chiang Kai-shek into action against the Japanese.  During the Battle of Jiangqiao, Ma Zhanshan fought independently without any assistance from the Northeast Army based in Jinzhou. Although Zhang Xueliang instructed Ma to hold his position, the troops in Jinzhou were "not ready for combat." Following the battle, Zhang Xueliang faced significant public backlash. The Shanghai National Salvation Federation stated that "Ma's forces in Heilongjiang Province fought valiantly against the Japanese and demonstrated loyalty on the battlefield, while Zhang Xueliang failed to provide support." The Citizens' Federation sent a telegram to the National Government, accusing Zhang of "neglecting his responsibilities while allowing the Japanese invaders to attack the Northeast, leading to national humiliation and territorial loss." Additionally, the National Student Anti-Japanese National Salvation Federation sent a telegram urging the government to "severely punish Zhang Xueliang and deploy troops immediately." Chiang Kai-shek sent multiple telegrams to praise Ma Zhanshan for his brave resistance and instructed Zhang Xueliang to quickly provide reinforcements. For instance, on November 12th,, Chiang Kai-shek sent a message to Ma Zhanshan stating: "Japan has once again invaded Heilongjiang Province under the pretext of repairing the Jiangqiao Bridge. Our defensive actions were justified. Fortunately, due to your careful leadership and the bravery of the soldiers, we managed to defeat the relentless enemy and protect our territory. I was furious upon receiving the telegram. You and your comrades have brought honor to the party and the nation, fighting for our survival. The entire Chinese populace is inspired. The people's spirit remains unbroken, justice prevails, and the future is hopeful. We pledge to unite in our efforts. I shed tears in the wind and snow, unable to express all my thoughts. Chiang Kai-shek." Additionally, on the 19th, Chiang Kai-shek wrote to Ma Zhanshan: "I have read your telegram and am filled with sorrow and anger that words cannot capture. Our army has fought valiantly for days, bringing glory to our nation. Our reputation has spread widely, earning admiration both domestically and internationally, which is truly commendable. I have urged Deputy Commander Zhang to send troops to assist you. I miss you dearly as I write this message. Chiang Kai-shek." All major domestic newspapers covered the Jiangqiao Anti-Japanese War prominently, and various sectors of society conveyed their condolences to the frontline soldiers in numerous ways. Life Weekly, backed by Zou Taofen, remarked, "This spirit of defending the nation and refusing to surrender even in death is crucial for the future of the Chinese people. It demonstrates to the world that our soldiers are not entirely dishonorable and have restored significant pride for the nation." The Shanghai Fuchang Tobacco Company even created "General Ma Zhanshan Cigarettes," promoting the slogan, "May everyone emulate General Ma." On November 17th,, the Binjiang Times published an editorial stating, "The Chinese soldiers in Heilongjiang fought valiantly against the brutality of the Japanese army. The blood shed along the Nenjiang River is the legacy of our brave men. The Chinese army in Heilongjiang represents the true warriors defending the nation. After the September 18th Incident, we began to doubt how many Chinese soldiers could confront the enemy, and we were deeply disappointed. Fifty days after losing Liaoning and Jilin provinces, we realized that Ma Zhanshan in Heilongjiang truly deserves the title of Chinese soldier." People across the country spontaneously formed groups for condolences and support, donating money and supplies to aid Heilongjiang's resistance efforts. Many young students set aside their studies to join the Anti-Japanese Volunteer Army. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus ended the Jiangqiao Campaign. General Ma Zhanshan proved himself quite a formidable rebel leader in the face of pretty overwhelming odds. His name was propagandized heavily by the Chinese press to boost morale and try to awaken the Chinese that a fight for their very existence was at hand, but China simply did not have the means yet to face such an enemy. 

Last time we spoke about how Zhang Xueliang lost Manchuria. In September 1931, the Mukden Incident ignited conflict in Manchuria as Japan executed a false flag attack, prompting a swift assault on Peitaying Barracks. Zhang Xueliang, urged by Chiang Kai-shek, chose not to resist, fearing a full-scale war. The Japanese invasion revealed deep political divisions in Manchuria, with some officials defecting, others sabotaging, and a few fighting back. Amidst chaos, Zhang sought to unify his forces, but rivalries and external threats complicated his efforts, setting the stage for prolonged conflict. In post-1929 Manchuria, nationalist activists joined the KMT, including Yan Baohang and his friends, who attended a 1931 conference in Nanjing. They aimed to resist Japanese influence while navigating local elite tensions and economic struggles. As Zhang Xueliang rose to power, he sought reform but faced distrust and challenges, including high military spending and a devastating depression. By 1931, Japanese aggression loomed, culminating in a coup that threatened the fragile nationalist aspirations in the region.   #139 Gokokujo and Collaborators  Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters had hoped to localize the Mukden Incident and communicated their orders to Kwantung Command. However as we had seen, the Kwantung Command in chief General Shigeru Honjo, had his wrist twisted somewhat by certain culprits in the form of Ishiwara Kanji and Itageki Seishiro. Honjo thus ordered the forces to proceed with expanding operations along the South Manchuria Railway zone. On September the 19th, the 29th infantry regiment stormed Mukden, easily overwhelming the Chinese forces within the inner walled city. Simultaneously the 2nd battalion occupied Pei Ta Ying, where they were met with some fierce resistance before storming Tung Ta Ying. Afterwards the 2nd Division drove out the remaining Chinese resistance from the eastern area of Mukden. Meanwhile the 1st Battalion fought Chinese forces at Kuan Cheng Tze near Changchun. By this point Honjo's request for assistance from the Korea Army was confirmed. General Senjuro Hayashi ordered the 20th infantry division to divide itself, forming the 39th mixed brigade who marched into Manchuria, without any authorization from Tokyo nor the Emperor to do so. By the end of the 19th, the Japanese had seized Liaoyang, Shenyang, Yingkou, Dandong, Fushun, Changchun and Jilin.  On the 20th, Wan Shu Cheng, the commander of the Chinese 2nd army ordered a withdrawal of the 44th and 643rd regiments stationed at Taching to head for Tiantsin. On the 21st the Japanese took Jilin city, by the 23rd they captured Jiaohe and Dunhua, both within Jilin. On the 26th, the Governor of Jilin, Zhang Zuoxiang who was not there at the time, was overthrown by a newly formed provisional provincial government with Xi Xia as its chairman. By October 1st Zhang Haiping would surrender the area of Taonan, later in October Ji Xing surrendered the Yanbian Korean Autonomous prefecture area and on the 17th Yu Zhishan surrendered Eastern Liaoning. General HQ in Tokyo were flabbergasted at the news all of this was being done without their orders, in fact in most cases it was directly against their orders. The civilian government of Japan was in absolute disarray over what was an act of Gekokujo. Gekokujo directly translated meaning "the low overcomes the high",was when someone of a lesser position in the military or politics overthrew someone in a higher position to seize power. The term goes all the way back to the Sui Dynasty of China, for Japan during the Kamakura period, but its most prominently known for being used during the Sengoku period. It was through the chaotic political climate of the Sengoku period that Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi rose to power. During the Showa period, Gekokujo would occur often. Those of the Kodoha faction used it as a means to an end during the 1920s and 1930s, assassinating political opponents as they tried to press for a Showa restoration. Back to Manchuria, as Gokokujo ran rampant, with reports coming in after each quick victory and city taken by Japanese forces, Tokyo General HQ felt utterly powerless to stop it. There is also another facet to this, the role of Emperor Hirohito. Many of you might only have a vague idea of how much “actual power” Emperor Hirohito had during the Showa Era. The Meiji Constitution of Japan going back to 1889 remained in force until 1947. It was enacted after the Meiji restoration in 1868 and provided a form of mixed constitutional and absolute monarchy. Thus in theory the Emperor governed the empire upon the advice of his ministers. In practice this meant while the Emperor was head of state, it was still the Prime Minister who was actually heading the government. Now this was all fine and dandy, however the constitution also stated the Emperor had direct control over the military. Imagine this scenario, you work for a company and take orders from the boss of the company. The father of the boss used to run the company and is seen as the face of it, but retired long ago and has no real authority. So you do the orders your boss gives you, but what about if that father figure suddenly shows up and gives orders? Many in the company would go ahead and do what the father says, feeling this obligatory need to. Now in the case of Showa Era Japan, the entire population of Japan saw the Emperor as a divine being, maybe you can call him the spiritual leader of Japan. He wasn't expected to intervene in political or military matters, but if he did, you but your ass people would follow his orders. Now since the Japanese navy and army knew the Emperor could directly control them, they actually used this as a tool. On many occasions in order to secure further funding or specific policy adjustment, military leaders would appeal to the Emperor or do things in the name of the Emperor, completely superseding the civilian government. Basically the military used the Meiji Constitution to earn a large degree of autonomy, case and point being the Mukden Incident. As long as they made it seem like they were doing everything they believed the Emperor wanted them to do, they believed they could get away with it. If the Civilian government came after them for their actions, they could appeal to the emperor, but how did Hirohito feel about all this? Rumors had emerged even before the Mukden Incident, to which Hirohito demanded the army be reigned in. Attempts were made, but the Mukden Incident went off on September 18th. The next day the imperial palace were given a report and Hirohito was advised by chief aide de camp Nara Takeji “this incident would not spread and if the Emperor was to convene an imperial conference to take control of the situation, the virtue of his majesty might be soiled if the decisions of such a conference should prove impossible to implement”.  As the Mukden incident was getting worse, the Kwantung officers began to demand reinforcements be sent from the Korea army. The current Wakatsuki cabinet met on the issue and decided the Mukden incident had to remain an incident, they needed to avoid a declaration of war. The official orders were for no reinforcements of the Korea army to mobilize, however the field commander took it upon his own authority and mobilized them. The army chief of staff Kanaya reported to Hirohito the Korea army was marching into Manchuria against orders. At 31 years of age Hirohito now had an excellent opportunity to back the current cabinet, to control the military and stop the incident from getting worse. At this time the military was greatly divided on the issue, politically still weak compared to what they would become in a few years, if Hirohito wanted to rule as a constitutional monarch instead of an autocratic monarch, well this was his chance. Hirohito said to Kanaya at 4:20pm on September 22nd “although this time it couldn't be helped, [the army] had to be more careful in the future”. Thus Hirohito accepted the situation as fait accompli, he was not seriously opposed to seeing his army expand his empire. If it involved a brief usurpation of his authority so bit, as long as the operation was successful.    It actually a lot more complicated, but to general sum it up, Emperor Hirohito cared about only one thing, the Kokutai. The Kokutai was the national essence of Japan. It was all aspects of Japanese polity, derived from history, tradition and customs all focused around the cult of the Emperor. The government run by politicians was secondary, at any given time the kokutai was the belief the Emperor could come in and directly rule. If you are confused, dont worry, its confusing. The Meiji constitution was extremely ambiguous. It dictated a form of constitutional monarchy with the kokutai sovereign emperor and the “seitai” that being the actual government. Basically on paper the government runs things, but the feeling of the Japanese people was that the wishes of the emperor should be followed. Thus the kokutai was like an extra-judicial structure built into the constitution without real legal framework, its a nightmare I know.    Emperor Hirohito was indoctrinated from a young age that the most important aspect of his reign was to defend the Kokutai. This is actually why Hirohito took so long to finally intervene during WW2 and call for Japan's surrender. I have taken far too long going down the rabbit hole of Showa Era Japan and Hirohito, if you are interested on the subject, over only my Youtube Membership or Patreon I did a two part exclusive podcast specifically on Hirohito's responsibility for the war.  The weeks following the Mukden Incident were marked by wide scale cooperation between the local Chinese leaders and Japanese invaders. In many places there was of course valiant resistance by Chinese forces, but it was not centrally coordinated and honestly amounted to little. The Kwantung army despite being vastly outnumbered was highly trained and highly mechanized in comparison to the Chinese. The Kwantung army had very few troops to conquer over 350,000 square miles, populated by over 30 million Chinese. Prior to 1931 the Kwantung Army numbered under 10,000, by late 1931 this would increase to 65,000 and by 1933 140,000. Yet during the initial invasion the army's behavior was heavily affected by the actions of the Chinese, or in many cases their inability to act. The only way Japan was going to do what they wanted to do was to encourage co-optation amongst the Chinese elites of Manchuria, typically at the provincial and local levels. This meant showering them with extravagant new positions in the new regime, promoting a policy of nonresistance and targeting prominent members of Zhang Xueliang's regime who were expected to oppose Kwantung rule.  When the Mukden Incident broke out, Zhang Xueliang was in Beiping acting in his new capacity as the North China Garrison commander. On the night of September 18th, Zhang Xuliang was enjoying an opera performance by the famous singer Mei Lanfang. His deputies also all happened to be away from Shenyang. Wan Fulin was in Beiping and Zhang Zuoxiang was attending his fathers funeral in Jinzhou. Within their absence the most senior provincial commanders were quickly pounced upon by Kwantung operatives who secured their cooperation. Within Shenyang the Eastern Borders Garrison commander Yu Zhishan and Xi Xia the acting provincial forces commander of Changchun both immediately defected to the Japanese. Although the Northeastern Army had roughly 130,000 troops within Manchuria, compared to the Kwantung and Korea army troops who together were roughly 50,000, Chiang Kai-Shek hastily issued a nonresistance order that was confirmed by Zhang Xueliang. The troops were to not fight back and instead await a negotiated settlement. While they waited, the Japanese secured high level provincial elite cooperation within a few weeks time. On November 10th, Zhang Zuolin's former civil affairs minister, Yuan Jinkai was made chairman of the committee in charge of Japanese controlled Liaoning. On December 16th, the formerly existing post of governor was re-established and a previous holder of this post under Zhang Xueliang, Zang Shiyi was appointed. Thus Yuan Jinkai's post as chairman was redundant. Meanwhile Xi Xia was made governor of Jilin.  Some of you might be wondering, why in the hell would Chiang Kai-Shek relay orders to not resist an invasion? Let us not forget the timeline here, during this exact time period, Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan formed an alliance in North China against the NRA; the Soviet of Jiangxi was running rampant and in the south the Old Guangxi clique was running amok. Even though Zhang Xueliang had 250,000 men on paper, only 100-130,000 of them were in Manchuria while the rest were scattered around Hebei. Chiang Kai-Shek had an expert understanding of the Japanese numbers, their training and equipment. To put it frankly, if the quote en quote “incident” escalated into a full-scale war, China would most likely lose. There was also another aspect to this, the role of the League of Nations and the current Wakatsuki government in Tokyo. Either of these bodies could potentially restrain what appeared to be renegade Japanese forces on the asia mainland.  Going a bit forward in time, the last redoubt during the invasion would be at Jinzhou where Zhang Xueliang would establish his HQ. When it was about to finally fall, Zhang Xueliang ultimately decided to withdraw his forces from Manchuria. According to the US minister to CHina, Nelson Johnson, Counselor Yano of the Japanese legation tam at Beiping had conducted informal discussions with the Young Marshal, in which he stated Jinzhou would inevitably fall to the Japanese and quote “the Tokyo Foreign Office would gain prestige and be better able to shape events to the advantage of China if the Chinese avoid[ed] a clash by withdrawing voluntarily.” He also advised Zhang Xueliang, that some of his followers might be reappointed to official positions within the newly emerging government in Shenyang. Nelson tells us “Chang is believed to have been led to his present decision by these inducements, along with the bitter hostility toward him at Nanking and the lack of support from that quarter.” Thus Zhang Xueliang was being blackmailed by both sides into nonresistance. By late December of 1931 it also seemed certain international intervention was not going to happen and Chiang Kai-Shek's resignation over Nanjing did not provide the Young Marshal with many options.  Now what about the Japanese government during all of this. When the Mukden Incident boke out, the government in Tokyo, headed by premier Wakatsuki Reijiro were appalled to hear the news of what was essentially a mutiny. The Kwantung officers disagreed with Tokyo's policies and kept Tokyo's consul in Shenyang under lock and key during the night of September 18th. If there had been more significant resistance to the invasion, Tokyo probably would have ordered the Kwantung army to withdraw. Without the co-optation of many Chinese elites, the Kwantung Army would have most likely not succeeded in taking all of Manchuria. The co-optation policy the Japanese took was also very much not an ad hoc measure. There had been elements within the IJA who had been working overtime to persuade cooperation with local power holders as part of their strategy. The Kwantung officers who launched the Mukden Incident, mostly working under Ishiwara and Itegaki had initially aimed to enact a simply military occupation in which “local Chinese officials would be granted a considerable degree of autonomy in exchange for their cooperation.” However, Tokyo HQ outright rejected annexation out of fear of Soviet reprisals and this led the mutiny leaders to  “the subterfuge of Manchurian independence.” The improvised nature of the original plan led to arguments between the different sections of those Japanese forces in Manchuria. Historian Akira Iriye noted “What emerges . . . is an almost total absence of ideology as a driving force behind military action.” While this sounds clearly dysfunctional, it actually aided the occupiers, because many areas of life in Manchuria were not immediately affected by the occupation and thus were more likely to cooperate.  The actual coordination of the occupation was placed in the hands of the Kwantung Army Special Affairs Unit “Tokumubu”, operating via the General Affairs Board of the Council of State under Komai Tokuzo. Komai Tokuzo had been born near Kyoto and from an early age was consumed with a desire to see China. He was trained as an agriculturalist, before he joined the SMR and worked for a company during the reign of Zhang Zuolin. He became acquainted with the Old Tiger and debated with him and other prominent leaders on questions such as Mongol land rights and the Guo Songling rebellion. During this time he befriended Yu Chonghan and Zhang Jinghui. After the Mukden Incident, he was appointed as a financial adviser to the Kwantung Army, a very senior post with direct access to Honjo Shigeru, the commander of the Northeast. As Akira Iriye also notes “in fact, [Komai] was a top-level adviser to the army on politics and economics in Manchuria.”Komai would become responsible for the strategies of co-opting local elite, and thus was essential to the power structure of the Kwantung Army going forward.  The Japanese utilized a lethal combination of violence and persuasion to take over. Many power brokers refused to cooperate and were forced into exile in North China. However, plenty of collaborators were found to quickly set up structures and controls within the new regime. The bulk of the Japanese forces moved into the principal cities of the SMR region first. Robert E Lewis, the adviser to the foreign affairs ministry in Nanjing sent a telegram declaring the Japanese had sent a large number of troops into Manchuria just prior to the 18th of September “On Friday night September eighteenth the Japanese Army sent from Korea into Manchuria through Antung seven army railway trains fully loaded with soldiers. On Saturday night September ninteenth [sic] Japanese army sent four additional trains loaded with soldiers in to [sic] Manchuria at the same point . . . Japanese occupied every Chinese public office in Antung excepting the customs house which has Europeans in it, also placed guard over Chinese customs superintendent to prevent his free action. [The Japanese] arrested superintendent of schools and forbad [sic] teaching of Dr Sun Yatsen's principles. Japanese army occupied Kirin seventy nine miles east of the south Manchuria railway zone on September ninteenth [sic] they seized and held the telegraph office telephone office wireless station provincial arsenal waterworks plant Bank of China Kirin Provincial Bank police headquarters and subdivisions Kuo Ming Tang [sic] Party headquarters and all other public offices. Search and seizure was conducted of non-military population. Troops and military cadets were disarmed when captured and the arms and munitions of the Chinese arsenal were removed by Japanese including modern rifles field guns heavy guns military motor trucks.”. The capture of Shenyang only took a single day. The Japanese military, their Chinese military collaborators and the local media all coordinated efforts to persuade the people to continue life as normal. Many businesses closed down temporarily within the first few days, worried about a breakdown of the social order or Japanese attacks. But a week after the initial occupation, reports came to the Chambers of Agriculture and Commerce in Shenyang that businesses were all operating normally again, public order was restored. On the second day of the occupation the Kwantung installed Colonel Doihara Kenji as the new mayor of Shenyang, yes that psychopath a mayor. However by October 20th, the mayorship would be handed over to Zhao Xinbo, who by that point became a legal adviser to the Kwantung Army.  The capture of Changchun took a bit longer than Shenyang. On September 23rd the Japanese demanded of the Jilin based forces their surrender. Their acting commander Xi Xia agreed to the demands so that in his words “the province fortunately to escape the horrors of war.” However there were some troops looking to resist. In some ensuing clashes, 200 Chinese soldiers and around 10 civilians were killed in combat. An eye witness reported “At 4 P.M. on the 23rd, the Japanese army made strong use of their armaments, causing Xi Xia concern. So that afternoon, he met [Japanese] commander Tamon, and said that the present situation was serious[;] . . . only he himself could take responsibility for removing the Jilin army's weapons . . . As a result, at 2 P.M. [the next day], they handed over 1,200 rifles, 11 machine-guns and 6 mortars.” Afterwards the city police were given permission to maintain public order, though they clearly were working under the Japanese. On September 24th, Xi Xia announced to the provincial assembly that the Chamber of Commerce of the old government was dissolved and that he would be leading the new Jilin governor's office. He also added that there would be no maintenance committees and that he would exercise complete control. Of course that was bullshit, he was nothing more than a Japanese puppet taking direct orders from Kwantung officers. Despite all of this, Jilin would not be fully dominated, for several months, northern Jilin was in control of rebel forces, based out of Bin county.  The Japanese occupation led to the removal of the Northeastern Governmental Affairs Council, the structure Zhang Xueliang used to nominally control the region. The Japanese did not seek to create a new cross-provincial authority until it seemed there existed popular demand for an independent state. While in the interim, the policy was to establish provincial authorities headed by prominent Chinese figures, secretly under Japanese control. Within Fengtian, the authority was originally only there to maintain public order, but by December it was declared to be a full provincial government. Within Jilin, Xi Xia declared an independent provincial government from the very start. Within the special Zone, Zhang Jinghui declared autonomy, but still stayed in contact with Zhang Xueliang for several months, fence sitting as it were.  At the provincial level, Zhang Xueliang had never really controlled Manchuria, it was honestly in the hands of his subordinates, many of whom already had close ties to the Japanese. For example, Yu Chonghan, a former foreign minister under Zhang Zuolin had for many years received a regular retainer as an “adviser” to the Japanese. He was retired in Liaoyuan when the Mukden Incident occurred and by November was persuaded to return to Shenyang to form a pro-Japanese statement. As far as Yu Chonghan was concerned “Zhang Xueliang squandered the regional assets on expanding their armies in a futile quest for national supremacy through military conquest”. The Japanese also made it apparent to various interest groups that cooperation with them would be advantageous. Take for example the imperial restorationists, yes they still existed. One was Zheng Xiaoxu, who would become the first Manchukuo prime minister. People such as him were persuaded by the prospect of restoring the Qing Dynasty, as batshit crazy as that sounds. There was also White Russians in Harbin persuaded they would be protected from KMT hooligans who had been assaulting them as of late.  In general a huge motivation for regional military leaders to collaborate was to minimize the effect that the Japanese occupation would impose on their spheres of influence. I mean lets be honest, if your choice was to collaborate and maintain some autonomy over your own little slice of Manchuria, or go into exile in North China, what would you choose? Many who opted to collaborate retained the same roles they had before the Mukden Incident. Zhang Shiyi who was acting governor of Liaoning prior became governor of Fengtian province. Zhang Jinghui was the commander of the Harbin Special Zone and this went unchanged. Xi Xia was deputy governor of Jilin, and since his superior Zhang Zuoxiang was exiled to Jinzhou, he simply succeeded his post. Through the initial cooperation, southern manchuria was taken over without wide-scale bloodshed, though there was of course some savage bombing of certain cities.  On September 24th, a Liaoning public order maintenance committee was set up and a Jilin provincial government followed on the 26th. Liaoning did not have a provincial government spring up immediately because the prominent elites such as Yuan Jinkai and Zang Shiyi at first had some qualms about turning against Zhang Xueliang. They of course believed it was possible Zhang Xueling could rally the Northeastern Army and recapture the occupied areas. Yet they chose immediately to maintain public order in a quasi neutral stance. To coordinate all of the newly formed collaborative bodies, the Kwantung Army set up a Control Bureau “Tochibu” with Komai Tokuzo in charge. He was given sole control over it  “so that if it were successful, then it would be the Kwantung Army's success, but if by some chance it should fail, then Komai alone could take the responsibility.” By far and large the Japanese wanted a cross-provincial administrative structure to appear organically created by the Manchurian lites. Therefore during the initial phase of the occupation the Japanese exercised control through the medium of public order maintenance committees, which had long been tradition in Manchuria to form organizations to deal with local social issues such as policing, fire fighting and so forth. Yuan Jinkai, the former chief secretary for military and civil affairs and governor of Fengtian, was now appointed by the Kwantung Army to lead their newly established public order maintenance committee. The committee's stated purpose was "to uphold local order and ensure that finance and businesses operate normally, as well as to establish police and militia forces responsible for maintaining public order." Additionally, other prominent local figures were recruited to various similar committees, including a Liaoning United People's Provisional Committee and a Northeastern Gentry and People's Committee for Discussing Solutions to the Current Situation. On September 28, both the Liaoning Committee and Xi Xia's Jilin administration issued a "declaration of independence" and created new government departments staffed by Chinese officials. It quickly became evident to the Japanese that Yuan Jinkai was not suited for the role of chairman. A contemporary Japanese commentator remarked that “his attitude appeared half-formed and confusing to those outside the provincial capital.” Specifically, Yuan was still reluctant to officially establish a Liaoning provincial government. Consequently, the Kwantung Army turned to the other remaining member of the triad of elders from Zhang Zuolin's administration, Yu Chonghan. From the early days following the Manchurian Incident, there had been indications that Yu was “moving toward participation.” Yu had a long history of collaboration with the Japanese, dating back to the Russo-Japanese War, during which he served as a spy for them. He would have been an obvious choice for the council from the outset if not for his recovery from a serious illness at his home in Liaoyuan. As it became apparent that local leaders had lost faith in Yuan Jinkai's judgment, consultations were held among the provincial heads, who recommended that Yu Chonghan be brought out of retirement to join the committee, provided his health permitted. On November 1, Morita Fukumatsu from the Fengtian Japanese Residents' Association visited Yu's home to assess his health. After Morita briefed Yu on the Committee's situation, they discussed a policy aimed at unifying the Northeast and the adoption of the Kingly Way (Wangdao) as a guiding principle for the new state. Yu agreed to come out of retirement, and on November 3, he traveled to Shenyang for a meeting with Honjo. During this meeting, Yu presented eight points he believed would foster a “paradise” of Sino-Japanese cooperation, which included reforms in local policing, tax and salary systems, and a commitment to non militarism. Subsequently, Yu was appointed head of the committee, with Yuan reporting to him. By the end of 1931, committee members who had previously hesitated to declare an autonomous government due to concerns that Zhang Xueliang might launch an attack to reclaim the Northeast were convinced to support the idea of separating from Nanjing's authority. Well Zhang Xueliang would try to face the Japanese with his northeastern Army. It would not only be him, other figures would emerge to lead resistance efforts against the Japanese, trying to claw back Manchuria from the Empire of the Rising Sun.  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Yes thus far the episodes have been awfully heavy on the politics, schemes and dynamics of how Manchuria was invaded. Some of you must be clamoring for the battles, and for the next few episodes that's exactly what we will jump into. For the fight for Manchuria has only just begun.

Last time we spoke about the Mukden Incident. In the early 1930s, Ishiwara and Itagaki of the Kwantung Army believed Japan must seize Manchuria to secure its interests against China and the USSR. Frustrated by delays from Tokyo, they orchestrated a surprise attack, framing it as retaliation for the mysterious death of a fellow officer. On September 18, 1931, they bombed railway tracks, claiming a Chinese atrocity, and swiftly attacked, overwhelming Chinese forces despite being outnumbered. Their decisive actions sparked Japan's occupation of Manchuria, defying orders from high command. In a bid to expand Japan's influence, Ishiwara and Itagaki incited chaos in Manchuria, leading to the Mukden Incident. They manipulated local unrest to justify military action, swiftly capturing Kirin without resistance. Despite Tokyo's orders against expansion, they continued their aggressive tactics, pushing for Manchuria's independence. Ishiwara's defiance of command led to significant military successes but also sowed seeds of indiscipline within the army. Ultimately, their actions set Japan on a path toward conflict with China and the West, forever changing the region's fate.   #138 How Zhang Xueliang lost Manchuria Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Little disclaimer this is not a quote en quote regular episode. In this one we are going to look more so into the reasons the Japanese had an easy time conquering Manchuria. Its honestly a very complicated subject involving numerous variables, but I thought it be important to talk about this before we get into the campaign itself.  So last we left off are good friend Ishiwara Kanji had unleashed the Mukden Incident, initiating an unofficial war with China. On September 18, 1931, the Japanese executed a false flag operation by detonating explosives along the South Manchurian Railway near Mukden. This action was followed by an assault from 500 Kwantung soldiers on the Peitaying Barracks, which were defended by 7,000 troops under Zhang Xueliang. At the time, Zhang was in Beiping serving as the North China garrison commander. Those around him, including Chiang Kai-shek, urged him to instruct his men not to resist, to conceal their weapons, and to retreat westward if possible. Chiang Kai-shek recognized that the Japanese were attempting to provoke a full-scale war with China, a conflict they were not prepared to win at that moment. China needed additional time to organize and train its forces to confront such an adversary. Zhang Xueliang understood the weakness of his own forces and aimed to preserve a significant army, making these orders advantageous for him. Both men also believed that the League of Nations or the Wakatsuki cabinet might intervene to halt the illegal occupation. During the confrontation at the Peitaying Barracks, approximately 500 Chinese soldiers were killed, many surrendered, and others fled as the Japanese forces destroyed the barracks and the small air force stationed there. Now what is known as the invasion of Manchuria, is actually an extremely complicated story. For those interested over on the Pacific War Channel I have a full documentary covering it with a lot of combat footage and Chinese Drama Series footage which is always absolutely hilarious. To overly summarize, the officials in charge of various regions of Manchuria did one or more of three options when faced with Japanese aggression. 1) Most defected in return for monetary gain and new positions under the emerging puppet government. 2) They attempted to sabotage and thwart the Japanese while portraying themselves to be complicit. And 3) they actively fought back. So before we begin this story lets talk about Manchuria during this time period. After the death of his father Zhang Zuolin, Zhang Xueliang inherited an extremely chaotic Manchurian dynasty one could call it. The problems were political, social and economic and while the Young Marshal was tackling these issues, 3 years into his new reign, on September 18th of 1931 the Japanese commenced an invasion. The Japanese had been greatly concerned at Zhang Xueliang' moves to assume control over the regional industries and railways, whose income was incredibly important to Japan after the Great Depression had hit in 1929. What ultimately happened to Zhang Xueliang echoed the fate of Yuan Shikai during his tenure of 1912-1916. Yuan Shikai had made moves to centralize China while simultaneously alienating its populace by abolishing its provincial assemblies and trying to make the militarists dissolve their armies. Both men faced enormous external threats while trying to transition their regimes. Nonetheless, Zhang Xueliang did oversee a lot of real change in manchuria in terms of political awareness, education, greater availability of foreign goods and increased the populations feeling they were part of China proper. This increased awareness alongside a sense of international crisis caused by the clashes with the USSR and Japan, spur a new sense of nationalism that would persist for the 15 year war.  So lets talk about the regions of Manchuria shall we. There are 3 provinces in Manchuria, Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang, altogether they encompass 380,000 square miles. The central third of Manchuria consists of plains, with the Xing'an range extending around the border areas from the west to northeast and the Changbaishan mountains following the border from east to southeast. To the west of the Xing'an Mountains lies a region that is geographically part of Mongolia and is characterized by steppe terrain. The most fertile regions include the alluvial plain extending from the Gulf of Liaodong to Changchun, as well as the areas near the Sungari and Nonni Rivers in northern Jilin and Heilongjiang. This area experiences significant seasonal climate variations, with average temperatures in July reaching approximately 24 degrees Celsius, while winter averages drop to around –12 degrees Celsius in southern Manchuria and –24 degrees Celsius in the far north. By 1931, there had been no official census conducted in the area, but the Research Bureau of the South Manchurian Railway estimated the population in 1930 to be approximately 34.4 million people. This included 15.2 million in Liaoning, 9.1 million in Jilin, and 5.3 million in Heilongjiang. Population density varied, with Liaoning having 212 people per square mile, Jilin with 89, and Heilongjiang with 23. By 1931, over 90 percent of the population was Han Chinese, while Manchus accounted for about 3 percent, Mongols around 6 percent, and the remaining population comprised Koreans, Russians, and Japanese. During the Japanese occupation, the economy of Manchuria was primarily agricultural, with soybean products accounting for 60 percent of the region's total exports in 1930. In contrast, industrial development was limited in 1931, mainly concentrated in the Japanese-controlled cities of Dairen and Harbin, as well as in areas managed by the South Manchuria Railway and the Chinese Eastern Railway. However, since the early 1920s, a military-industrial complex had begun to emerge, driven by Zhang Zuolin's demand for modern weaponry. The Shenyang arsenal, established in 1919, manufactured rifles and ammunition, employing 20,000 skilled workers who operated at full capacity during the Zhili-Fengtian wars, producing up to 400,000 rounds daily at its peak in 1924-25.The population of Manchuria was overwhelmingly rural and the rivers and roads remained their principal means of transportation. The Amur, Nonni and Sungari rivers were the lifeline of trade, while the roads were in quite a terrible state of repair by 1931. There were 3 key groups of people who met the Japanese invasion, military power brokers, nationalists and civilians who were largely alienated from Zhang Xueliang's regime. Amongst all of them was a large level of interprovincial rivalries.  Local militarism in Manchuria was heavily factionalied with each clique retaining both civilian and military followers. The old comrades of Zhang Zuolin were categorized by the Japanese as “the old faction”, such men as Zhang Zuoxiang and Zhang Jinghui who had risen up alongside the Tiger of Manchuria during the 1920s. They had amassed large fortunes and although they had been subordinate to Zhang Zuolin, they were also power brokers in their own right with private armies and economic bases under their control. Some like Zhang Zuoxiang and Wan Fulin stayed loyal to the Young Marshal once he assumed power. They were often aided by the Japanese who were not keen at all with Zhang Xueliang's enthusiasm for Chinese nationalism. Zhang Zuoxiang would become one of Zhang Xueliangs most important associates. He was born in Jinzhou and at the age of 16 fled his village to escape a family feud and became a bricklayer in Shenyang. However in 1901 he got involved in an incident ending with him stabbing another man, prompting him to flee for Xinmin where he joined forces under Zhang Zuolin. He quickly rose within the military and attended the Fengtian Military Academy. During the 1920s he remained a close ally to Zhang Zuolin, serving as a military governor of Jilin. When Zhang Zuolin was assassinated, Zhang Zuoxiang used his authority to preserve power for Zhang Xueliang who was stationed outside Manchuria at the time and needed time to return to Manchuria.  Wan Fulin would become Zhang Xueliang's other second in command. He was born in 1880 in Changling county of Jilin. Born to a poor farming family, he joined a local militia of around 50 men. His militia was gradually incorporated into the local militarist Wu Junshengs troops in 1900 and from then on Wan rose through the ranks. After Zhang Zuolin's death Wan Fulin was appointed as the military affairs supervisor or “duban” for HEilongjiang. He then took a newly created position of provincial chairman “Zhuxi” in 1929 and held said position during the Mukden Incident.  Now after the Old Tiger had died, one of his old associates Zhang Zongchang, whom I think we all know very well, proved to Zhang Xueliang he could not rely on his fathers old guard. Zhang Zongchang and Chu Yupu tossed their lot in with the Japanese and attacked from Tangshan with 60,000 troops trying to overthrow the new KMT led government. That little venture only lasted from August 2-8th, ending in a hilarious defeat for the so called rebels, but the experience taught Zhang Xueliang that his Fengtian army needed to be reformed, even though it was against the wishes of many of its senior officers.  The most significant opposition to Zhang Xuliang came from his fathers former chief of staff Yang Yuting and his associate Chang Yinhuai. Yang Yuting had been born in Hebei, but his family moved to Faku county in Fengtian when he was young. He was an adept student, rising through the system and by 1909 joined the Japanese military academy “Shikkan gakko”. During the republic days, he joined the Old Tiger and slowly became a trusted ally. In 1925 as General Guo Songling rebelled, in a large part because of Yang Yuting's advocacy of continued militarism even after the failure of the Fengtian army during the second Fengtian-Zhili War. Yang Yuting was chosen by Zhang Zuolin to lead the unsuccessful counterebellion and then became his chief of staff. By 1927 Yang Yuting began negotiations with the Japanese, some of whom thought he would make a much better replacement to the Old Tiger. Yang Yuting saw Zhang Zuolins death as an opportunity to development himself, however in 1928 he began negotiations with Nanjing as well. This led him to change his mind about Japan and adopted unification measures with Nanjing. He hoped to snuggle up to Chiang Kai-Shek, but likewise retained close connections with the Japanese. Dishing out appointments was something Yang Yuting was quite keen upon. When Zhang Xueliang sought to appoint one of his supporters as the new governor of the Eastern Special Zone, this was an area around Harbin that had been made autonomous in its role as a hub for the Chinese Eastern Railway, well Yang Yuting made Zhang Jinghui the de facto governor instead. Yet Yang Yuting's spiderlike nature would become his downfall. One of his closest friends was Chang Yinhuai, who was appointed governor of Heilongjiang by Zhang Xueliang in 1928. Chang Yinhuai's contempt for the Young Marshal became more and more open, until it reached the point where he would money to Yang Yuting for ordnance expenses but not the Young Marshal, oh and he was building his own private army. On the 10th of January of 1929 Chang and Yang went to meet Zhang Xueliang, demanding he create a new post of Northeastern Railway Supervisor for Chang. They both argued they wanted to take control over the Chinese Eastern Railway, currently under Soviet-Chinese dual control, but Zhang Xueliang dragged his feet during the meeting. When the two men left, Zhang Xueliang instructed his police chief Gao Jiyi to arrest and shoot them, which he did. M.S Myers, the American consul in Shenyang cabled his superiors about the execution, noting, “the elimination of the two most powerful and probably able members of the Fengtien Party[,]... although strengthening the position of the existing head of this territory for the time being, may later result in the breakup of that party through internal and external agencies.” Well Mr. Myers was quite right. Although Zhang Xueliang's actions had the effect of stopping Yang Yutings overreach, it ultimately was more of a sign of his weakness, rather than strength. Some like Zhang Jinghui were saved by the fact they were old associates with Zhang Zuolin and had built their own power bases. However other like Zang Shiyi for example, who were close associates of Yang Yuting had to wait for Zhang Xueliang to move to Beiping to take up his position as deputy commander of the Nationalist forces before gaining office as chairman of Liaoning. Zhao Xinbo only managed to grab the office of mayor over Shenyang after the Japanese took over. Overall Zhang Xueliang did not exercise strong enough control over his local militarists any more than his father did. When Guo Songling had rebelled in 1925, Zhang Zuolin's support had bled considerably, it was only Japanese intervention that saved him. His son would find out his rule was more tolerated rather than supported. There was also a lot of friction between those supporting the KMT vs those supporting the CCP in Manchuria. Qian Gonglai was a professor at the Shendao school in SHenyang and was arrested as a Bolshevist agitator in march of 1927. He had developed a large following amongst his students and the local intelligentsia. Qian had been involved with multiple organization such as the local YMCA and within the Shendao school, which were breeding grounds for young activities. These youthful types were inspired by the May Fourth and May Thirtieth movements, most being from Fengtian. Once Zhang Xueliang and his close followers set up a base of operations in Beiping after 1931, these types of intellectuals would become the founders and key movers of the Northeast National Salvation Society or “NNSS”, the most important propaganda organization to favor the military recapture of Manchuria in defiance of Chiang Kai-Shek's nonaggression strategy. One of their members, Yan Baohang was born in a village within Haicheng county of Fengtian. He came from a poor family, but managed to attend the village school and performed well enough to encourage a local elite to pay for his primary schooling. He went on to study at the teacher training college in Shenyang where he came under the influence of Christianity, but also nationalist ideas promoted by the May fourth movement. He attended the Shenyang YMCA and went to college where he met other young activities such as Wang Zhuoran, Du Zhongyuan and Gao Chongmin. After graduating Yan attempted his new teaching methods at various Fengtian schools, before setting up a free school in Shenyang for poor children. This school was supported by the YMCA and funds from Guo Songling's wife. The school was widely admired, and Zhang Xueliang gave it his full support. Yan became quite famous and was sent to Beijing for further training. By 1925 Yan received a scholarship to go to Edinburgh University where he earned a certificate in Social Studies. While in Europe he traveled widely, visiting places like Denmark and Moscow. He came back to Shenyang in 1929 and alongside Lu Guangji, Gao Chongmin, Wang Huayi and Che Xiangchen formed the Liaoning Provincial Nationalist Foreign Affairs association. This organization, whose core members formed the NNSS, was supported by Zhang Xueliang. Their aim was to seek China's freedom and equal status, which obviously stood against the Japanese. By 1931 it had 46 branches and Yan also set up within the YMCA a Liaoning anti-opium association and a Liaoning Provincial Nationalist Education Advancement Association. By 1930 the Educational Advancement Association's speakers went out on 14 occasions to talk about “exposing various crimes and secret plans the Japanese had for invading the Northeast”. Yan would become one of the heads of the NNSS's propaganda section after 1931. The adoption of the KMT in Manchuria post 1929 meant the nationalist activists all became party members. Yan Baohang and his friends Lu Guangji, Che Xiangchen, Du Zhongyuan,Wang Huayi, Zhao Yushi, and Wang Zhuoran were among thirteen delegates sent to Nanjing for the KMT national conference in May 1931. Lu Guanji had a similar career to that of Yan. Born in 1894 in Haicheng county, he came to Shenyang at the age of 15 and graduated from the teacher training college in 1918. He taught in a SMR-zone Chinese school. In 1922 he attended a national YMCA meeting in Shenyang and soon after was dismissed from teaching for supporting student protests. After this he went to Shenyang to see if his friend Yan Baohang could use his influence with Zhang Xueliang to obtain him a job as a schools inspector. By 1926 he left education for business, becoming a manager over a local printing firm. By 1929, he was elected deputy head of the Fengtian Chamber of Commerce where he frequently met with Zhang Xueliang who liked to make use of the chamber to organize anti-Japanese protests that would not be officially linked to himself.  Chen Xianzhou was born in Huanren county to a family who were handicraft manufacturers, but they went bankrupt during the First Sino-Japanese War. Chen moved in with other relatives who paid for his education. He entered the Huanren Teacher training college in 1915, where he also learned Japanese. In 1919 he won a scholarship to Sendai Industrial College where he studied electrical engineering and became active in overseas chinese student groups protesting for the return of Port Arthur and Dairen. After graduating in 1924 he was employed by the Shenyang municipal administration to negotiate with the Japanese on the building of a new tram line. Through his efforts it was built in a year for less than 2 million yuan and for this in 1927, he was asked to do the same service for Harbin. Under Zhang Xueliang's administration, Chen was given permission to restructure the Northeasts telecommunications and broadcasting network. He added 12 new transmitters linking Shenyang, Harbin, Qiqihar, Yingkou and Changchun. After the Mukden Incident, Chen became a committee member of the NNSS in Beiping, advising resistance armies on how to operate field radios.  Du Zhongyuan was born in Huaide county, once located in Fengtian, now in Jilin. He came from a poor village family, but local elites helped pay for his education, allowing him to study at the Fengtian Provincial teacher training college. He also studied english and japanese. He first became a english teacher, but then developed an interest in the porcelain industry, which was heavily dominated by the Japanese in Manchuria. He thought he could break into their market, so he went to Tokyo Industrial college from 1917-1923, before returning to set up a porcelain manufacturing firm in Shenyang. In 1929, Zhang Xueliang authorized a 120,000 yuan loan to support his factory. Du rose into a prominent figure and was elected deputy chairmen of the Liaoning Chamber of Commerce in 1927, then chairman in 1929. His time in Japanese had been spent mostly as a student, but he was also an activist. He had led a group of 29 Chinese students to protest Zhang Zuolin's government for continuing to allow the Japanese to control the Kwantung leased territory. He had a flair for publicity and found himself in a good position to head the NNSS. He befriended Yan Baohang and Lu Guangji along his journey. Che Xiangchen was born in Faku county to a local elite family. He attended Beijing University extension school in 1918 and was quickly caught up in political activities, taking part in the May fourth movement. After graduating he studied at Zhangguo University then after that joined the Shenyang YMCA befriending Yan Baohang. Encouraged by Yan Baohang, he established schools for delinquent and disadvantaged children. The exact field I work in outside of Youtube and Podcasts. By July 1929 he sponsored 41 schools within ities and over 200 rural schools. Alongside Yan Baohang, and Zhang Xiluan he organized the Liaoning Associate for the Encouragement of Nationalist Education. Wang Huayi was born in Liaozhong county to a poor farmer family. He managed to get funding for his education at the Fengtian Teacher training college in 1916. During his studies he befriend Yan Baohang who introduced him to the YMCA and involved him in its activities. He also became friendly with Zhang Xueliang and this paid off after 1928 when he was made deputy head of the Liaoning Education Department. Wang Zhuoran was born in Fushun county to a farmer family. He attended teacher colleges in Beijing and Shenyang where he befriended Yan, Du, Lu and Wang Huayi and other activists at the YMCA. From 1923-1928 he studied at Columbia University in New York and traveled to England often before returning to Shenyang in 1928. He became the tutor to Zhang Xueliang's children and was active in the Northeastern Nationalist Foreign affairs association. All of these figures dominated Liaoning, specifically the area of Shenyang and this meant the core of nationalist activism was also found here. Here the Japanese would manage to co opt local elites, but many of said elites would fight to see Manchuria recaptured by China. Now that covered the educated, nationalistic and politically aligned to Zhang Xueliang types, but the elites of Manchuria at the county level were anything but aligned with the Young Marshal. In fact most of the provincial elites were actually prejudiced against Zhang Xueliang. As a result of the Warlord Era wars, an enormous amount of Manchuria's spending went to the military. To give a more specific idea. Between 1922 and 1924, Zhang participated in the Fengtian-Zhili Wars. Thanks to the careful financial management of his finance minister, Wang Yongjiang, the budget was able to accommodate these expenses even in 1923, despite approximately 50 percent of revenue being allocated to military spending. Fengtian's revenue amounted to 26.8 million yuan, with expenditures totaling 18.2 million yuan; of this, 13.9 million yuan—around 76 percent—was directed towards the military, while only 3 percent was spent on education. However, by 1925, Fengtian's income had decreased to 23 million yuan, while military expenditures surged to 51 million yuan. In an attempt to address this issue, Zhang Zuolin resorted to printing money, which led to rampant inflation. On March 1, 1927, the exchange rate was 6.71 Fengtian dollars for one Japanese gold yen, but by February 1928, it had plummeted to 40 dollars per yen. As Ronald Suleski observes, “Zhang Zuolin drained the provincial economy in order to pay his troops fighting in China proper.” Local elites became very resentful of the increased military spending and rising inflation and this was furthermore met by Zhang Zuolin silencing their complaints by neutralizing their provincial assemblies. The military spending kept growing, alongside the inflation causing high unemployment. By February of 2918 the Shenyang Chamber of Commerce reported , “5,089 businesses were forced to close, among them 456 sundry goods shops, 416 restaurants, 165 factories, 157 machine shops, 142 rice shops, 116 foreign goods stores, and 83 general stores.” When the Young Marshal assumed power he promised major changes including “the development of industry and commerce, the pursuit of education, and utmost efforts to maintain peace.” Yet his fathers pattern of spending did not change. In 1930, total regional expenditure reached 144.2 million yuan, with 98.6 million yuan allocated to the military (68.3%), compared to just 4.7 million yuan for education (3.26%) and 0.34 million yuan for construction projects (0.24%). Regional revenue from taxes and other government sources, including fines, amounted to 122 million yuan, resulting in a deficit of 22 million yuan. Of this revenue, only 8.3 million yuan (6.8%) came from direct taxation, primarily land tax, while the salt gabelle was the most profitable source, generating 45.9 million yuan (37.3%). Following their occupation, the Japanese observed that “if such a large sum were not spent on military purposes, the finances of the Three Eastern Provinces would show a significant surplus.” Many of the civilians who served in Zhang Zuolin's government became quickly disillusioned with the rule of militarists and felt very uneasy about Zhang Xueliangs alliance with Nanjing, as to most in Manchuria, Chiang Kai-Shek was just another warlord. Many of the elites saw Japan as a more rational alternative for an alliance. Yu Chonghan who had been the foreign minister to Zhang Zuolin until he resigned in 1927 had a long lasting relationship with the Japanese. During the Russo-Japanese War he had been a spy for Japan and always kept close contact with Tokyo. Chen Xinbo, the advisor to Yang Yuting was a former legal adviser to Zhang Zuolin. However he also had long standing connections to Japan, working as a school teacher in Dairen, before studying at Meiji University for law. Yuan Jinkai, the former minister of civil affairs for Zhang Zuolin was “a mentor figure to the civilian clique in the 1920s”. He was born in Liaoyang in the 1870s and was a scholar who became head of the conservative faction in the joint provincial assembly. But when Zhang Xueliang came to power, in the words of a Japanese reporter “demoted by the ‘new faction' and completely lost his power. He was exalted to being a member of the Northeastern Governmental Affairs Committee [Dongbei zhengwu weiyuanhui: the highest political body in the Northeast after 1928] and a committee member in the Nanjing Government's Control Yuan, but from the start he was treated as a relic of the past [kotto].” Understandably he became disillusioned with Zhang Xueliang. Yuan was just one of many prominent disenfranchised elites who sought an opportunity to regain what they had lost to the Young Marshal and the Japanese occupation proved a great opportunity.  The South Manchurian Railway was a major factor that contributed to the co-option of the Chinese towards Japanese occupation. It ran 700 miles, over 5 lines and had land rights attached to it encompassing 105 cities, towns and villages. Not only did it provide railway services but also administration and social services. By 1924 the SMR had expanded its workforce to nearly 40,000 with ¾'s being local chinese. It provided expensive facilities, such as hospitals in Mukden, Tieling, Changchun and Dairen. The growth in Chinese nationalism against the Japanese grew amongst the intelligentsia, but the average blue collar types more or less enjoyed the benefits the Japanese were providing. Historian Chong-Sik Lee noted “The living conditions among the Chinese population in the Kwantung Leased Territory were much better than those in China proper, and this was true throughout the region” A combination of improved conditions compared to those in intramural China and the appeal of Japanese-sponsored jobs in industry and mining, he argues, resulted in a significant influx of immigrants to the area. The Japanese capitalized on this newly available labor force by implementing a development strategy that necessitated the hiring of large numbers of unskilled Chinese workers, even with the use of modern equipment. This approach was largely motivated by a desire to avoid widespread unemployment, as these workers also served as consumers of Japanese products. Furthermore, although the working conditions for manual laborers employed by the Japanese were poor by contemporary standards, they were not necessarily worse—and may have even been better—than those faced by factory workers in Japan, such as women aged twelve to thirty-five employed in Nagano's silk factories, where the mortality rate due to lung disease was 23 per 1,000, compared to the typical rate of 7 per 1,000 for that age group.The Japanese had also set up the Manchurian Youth League “Manshu Seinen renmei” in 1928 to specifically deal with the threat of the growing Chinese nationalism, by advocating for a separate state in Manchuria. Both the Japanese army and civilian settlers aspired to set up a Japanese controlled Manchuria that could make use of the existing Chinese local government structures.  There was also the issue of currency. Coins, ingots and notes were all in circulation, but their value differed from region to region. There were competing currencies, Chinese, Japanese and Soviet. Zhang Zuolin had set up three eastern provincial banks aiming to issue a unified currency to supersede the foreign currencies, backed by silver reserves, but it never worked out. Politically when Manchuria joined the new Nanjing system, it meant the KMT would begin a process of elections and appointments, but in the interim it fell upon Zhang Xueliang, who simply reverted to his fathers old way of relying on regional figureheads. Basically only Liaoning saw any real political reform. Militarily Zhang Xueliang inherited his fathers Fengtian military. He wished to reduce the spending of it, but found himself unable to deal with the high unemployment that would result from mass demobilization. Zhang Xueliang also feared reducing his military strength to the point he might become vulnerable to any of his given rivals. On the economic front, it was really Japan who benefited the most from Manchuria's economic activities. 70% of Manchurian imports came from Japan as were 75% of its exports. Zhang Xueliang was determined to reverse the Japanese economic dominance, but the great depression greatly hampered any efforts.  Ultimately, Zhang Xueliang had grand plans when he rose to power in 1928. He intended to align the Northeast with the Nanjing government and diminish Japanese influence in the region. Additionally, he sought to enhance local infrastructure in Manchuria and regain the trust of provincial elites who had been alienated by his father. Although some progress was made toward these objectives, the outcomes fell short of the efforts invested. His alliance with Chiang Kai-shek was marked by mutual suspicion. The economic depression devastated the agricultural exports that had fueled Manchuria's remarkable growth, undermining the financial resources needed for Zhang's initiatives. Both civilian and military leaders in the area struggled to trust Zhang, as incidents like the assassination of Yang Yuting and the outbreak of civil war in 1930 led them to believe that, despite his claims, he was much like his father. Most importantly, the Japanese grew increasingly concerned about the possibility of a nationalist regime threatening their “special position.” By 1931, they recognized a risk to their dominance, while Zhang's reforms remained incomplete and unpopular. Concurrently, the sentiment in Japan was shifting toward aggression against China, which was being partially blamed for exacerbating Japan's economic difficulties. These combined factors led to the coup on September 18, 1931. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Zhang Xueliang sure inherited one hot potato so to say. Much could be blamed upon his father Zhang Zuolin, but likewise the Young Marshal failed to meet the demands of his new reign. Many Chinese would ultimately throw their lot in with the Japanese, rather than what appeared to be a failing warlord. 

Last time we spoke about the Ishiwara Kanji. Born in 1889 in Japan, Kanji Ishiwara was the son of a policeman from a samurai lineage. He entered military training at 13, rising through the ranks to become a Major and a respected lecturer. His unconventional views on military strategy and history led him to predict a prolonged conflict with the United States. Deeply influenced by Nichiren Buddhism, he envisioned Japan as a moral leader destined to guide Asia, advocating for reform in China while grappling with his nation's imperial ambitions. In 1928, ishiwara fell ill with influenza, leading to a six-month hospitalization. During recovery, he joined an elite study group discussing war theories. His lectures on total war gained fame, culminating in a presentation to Kwantung officers. Amid rising tensions in Japan, he advocated for control over Manchuria, believing Japan had a moral duty to stabilize China. His theories on warfare, including the devastating potential of airpower, foreshadowed the horrors of future conflicts, influencing Japan's military strategies.   #137 Ishiwara Kanji Part 2: The Mukden Incident Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War.   For the next two and a half years, Ishiwara and Itagaki collaborated with other members of the Kwantung Army to address what they perceived as the Manchurian issue. By the mid-1930s, the belief that Manchuria needed to be forcibly seized had become the prevailing opinion among the Kwantung Army. Ishiwara was convinced that Japan could no longer remain passive in Manchuria, as each passing day meant Japan was gradually losing its rights and interests in the region to China, risking expulsion. Abandoning Manchuria would be a national catastrophe, resulting in the loss of a crucial buffer state, valuable resources, and land for Japan's growing population to settle. In essence, Manchuria was vital for Japan's survival and growth. Ishiwara would often say “manchuria provides Japan with breathing space” where have we heard that type of talk before?. To the military heads in Tokyo Ishikawa would often assert Manchuria had to be seized via force, because of the soviet threat of the USSR and communism as a whole “In view of the traditional russian policy in that area, once the soviets advanced into manchuria, it would become a base for the communization of asia. Not only would the internal stability of manchuria become impossible to maintain, but Japan would be unable to maintain its own national defense, and China's defenses, too, would become imperialized". The Army Headquarters in Tokyo also recognized that Manchuria was a crucial defensive line against the USSR. However, unlike the Kwantung Army, which aimed to control all of Manchuria, the leaders in Tokyo focused on incorporating southern Manchuria through the South Manchurian Railway and did not pursue any territory north of it. Ishiwara, on the other hand, believed that the only way for Japan to prevent the USSR from exerting pressure on southern Manchuria was to occupy northern Manchuria and extend even further north toward the Amur River. This would allow Japan to control the mountain ranges that bordered the western and eastern frontiers of northern Manchuria. Once Japan controlled northern Manchuria, Ishiwara stated in 1931 “With the solution of our defense problems in the north, we would then be free to plan an advance in any direction: to China proper, for example, or even to Southeast Asia”. Ishiwara advanced his ideas significantly after Japan's conquest of Manchuria, recognizing the necessity of effectively administering and pacifying its diverse populations. He posited that the stability of Manchuria could be achieved through the unique skills and contributions of the various ethnic groups residing there. For instance, he believed that the Chinese would excel in developing small businesses, while the Koreans would apply their expertise in paddy farming. These racial dynamics, according to Ishiwara, would play a crucial role in the development of Manchukuo and the broader vision of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. However, it was clear that, above all, Manchuria was intended to serve Japan's interests, many of which were exploitative and economically driven. By early 1930, Ishiwara and his colleague Itagaki devised a military strategy reminiscent of the tactics employed during the Russo-Japanese War, specifically a surprise night attack. Their plan involved the Kwantung Army launching an assault on the Liaoning region, targeting key Chinese garrisons. This operation required meticulous planning, as the Kwantung Army was significantly outnumbered by the forces commanded by Zhang Xueliang. In the vicinity of Mukden alone, Zhang commanded approximately 20,000 well-equipped troops, supported by aircraft and tanks. Across Manchuria, he could mobilize around 250,000 soldiers in the event of conflict. In stark contrast, the Kwantung Army could only field about 10,000 personnel, primarily composed of garrison units stationed along the railway. They lacked substantial air support and mechanized units, and their overall equipment was inadequate. To address this stark imbalance in military strength, Ishiwara emphasized the importance of intelligence and rigorous training. He aimed to refine specific assault techniques, enabling Japanese forces to execute rapid and concentrated attacks that would overwhelm their Chinese adversaries. The overarching strategy was notably straightforward: it hinged on delivering a decisive blow to the heart of Zhang Xueliang's military stronghold at the Peitaying barracks in Mukden. Ishiwara believed that if this critical target fell, it would shatter the enemy's morale, providing the Kwantung Army with the necessary military and psychological momentum to dominate the surrounding regions. However, he acknowledged that if the Soviet Union intervened, the entire plan could unravel catastrophically. One important variable Ishiwara highlighted was the necessity to pull off the operation before any attempt to restructure the domestic order in Japan occurred. Ishiwara knew his arguments and those of his colleagues would influence the heads in Tokyo, and they had to act before they did. However the heads at Tokyo and the Kwantung army held very different perspectives on when to act. In June of 1931 the Central army HQ stated in its General Outline of a solution to the Manchurian problem “we must defer the question of military action for a whole year. During this time the foreign ministry would attempt to dampen anti japanese activities in manchuria through negotiations with the government of Nanking. In the meantime the government would launch an information campaign to try and drive acquiescence at home and aboard for military action ” Ishiwara, as you can imagine, was deeply frustrated by the prospect of delaying action for another year. He argued passionately that the current international landscape necessitated an immediate strike. At that time, the Soviet Union was still in the midst of its ambitious five-year plan, which limited its capacity for intervention. Meanwhile, the United States, Britain, and France were grappling with their own financial crises, rendering them unable to mount significant resistance in the Far East. Most notably, the Nationalist regime in China was preoccupied with its unification efforts south of the Great Wall, but this situation was expected to shift soon. Ishiwara believed that if they postponed their plans for a year, the geopolitical environment would deteriorate further, making decisive action imperative. For Ishiwara, the moment to act was now or never. In July 1931, Ishiwara and Itagaki orchestrated a crucial reconnaissance mission aimed at familiarizing the newest Kwantung officers with the northern regions of Manchuria. To disguise their true intentions, they informed high command that the mission was a survey focused on the Soviet Union. However, the real objective was to assess the strength and influence of Chinese power in northern Manchuria. During their return journey, the team received alarming news about the disappearance of Captain Nakamura Shintaro, a Kwantung staff officer. Upon reaching Port Arthur, they learned that rumors were circulating that Captain Nakamura had been killed by Chinese soldiers under what were described as “mysterious circumstances.” In the preceding months, Manchuria had witnessed a surge in violent riots, murders, work strikes, and various other incidents, all contributing to a climate of unrest. The Nakamura affair intensified these existing tensions. In response, both the Chinese and Japanese foreign ministries attempted to negotiate a resolution to the crisis. However, figures at the central army headquarters, such as Nagata Tetsuzan, who sympathized with the urgency felt by their Kwantung counterparts, felt compelled to support them. The situation was rapidly escalating, and the stakes were growing ever higher. For Ishiwara the issue was clear as he wrote “the Nakamura incident adds just one more issue to the others. What the army should do now is to ignore the foreign ministry and solve the problem by taking matters into its own hands”. And that's exactly what he did. The Kwantung officers moved their troops beyond the railway zone, where they had been confined, and without waiting for Itagaki's approval—who was in Japan at the time—they began preparations to send an armored train along with a mixed regiment of infantry and artillery to Mukden. Their goal was to enlist the help of the Chinese military in investigating Nakamura's disappearance. Upon learning of this, Tokyo sent a telegram instructing them to halt their departure from the railway and to refrain from using the Nakamura incident as a pretext for employing force to address the Manchurian issue. For Ishiwara this was the last straw. On August 20th he sent a message to Nagata condemning the current diplomatic situation and that negotiations were an utter waste of time. “There is no way to settle the matter except by placing it in the hands of the army. If central hq finds it so difficult to trust its field personnel then it had better replace them with representatives more suitable to the conditions it imagines to exist in Manchuria”. Ishiwara doubled down and pushed for a plot to provoke military conflict outside of Mukden. As he wrote in almost a messianic Nichiren conviction ‘I will be the pillar of Japan; I will be the eyes of Japan; I will be the great vessel of Japan” . “Gekokujo / ruling from below” is a Japanese historical term referring to when subordinates defy or manipulate their superiors. Ishiwara and his like minded close colleagues were about to perform Gekokujo. Ishiwara ordered the dispatch of an armored train carrying a mixed regiment of infantry and artillery to compel the Chinese military authorities in Mukden to assist in the investigation of Nakamura's disappearance. However, central headquarters halted the train's departure at the last moment, sending a telegram from Tokyo that specifically instructed the Kwantung Army not to use the Nakamura incident to pressure a resolution to the Manchurian issue.  In addition to the Nakamura situation, another issue was brewing. Colonel Dohihara Kenji was involved in a plot to enlist Warlord Yan Xishan to attack Zhang Xueliang. This scheme was attracting unwanted attention and undermining the effectiveness of the Nakamura incident, prompting Ishiwara to swiftly suppress the plans. Rumors began to circulate in Tokyo that the Kwantung Army was preparing to retaliate against the Chinese due to the Nakamura situation. In response, War Minister General Minami dispatched Major General Yoshiji Tatekawa to Mukden to caution the Kwantung officers against any such actions. Ishiwara was informed of Tatekawa's arrival and sent urgent telegrams to his followers, warning, “Plot exposed. Act before Tatekawa's arrival.” Consequently, the launch date was moved from September 28th to the 18th. Itagaki personally intercepted Tatekawa's train, inviting him for tea and sake, and arranged for him to spend the night with a geisha on the evening of the 18th. On September 18th of 1931, 1st Lt Suemori Kawamoto of the independent Garrison Unit of the 29th infantry regiment planted bombs along the tracks near Liutiaokou. At 10:20pm they exploded doing only minor damage to 1.5 meters of track on one site. The damage was so minor a train actually passed over the tracks without difficulty 10 minutes later. Ishiwara, Itagaki and their followers quickly announced the explosion to be a Chinese atrocity and mobilized the Kwantung Army. Itagaki ordered the Independent Garrison Force and 29th infantry regiment to storm the Peitaying Barracks. Battalion commander Shimamoto was awakened by the orders via telephone and quickly dispatched the 1st (Ono) and 4th (Takahashi) companies from Mukden; the 2nd (kawakami) company at Fushun to advance to Liutiaokou. At 10:40pm the 29th regiment commander Hirata got a call from Shimamoto who ordered him to get his regiment into emergency formation and to storm the Peiyating barracks.  Two secretly hidden 24cm artillery pieces began to bombard the Peitaying barracks as 500 Japanese stormed the 7000 strong Chinese garrison. Despite being outnumbered 14 to 1, the Japanese destroyed Zhang Xueliangs small air force, routed the Chinese and occupied the Peiyating Barracks by 11pm, all at the cost of 500 Chinese lives and allegedly only 2 Japanese lives. A major reason the Japanese had ease was because Zhang Xueliang ordered his men to store away their weapons and not put up a fight if the Japanese invaded. Zhang Xueliang and Chiang Kai-shek both in Beijing at the time knew they could not initiate an offensive war against such a strong foreign country. They were hoping the League of Nations would intervene as pertaining to the Kellogg Briand Pact of 1928. But later on Chiang Kai-Shek would find America too wrapped up in its depression at home, Britain indifferent and other nations without enough reason to risk anything in the far east. An hour after the attack, Ishiwara began pressing General Shigeru Honjo, the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Kwantung Army, to send reinforcements to capture all of Mukden. Initially, Honjo hesitated, but Ishiwara convinced him that there was significant provocation from the enemy, prompting Honjo to order additional units into combat to secure the entire city. Historians have since struggled to determine whether Honjo was aware of the invasion plan; it seems likely he had some knowledge, but not the full details, which made him cautious in his actions over the following weeks. In the days that followed, Honjo attempted to confine the incident, but Ishiwara and Itagaki continuously urged all forces to adhere to the secret plan they had trained for. The speed and decisiveness of their actions overwhelmed the Chinese forces and left Honjo unable to change the course of events. Famously when one colleague asked Itagaki what to do in response to cease and desist orders from Honjo, Itagaki responded “Never mind Honjo, it's Ishiwara's war”. Official orders from Tokyo came on the next day, specifically opposing the expansion of hostilities, but Ishiwara and Itagaki had come too far to stop now. They began persuading Honjo to telegram the General Staff to ask for reinforcements and freedom of action “to pursue actively the security and order of all of Manchuria”. Ishiwara and Itagaki clearly aimed to expand their offensive through official channels first, but they also circumvented these channels. One cunning tactic they used was to incite chaos among civilians in Manchurian cities, thereby heightening the demand for improved security for Japanese residents. This strategy would enable the Kwantung Army troops to move beyond their established boundaries. Shortly after what is now known as the "Mukden Incident," military agents were sent to Kirin to stir unrest in the city. Reports of disturbances from Kirin began flooding into the Kwantung Army headquarters, with Ishiwara urging Honjo to send forces to Kirin to safeguard Japanese residents. He also pushed for reinforcements from the Korean Army, but Honjo was reluctant to take that step. It seems Ishiwara feared missing a golden opportunity and chose another course of action. On the night of the 20th, he gathered together a bunch of younger Kwantung officers such as Itagaki's assistant, Captain Katakura Tadashi and told them “I can't do anything more to budge the commander and so i'm giving up my responsibilities for the direction of operations. Katakura, you take over”. Well it seems this little ploy had the intended effect as all the young officers immediately began pressuring Honjo to support Ishiwara's demands to advance to Kirin, many of them threatening to resign. After several hours of the officers nagging, Honjo related and authorized the despatch of troops.  The operation against Kirin was executed with remarkable speed. Ishiwara ordered the majority of the 2nd Division, led by General Tamon Jiro, to swiftly travel to Kirin by train. They entered the city without firing a single shot and compelled the local Chinese commander to declare the province's independence from Zhang Xueliang's regime. Within hours, the Korean army responded to an aid request from the Kwantung Army staff sent on September 21st and began advancing into Manchuria. In just 48 hours, the Japanese military had taken control of Kirin, which was outside the Kwantung operational zone, and the Korean army was invading Manchuria without Tokyo's approval, effectively undermining military discipline. Chief of Staff Kanaya Hanzo had issued specific orders to restrict the Kwantung Army's operations and granted field commanders discretionary authority for certain emergency situations, typically of a local nature. However, the Kirin expedition did not fit within these parameters. Encouraged by their success, Ishiwara and Itagaki pushed for an advance on Harbin. As noted in the previous episode, the strategy for taking Manchuria relied on speed and precision. The Kwantung Army had limited forces compared to the immediate Chinese troops in Manchuria, yet they were constrained by directives from Tokyo HQ that prohibited the movement of Kwantung troops beyond the South Manchuria Railway, where they had previously confined their actions. Ishiwara attempted to frame the situation politically, arguing that Japan should support Manchurian independence and sent this proposal directly to Tokyo central HQ. However, on October 3rd, Tokyo HQ firmly rejected the idea of expanding hostilities. Faced with this outright refusal from Tokyo HQ, the Kwantung radicals believed their only option was to create further chaos to compel a response. Ishiwara took the lead once more, aiming to unsettle Tokyo HQ. On October 8th, he donned military pilot gear and infiltrated one of five Chinese aircraft seized at Mukden airfield. He personally led a raid, although later in life, during the Tokyo War Crimes Trials, he would claim that the flight was intended solely for reconnaissance of enemy activities at Chinchou. He argued that it was only at the last moment that intelligence revealed anti-aircraft guns had been installed at Chinchou, prompting the Kwantung Army Commander to authorize their neutralization if fired upon. Ishiwara maintained that he and the four accompanying aircraft were fired upon, leading them to drop approximately 75 bombs on Chinchou. This series of events was quite dramatic, and contemporary accounts suggest it was a premeditated effort to provoke Tokyo. The raid on Chinchou certainly alarmed Tokyo, leading the staff there to worry that the West would start condemning them. Tokyo's high command found themselves in a difficult position. They felt compelled to publicly support the Kwantung Army by retroactively approving the chaotic attacks, but internally, they were furious. Major Endo Saburo from the intelligence division was dispatched to Manchuria to investigate the situation. When he asked Ishiwara about the events, Ishiwara claimed he acted on the principle of field initiative, which was why he hadn't informed Tokyo beforehand. Saburo also noted that Ishiwara's tone suggested that he and the intelligence division should stay out of the matter. Additionally, Saburo learned that there were whispers in Manchuria indicating that if Tokyo's high command did not align with them, the Kwantung Army was ready to act independently. It appeared that the radical officers of the Kwantung Army were even willing to defy the Imperial Japanese Army command to achieve their goals. Ishiwara went as far as to send this telegram to Tokyo “For the sake of the nation we are doing our very best in Manchuria, but if the Japanese government constantly interferes we cannot complete our great work. Then the Kwantung army will have to come to the point where we will have to break the glorious history of the imperial army and separate ourselves from the empire” If you found this situation quite surprising, there was also a rumor that Ishiwara and Itagaki planned to use an independent Manchuria as a base for a coup d'état against the Japanese government. Their goal was to overthrow the capitalists oppressing the people and establish a national socialist regime centered around the emperor. For those familiar with the history of political assassinations in 1930s Japan, this rumor hints at events that would unfold in 1936. It remains unclear whether Ishiwara and Itagaki genuinely intended to pursue this plan, but they certainly spread the word. On October 18th, War Minister Minami Jiro sent a telegram to the Kwantung Army, instructing them to stop any discussions about making Manchuria independent or attempting to seize control of it. Additionally, they dispatched Colonel Imamura Hitoshi from the operations section to Manchuria to reason with Ishiwara and Itagaki. They all met at a restaurant in Mukden where Imamura began by explaining the purpose of his mission, but before he could even really begin, Ishiwara blurted out “whats the matter? Doesn't central headquarters have any backbone?” A great way to start a meeting to be sure. Imamura tried to explain the situation, but Ishiwara said “if we follow the spineless Tokyo approach we'll never settle the Manchurian problem”. Imamura replied “we can't accomplish anything by following the arbitrary decision of field elements, which may create a crisis that will shake the whole army. In such a problem it is essential for the whole nation to be unified”. To this Ishiwara apparently said really loudly in the restaurant that he was sleepy, rolled over on the tatami and closed his eyes. Imamura furious haha, get up quickly after denouncing his so called hosts for conducting official IJA business at a restaurant and left. The next day they all met again, where Ishiwara and Itagaki kept speaking about the necessity to create an independent state, since there was no hope of the Chinese reforming Manchuria. After Imamura left that meeting, Ishiwara said to Itagaki “Imamura is a fine fellow, but he doesn't understand China”. Despite the chaos and turmoil, the Kwantung Army had been held back from launching any sustained military operations throughout October. As expected, Ishiwara continued to argue for an advance into northern Manchuria. In early November, he found another opportunity when he claimed that more railways had been destroyed. Allegedly, hostile Chinese forces had blown up the rail bridges over the Nonni River, south of Tsitsihar. When Japanese engineering units arrived to repair the damaged tracks, they came under fire from Chinese troops. To the high-ranking officials in Tokyo, this appeared to be a legitimate reason to take defensive action. Additionally, Kwantung intelligence reports were reaching Tokyo, suggesting that Chinese forces in northern Manchuria were planning a southward offensive. Ishiwara had also provided exaggerated reports to the Japanese public, manipulating media narratives to pressure Tokyo into supporting an advance into northern Manchuria. Tokyo approved a defensive operation, restricted in time and scope, aimed at protecting Japanese positions at the Nonni River bridges. Kwantung Army forces began moving north and soon engaged in intense fighting around the railway area of Tahsing. Ishiwara personally led troops during this engagement, marking the only time in his military career that he did so. General Honjo, rightly concerned that the Kwantung forces were becoming uncontrollable, sent a cable on November 5th announcing that under the “rinsan inmei / provisional mandate,” the general staff would assume direct command authority in Manchuria. Unsurprisingly, Ishiwara and his like-minded colleagues in the Kwantung Army were furious. Honjo followed this up by stating he would resign if they did not comply, but Ishiwara brushed off the provisional mandate stating “that the directive from the chief of staff is just a personal, not an imperial order. No matter how many we get of those we shouldn't' care. We'll just go ahead with our plans”. On november 17, the Kwantung army began advancing upon the city of Tsitsihar seizing it 2 days later.  Confronted with yet another dire situation, the IJA high command permitted the Kwantung Army to advance toward Tsitsihar. However, international outcry soon erupted, compelling them to order the evacuation of the city. Ishiwara sparked a significant debate among the staff, arguing that the evacuation was unacceptable given the sacrifices already made by the troops. Nevertheless, Honjo remained resolute. A few days later, Chinese forces began to gather at Chinchou, and tensions escalated with skirmishes occurring between Japanese and Chinese troops in Tientsin. In response, Ishiwara urgently called for Honjo to initiate an offensive at Chinchou as a way to better position their forces closer to Tientsin in case they faced overwhelming opposition. To support this advance, they also requested assistance from the Korean army. Once again, the burden fell to Tokyo. The high command in Tokyo ordered an immediate halt to the offensive and a withdrawal east of the Liao River. The Kwantung Army hesitated, not solely due to the order but also because the Korean army refused to join the offensive against Chinchou, which was crucial for their success. Ishiwara found himself in a predicament; without reinforcements, the entire offensive could fail. Then, on December 11th, a significant change occurred when Premier Wakatsuki was ousted. War Minister Minami and Chief of Staff Kanaya, who had attempted to moderate the Kwantung Army's aggressiveness, were replaced by Araki Sadao, a leader of the Kodoha faction known for its aggressive stance. To provide some context, the Japanese military was divided into factions, similar to warlord cliques, vying to influence the future operations of the IJA and, to some extent, the IJN. Two primary factions shaped the military landscape in the 1930s: the Kodoha and the Toseiha (Control Faction). The Kodoha was not an organized political party nor did it hold an official position within the IJA, but it wielded considerable influence. Its members were typically younger officers, particularly from the Kwantung Army. General Sadao Araki was a founding member of the Kodoha, which was heavily influenced by Bushido, Fascism, and the Kokutai ideology. They aimed to restore Japan to its perceived former glory, viewing liberal democracy as a detrimental force. They blamed the capitalists, industrialists, and elites—politicians, bureaucrats, and Zaibatsu leaders—for the nation's decline. Their goal was to see the Emperor reclaim full power in what they termed a "Showa Restoration." The Kodoha's primary adversary, as perceived by much of the Japanese military at the time, was the USSR and communism in general. Consequently, they supported the Hokushin-ron (Northern Strike Policy), which was Japan's theoretical plan to invade the USSR. While I don't want to delve too deeply into the details, it's important to note that the Kodoha was counterbalanced by the more moderate Toseiha faction, led by Hideki Tojo. The Toseiha opposed the Kodoha on several fronts, notably their desire to avoid a violent revolution to restore imperial dominance. Although they shared many principles with the Kodoha, the Toseiha rejected the Hokushin-ron strategy in favor of the Nanshin-ron (Southern Strike) strategy, which aimed at expanding into Southeast Asia and the resource-rich Dutch East Indies. The Toseiha faction also maintained better relations with the IJN. To contextualize this narrative within the political landscape, these two factions began to fiercely compete for dominance starting in 1931. With the influence of Araki Sadao and support from Prince Kan'in, a Kodoha sympathizer, significant changes occurred in Tokyo's command. Suddenly, offensive operations against Chinese forces in Manchuria were rebranded as “bandit suppression” campaigns. The Kwantung Army, fully backed by Tokyo, swiftly pursued all military objectives established by Ishiwara and Itagaki since September. Chinchou and Shanhaikwan were captured in early January 1932, followed by Tsitsihar in February. By spring 1932, Ishiwara urged the staff to complete the full occupation of Manchuria, both north and south. In April of that year, he presented the “Manshu haiti heiryaku,” or the program for the pacification of Manchuria. This new plan called for the seizure of Hailar in the north because “it was pivotal to the defense against the USSR”. It also called for seizing Jehol province because “it was an important condition to the independence of Manchuria”. By the end of the year Hailar was taken and in 1933 the Kwantung army was marching upon Jehol. It is clear that Ishiwara played a crucial role in the conquest of Manchuria. The Kwantung Army and the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) had various strategies available to address the Manchurian issue, but Ishiwara focused primarily on achieving complete control over the region for its resources, strategic advantages, and to establish a continental base for a potential war against the United States. For Ishiwara, securing all of Manchuria was essential in preparation for the Final War. While it's likely that conflict between Japan and China would have occurred in Manchuria without Ishiwara's influence, it's uncertain whether Japan would have outright taken the province. Ishiwara dedicated years to planning and pushing boundaries, but when the operation commenced, it became evident that he and his associates lacked a definitive timeline for conquest and had several missing contingency plans. Despite the chaotic circumstances, the conquest of Manchuria proved to be a remarkable success. So much so, Ishiwara said to a friend of his, Satomi Kishio in 1932 “Even if Japan has to face the entire world, she can't be beaten”. Ironically as many of you know, Japan's actions in Manchuria cost her greatly. Japan was now hated by the Chinese, well much more so. The west condemned Japan's actions, alongside the USSR. As my professor first taught me in a class about the Pacific War when I was a wee lad in his early 20's “It all was about Manchuria, everything started with Manchuria, and it ended with Manchuria in 1945”. The Manchuria incident set Japan on an unavoidable path toward the China War, which ultimately led to conflict with the West. It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. This situation also raises questions about military discipline. Many cite the concept of Gekokujo as a reason why individuals like Ishiwara and Itagaki were able to act as they did. These militaristic junior officers seemingly ran rampant, engaging in rebellious actions that defied their superiors, which forced those higher up to become complicit. While Gekokujo certainly played a role, especially in Ishiwara's case, it does not negate the fact that there was a significant level of indiscipline within the Japanese army. Ishiwara was undoubtedly aware of the potential consequences of his actions. A prime example is Colonel Komoto Daisaku, who had previously seen his career ruined after being exiled due to the Huanggutun incident. However, Ishiwara's focus extended beyond Manchuria; he was closely monitoring the political landscape in Tokyo. He recognized that the 1931 cabinet was unstable and that certain high-ranking officials, like Araki Sadao, were rapidly advancing in their careers and sympathized with his agenda. Ishiwara was betting that supporters from factions like Kodoha would gain the necessary power to further his cause. His gamble paid off handsomely, as all the key players in the Manchurian affair were rewarded for their efforts. Ishiwara received the Order of the Golden Kite, 3rd class, and returned to Japan as a celebrated hero, captivating younger officers in the Imperial Japanese Army. Ironically, the indiscipline he had nurtured within the army would later come back to haunt him as he climbed the ranks and became part of the Tokyo staff. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. As Ron Burgundy once said “Boy, that escalated quickly... I mean, that really got out of hand fast.” While perhaps Ishiwara did not plan for an all out war to break out against China, he certainly was the culprit to it happening. There was no going back, 15 years of blood, sweat and tears would be shed.

Last time we continued to speak about the insane battle over Southern Xinjiang. In Yarkland, chaos erupted as inflation soared, prompting Chinese officials to retreat to fortified New City. Panic led to desperate measures, including the use of dummy figures for defense. As insurgents advanced, Colonel Chin's forces looted and fled, sparking violence against Uyghurs and Hindu moneylenders. By April, rebel forces captured Kashgar, fracturing Chinese control. Amid shifting alliances, Ma Chanzeng sought power, but internal strife among leaders like Temur culminated in further violence and betrayal, with power ultimately shifting to the Khotanlik provisional government under Muhammad Amin Bughra. Abdullah's revelation ignited conflict among Muslim troops. The Uyghurs and Kirghiz briefly united against the Chinese, ultimately capturing the New City. As tensions rose, massacres occurred, fracturing alliances and leading to a power struggle. After the execution of Uyghur leader Temur, Abdullah seized control of Yarkland, while charismatic Tawfiq Bay rallied forces against the Tungans. Eventually, the Khotan Amirs dominated the region, achieving unity amidst chaos, leaving only the besieged Tungans at bay.   #135 Kumul Rebellion part 4: The reunification of Xinjiang Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. Do you remember Ma Chongying, basically the guy that started most of this madness? Following him getting severely wounded at Liaotun in autumn of 1932, he had withdrawn the majority of his forces to his old domain in northwestern Gansu. He set up a HQ at Anxi and through his subordinates began expanding territory and increasing recruitment via conscription. The British missionaries Mildred Cable and Francesca French were living in Tunhuang at the time and wrote extensively about Ma Congying's recruitment efforts “The town was robbed of everything in the nature of food, goods and money ... next to food the most coveted possessions of the oases were the young, vigorous, hardy men ... These were the men whom Ma Chung-ying wanted for gun fodder, and orders were issued to the press-gang to fetch them in from every farm of the neighborhood, and collect them in Tunhuang City. Every day we saw them being rounded up. The ropes which they themselves had twisted from desert grass were used to tie their hands behind their backs, and to noose their necks in a running-knot. Roped together in droves of twenty to thirty, according to the success of the raid, they were brought to town by captors who rode the horses levied from these boys' own stables. Thrust behind the high palings of temple courtyards, the imprisoned youths lined the barriers, looking out for some passers-by who might belong to their own group of farmsteads and would take a report home that son or husband had been captured”. After initial training at Tunhuang, the recruits were taken to Anxi for further training. Cable and French were ordered to Anxi to aid Ma Chongying with his wounds and to  take care of other Tungans who reportedly had been injured by fire arrows during the siege of Kumul Old City. They did a good job as within a short amount of time Ma Chongying was able to ride again.  Back in Xinjiang, following the failed Uyghur led rebellion at Kumul and facing another imminent Tungant invasion in the Turfan area Jin Shujen turned increasingly to the USSR for help. In September of 1931 he bought two biplanes for the Soviets at 40,000 Mexican silver dollars each. The planes came with two Russian pilots and on October 1st, Jin signed a secret trade deal with the USSR allowing 8 Soviet trading agencies to set up shop in Urumqi, Chuguchak, Kashgar, Kulja, Aksu, Kucha, Khotan and Yarkland. Customs duties on Soviets goods were reduced and a new Xinjiang-Soviet telegraph line and radio communications were established. Jin signed these deals illegally without notifying Nanjing and in return received economic and military assistance from the Soviets. In July of 1932 he would receive another 8 aircraft. Yet despite the Soviet assistance, Jin's provincial forces with the exception of Peppengut's White Russian detachment remained ill trained and ill officered. Following the relief of Kumul Old City and Ma Chongyings retreat back to Gansu, Chang Peiyuan, the provincial commander in chief and military governor of Ili went to Urumqi. It appears that Jin did not fully trust Chang Peiyuan, possibly fearing that the victory at Kumul had stirred up dangerous ambitions in Chang. This distrust seemed to be mutual, as Chang, upon receiving orders to transfer to the provincial capital, chose to defy them and returned to Ili in an act bordering on open rebellion. In response, Jin appointed Sheng Shihtsai, Chang's Chief-of-Staff during the Kumul campaign, as the new Provincial Commander-in-Chief. This decision would have significant implications both for Jin's future and for the future of Xinjiang. Sheng Shihtsai was born in 1895 in Liaoning Manchuria. He was the son of a small landowner. In 1917 he traveled to Japan to study political economics at Waseda University and came back to China in 1919 to participate in the May 4th movement. During that time he developed radical and anti-Japanese stances. He then joined the military training school in Guangdong and later enrolled in the northeastern military academy. He entered military service under Guo Songling, haha that old cry baby, who was deputy under Zhang Zuolin. Sheng Shihtsai rose through the ranks becoming a Lt Colonel. In 1924 Guo Songling sponsored Sheng's admission to the Shikan Gakko military academy in Japan. Sheng returned briefly to help Guo Songlings failed coup against Zhang Zuolin, but was able to escape imprisonment with support from Feng Yuxiang and Chiang Kai-Shek. They got him a ticket back to Japan, and he returned to China in 1927 to participate in the northern expedition as a staff officer attached to Chiang Kai-Sheks HQ. After the northern expedition, he was made chief of war operations section of the General staff at Nanjing, but in 1929 resigned as he did not get along with his superiors. After all of this he took an interest in China's border defences. At the time a delegation from Xinjiang visited Nanjing searching for financial aid. Jin Shujen had instructed one of his delegates, Kuang Lu the deputy General secretary of Xinjiang, to find an able bodied officer to help reorganize Xinjiang's military. Kuang Lu fished around and found Sheng who looked like a very promising man. Sheng then traveled via the USSR arriving to Urumqi in the winter of 1929. His initial welcome was a luke warm one as Jin was suspicious of this highly qualified overseas educated man, obviously seeing him as a potential threat. Moreover, Jin's brother Jin Shuxin hated Sheng's appointment because the man outshined him. Despite the jealousy, Jin was basically grasping at straws and needed the help so he made Sheng the chief of staff over the Xinjiang Frontier Army and also the instructor at the provincial military college.  In the words of historian Chan Fooklam “Sheng's appointment was like Jin burying a time bomb under his bed, he had brought upon himself his own doom”. Despite receiving aid from the Soviets and British, Jin's grip over Xinjiang was slipping away. In May of 1932 Ma Chongying had dispatched Ma Shuming to take over the Tungan operation against Turfan. As we talked about, Ma Fuming, leading the provincial forces at Turfan simply defected. Also at this time Chang Peiyuan's insubordination was breaking out, easing the way for Sheng to be promoted to commander in chief. Sheng was directing an unsuccessful campaign against Uyghur insurgents at Karlik Tagh. Following news of Ma Fumings defection and the Tungan capture of Turfan, Sheng advanced west from Kumul to try and prevent the combined Muslim forces from marching upon Urumqi. After a bloody two day battle he recaptured Turfan, but this has little effect over Ma Shuming who had already moved his HQ to Kara Shahr.  During mid-winter, Ma Shuming's Tungan cavalry and Ma Fumings Turkic insurgents began an advance to Urumqi. At some point a force of provincial troops sent to Urumqi by Jin, specifically to guard the Dawan Cheng Pass were ambushed and annihilated by the Tungans. Meanwhile full scale rebellions had broken out at Kucha led by Temur and at Khotan led by the Amirs. To this Jin responded by expanding Pappenguts White Russian detachment from its original strength of 250 to 1500 men. The White Russians, most of whom came from Ili Valley, had literally no choice but to enlist. Alongside threatening any White Russians with deportation to the USSR, Jin also arrested many Russian women to compel their husbands to enlist. By early January of 1933, Ma Shumings Tungans had crossed the Dawan Cheng and were now operating at will in the Chaiwupao corridor, to the immediate south of the capital. Wu Aichen the political envoy on behalf of Nanjing reported on January 29th, that the city gates were suddenly closed and a month of food shortages and communal tensions rose. Wu Aichen would witness the brutality of the war. In his reports, the Tungans advanced towards the city during the night, seizing the Great West Bridge after a heavy fight. The Provincial commander defending the city only had 700 troops under him and if it was not for 300 White Russian troops suddenly arriving, the city most likely would have fallen then. Wu Aichen described the White Russian troops as superb fighters, albeit savagely drunk as they drove back the Tungan and Uyghurs during two days of hand to hand combat. Meanwhile Tungans had captured the radio station and a nearby height called Devil's Hill which overlooked the Urumqi suburbs. The Chinese officials feared letting in any more Muslim civilians to the Old City, thus they kept the city gates causing large numbers of refugees from the suburbs to gather outside the walls. This was particularly evident at the west gate which became the focal point of the fighting. Wu Aichen witnessed much of it and had this to say. “In times of peace this street was one of the most prosperous in the city, but now it was crowded With innocent fugitives, whose plight was terrible indeed. There was was worse to come, however, for now the advancing rebels came to this quarter and seizing the houses made loop-holes in the walls. In the flat roofs they set up machine-gun posts which could enfilade Government positions on either side of them. I could see for myself that the situation was desperate and that our troops would be pinned against the walls. General Pai, who was in command, did not hesitate. He gave the order that the street of the small religion should be set on fire. Then followed a scene so frightful that the reader's imagination must suffice. As the flames swept down the long lane of wooden structures they became an inferno of horror, for the roar of the conflagration was added to the rattle of gunfire, .and the hideous shrieks of those who were trapped. The rebels sought safety in flight, and as they crossed the open were machine-gunned from the Red Mountain; but the fugitives had nowhere to fly to and perished to the last man, woman and child. Nevertheless the city was saved, and when at last the flames died down the approach to the West Bridge was strewn with the bodies of our assailants. On the evening of the second day I had completed ten thousand words of copying. I asked how many were dead. I was told at least two thousand. Once again I returned to my task, reflecting that a human life had been taken at every fifth word”. Following the defeat, the Muslim forces had to pull back from the West Gate area, however, they still held control over the West Bridge, a mere half mile northwest. This gave them a great launchpad for night raids and many would be killed trying to scale the walls under the mouths of guns. The White Russian troops emerged as the backbone of the defenses, holding the city walls and making occasional sorties. Urumqi would have fallen if it was not for Sheng Shihtsai who came to her aid with his troops from Turfan. Upon seeing his relief forces the Muslim insurgents broke off their attack and withdrew into the surrounding countryside. With winter coming to an end, with fear of a cholera outbreak looming the Chinese went to work burying the dead. Wu Aichen was one of those who helped with the burials and wrote a horrifying description about the conditions of the city. Over 1000 bodies were buried in a single mass grave within the suburbs and the final death toll was estimated to exceed 6000. Following the relief of Urumqi, the Muslim insurgents seized all they could in the countryside such as Dawan Cheng, the districts of Fukang and parts of Santopao where an estimated 900 Han Chinese were killed. The insurgents burned the stocks of rice that usually fed the capital and on March 1st a detachment of 100 provincial troops were ambushed and annihilated at Chitaowan. The situation throughout the province deteriorated; to the south Ma Shaowu had isolated Kashgar and in the north a Kazakh rebellion broke out in the Sahara Sume region under Sharif Khan. The Kazakh uprising convinced the Soviets that Jin Sujen was going to inevitably lose Xinjiang. They acted without any notice to Nanjing by dispatching forces to help hold up Urumqi. Fate would have it, 2000 battle hardened Chinese troops had recently been driven over the Heilongjiang border into Siberia by the Japanese during the invasion of Manchuria. So Stalin signed off on sending them over the trans-siberian and Turk-sib railways to the Xinjiang frontier of Chuguchak. This force designated the Northeast National Salvation Army consisted of regular soldiers who were well trained and held good morale. They arrived to Urumqi on March 27th of 1933, substantially bolstering the provincial military, more particularly that of the new Provincial commander in chief, Sheng Shihtsai who just so happened to also be a Manchurian.  Sheng led the new forces to push back the invading Tungans of Ma Shuming who was forced over the Dawan Cheng back to his HQ at Kara Shahr. The Uyghur insurgents were demoralized and Khoja Niyas Hajji who controlled a belt around the Xinjiang-Gansu frontier began begining for assistance from Ma Chongying. Meanwhile Jin basically was undermined by Sheng and was seeing further unrest in Urumqi. The White Russians who had bore the brunt of the fighting to defend Urumqi were royally pissed off as they had not all been paid and were provided the worst horses and ammunition of all the defenders. Moreover Jin's popularity with all nationalities, even Han Chinese had fallen dramatically because his brother Jin Shuxin had reportedly exorted the granaries during the siege. Following the relief of Urumqi, Pappengut and the other White Russians approached the leaders of the northeast national salvation army with grievances against Jin Shujen and were given assurances of support to mount a coup against him. On April 12th, around 400 White Russians stormed the capital with 200 of them seizing the city gates and yamen. Jin managed to escape over the city walls and fled to the USSR via Chuguchak. From there he returned to China via the Turk-Sib and Trans-Siberian. Meanwhile his younger brother Jin Shuxin was captured and executed. Sheng Shihtsai was encamped at Uruba at the time of the coup and insisted in his future memoirs he had nothing to do with the coup and that it was all the USSR's doing. Regardless after the coup Sheng was urged to go to Urumqi where negotiations began with Liu Wenlung who was appointed Provincial Chairman while Sheng was made Tupan or “border defense commissioner”. Ie; Sheng was made the de facto ruler of Xinjiang.  After Ma Shumings failure to take Urumqi and Khoja Niyas Hajji's pleas for help, Ma Chongying determined to reenter the fray in person. Despite the setbacks, the Tungans had crossed the Dawan Cheng and nearly taken the capital, coupled with the seizure of Kashgar, Ma Chongying most likely believed there was still a great chance to take it all. He had spent 18 months rebuilding his army and better yet, because of the USSR's illegal move to save Urumqi, Nanjing officially recognizing his Tungan forces as the 36th division of the NRA. Ma Chongying moved his HQ from Anxi to Suzhou and really improved his military. A German engineer named Vasel working with him described him as a man who admired Napoleon, Bismarck and Hindenburg and who “was frequently to be seen running at the head of his troops during training, even in sub-zero temperature. Military training was pursued with a spartan rigour, pushed to the verge of utter ruthlessness. Desertion was punishable by death, and on one occasion I saw Ma personally behead five such offenders. In one of those sudden fits of exuberance that were typical of him, snatching up casually some hand grenades, which he had made himself, and hurling them, one by one, against the lofty clay-coloured walls of the city. And then he laughed heartily when he saw his men fling themselves flat on the ground as splinters of steel hurtled in all directions. He scorned to seek safety by throwing himself on the ground, and was quite delighted when he saw that I too did not seek cover”. During spring of 1933, Ma Chongying prepared to reinvade Xinjiang. A Swedish man named Bexeill was working along the Gansu-Qinghai border and noted Ma Chongying heavily taxed his territory in northwestern Gansu to the limits of the peasants endurance. He apparently even sent troops into Qinghai to illegally tax them. By May of 1933 his army departed Suhou for Yumen and Vasel gives us this description of them. “A dark mass of human beings, camels and oxen, was pouring out of the city gate towards the west amid clouds of dust. There were hundreds of heavily-laden camels, the bells on their necks clanging monotonously, their drivers easily discernible by their gaudy headgear. In the rear followed high-wheeled ox-carts, flanked on either side by infantry. Behind them again came a company of cavalry, which presently galloped past the lumbering camels and oxen along the track through the desert ... and now I had an opportunity of seeing at close range General Ma's famous cavalry riding past me and keeping its post at the head of the marching columns. This was the famous white cavalry regiment of which General Ma was especially proud. The broad iron swords of the dragoons clanked as they rode along on their magnificent white horses, while on their shoulders they carried carbines of the most varied and antiquated patterns. Next came the brown regiment, while in the rear followed the black regiment, comprising some two thousand horsemen. A short distance behind the cavalry came the infantry - regiment after regiment, headed by the Chinese (Kuomintang) standard. On they swept, platoon after platoon, followed by their officers, with their mausers at the ready. The columns strode along, keeping perfect time with their shrill, high-pitched, mournful, Asiatic marching songs. Sandwiched between some of these trained and trustworthy soldiers I saw large drafts of recruits who had been compelled to join General Ma's forces. These raw levies were constantly kept under very close observation'. On Top of Ma Chongyings new Tungan army, young Uyghurs were also conscripted into his ranks. 2500 Tungans under the command of his younger brother Ma Chongjie captured Kumul in May with little opposition. This was because the area was dominated by Ma Chongyings ally Khoja Niyas Hajji. After this Ma Chongjie issued bilingual proclamations to the people of Kumul, stating they were free of Jin Shujen's tyranny, who at the time was in the USSR. Meanwhile Sheng hurriedly prepared a force of 5000 to meet the invaders near Urumqi. Ma Chongying advanced upon Qiqiaoqing unopposed, getting even further west than his first invasion of 1931. Instead of taking the main road to Turgan, the Tungans crossed the narrow defile between Barkul Tagh and Bogdo Ula to hit the garrison town of Kitai. The first major battle broke out near Mulei, due east of Kitai on May 15th. Two days later a mixed force of 4000 Tungans and Turkic Muslims attacked Kitai led by Ma Chongjie. On May 26th Sheng sortied from Urumqi at the head of 5000 men, 1000 of whom were White Russians. Sheng planned to hold Santai, the halfway point between Urumqi and Kitai. Sheng's men attacked the invaders around Kitai, but lost the battle for the city, though Ma Chongjie was killed in battle. Sheng then retreated back to Urumqi by June 1st. Things looked dire for Sheng, he was unsure how Nanjing would react to the coup against Jin Shujen, his position was threatened to the east by Ma Chongying now headquartered at Kitai and to the west by Chang Peiyuan the military governor of Ili whom he suspected was not loyal to Urumqi and in league with the Tungans. Ma Chongying was now within striking distance of Urumqi, when he suddenly halted his attack and sent a telegram with terms. It turns out Ma Chongying had no idea Jin Shujen had been overthrown, so he was unsure how to proceed. This bought Sheng more time to raise defenses, sending the White Russians to hold Fukang as he dispatched Wu Aichen on a peace mission to Kitai. Wu Aichen's mission failed, so Sheng went to Fukang to take personal command of the army and to meet Ma Chongying around the hamlet of Zuniquan. During the battle of mid June, the provincial forces managed to gain the upper hand due to severe weather conditions for which the lightly clothed Tungans were ill prepared for. The Uyghurs forces of Khoja Niyas Hajji also took no part in the fighting despite being in the immediate area. The Tungans were defeated at Zuniquan, but not routed. Ma Chongyings men managed to retreat in well order to Qiqiaoqing and from there advanced to Turfan joined Tungan forces under Ma Shuming. Combined the Tungans marched to Dawan Cheng. At the same time a Pacification Commissioner, Huang Musung was sent by Nanjing to Urumqi. His mission was to establish peace between the provincial forces and Ma Chongying, both of whom claimed loyalty to Nanjing. Sheng was suspicious of Huang Musung and felt Nanjing might be simply backing the Tungans. Thus Sheng had Huang Musung placed under house arrest. Then Sheng accused three Xinjiang officials of plotting with Huang Musung, Chang Peiyuan and Ma Chongying to overthrow him and had them all executed via a firing squad. Thus Sheng clearly had distanced himself from Nanjing and turned 100% to the USSR for help. During early Autumn Ma Chongying was still in Turfan reorganizing the forces while Sheng was consolidating his position in Urumqi and quelling the Kazakh rebellion.  Meanwhile Khoja Niyas Hajji was growing uneasy with his alliance to Ma Chongying and began to open up secret negotiations with Sheng and soon was appointed Chief Defense commissioner for Southern Xinjiang. He then took his Uyghurs across the Dawan Cheng and occupied Toksun only to be surprise attacked and decisively defeated by Tungans under Ma Shuming. By late July Khoja Niyas Hajji took his battered survivors and fled for Kucha. At this point Huang Musung managed to secure his release from house arrest by telegramming Nanjing the recommendation that Sheng Shihtsai and Liu Wenlung be confirmed in their posts as the chief military and civil authorities over Xinjiang. Nanjing had really no options other than to comply.  On September 2nd Lo Wenkan, the foreign minister of Nanjing, came to Urumqi and officially confirmed Sheng into office and then mediated between Sheng and Ma Chongying. To compensate Ma Chongying he was offered the post of Garrison Commander of Eastern Xinjiang which he accepted, thus gaining control over Kumul, Barkul and part of Turfan. After Lo Wenkan departed in early October, suddenly Sheng announced the discovery of a new plot against him. He accused Liu Wenlung of conspiring with Ma Chongying, Chang Peiyuan and Lo Wenkan to overthrow him. Liu Wenlung was forced to resign and was replaced as the provincial chairman by Zhu Juixi. Sheng then prepared a final hammer blow against Ma Chongying. However Ma Chongying had secretly been working with Ma Shuming to deliver a lighting stroke against Urumqi which came in December of 1933. Tungan forces passed Dawan Cheng and began attacking the capital. Likewise in response to the constant accusations, Chang Peiyuan finally threw his support to the Tungans. He led his troops across the Talki Pass into Zungharia and attacked the Provincial forces stationed at Wusu. Meanwhile encouraged by the advance of the Gansu Tungans, the indigenous Tungans of Zungharia rose en masse to Ma Chongyings banner. In late december a detachment of the 36th NRA led by Ma Shuming bypassed Urumqi and attacked Chuguchak. Vasel happened to witness this and described the battle as such “The sun's rays, by this time, were shining obliquely across the street and showed us the Tungan army entering the town ... Stirrup to stirrup, the young regular soldiers in their smart uniforms looked a well-disciplined, trim and efficient force. r recognised one of their officers, Ma Shih-ming, the Commander-in-Chief's adjutant, who had frequently been my guest in Soochow. These regular soldiers rode past on beautiful horses, while huge red flags floated in the breeze above their heads, bearing the character 'Ma' in black letters on a white ground. At a short distance followed a horde that was tolerably well equipped . . . I saw needle-guns, blunderbusses and muzzle-loaders ... In their rear dense clouds of dust, which shut out the light, billowed onward, and then came the infantry. . . men with wild eyes and matted hair. . . outlaws who had nothing to lose and everything to gain from the upheaval that was going on. After the infantry followed a huge horde of camels, with their rhythmical swaying gait, laden with produce and goods of every conceivable type ... the breath came from their mouths like smoke - their necks were craned forward, and their heads kept bobbing up and down.”With the Tungans taking Zunghaira, the Khotan Amirs running amok in the south and Chang Peiyuan joining the fray, Sheng's position at Urumqi was hopeless. While Ma Chongying and Sheng Shihtsai continued their struggle in the north, in the south Muhammad Amin Bughra woo'd Khoja Niyas Hajji to become president of a new secessionist Islamic state. Thus was born the Turkic Islamic Republic of Eastern Turkestan ie TIRET. While Khoja Niyas Kajji was the quote president, this was simply symbolic, the real leadership remained with the Amirs. Amir Abdulah retained control over Yarkland, Amir Nur Ahmad Jan over Yangi Hissar and Kashgar and Bughra over Khotan. Shari a law was implemented, a national flag with a white star and crescent over a blue ground was made and the new state sought aid and recognition from Britain. But the TIRET would never receive said recognition or aid, for Britain respected Nanjing's government as the sole authority in Xinjiang. TIRET turned next to Turkey, but found no real help. Then they turned to Afghanistan who likewise could not help them. TIRET was doomed from the very beginning. Meanwhile the battles raged between Sheng and Ma Chongying. Sheng knew Nanjing would not assist him so he turned to the USSR. Sheng dispatched diplomats Chen Teli and Yaoxiong to Moscow pleading for assistance. The Soviets were sympathetic and quite concerned with events such as the rise of TIRET and the possibility of Ma Chongying capturing Urumqi as they suspected him and TIRET to have ties to the Japanese. Weary of Germany and Japan, the USSR took up a policy of curbing any influence from either, especially in her Central Asian frontiers. The Soviets sent this warning to Nanjing “'We do not mind if you Chinese develop [Eastern] Turkestan. But if you permit [Eastern] Turkestan to become a second Manchuria, we must act to protect ourselves. '” Thus in late 1933, following pleas for help from Sheng Shihtsai, the Soviets chose to intervene on behalf of Sheng, whom was known to be a loose cannon and unreliable, but atleast was anti-Japanese. The USSR appointed Apresoff as the new consul-general at Urumqi and upon his arrival Sheng conducted a purge. Officers from the Northeast National Salvation army and White Russian volunteers were arrested and shot, including Pappengut. The White Russians units were reorganized under the command of new Soviet officers. Sheng signed a secret deal with the USSR to allow them to build a railway from Sergiopol, through Chuguchak to Urumqi. Sheng also announced 6 new principles going forward (I) anti-imperialism, (2) kinship to Sovietism, (3) racial or national equality, (4) 'clean' government, (5) peace, and (6) reconstruction.  The Soviets were pleased and after receiving approval from Nanjing dispatched two brigades, numbered some 7000 men supported by tanks, artillery and aircraft against the insurgent positions at Kulja and Chuguchak. The Soviets had orders to “clear the roads and liquidate the rebellion”. They rapidly overwhelmed the forces of Chang Peiyuan who committed suicide in shame. The Tungans of Ma Shuming put up a better fight but were dislodged from the Chuguchak area. According to Vasel, the Tungans managed to beat back some attacks during 30 days of battle. In one instance the Tungans foiled a Soviet pincer attack by “crawling through the snow, camouflaged by reversed sheepskins, and storming, from a very short distance, Soviet machine-gun posts whilst wielding the characteristic curved sword of Islam”. The main battle broke out on the frost-bound banks of the Tutun River, 30 miles northwest of Urumqi. According to The Times correspondent Peter Fleming , “the Battle of the Tutun River 'raged for several days; but the Tungans' unskilled ferocity was no match for a mechanised foe, and the troops ... were badly demoralised by gas bombs dropped by the Soviet airmen”.  Both the Soviets and Tungans took heavy casualties, but ultimately the Soviets won, forcing Ma Chongying to retreat from Urumqi to the Dawan Cheng, pursued by a mixed force of Soviets, White Russians and Chinese. The Tungans attempted to make a stand at Dawan Cheng, but according to Vasel “a detachment of Soviet troops supported by armoured cars was attacked by a force of some 500 Tungans. After savage hand-to-hand fighting the Soviet forces were driven back, and their armoured cars were rolled off the mountainside by the victorious Tungans. At this juncture, by a strange twist of fate, the surviving Soviet troops were relieved by a force of White Russian 'volunteers', and Ma Chung-ying was forced to continue his retreat through Toksun to Korla”. Meanwhile in Southern Xinjiang, the Soviets tried to break the TIRET. A Soviet backed force of irregulars known as the “Tortunjis” was set up at Ulug Chat, led by Yusuf Jan. The Soviets also negotiated secretly with Khoja Niyas Hajji who despite being the president of the TIRET had taken all of his forces to Aksu. As a result Khoja Niyas Hajji received Soviet arms in return for turning against his anti-soviet colleagues. Yet despite Soviet support, Khoja Niyas Hajji's Uyghur forces were decisively defeated by 800 Tungans under Ma Chongying. Khoja Niyas Hajji had to abandon his HQ at Aksu fleeing for Kashgar with 1500 men on January 13th of 1934. The Tungans soon besieged Kashgar New City forcing Khoja Niyas Hajji and local forces under Sabit Damullah to withdrew towards Yangi-Hissar, then held by Nur Ahmad Jan. Within 24 hours the Tungan advance guard led by Ma Fuyuan entered Kashgar meeting little resistance. According to British Consulate General Thomson-Glover “'some 800 Tungans and 1,200 conscripts caused nearly 10,000 rebel troops to flee from Kashgar'” To make thing more complicated at this time Ma Shaowu assumed senior military and civil control on behalf of Nanjing and at the request of Ma Chanzeng and Ma Fuyuan. Thus the capital of TIRET was recaptured for Nanjing, but not by their approved forces under Sheng, but of those under Ma Chongying. Following the fall of Kashgar, TIRET moved its administration to Yangi-Hissar. Meanwhile Khoja Niyas Hajji fled to Irkeshtam on the Soviet border and there signed a treaty with the USSR to dissolve the TIRET and relinquished his forces to be used by the Xinjiang provincial authorities against the Tungans and Khotan Amirs. For this he was rewarded Civil Governor for life over Xinjiang with Sheng Shihtsai retaining military governorship. On February 14th, the Khotanlik forces tried but failed to recapture Kashgar. In response for two days the Tungans systematically looted Kashgar old city while they massacred nearly 2000 of its citizenry. Then Ma Chanzeng and Ma Fuyuan advanced to Yangi-Hissar where on March 28th looted its old city and killed everyone they got their hands on. In the face of the Tungan onslaught, Amir Nur Ahmad Jan fled into Yangi Hissar New City and Sabit Damullah fled for Yarkland. Nur Ahmad Jan led a fierce resistance at the New City until April 2nd when Amir Abdullah arrived from Yarkland with several thousand troops. However caught out in the open, Abdullah's men were obliterated by the Tungans and Abdullah was cut down and his severed head was sent to Kashgar to be exhibited outside the Id-gah Mosque. Yangi-Hissar New City continued to resist, “wielding only rifles and conserving their scanty ammunition and rolling back the attackers scaling the walls by means of large stones and tree trunks”. The Tungans took New City on April 12th, putting 500 of its defenders and Nur Ahmad Jan to the sword. Meanwhile the administration of TIRET received word of Khoja Niyas Hajji's deal with the Soviets and refused to dissolve. Thus Khoja Niyas Hajji went to Yarkland to try and convince Amir Muhammad Amin Bughra to dissolve the TIRET. He arrived there in Mid April, only a few days before the Tungas would. Bughra fled towards Khotan as Khoja Niyas Hajji looted Yarkland taking Sabit Damullah prisoner and advanced to Aksu. The Tungans arrived at Yarkland on the 20th and immediately pursued Khoja Niyas Hajji. Khoja Niyas Hajji managed to get to Aksu where he handed over Sabit Damullah who was promptly hung. Meanwhile Ma Chongying arrived at Kashgar with 10,000 men on April 6th where he denounced Sheng Shihtsai as a Soviet Puppet and stressed loyalty to Nanjing to its population. Other Tungan forces captured Sarikol and together marched upon Khotan. Khotan was taken on June 12th without a fight and unlike at Kashgar and Yangi-Hissar, the Tungans did not loot, but instead hunted down Muhammad Amin Bughra who had escaped with 3000 troops towards Keriya. Bughra managed to give them all the slip and fled with several ponies carrying hold to Ladakh in British India where he received permission to travel to Srinagar. Thus ended the TIRET experiment as Ma Chongying claimed he had recaptured southern Xinjiang for Nanjing. Ma Chongying then met with Thomson Glover “that he had come to Kashgar 'to try and save south Sinkiang from Russian influence', and continued to stress his loyalty to Nanjing”.  Meanwhile Ma Chongying set up a defensive line at Maral Bashi and Fayzabad with his brother in law, Ma Hushan in command. During May and June of 1934 Ma Chongying tried to gain sympathy from the British for his cause, but they refused to get involved. In a surprising turn of events, as told to us by Thomson Glover “Ma Chung-ying left Kashgar for Irkeshtam early on 7th July with three or four of his officers. . . and an escort of some 50 Tungans and one or more members of the USSR Consulate or Trade Agency. Arrived near the border to Russia the escort were met by Russian or Russian-employed troops. The Tungan escort dispersed or handed over their arms to some of Khoja Niyas' levies, and Ma Chung-ying disappeared into Russia”. Why the courageous Tungan threw in the towel is a mystery. He had not yet been deceive beaten, he could have taken his Tungan force and held out for 3 years before returning back to Gansu. Regardless the Soviets had offered him sanctuary and he just took it. His fate is a complete mystery, some say he was killed by the Soviets, some say he rotted in a dungeon, that he lived a life of luxury as a Soviet guest, and one claim is that in 1938, when Sheng Shihtsai visited Moscow, Stalin had him executed as a gift. Ma Chongyings command passed to Ma Hushan who set up a HQ at Khotan and carved out a sphere of influence extending from Karghalik to CHarkhlik. The provincial forces did nothing to stop him, and instead signed a truce, ending the wars with the Tungans. Sheng Shihtsai had won, he now held absolute power over Xinjiang, though as we will see much later on, Xinjiang was certainly not done seeing battles. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus in the end, after all of these different groups of people formed uprisings, betrayed one another and fought this large game of thrones for Xinjiang, it was Sheng Shihtsai who prevailed above all. Xinjiang was by no means stable and would continue to see chaos well into WW2 however.   

  The censorship exercised by the newspaper editors The advantages of hemp Tungsten mining in Vietnam The garden of eden in the world was Southeast Asia Saigon was called the Paris of the Orient It was mindless to destroy a beautiful place like Vietnam Most likely one of the reasons for the Vietnam war was to get American businesses to replace the French Is petroleum a fossil fuel? Generally, no fossils are found below 16,000 feet The oil depletion allowance Video: President Kennedy calls out the steel companies (1962) "It has long been a Kennedy tradition: not to get mad but to get even. I fully realize that I shall not be able to get even during my first term in office. But during my second term, you are going to see some important changes" - President Kennedy Why was Governor Connally in the same car as the President? Lansdale and Col. Prouty knew each other since 1952 Lansdale was sent to the Philippines in 1952 to overthrow President Elpidio Quirino And replace him with the new President Ramon Magsaysay Col. Napoleon Valeriano trained Cuban exiles before the bay of pigs invasion Valeriano became an American citizen A million Vietnamese migrated from the North to the South before the war The US Navy transported 660,000 Vietnamese from the North to the South 330,000 were moved by CIA's airline Civil Air Transport (CAT) On September 2, 1953, Secretary of State John Foster Dulles said "In Indochina, a desperate struggle is in its eighth year....We are already contributing largely in matériel and money to the combined efforts of the French and of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia." Chiang Kai-Shek's presence at the Tehran conference Article from Parade Magazine, Feb 1986: Why Stalin Never Forgave Eleanor Roosevelt by Elliott Roosevelt: Page 1, Page 2 The cold war really began before the second world war ended Our governments do not know how to operate without the threat of war FREE Borrowable Ebook: Report from Iron Mountain by Leonard C. Lewin New York Times Book Review: Report from Iron Mountain: The Guest Word by Leonard Lewin The degradation of the infrastructure in the US  

Last time we spoke about the Fujian Rebellion of 1933. In the midst of political turmoil, the 19th Route Army, once vital in campaigns for Chiang Kai-shek, found itself at odds with his leadership during Japan's invasion of Shanghai in 1932. Facing internal rebellion and external threats, Chiang Kai-Shek prioritized fighting the Communists over the Japanese. The 19th Route Army, disillusioned, resisted both Japan and the CCP but ultimately faced betrayal when Chiang Kai-Shek forced them into civil conflict in Fujian, deepening divisions within China. In 1933, Chiang Kai-shek faced opposition for his appeasement of Japan, leading the 19th Route Army, frustrated by his inaction, to plot a coup. Under Chen Mingshu's leadership, they sought alliances against Chiang Kai-Shek but struggled amid civil war pressures and Red Army conflicts. On November 20, they declared the People's Revolutionary Government in Fuzhou, aiming to unify against Japanese aggression. However, lack of support led to rapid failure; by January 1934, Chiang's forces crushed the rebellion, and its leaders fled, marking the end of the Fujian Revolution.   #130 The Long March Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. As we saw 2 episodes ago, the CCP had been taken over by the 28 Bolsheviks and Otto Braun who initiated a dramatic offensive strategy for the Red Army. Unfortunately this also came during the 5th encirclement campaign. This resulted in repeated defeats for the Red Army and the gradual shrinking of the Soviet area. In April 1934, the Central Red Army engaged in a decisive battle against the Nationalist Army in Guangchang, Jiangxi Province, suffering severe losses and now faced a critical situation. As the NRA's grip tightened, the Red Army and the Central Committee of the CCP sought new strategies. With offensive tactics no longer feasible, the Red Army considered alternative approaches to navigate its current challenges. One overarching strategy involved co-opting the NRA by harnessing nationalistic sentiment to form a united front against the Japanese. The leadership of the Red Army hoped that by identifying a common enemy, they could temporarily alleviate the conflict with the KMT. In July 1934, they attempted to implement this strategy by deploying the Seventh Red Army Corps to western Fujian to join the 10th Red Army, commanded by Su Yu. This combined force was labeled the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Column to attract Nationalist support; however, the propaganda effort failed. The NRA subsequently obliterated the Red Army Column, resulting in the death or execution of most of its members. Approximately 800 survivors escaped and regrouped as a guerrilla unit under Su Yu, continuing to fight independently until the establishment of the Second United Front in 1937. Another breakout occurred on July 23, 1934, when the 6th Red Army Corps, operating from the Hunan-Guangdong border, traversed Hunan and joined forces with the Third Red Army, forming the Second Front Red Army, led by He Long, on October 22, 1934. It is uncertain whether either operation impacted the KMT. The escalating costs and ongoing casualties placed a heavy burden on the Red Army, complicating its ability to maintain its position. A secure new location was essential for the Red Army to reorganize, resupply, and recruit personnel. In August 1934, Bo Gu and Otto Braun secretly decided to abandon the Jiangxi Soviet. Their initial plan was to head southwest towards Hunan, seeking friendlier territory and aiming to connect with the 2nd Front Red Army. While the precise whereabouts of the 2nd Front Red Army were unclear, the leadership considered Hunan the most probable destination and devised a route to reach it. Meanwhile, the rest of the Red Army intensified its recruitment efforts, raised funds, and gathered supplies. On the night of October 10, 1934, the leadership of the Red Army issued marching orders to the 1st Front Red Army, which advanced southwest in two columns, consisting of the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 8th, and 9th Red Army Corps. The total strength of this force was about 87,000 soldiers. Many of these soldiers were unaware that it would be their final sight of the Jiangxi Soviet, as most believed they were simply executing another maneuver to outflank the KMT and strike at its rear. A contingent of 16,000 troops, including several wounded soldiers like their leader Chen Yi, remained in Ruijin to defend against and delay the KMT forces, providing the First Front Red Army with the necessary time to depart unnoticed. Thus, began what has famously been called the Long March. The first few days of the Long March were relatively calm. The Red Army steered clear of significant confrontations with the NRA forces and easily maneuvered through a gap in the encirclement. Previously, Zhou Enlai had brokered a truce with the Guangdong and Guangxi warlords involved in the Extermination campaign, allowing the Red Army safe passage through the region. Meanwhile, the Red Army troops remaining in Ruijin fiercely resisted the NRA, effectively masking the fact that the main force had already departed. Until November 8, Nationalist newspapers claimed that the Red Army was nearly annihilated. The 1st Front Red Army traveled at night, using small trails to evade detection and attacks from the air. The troop formation included the 1st and 9th Red Army Corps on the left flank, the 3rd and 8th Red Army Corps on the right, with leadership and logistical units positioned in the center, while the 5th Red Army Corps provided rear guard support. The Red Army employed porters to transport heavy equipment, such as printing presses, X-ray machines, and currency. Additional porters carried litters for the wounded and key leaders. During this period, several Red Army leaders, including Zhou Enlai, were unwell or injured, while others, like Mao Zedong, rested in litters during the day after long nights of planning. By mid-November 1934, the NRA learned that the Red Army had broken free from their encirclement and was heading westward, prompting them to pursue. Observing the Red Army's movements, Chiang Kai-shek and the NRA leadership inferred that southern Hunan was likely their destination, so they deployed troops accordingly. The Red Army advanced rapidly to the west, aiming to cross the Xiang River before the NRA could catch up. On November 27, 1934, the Red Army reached Daoxian and launched an assault on the NRA blockhouses guarding the Xiang River crossings. They quickly overran these defenses and began moving troops across the river. However, the central column of the Red Army, hindered by heavy equipment and injured soldiers, fell behind the main force. On November 28, the NRA struck the rear elements of the Red Army before they could reach the river. For 5 days, the Red Army engaged in a fierce rear guard action, trying to disengage from the NRA and successfully cross the river. By December 2, 1934, all Red Army units had successfully crossed the Xiang River, albeit at a significant cost. The Red Army lost over two divisions from the 3rd and 5th Red Army Corps, leaving just over 30,000 soldiers remaining in their ranks. Furthermore, much of the Army's heavy equipment and supplies were abandoned along the way to lighten their load. After the Red Army crossed the Xiang River, it continued to evade direct confrontations with the NRA. The challenging battle at the Xiang River had a profound impact on the Red Army, leading to a rise in desertions as soldiers recognized that the movement had turned into an exodus from Jiangxi. Many porters responsible for transporting heavy equipment also began to leave during the night, especially while navigating the difficult, muddy trails in the mountains. The Red Army made several attempts to head north to join He Long and the 2nd Front Red Army, but each time, they found their routes blocked by the NRA. As a result, they altered their plans and headed west toward Guizhou, aiming to reach Sichuan and connect with the 4th Front Red Army to establish a new Soviet. Upon arriving in Liping, Guizhou province, the Red Army leadership decided on December 18th to advance north toward Zunyi in pursuit of their goal in Sichuan. Initially, Guiyang, the provincial capital, was the intended destination, but it had been fortified with seven NRA divisions. In contrast, Zunyi appeared to be a more feasible target as the second-largest city in the province, defended only by local Guizhou forces. On January 1st, 1935, the Red Army began its march toward Zunyi, crossing the Wu River under heavy fire from Guizhou provincial troops. Within three days, they successfully crossed the river and continued toward Zunyi. On January 7, the Red Army launched an attack on Zunyi, which fell two days later. Following the capture of the city, the Red Army initiated a recruitment drive, adding 30,000 new recruits to its ranks. To enhance its mobility, they buried or abandoned much of their heavy equipment. The Red Army had originally planned to remain in the area for an extended period to refit, reorganize, and bolster their forces. The staff of the Central Cadre Unit's Red Army Medical School seized the opportunity to conduct a week-long course on basic first aid for soldiers. However, local conditions hindered any long-term presence. The area's primary crop was opium, useful for barter but inadequate for sustaining the Red Army. Additionally, the city's position along a river bend restricted the Red Army's escape routes in the event of an NRA attack. Given these challenges, Communist leadership convened a conference to deliberate on their military strategy. The conference held on January 15th, 1935, marked a pivotal moment in Communist history. In attendance were Politburo members, including Mao Zedong, Zhu De, Chen Yun, Zhou Enlai, Luo Fu, and Bo Gu, along with Liu Bocheng, Liu Shaoqi, Lin Biao, Nie Rongzhen, Peng Dehuai, and Otto Braun. The primary focus of the meeting was the unsuccessful military strategy employed during the 5th Extermination Campaign. Bo Gu and Zhou Enlai opened the discussion, both acknowledging their mistakes and accepting responsibility for the failures. Mao Zedong followed with a sharp critique of the strategy's use of "short, swift thrusts" and the lack of cooperation with the Fujian 19th route NRA Army. The conference continued for three more days, during which much of the Red Army leadership criticized Bo Gu and Otto Braun's approach, aligning themselves with Mao. By the end of the meeting, key leaders of the CCP and Red Army had distanced themselves from the 28 Bolsheviks, effectively making Mao Zedong the de facto leader of the CCP, despite not being formally elected to any new position at Zunyi. A significant change was the disbanding of the triumvirate leadership of Bo Gu, Otto Braun, and Zhou Enlai. Zhu De and Zhou Enlai were assigned to lead the Red Army, which then moved towards Sichuan to connect with the 4th Front Red Army. Departing Zunyi, the Red Army comprised four army corps: the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 9th Red Army Corps, although all were considerably smaller than before. The total strength of the 1st Front Red Army was approximately 35,000 soldiers. The army advanced north through Tongzi, gathering gold and opium to procure food and supplies for the journey. The 1st Army Corps, led by Lin Biao, took the lead in searching for a route to cross the Yangtze River. While attempting to secure a crossing near Chishui, the remainder of the Red Army engaged in a fierce battle with a Sichuan NRA force near Tucheng. The fighting escalated to such a degree that Mao Zedong ordered Lin Biao and his corps to return and assist. Ultimately, on January 29th, 1935, the Red Army lost contact with the enemy and abandoned its plan to cross the Yangtze River, instead retreating west to Zhaxi in Yunnan province to evade NRA forces. However, this provided only a temporary reprieve, as more NRA troops moved west into Sichuan, covering all potential crossing points along the Yangtze. Faced with limited options, Mao proposed an audacious plan on February 7th: the Red Army would split into separate columns and head back east into Guizhou to mislead the NRA, then reunite and proceed southwest into Yunnan to find a safer crossing point over the Yangtze. Executing this plan, the Red Army conducted a series of feints, diversionary attacks, and deception operations to confuse NRA leadership, as well as some of its own ranks. Mao Zedong aimed to create an opening for the Red Army to escape into Yunnan and cross the Yangtze in the Jinsha River area. The Red Army began moving east, achieving victories over the NRA, such as at Loushan Pass, where they captured about a division's worth of personnel and equipment. They continued eastward, seizing the city of Maotai and acquiring additional gold and opium for trade. In March 1935, Mao was appointed as the political commissar of the Red Army, with Zhu De serving as the commander-in-chief. His leadership role was further solidified when he was included in the triumvirate Military Council alongside Zhou Enlai and Wang Jiaxiang. Mao Zedong then initiated a deception operation, sending the 9th Red Army Corps north as a feint toward the Yangtze River, intending to reinforce NRA intelligence assessments. Chiang believed that these erratic movements indicated the Red Army was preparing for a decisive battle. Consequently, he relocated his NRA headquarters to Guiyang and deployed nearly all of Guizhou's NRA forces to the Yangtze area to encircle and eliminate the Red Army. This deployment inadvertently opened a north-south corridor in Guizhou, allowing the Red Army to move south towards Guiyang, which was now vulnerable due to the concentration of NRA forces along the Yangtze. Capitalizing on these fears, Mao sent additional Red Army units toward the provincial capital. In response, Chiang hurriedly redirected NRA forces from Yunnan to bolster defenses in Guiyang, thus creating yet another escape route for the Red Army. The Red Army swiftly exploited this corridor and advanced into Yunnan. They employed a similar feint tactic as used in Guiyang, deploying units from the 1st Red Army Corps to threaten Kunming. With the main Yunnan forces still occupied in Guiyang, the Yunnan government was forced to reallocate its frontier and militia troops to defend the capital, thus opening one final corridor for the Red Army to escape through a crossing at the Jinsha River. By April 1935, the Red Army had executed one of its most daring maneuvers, evading the NRA forces by making a sweeping maneuver into Yunnan. Despite this strategy, the Red Army still needed to cross the Yangtze River. One section of the river, known as the Jinsha River, flows from Tibet through Yunnan to Sichuan and offered excellent crossing points for the Red Army. On April 29th, Mao Zedong identified three crossing locations. The 1st Red Army Corps was assigned to cross in the north at Longjie, while the 3rd Red Army Corps would cross in the center at Hongmen. The Central Cadre Unit was designated to use the southern crossing point at Jiaopingdu. Meanwhile, the Fifth and Ninth Army Corps were tasked with rear guard operations and would cross at the nearest crossing point. Although the 1st and 3rd Red Army Corps struggled to secure their crossing locations, the Central Cadre Unit successfully acquired seven boats, established security on both riverbanks, and commenced a ferrying operation that would last nine days. Consequently, the 1st and 3rd Red Army Corps abandoned their original crossing points and moved to Jiaopingdu. The 3rd Red Army Corps crossed on May 7th, followed by the 1st Red Army Corps the next day. The 5th Red Army Corps maintained its rear guard before quickly crossing at Jiaopingdu on May 9th. Upon reaching Sichuan, the weary Red Army troops began to contemplate their next steps. After nearly nine months of travel, with minimal rest and significant losses, the Red Army's numbers had dwindled to around 25,000 soldiers, with much of their heavy equipment abandoned along their retreat route. They attempted to seize Huili but were met with fierce resistance from the 24th NRA Division. Outside the city, Red Army leaders held a conference on May 12th and resolved to continue north through Sichuan, aiming to cross the Dadu River to join forces with the 4th Front Red Army. As the Red Army advanced through the territory of the Yi minority, they faced hostility from the Yi people, who harbored animosity toward the Han and attacked straggling Red Army soldiers, stealing their weapons and clothing and leaving many to perish. Fortunately, Liu Bocheng and his vanguard unit from the 1st Red Army Corps negotiated a truce with the Yi, securing safe passage in exchange for promises of equal land rights and treatment after the war. On May 23rd, the Red Army reached Anshunchang along the Dadu River. Their initial attempts to cross by ferry were thwarted by strong NRA defenses on the opposite bank, and they only managed to secure three boats, which were insufficient for a crossing. On May 27th, Red Army leaders decided to take a calculated risk and dispatched troops northward to seize Luding Bridge. This iron-chain suspension bridge, located along a challenging trail through the mountain passes, crossed the Dadu River. In a remarkable act of bravery, the 4th Regiment of the 2nd Division, 1st Red Army Corps, led by Yang Chengwu, marched nearly 100 miles in under 3 days to secure the bridge. Despite facing a defending NRA brigade on sheer cliffs, the 4 Regiment acted swiftly and captured the bridge amid constant gunfire, with only 18 of the 22 men who launched the final assault surviving. Their sacrifice allowed the Red Army to evade the main KMT force and successfully cross the Dadu River, ultimately establishing themselves in Hualingping for refitting operations. However, the challenges for the Red Army persisted even after crossing the Dadu. They were still unaware of the 4th Front Red Army's location, with one possible area being directly north behind the Jiajin Mountains. To avoid detection from NRA forces or ambushes by Tibetans, Mao opted for a central walking trail through the Jiajin Mountains rather than the more accessible eastern and western routes. For many survivors of the Long March, the leg through the Jiajin Mountains proved to be the most arduous and challenging segment. The Red Army soldiers faced hunger, cold, thirst, avalanches, and the high altitude as they attempted to traverse the snow-capped peaks with little more than the clothes on their backs. On June 12th, the first units of the Red Army arrived at Danwei, located at the northern foot of the Jiajin Mountains. By June 14th, the remaining soldiers descended from the mountains and linked up with Li Xiannian, a liaison officer from the 4th Front Red Army. Approximately 10,000 soldiers endured the harsh conditions and made it down the mountain. Thankfully, they rejoined their fellow Red Army comrades, allowing them to take a much-needed rest. On June 18, 1935, the 1st and 4th Front Red Armies finally connected at Lianghekou. The Fourth Front Red Army fared significantly better than its counterpart, having originated from the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Soviet before relocating to the Shaanxi-Sichuan border and settling in northwest Sichuan in March 1935. Their forces numbered nearly 80,000, surpassing the 1st Front Red Army. Some soldiers from the 1st Front looked on with admiration and envy at the robust condition of the 4th Front soldiers and their horses. On June 26th, the leadership of both armies convened to discuss their future movements. Mao Zedong proposed advancing north to Gansu, then heading east toward Ningxia, with the ultimate goal of reaching Mongolia to establish communication with the Soviet Union. Conversely, Zhang Guotao suggested moving west to Xinjiang, aiming to connect with the Soviet Union via the Central Asian Republics. Beneath these military discussions lay political maneuvering as both Mao Zedong and Zhang Guotao sought to assert dominance over the Red Army. Ultimately, both sides maintained cordial relations and established a unified strategy and command. The Red Army was set to advance north to southern Gansu to establish a Soviet presence in the border areas. Zhang Guotao was appointed vice-chairman of the Military Council. By June 30, the 1st Front Red Army had moved into the Grasslands, with Zhang Guotao and the 4th Front Red Army following a day later. The meeting at Lianghekou did not resolve the political tensions between the factions led by Zhang Guotao and Mao Zedong, and these conflicts intensified over time. While Zhang Guotao continued to advocate for a westward movement toward Xinjiang, he also sought to recruit key leaders from the 1st Front Red Army to support his cause, but to no avail. Mao Zedong remained steadfast in his commitment to the agreed plan to proceed to Gansu and took measures to prevent any subversion from Zhang Guotao's camp. Tensions escalated during a conference at Maoergai on August 6th. The Red Army had arrived at Maoergai the previous day to rest and reorganize. According to one account, Mao Zedong held the meeting in the neighboring town of Shawo, securing the location ahead of Zhang Guotao arrival. As the sole representative from the 4th Front Red Army on the Politburo and Central Committee, Zhang Guotao intended to introduce additional representatives to enhance his influence, but they were unable to bypass security. This infuriated Zhang Guotao, highlighting the political maneuvering at play. Another account claims the meeting took place at Zhang Guotao's 11th Red Army Division headquarters, with his loyal soldiers ensuring that Mao Zdong could not undermine him. Regardless, no agreements were reached during this meeting. A second meeting was held on August 20th at Maoergai, resulting in a negotiated settlement. The Red Army remained under the command of Zhu De but was divided into two columns. The Right Column included the 1st and 3rd Red Army Corps, led by Lin Biao and Peng Dehuai, respectively, and also incorporated the 13th and 3th Red Armies from the 4th Front. Mao, Zhou Enlai, Bo Gu, and Otto Braun traveled with the Right Column. The Left Column comprised the remainder of the 4th Front Army, along with the 5th and 9th Red Army Corps, and was led by Zhang Guotao and Liu Bocheng, with Zhu De accompanying them. Both columns would advance north while skirting the Grasslands, with the Left Column heading toward Aba and the Right Column toward Baxi. Once the plan was finalized, they began their movement into the Grasslands on August 23rd. In the Grasslands, the Red Army encountered conditions as challenging as those in the mountains. This region was home to a minority population, and the Tibetan locals were just as hostile as the Yi had been, attacking and killing many stragglers. Food sources were scarce, and many Red Army soldiers were unfamiliar with edible plant species. Water supplies were also limited, as most sources were stagnant and contaminated. The soldiers ended up consuming wheat kernels, which severely upset their digestive systems. The trailing units faced even greater difficulties, as the vanguard troops turned the dirt paths into muddy pits, leaving little food for foraging. The Right Column reached Baxi on August 27th, suffering heavy losses during the week-long trek; the 3rd Red Army Corps alone lost 400 soldiers. The Left Column progressed more slowly and arrived in Aba about a week later. Once they exited the Grasslands, the Red Army faced another internal struggle that threatened their retreat. On September 3rd, Zhang Guotao sent a wireless message to Mao Zedong and the Right Column, stating that his forces were stationed at Aba and that the White River, north of Aba, was impassable. Mao Zedong urged Zhang Guotao to adhere to the Maoergai decision and even offered additional troops to assist in crossing the river, which Zhang Guotao politely declined. On September 9th, Mao Zedong learned of a secret message Zhang Guotao had sent to his aide in the Right Column. Zhang Guotao wanted the Right Column to move back south through the Grasslands to reunite the two columns and convene a meeting to discuss a new strategy, indicating an intention to initiate an intraparty power struggle. Fearing that Zhang Guotao would use his superior numbers to impose his strategy on the Red Army, the 1st and 3rd Red Army Corps quietly departed Baxi and continued north to Gansu. This approximately 8,000-strong force arrived at Ejie and held an emergency conference. The Red Army reorganized its forces as the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Force to garner support from the local population. They also issued a “Resolution Concerning the Mistakes of Comrade Zhang Guotao,” reprimanding his actions without expelling him from the Communist Party. On September 14th, the Red Army continued north and captured the Lazikou Pass, defeating two of Zhang Guotao's forces as he and his 4th Front Army moved south toward Chengdu. Zhang Guotao was furious upon discovering that Mao Zdong and his loyal Red Army troops had left without notice, but he chose not to pursue them and instead redirected his troops toward Chengdu. The 4th Front Red Army achieved initial victories in October 1935 against the NRA at Baoxing and Tianquan, coming within sixty miles of the Sichuan provincial capital. In response to this threat, Chiang Kai-shek dispatched over 80 NRA regiments to defend Chengdu. The NRA launched a counteroffensive at Baizhang, inflicting heavy losses on the Fourth Front Red Army, which retreated in disarray back to Ganzi in western Sichuan province, where they would remain until they linked up with the 2nd Front Army in June 1936. As the 4th Front Army moved south toward Sichuan, the Red Army completed the final stage of its arduous journey. On September 21st, 1935, Mao Zedong and the Anti-Japanese Vanguard arrived in Hadapu, a Han city in Gansu province. The soldiers rejoiced at being among their own ethnic group and took a few days to rest. During their stay, Mao Zedong and other leaders of the Red Army learned that a Soviet force, led by Liu Zhidan, a friend of Mao Zedong, was present in northern Shaanxi, supporting the 25th and 26th Red Armies. 10 days later, the Anti-Japanese Vanguard left Hadapu and swiftly moved west to avoid the NRA's Muslim cavalry units, aiming to connect with their allied units in Shaanxi. On October 19, 1935, Mao Zedong joined forces with the 25th and 26th Red Armies and settled near Wuqi. The remnants of the 1st Front Red Army had completed their year-long, 6,000-mile journey with approximately 4,000 soldiers. Once they reached the relative safety of Shaanxi, the Red Army reverted to its traditional strategy of political mobilization to gather resources, recruit new members, and propagate the communist revolution. On February 5th, 1936, the 1st Front Red Army moved east to carry out political mobilization efforts. Over the following two months, the Red Army defeated seven provincial divisions, capturing more than 4,000 soldiers. They also recruited 8,000 new members, raised $300,000 in revenue, and added 20 counties in Shanxi to their new Soviet. In May, the 1st Front Army advanced westward for a two-month operation, acquiring over 2,000 rifles and 400 horses, thereby expanding the Soviet's reach into Gansu and Ningxia. However, these efforts were ultimately thwarted by NRA forces, compelling the Red Army to relocate from Wuqi to Bao'an in June 1936. In October 1936, the 2nd and 4th Front Armies finally reached Bao'an, marking the completion of the Long March for the Red Army. With all three units reunited, the Red Army War College reopened in Dengjiaqiao, with Liu Bocheng eventually returning to lead it. Additionally, the Red Army military school began training in Tai'erwan. From 1934 to 1936, the Red Army evaded annihilation through a combination of courage, determination, and fortunate circumstances. Enduring harsh conditions and traversing some of China's most challenging terrain to escape the NRA and provincial forces, the Red Army demonstrated remarkable resilience. Mao Zedong skillfully navigated the political landscape within the Red Army, emerging as its supreme leader. The Communists also capitalized on the challenges facing the NRA and KMT leadership. The Red Army effectively utilized Chiang Kai-Sheks inability to exert full control over his subordinate warlords and their military units to avoid unnecessary confrontations. Upon reaching Shaanxi in late 1935, the survivors of the Long March were not only battle-hardened by their experiences but also carried valuable lessons learned from previous campaigns. In the relative security of the new Soviet, the Red Army expanded its ranks and resumed training and mobilization efforts. The Red Army had survived its greatest challenge to date and was poised to develop into the professional military force that would ultimately defeat the NRA and overthrow the KMT government. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus not only did the Red Army escape death at the hands of the NRA, but the experience of the Long March would actually contribute to the downfall of the NRA. Mao Zedong had emerged a top figure in the CCP and now would oversee it and the Red Army's future development until the ultimate clash with Chiang Kai-Shek for the future of China.

December 12, 1936. During the Chinese Civil War, Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-Shek is kidnapped by two of his generals, sparking a political reckoning and uniting the Chinese against a common enemy: Japan. This episode originally aired in 2022.Support the show! Join Into History for ad-free listening and more.History Daily is a co-production of Airship and Noiser.Go to HistoryDaily.com for more history, daily.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last time we spoke about the fifth encirclement campaign against the CCP. After surviving four encirclement campaigns by the NRA, the CCP faced an intensified fifth campaign in 1933, as the Japanese invaded Manchuria and North China. Despite growing in numbers, the CCP struggled against the KMT's modernized army, equipped with German weapons and strategies. A combination of blockades, fortified positions, and superior tactics eroded Red Army strength. By 1934, after significant losses, the Red Army retreated, marking the campaign's end and signaling the start of the CCP's eventual Long March. In the battle between the NRA and the Red Army, the NRA employed strategic counterinsurgency techniques to block Red infiltration and gained local support through loyalty and economic pressure. Meanwhile, the Red Army, hampered by internal issues and a shift in leadership towards the Twenty-eight Bolsheviks, struggled with morale and mass recruitment of untrained peasants. As the Red Army attempted aggressive tactics and reforms, they ultimately faced defeat, leading to their strategic retreat in the historic Long March.   #129 The Fujian Rebellion of 1933 Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. In the previous episode, during the fifth encirclement campaign, I briefly mentioned a rebellion that took place in Fujian province. Now this story actually crosses over a few we will be covering, such as the fifth encirclement campaign, already mentioned but also the Japanese invasion of Shanghai in 1931, part of the Mukden incident. So its a bit tricky for me to cover this one without giving away too much of what we will be speaking about later, but I will try my best to be mysterious.  Now the key player I guess you can say to this story is the 19th Route Army. The 19th Route Army's history can be traced back to the 1st division of the Guangdong Army. In 1926, this division underwent a significant transformation, becoming the 4th Army of the NRA. At that time, Li Jishen was appointed as the commander, with Chen Mingshu serving as the commander of the newly formed 10th Division. Other notable figures included Jiang Guangnai as the deputy commander and Cai Tingkai leading a subordinate regiment. All of these men will be key players in the Rebellion.  During the Northern Expedition, the 4th NRA Army distinguished itself with numerous successful campaigns. The 10th Division was subsequently expanded into the 11th Army. This new formation went on to play a pivotal role in during the Central Plains War of 1930, assisting Chiang Kai-shek in his struggle against warlords' anti-chiang coalition. As a result of this success, the 11th Army was reorganized into the 19th Route Army, with Jiang Guangnai assuming the role of overall commander and Cai Tingkai becoming the army commander. Following these developments, the 19th Route Army then went on to be part of the third encirclement campaign. Now again not to give away too much, but in 1931 the Mukden incident broke out initiating a 15 year war between China and Japan. Most of the action took place in Manchuria, pouring slightly into Northern China and Inner Mongolia, but there was an expedition performed in Shanghai. In many ways it was like a dress rehearsal for what would go down in 1937 during the battle of Shanghai. During the crisis, known then as the September 18th Incident, the 19th Route Army was redeployed to Shanghai.This transition occurred during a tumultuous period when Chiang Kai-shek faced significant political pressure and was forced to resign. The Nanjing National Government, dominated by the Guangdong faction, saw Chen Mingshu appointed as the commander of the garrison responsible for defending Beijing and Shanghai. Now this was a hyper chaotic time for China, and a particularly rough time for Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek was dealing with multiple external and internal threats to China and his position as Generalissimo. First off, his encirclement campaigns against the Reds were not going well at all. His men were not accustomed nor trained properly to face guerilla warfare. When they assaulted the Jiangxi Soviet they were entering strange territory and were greeted by the countryfolk as enemies. The Reds, in contrast, felt at home among the villages. For years, they had lived alongside the people and built friendships; forging connections was a key aspect of Communist strategy. Whenever Chiang Kai-Sheks forces came too close for comfort, the guerrillas seamlessly blended into the local population. They established their own Soviets, spread their ideology at will, and disappeared when soldiers approached. They were like a fluid army. Over time, the Chinese public became less concerned about the ongoing presence of the Red Army and more weary of the topic. Those not living in areas affected by Communist infiltration struggled to grasp the urgency of this endless conflict and began to question whether the costs outweighed the benefits. Very little news was reported on the situation, and what was published came primarily from government sources, portraying it as a series of victories for the Nationalists—this battle was a success for the Nationalists, that one ended in a glorious triumph; the KMT troops had the Reds on the run. A few days later, another dispatch would reiterate the same points, as if the earlier battles had never occurred. The front lines never seemed to shift significantly. Chiang Kai-Shek maintained his position as Generalissimo like any other politician, through alliances. One of his key friends was Hu Hanmin. The relationship between Chiang Kai-Shek and Hu Hanmin was never straightforward. Their shared history was marked by significant jealousy, and in February 1931, they faced another separation. During a KMT conference, Hu Hanmin challenged the provisional constitution proposed by Chiang Kai-Shek, arguing that it was prematurely defining various governmental functions. He claimed that Chiang Kai-Shek was consolidating too much power for himself. Chiang Kai-Shek countered that Hu Hanmins concerns were mainly about party authority. This situation echoed their earlier disputes in Canton, where they had debated theories under Dr Sun Yat-sen's influence, but now their conflicts held more weight and didn't end in mere discussion. Hu Hanmin, overwhelmed by his anger, resigned from the presidency of the Legislative Yuan, a significant position at the time. In response, a similarly agitated Chiang Kai-Shek placed him under house arrest, or as the Chinese more delicately termed it, “in soft detainment.” Initially, this fact was not disclosed; Hu Hanmin simply vanished. This was quite an extreme action for someone who advocated democratic processes, leading to a barrage of inquiries from curious Europeans directed at Chiang Kai-Shek. What had happened? Where was Hu? Why had the innocuous Lin Sen been appointed as president of the Legislative Yuan? For a considerable time, the Generalissimo remained silent, but eventually, he reluctantly stated that Hu was fine—indeed, quite fine; it was simply that his personal freedom was temporarily restricted. This was all for his own benefit and that of the KMT. Without this restriction, the misguided individual might attempt to flee to Shanghai, which would only incite dissenting factions and provoke disorder. He was perfectly fine. The incident was added to the ever-growing list of accusations made by Chiang Kai-Sheks opponents, who claimed he was becoming a dictator. They argued that he was squandering the nation's resources to maintain his army while pursuing insignificant Communists, who, if left alone, might actually become good citizens. Rumors circulated that he was nurturing a group of young bullies reminiscent of the Italian "Blue Shirts." Additionally, there were concerns about the shady Chen brothers. Furthermore, it was alleged that Chiang Kai-Shek was in close contact with gangster Tu Yueh-sen in Shanghai, profiting immensely from the opium trade through this connection. In fact, Chiang had recently declared that opium would now be a government monopoly, similar to that of the British in Hong Kong, as he needed the funds. And now, this latest scandal! Criticism of the Generalissimo was rampant, especially among students. April passed, and the uproar over Hu Hanmin faded into discontented whispers, as the People's Congress approached, providing an opportunity for open discussion about the provisional constitution. However, by May 5, people were preoccupied with other concerns. The South was once again causing unrest, led by Wang Jingwei, with Eugene Chen involved as well. It began with the typical manifesto or circular telegram, signed by Wang Jingwei and the Jiangxi generals, who "impeached" Chiang Kai-Shek for his wrongdoings. Another telegram soon followed from the warlord in Canton, accusing the Generalissimo of assuming dictatorial powers. In response, Chiang Kai-Shek convened an urgent meeting of KMT leaders, asserting that the allegations must be openly discussed and investigated. He should have been able to rely on the Party's support during such a crisis, but the situation was unusual due to Hu Hanmin's detention. Some members of his own faction seized the moment to betray him. Sun Fo and Wang Chunghui retreated to Shanghai before moving on to Canton. Shortly after, the Canton warlord declared an alliance between Jiangxi and Guangdong, united in their fight, this was the Chiang-Gui War. On May 25, the southerners issued an ultimatum: Chiang Kai-Shek had to resign within forty-eight hours or face the consequences. A few days later, they established a new national government in Canton. Chiang Kai-Shek announced his intention to suppress the rebels but did not rush into action. Instead, there were discussions—more discussions—in the neutral setting of Shanghai. Throughout June and most of July, these negotiations continued, with Chiang Kai-Shek hoping to prevent a conflict that the nation could ill afford. The southerners persisted with their demands, and their appeal to Japan for support would haunt them for a long time. Their determination ultimately prevailed, and on July 21, it was announced in Canton that a punitive expedition was underway. By mid-August, Bai Chongxi's army was advancing through Hunan on the old route to Nanking. Chiang Kai-Shek prepared for the confrontation, and the capital was on high alert. Meanwhile, in the North, the Mukden Incident broke out. In the South, the generals and their associates held back, anticipating that war could be declared at any moment. However, Chiang Kai-Shek and his advisers understood that he was even less equipped than Zhang Xueliang to initiate an offensive against a powerful foreign nation. There was the League of Nations, established presumably to address crises like this, as well as the Kellogg Pact. Chiang Kai-Shek decided to refer the matter to the League, though his chances of a favorable outcome were slim: America, which might have otherwise been involved, was preoccupied with its own economic depression, and Britain remained indifferent. The more impulsive factions in China believed this response was insufficient, and the dissidents in the South demanded a stronger approach. The students were the most incensed. On September 28, hundreds of students in Shanghai took matters into their own hands. They seized control of a train at the railway station and traveled to Nanking, where they joined forces with fellow students from the capital's university. Together, they marched—five thousand strong—toward the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. They pushed past the guards, stormed the Minister's office, forcibly dragged him outside, and assaulted him. After recovering from his injuries in the hospital, the Minister chose to resign. The students then initiated a sit-in strike, declaring they would remain in Nanking until they received tangible action rather than mere diplomatic efforts. Authorities were unsure how to respond to them, as more pressing issues demanded the government's attention. It was clear that the South and Nanking needed to resolve their differences, as public opinion strongly supported this. Despite the ungracious criticisms emanating from Canton, where Eugene Chen was vocally denouncing Chiang Kai-shek for his diplomatic failures, Nanking sought to negotiate. In October, Chiang Kai-Shek released Hu Hanmin from his mild detention, and he appeared none the worse for the unexpected break. Along with three others, he traveled to Shanghai for a peace conference with the southern leaders. Hu urged the southerners to be reasonable and to cease calls for Chiang Kai-Shek's resignation. Chiang Kai-Shek remarked, “Regardless of the right or wrong of the situation, if desired, all blame can be placed squarely on me.” However, this uplifting scene was short-lived. As the Canton faction continued to insist on Chiang's resignation, Hu abruptly changed his stance and escalated the demands. He suggested that not only should Chiang resign, but he should also be exiled from China entirely. The conference ended in chaos. Various proposals were discussed and quickly dismissed. The South remained resolute; Chiang had to go. The sit-in students, frustrated with just sitting idle, started to escalate their actions. Their numbers had been steadily increasing since the initial demonstration, with boys traveling to Nanking from distant places; by the end of November, there were twelve thousand of them. They marched again to the new government buildings, demanding that Chiang Kai-Shek come out to engage in a discussion. “War on Japan!” they shouted. Chiang Kai-Shek made them wait in the cold winter weather for a full twenty-four hours before he finally appeared. He reprimanded them harshly and ordered them to return to school, leading to a subdued dispersal of the crowd. On December 15th, Chiang Kai-Shek capitulated to public pressure and resigned. Chiang Kai-Shek yet again nonchalantly got up and left heading home into the mountains. This left an extremely uneasy Sun Fo in the presidential chair facing what looked like a full blown Japanese invasion. The Japanese kept reiterating they were merely defending their citizens after the Chinese had attacked the South Manchurian Railway…but yeah they were certainly conquering. Sun Fo desperately looked to any veteran figures for help, but Hu Hanmin fled to Hong Kong, Wang Jingwei, arguably the man responsible for forcing Chiang Kai-Shek yet again to step down was suddenly far too ill to do anything and retired to the Shanghai Hospital. Meanwhile, all of the bankers had lost interest in the Nanjing government since Chiang Kai-Shek had departed, the government literally lost its coffers. The government had no means to properly pay its armies. Now the entire time the government had been tossing offers to Chiang Kai-Shek to come back, but he bided his time. Meanwhile Eugene Chen demanded China break off diplomatic relations with Japan, was told no so he resigned, followed soon after by Sun Fo. Wang Jingwei was tossed into the presidency position, which he must have relished, however it was just then when Shanghai was invaded. Chiang Kai-Shek still held his honorary position as CEC over the special committee so he simply waited and watched. Yet no one could manage the military like the generalissimo nor open the coin purses to fund it. Thus Chiang Kai-Shek was brought back, but not really as Generalissimo, now he had to work collaboratively with others, such as Wang Jingwei.  In 1932, the January 28 Incident unfolded, basically the Japanese performed another false flag operation trying to legitimize an expedition into Shanghai. Japanese marines began to land and on January 28th they were attacking in full force. The 19th Route Army met the enemy in what became a month-long resistance against great odds. Chiang Kai-Shek was being labeled a coward for not doing more against the Japanese, but he was keeping in touch with the commanders of the 19th Rout Army by telegraph. He advised them to guard Liuho, a village just across the Yangtze, believing the Japanese would make other landings to cut them off there. General Tsai neglected to take the advice, and low and behold the Japanese made the landing forcing the 19th Route Army to pull out. The entire situation looked incredibly bad for China. Fingers were pointed at the inept Nanjing government. Yet Chiang Kai-Shek was much more focused on the encirclement campaigns against the Reds. The people angrily accused him of “making war on his own people instead of attending to the real threat, Japan”. To this Chiang Kai-Shek replied “It is useless for China to talk of resisting Japan. When it has not yet stamped out the enemy in its midst. If China ventures to fight the Japanese, the Communists will attack from the rear and chaos will quickly overtake the whole country.” The 19th Route Army were hailed as heroes, receiving a lot of recognition as a prominent anti-Japanese force. Despite Japan's attempts to reinforce its troops, Chiang Kai-shek's return to leadership saw further NRA forces dispatched to join the fight. Eventually, the conflict reached a resolution through diplomatic negotiations, resulting in the withdrawal of the 19th Route Army from Shanghai. With the Japanese threat averted for the time being Chiang Kai-Shek redirected his efforts against the Reds. On May 21, 1932, Chiang Kai-shek ordered the 19th Route Army to enter Fujian and forced the army to engage in a civil war against the Communists in Fujian. On December 6 of the same year, Jiang Guangnai took over as the chairman of Fujian Province, and Cai Tingkai was appointed as the director of the Fujian Pacification Office and commander of the 19th Route Army.  At this point the leadership of the 19th Route Army were not at all happy with Chiang Kai-Shek, who to them seemed to have done little to help face the Japanese. They were not friendly to the CCP by any means and were actively suppressing Communist organizations while fighting the Japanese. When they came to Fujian they continued to suppress communists and supported people's anti-Japanese patriotic movements. On August 18, 1932, the 61st Division of the 19th Route Army collectively executed 69 CCP members and suspected individuals outside the East Gate of Quanzhou, and they also carried out mass killings of government workers from the Soviet area during their offensive against it. Despite this the CCP and 19th Route Army did agree on one thing, the Japanese were a problem.  After November 22, 1933, as Japanese imperialism intensified its invasion of China, the people across the nation once again launched a wave of anti-Japanese salvation movements. On January 17 of the same year, the Provisional Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic and the Revolutionary Military Committee of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army issued a "Joint Anti-Japanese Declaration," proposing three conditions for cooperation with any armed forces to resist Japan: an immediate halt to attacks on the Soviet areas, immediate guarantees of the democratic rights of the people, and the immediate arming of the people to establish armed volunteer forces. However, Chiang Kai-shek's ruling group stubbornly persisted in its anti-Communist and anti-people policies, continuing to intensify attacks on the Red Army, and on May 31, he signed a peace agreement with the Japanese. Chiang Kai-Shek was met with another wave of opposition across the nation for appeasing the Japanese. The 19th Route Army basically concluded the Generalissimo was not going to help wage a war against their enemy. Thus in a rather insane fashion, the leadership of the 19th Route Army resolved to overthrow the Nanjing government so they could unite the anti-Japanese forces and push for a national resistance. At that time, Chen Mingshu, an early leader of the 19th Route Army who had gone abroad and had previously served as the vice president of the Executive Yuan of the National Government, returned to China in May 1933 and devoted all his efforts to opposing Chiang Kai-shek's Nanjing government. In Fuzhou, he secretly discussed three strategies with Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, and Deng Xizeng: the first was to unite with Guangdong and Guangxi to overthrow Chiang Kai-Shek, supporting Hu Hanmin to organize an independent government; the second was to unite with Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi of Guangxi, and Chen Jitang of Guangdong, seizing Guangdong; the last was to unite with the Red Army to resist Chiang Kai-Shek together.  As a result, neither the first nor the second strategies could be realized. Under Chiang Kai-shek's repeated orders to engage in civil war, the 78th Division and the 62nd Division of the 19th Route Army faced severe blows from the Red Army in Fujian between July and September 1933. Thus, the 19th Route Army found itself in a dire situation where not engaging in the "anti-Communist" actions would lead to its annihilation by Chiang Kai-shek, while engaging in "anti-Communist" actions would result in its destruction by the Red Army. In the context of rising national anti-Japanese sentiment, the upper leadership of the 19th Route Army had to swiftly make the choice to unite with the Communists to resist Chiang Kai-Shek and fight against Japan. On September 22, 1933, Chen Mingshu's main aide, Chen Gongpei, who had participated in the Nanchang Uprising and later left the CCP, secretly arrived at the command post of the 3rd Red Army Corps stationed at Wangtai, to express the political stance of the 19th Route Army to leaders of the Red Army, such as Peng Dehuai, Teng Daiyuan, and Yuan Guoping, regarding anti-Chiang resistance and cooperation with the Red Army. In October, Chen Gongpei accompanied Xu Minghong, the plenipotentiary representative of the 19th Route Army and secretary-general of its headquarters, to Ruijin. On the 26th, he signed the "Preliminary Agreement Against Japan and Against Chiang" with Pan Jianxing, a representative of the Provisional Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic and the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army. The main contents included: both sides immediately cease military actions, temporarily define a military demarcation line, restore trade between both parties; the Fujian People's Revolutionary Government and the 19th Route Army agree to the existence and activities of all revolutionary organizations in Fujian, allow freedom of publication, speech, assembly, and strikes, and immediately release political prisoners, among other provisions. The Soviet Provisional Central Government also sent Pan Jianxing as a permanent representative in Fuzhou. Subsequently, Chen Mingshu, Li Jishen, Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, and others actively prepared to establish a new government and made military preparations against Chiang Kai-Shek. On November 20, 1933, Li Jishen, Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, and representatives from over 100 cities across the country, along with 100,000 people from various sectors in Fuzhou, convened the National People's Temporary Representative Assembly in Fuzhou. The assembly issued the "Declaration of People's Rights of the Chinese People's Temporary Representative Assembly" and decided to establish the People's Revolutionary Government of the Republic of China. They elected Li Jishen, Chen Mingshu, Chen Youren, Feng Yuxiang , Cai Tingkai, Jiang Guangnai, Huang Qixiang, Xu Qian, Fang Zhenwu, Li Zhangda, Sa Zhenbing, He Gonggan, and other 12 members to the government, with Li Jishen as the government chairman. On November 22, the People's Revolutionary Government was officially established, with the capital in Fuzhou. The People's Revolutionary Government Committee set up a Military Committee, an Economic Committee, and a Cultural Committee, chaired respectively by Li Jishen, Yu Xinqing, and Chen Mingshu; and established a Ministry of Finance, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a Supreme Court, and a Political Security Bureau, led respectively by Jiang Guangnai, Chen Youren, Xu Qian, and Li Zhangda. The People's Revolutionary Government successively issued: The People's Revolutionary Government's Internal Telegram. The People's Revolutionary Government's External Declaration.The People's Political Program - Eighteen Articles of the Minimum Program and other documents, openly announcing anti-Japanese and anti-Chiang, and proposing some domestic and foreign policies with certain progressive significance. The "Internal Telegram of the People's Revolutionary Government" announced the government's future mission: 1) to seek the liberation of the Chinese nation and establish a truly independent and free country; 2) to eliminate the counter-revolutionary Nanjing government and establish a political power of the productive people; 3) to realize the equal rights of all ethnic groups in the country; 4) to guarantee the absolute freedom and equality of all productive people; 5) to eliminate the influence of imperialism in China, overthrow the warlords, eradicate the remnants of the feudal system, develop the national economy, and liberate the working people. The "Declaration of the People's Revolutionary Government to Foreign Countries" sternly pointed out the Nanjing government's traitorous behavior and warned the powers not to cooperate with Chiang Kai-shek. The Declaration stated: "We believe that the policies of the pro-American and pro-League of Nations factions are based on dangerous principles... However, it must be recognized that the objective result of the pro-American and pro-League of Nations factions will put China under an international condominium system, which is no less harmful than Chiang Kai-shek's pro-Japanese policies... It is recognized that China's real power must be established on a national basis... We finally declare that overthrowing the Chiang regime is not only necessary for China's independence and national salvation, but also for the military and economic interests of the whole world... In order to enhance international security, we have to warn the powers not to make any loans to the Chiang Kai-shek government in Nanjing, whether it is money, goods, or weapons. We also declare that if any such loans are concluded in the future, the Chinese people and their revolutionary government will completely deny them." The People's Political Program - Eighteen Articles of the Minimum Program declared: "China is a semi-feudal society under the rule of imperialists. The greatest goal of the Chinese revolution is to eliminate the imperialist domination in China; at the same time, to sweep away all feudal forces and establish a government that fully represents the rights of the people..." The 18 articles of the minimum program are: (1) Abolish unequal treaties and renegotiate equal and mutually beneficial treaties with other countries; (2) Foreign-invested or foreign-managed enterprises and cultural undertakings that are harmful to the interests of the Chinese nation may be restricted or confiscated; (3) To sort out new and old foreign debts. All political loans that harm the country should be absolutely denied; others should be repaid conditionally; (4) Implementing foreign trade controls; (5) Strictly implement absolute tariff autonomy; (6) Open up the political system and deny all political rights to counter-revolutionaries who are dependent on imperialism and warlords; (7) All nationalities within China are equal, may freely unite for revolution, and recognize national self-determination; (8) Ensure the people's absolute freedom of body, residence, speech, assembly, association, strike, demonstration and publication; (9) Implement universal suffrage; (10) Abolish all excessive taxes and levies; (11) The principle of "everyone who tills the land owns the land" was established, and land was distributed according to the number of people. Forests, mines, and rivers were completely nationalized. (12) All important banking and transportation enterprises shall be under state control; (13) Use political power and state capital to support the scientific development of agricultural production; (14) Usury is strictly prohibited; (15) Unscrupulous merchants will be eliminated and the people's daily necessities will be sold under the state monopoly; (16) To formulate agricultural and industrial laws, improve the lives of farmers and workers, and ensure the development of agricultural and industrial organizations; (17) Promote universal education; (18) Implement conscription, arm the people, and assist them in their anti-imperialist and economic and political struggles. After the establishment of the People's Revolutionary Government, it caused a great stir domestically and internationally. However, due to Wang Ming's "leftist" closure policy, the local party organization in Fujian initially adopted a hostile strategy toward the People's Revolutionary Government. It wasn't until early December, after the Fuzhou Central Municipal Committee received a letter from the Central Committee dated October 30 addressing the Fuzhou Central Municipal Committee and all comrades in Fujian, that they began to adopt a proactive cooperative approach toward the People's Revolutionary Government and the 19th Route Army. After December 29, the Fuzhou Central Municipal Committee issued a declaration in the name of the "Far East Anti-Imperialist Non-War Anti-Fascist Alliance, Fuzhou Branch," publicly calling for the establishment of an anti-imperialist united front. The People's Revolutionary Government also fully reprinted this declaration in its official newspapers, the "People's Daily" and the "Guoguang Daily." The Fuzhou branch then mobilized people from all walks of life to establish the "Committee to Oppose Kuomintang Air Raids and Support the Soldiers of the 19th Route Army Against the Kuomintang," organizing personnel to visit the stationed troops of the 19th Route Army to comfort the soldiers. The People's Revolutionary Government also adopted a cooperative attitude toward the economic struggles of workers' organizations. On November 18, Chen Mingshu called for an emergency secret meeting of the 19th Route Army and other key figures at Heshui Rock in Gushan. The meeting took place at Longyuan Pavilion, and attendees included Li Jishen, Chen Mingshu, Cai Tingkai, Jiang Guangnai, Chen Youren, Huang Qixiang, Xu Qian, Li Zhangda, and more than ten other military commanders and the chief of staff of the 19th Route Army. The discussion, which lasted from morning until late at night, revolved around heated debates concerning the timing of the uprising. Cai Tingkai advocated for postponing the uprising by one to two months for several reasons; many generals in the 19th Route Army were still undecided or openly opposed to the rebellion, the troops had yet to be mobilized, defenses were unorganized, various forces had not surrendered, and traitors and spies were still active. Additionally, Guangdong and Guangxi were not providing support, and Chiang Kai-shek was already aware of their plans. Cai Tingkai argued for more time to accelerate preparations without drawing immediate attention from Chiang Kai-Shek. In contrast, Chen Mingshu and others believed this was the last opportunity for an uprising. They pointed out that Chiang Kai-shek's forces were concentrated in North China, and Jinpu and particularly in Jiangxi, where his main troops were engaged in the fifth encirclement campaign against the Soviet area. They estimated that only 20,000 to 30,000 troops could be redirected to Fujian. Overestimating the political instability of Chiang's regime, Chen Mingshu believed that once the 19th Route Army raised the flag of rebellion, support from other regions of China would follow. He also felt confident that one division of the 19th Route Army could resist two or three of Chiang's divisions and that with cooperation from the Red Army, even if Chiang Kai-Shek deployed ten divisions, they would prevail. Chen Mingshu concluded that regardless of the outcome, the effort would be heroic and they should proceed without hesitation. The meeting's opposing viewpoints led to intense discussions. Chen Mingshu, visibly passionate, declared that revolution required sacrifice and that delaying any longer would mean submission to Nanjing. Cai Tingkai, while originally advocating for a delay, conceded that the situation had reached a point of no return. He agreed to lead the 19th Route Army and fully back the new government. The meeting concluded with a decision to convene the National People's Provisional Congress in Fuzhou on November 20 to officially declare the uprising against Chiang Kai-Shek. Other topics discussed included replacing the blue sky, white sun party flag, military and financial logistics, and a declaration drafted by Chen Mingshu's advisors, Wang Lixi and Hu Qiuyuan. On November 20, 1933, the National People's Provisional Congress convened at the South Parade Ground in Fuzhou, with thousands of soldiers, students, merchants, and workers in attendance. A banner reading "China's National People's Provisional Congress" adorned the stage, and the leaders of the rebellion, including Cai Tingkai, Jiang Guangnai, and Li Jishen, were present, though Chen Mingshu was absent due to illness. Representatives from 25 provinces and various walks of life gathered for the event. Before the meeting, the 19th Route Army's newly formed air force performed stunts, to the applause of the crowd. At 9:40 AM, the meeting began with Huang Qixiang, who was elected chairman of the presidium, delivering an opening speech and reading the "Declaration of the People's Rights of the Provisional Chinese People's Congress." Several prominent figures spoke, and the meeting concluded with the adoption of proposals to establish the People's Revolutionary Government and a new national flag designed by Ouyang Yuqian. That evening, the presidium decided to form the People's Revolutionary Government of the Republic of China, abolishing the Nanjing government, declaring 1933 as the first year of the Republic, and establishing Fuzhou as the capital. Li Jishen was elected President, and several others, including Chen Mingshu, Jiang Guangnai, and Cai Tingkai, were appointed government members. However the Fujian Revolution failed to gain support from other forces within the KMT. The Guangxi clique was dissatisfied with the fact that the 19th Route Army reconciled with the CCP so they did not support it. Chen Jitang tossed his lot in with Chiang Kai-shek and did not support the Fujian Revolution either. At that time, the CCP was undergoing a power struggle. On December 5, the Central Committee of the CCP, headed by Wang Ming, issued a statement stating that the Fujian government was "non-people and still non-revolutionary and that anyone who wants to take a third way between revolution and counter-revolution will inevitably fail." . Thus, Chiang Kai-shek transferred eight divisions of the National Revolutionary Army into Fujian, and coordinated the attack with the air force and navy. The 19th Route Army quickly collapsed. Four out of the five armies defected before the battle even began. Most of them were disarmed by the Central Army that they had fought side by side with during the Shanghai Incident a year ago. On January 15, 1934, Chiang Kai-shek's forces captured Fuzhou. The People's Revolutionary Government and the headquarters of the 19th Route Army retreated to Zhangzhou and Quanzhou, respectively. By January 21, both Quanzhou and Zhangzhou had fallen, and the Fujian Rebellion had failed. The People's Revolutionary Government of the Republic of China collapsed within two months of its establishment. On the 21st, the remaining troops of the 19th Route Army switched over to supporting the central government, and the Fujian Revolution officially came to an end. Jiang Guangnai, Cai Tingkai, Chen Mingshu and Li Jishen fled to Hong Kong . The designation of the 19th Route Army of the National Revolutionary Army was cancelled, and the troops were dispersed and integrated. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Yes it was a tad bit of an anti climatic event in the grand scheme of things. Yet the provincial rebellion was notable because the people involved wanted to fight the Japanese and believed their government was not doing enough to challenge the external threat. The reality however was far more complicated, the Japanese were far too formidable, for now. 

During the Second World War, FDR promised thousands of tons of US material to Chiang Kai Shek in order to keep China in the war and keep Japan distracted. But how would the US get it there? The only land route had been cut off by the Japanese invasion, leaving only one other option: air. For the next three years, US planes flew “The Hump”: an air route from Assam to Chongqing, over the dangerous Himalayan mountains and Burmese jungles. Countless planes were lost, whether on a Himalayan mountainside or deep in the jungle. That tale is the subject of Skies of Thunder: The Deadly World War II Mission Over the Roof of the World (Viking: 2024), by Caroline Alexander, who joins us today. Caroline Alexander is the author of the bestselling The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (Knopf: 1998), which has been translated into thirteen languages. She writes frequently for The New Yorker and National Geographic, and she is the author of four other books, including Mrs. Chippy's Last Expedition (Harper Perennial: 1999), the journal of the Endurance ship's cat. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of Skies of Thunder. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

During the Second World War, FDR promised thousands of tons of US material to Chiang Kai Shek in order to keep China in the war and keep Japan distracted. But how would the US get it there? The only land route had been cut off by the Japanese invasion, leaving only one other option: air. For the next three years, US planes flew “The Hump”: an air route from Assam to Chongqing, over the dangerous Himalayan mountains and Burmese jungles. Countless planes were lost, whether on a Himalayan mountainside or deep in the jungle. That tale is the subject of Skies of Thunder: The Deadly World War II Mission Over the Roof of the World (Viking: 2024), by Caroline Alexander, who joins us today. Caroline Alexander is the author of the bestselling The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (Knopf: 1998), which has been translated into thirteen languages. She writes frequently for The New Yorker and National Geographic, and she is the author of four other books, including Mrs. Chippy's Last Expedition (Harper Perennial: 1999), the journal of the Endurance ship's cat. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of Skies of Thunder. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

During the Second World War, FDR promised thousands of tons of US material to Chiang Kai Shek in order to keep China in the war and keep Japan distracted. But how would the US get it there? The only land route had been cut off by the Japanese invasion, leaving only one other option: air. For the next three years, US planes flew “The Hump”: an air route from Assam to Chongqing, over the dangerous Himalayan mountains and Burmese jungles. Countless planes were lost, whether on a Himalayan mountainside or deep in the jungle. That tale is the subject of Skies of Thunder: The Deadly World War II Mission Over the Roof of the World (Viking: 2024), by Caroline Alexander, who joins us today. Caroline Alexander is the author of the bestselling The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (Knopf: 1998), which has been translated into thirteen languages. She writes frequently for The New Yorker and National Geographic, and she is the author of four other books, including Mrs. Chippy's Last Expedition (Harper Perennial: 1999), the journal of the Endurance ship's cat. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of Skies of Thunder. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/military-history

During the Second World War, FDR promised thousands of tons of US material to Chiang Kai Shek in order to keep China in the war and keep Japan distracted. But how would the US get it there? The only land route had been cut off by the Japanese invasion, leaving only one other option: air. For the next three years, US planes flew “The Hump”: an air route from Assam to Chongqing, over the dangerous Himalayan mountains and Burmese jungles. Countless planes were lost, whether on a Himalayan mountainside or deep in the jungle. That tale is the subject of Skies of Thunder: The Deadly World War II Mission Over the Roof of the World (Viking: 2024), by Caroline Alexander, who joins us today. Caroline Alexander is the author of the bestselling The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (Knopf: 1998), which has been translated into thirteen languages. She writes frequently for The New Yorker and National Geographic, and she is the author of four other books, including Mrs. Chippy's Last Expedition (Harper Perennial: 1999), the journal of the Endurance ship's cat. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of Skies of Thunder. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/chinese-studies

During the Second World War, FDR promised thousands of tons of US material to Chiang Kai Shek in order to keep China in the war and keep Japan distracted. But how would the US get it there? The only land route had been cut off by the Japanese invasion, leaving only one other option: air. For the next three years, US planes flew “The Hump”: an air route from Assam to Chongqing, over the dangerous Himalayan mountains and Burmese jungles. Countless planes were lost, whether on a Himalayan mountainside or deep in the jungle. That tale is the subject of Skies of Thunder: The Deadly World War II Mission Over the Roof of the World (Viking: 2024), by Caroline Alexander, who joins us today. Caroline Alexander is the author of the bestselling The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (Knopf: 1998), which has been translated into thirteen languages. She writes frequently for The New Yorker and National Geographic, and she is the author of four other books, including Mrs. Chippy's Last Expedition (Harper Perennial: 1999), the journal of the Endurance ship's cat. You can find more reviews, excerpts, interviews, and essays at The Asian Review of Books, including its review of Skies of Thunder. Follow on Twitter at @BookReviewsAsia. Nicholas Gordon is an editor for a global magazine, and a reviewer for the Asian Review of Books. He can be found on Twitter at @nickrigordon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-studies

Last time we spoke about the fourth encirclement campaign against the CCP. In 1931, the CCP survived brutal encirclement campaigns while the threat of Japanese invasion in Manchuria shifted focus in China. The new leadership, known as the 28 Bolsheviks, seized control after the downfall of Li Lisan, leading to infighting within the CCP. Despite initial successes, Mao Zedong opposed the aggressive military strategies favored by the Bolsheviks. As the Red Army expanded, Mao's calls for caution clashed with the Central Committee's ambitions, highlighting the struggle for power and differing strategies within the party during a time of upheaval. As the 28th Bolsheviks gained power, they stripped Mao Zedong of key positions, deeming his strategies outdated. The Red Army, while suffering losses, adapted tactics and launched further offensives. Political tensions rose, leading to purges and reorganization under more orthodox leadership. Ultimately, despite setbacks, the CCP's resilience and guerrilla tactics allowed them to persist against KMT forces.   #128 the fifth encirclement campaign Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. So the CCP had just survived 4 encirclement campaigns. Now each time an encirclement campaign was unleashed, it was done so during a very tumultuous time to say the least. The first three were done between 1930-1931 where the Central Plains War and multiple large scale rebellions were kicking off. It was also on the cusp of the re-unification of China, thus Chiang Kai-Shek arguably had bigger fish to fry. During the fourth encirclement campaign Chiang Kai-Shek was very much taking notice of the red menace in his interior, however a rather earth shattering moment occurred, the Japanese had invaded Manchuria. And yes, we will get to the 15 year war in good time no worries folks your boy has a lot of goodies coming. So one can understand Chiang Kai-Shek could not very well fully go after the Reds when the Japanese had invaded northeast China and there was absolutely no telling where or when they would stop. Well the fourth encirclement campaign did not provide the results the KMT needed, so obviously there was to be a fifth…and guess what, the Japanese began an invasion of North China that same year of 1933. Now if you really are itching to hear more about these events we will tackle in a few episodes, over at the Pacific War Channel on Youtube or on all major podcast platforms might I suggest the following: my Kanji Ishiwara series covering his entire involvement in these events and during WW2, my full documentary/podcast on the Japanese invasion of Manchuria and lastly my full podcast on the Japanese invasion of North China. I am a very busy boy over there as you can see.  In the late winter and early spring of 1933, the Kwantung Army had begun an invasion of North China. They specifically began by invading the province of Rehe, modern day Jehol. After this they attacked the Great Wall of China, a pretty insane story to be honest, and descended further into north china. Understandably Chiang Kai-Shek shifted his focus from the Red menace to the Japanese at his front door. Beginning in July, the KMT established a review team to examine why the encirclement campaigns were failing to provide real results and what improvements could be made. They also established division level training units to retrain the forces with the lessons learned against the Reds. There was also a lot of integration of foreign military advisers, particularly Germans who helped develop better tactics and strategies. The Germans immediately proposed a more deliberate strategy against the Soviets. The first step they argued was to establish an economic blockade. Raw materials and durable goods could not be allowed to enter or leave the Soviet areas. Foods like rice and salt were especially targeted, there was to be an absolute ban on them going in or out. The second step was to establish a series of fortifications, basically blockhouses made out of concrete to provide fire support to offensive operations in nearby cities. As NRA forces advanced into areas to clear them, the previous blockhouses would be abandoned as new ones were built. There also needed to be lines of operation, requiring road development in rear areas to expedite logistical needs to the front. Now none of this sounds new compared to what we spoke about in the previous campaigns, but what was the issue was that it was not being done by all units prior. The KMT was also going to introduce political reforms that complemented the new standardized military strategies. New slogans arose such as “Thirty Percent Military, Seventy Percent Political,”. They were going to revive the baojia system.  The Baojia system was an administrative structure that emerged during the Song Dynasty 960–1279 AD and was prevalent in various forms throughout subsequent dynasties. Its primary purpose was to enhance local governance, community responsibility, and social stability. The system was based on the grouping of households into units known as "bao" and "jia". Each bao typically consisted of ten households, while a jia consisted of ten baos, totaling about one hundred households. This hierarchical structure allowed for more manageable governance and oversight, facilitating communication and administration at the local level. Under the Baojia system, each household was assigned to a bao, and the head of the bao was responsible for maintaining order, collecting taxes, and ensuring the compliance of families with local laws and regulations. The heads of the baojia units worked in conjunction with local officials to enforce state policies and maintain social harmony. This system not only provided a means for effective local governance but also fostered a sense of community among families. Neighbors were encouraged to cooperate and support one another, creating a network of mutual responsibility. In addition to its administrative functions, the Baojia system played a significant role in maintaining social order. By organizing families into these small units, it facilitated surveillance and mutual accountability among community members. Residents were motivated to monitor each other's behavior, discouraging misconduct and promoting adherence to social norms. As a result, the system contributed to the overall stability and cohesion of society, particularly in rural areas where government presence was often limited. Now to get all of this done, the KMT increased the NRA forces deployed to Jiangxi to nearly 700,000 who were broken down into 4 area armies and 5 air corps. They deployed the Northern Route NRA Army consisting of 33 divisions in Jinzhi, Jishui, Nangeng and the Le'an front; and the Southern Route NRA Army, consisting of eleven Guangdong divisions and one independent regiment, established a blocking position along a line connecting the cities of Wuping, Anyuan, Shangyou and Ganxian. The Southern Route NRA army would move to the blocking positions north in coordination with the other NRA forces to try and squeeze the Reds. The Western Route NRA army consisting of 9 Hunanese divisions and 3 independent regiments were responsible for blocking the Reds from advancing west of the Gan River. The Fujian-Zhejiang-Jiangxi area army HQ was assigned 11 divisions and 4 security regiments to block any Reds from escaping through northeast Jiangxi. All of this encompassed the fifth encirclement campaign.  When the NRA was ready to commence the campaign, it was too late for the Reds to properly mount a counter encirclement campaign. The only thing the Reds had going for them was their recruitment efforts that saw them grow perhaps 100,000 strong. The Red Army even began touting a slogan “Million Man Army” to further recruit. By late October 1933, the Reds were certainly numerous, but this also meant they needed more supplies and equipment. With their Eastern Front Army now in Fujian, the Central Front Army and local populace should have been raising revenues and stockpiling supplies, especially rice and salt, but that is of course if they knew a fifth encirclement campaign was coming.  On September 25th, the NRA deployed 3 divisions south from Nanchang to attack Lichuan. Within 3 days of battle, the city fell, which greatly shocked the CCP. The Central Front Red Army fell back, waiting for the Eastern Front Red Army to rush back over from Fujian to meet the threat. By October 6th both front Red armies consolidated to perform a counterattack. They first attacked Xunkou, where they annihilated 3 NRA brigades. However the success was to be short lived. For the proceeding two months, the Red Army attacked multiple NRA blockhouses in Zixi, Huwan Bajiaoting, Xiaoshi, Daxiongguan and Yuangai Mountain. Yet they were unsuccessful at breaching the defensive line. The concrete block houses were acting as pillboxes allowing the NRA to concentrate fire using brand new German made machine guns. They also were utilizing new Krupp artillery pieces and German made aerial bombs against the Red army formations whenever they assaulted the blockhouse line. By November the KMT's attention was slightly diverted as Fujian had just seen a full blown rebellion, more about that in the next episode, but to summarize a bit. On November 30th, the KMT 19th route army in conjunction with the Fujian provincial government rebelled against the KMT and set up an independent government. As you might be guessing, they were also working with the CCP. Back in October they had formed a military alliance, better said cease fire. This little arrangement did not last long and there even emerged hostilities. During this chaos the revolutionary military council held an emergency meeting to figure out a course of action. Otto Braun advocated for a strong offensive to decisively defeat the KMT. He argued the golden age of guerrilla warfare in China was over and now the Red Army must conduct convention warfare against NRA positions. Thus Mao Zedong's “lure the enemy in deep” strategy was replaced by “defending against the enemy outside the Soviet”. In January of 1934 the second soviet congress was held where a series of resolutions were passed to focus the Red Army against the fifth encirclement campaign. The resolutions reiterated Otto Braun's offensive strategy and repeatedly attacked Mao Zedong's strategies. Building upon the strategy of defending against the enemy outside the Soviets, Otto Braun also proposed using “short, swift thrusts”. This would see the employment of repeated infantry assaults to overwhelm the NRA blockhouse lines. Otto Braun also advocated for continuing the mass recruitment efforts and brought up perhaps beginning a system of conscription to fill the ranks. After the Fujian rebellion situation simmered down, the NRA refocused their attention against the Reds. The NRA established a line of blockhouses going from Lichuan to Le'an and began clearing out the area south of Ruijin using 35 divisions. The NRA forces first targeted Guangchang, lying about halfway between Nanchang and Ruijin. The NRA's Eastern Front also began advancing west, totaling some 14 divisions. By March of 1934 the NRA Northern and Eastern Fronts linked up at Deshengguan where they began coordinated efforts towards Guangchang. In response to the NRA advances towards Guangchang, the Red Army built a series of fortifications and trenchworks to defend the area. On April 9th, the NRA began its attack on Guangchang, deploying the 3rd Route army's 10 divisions from Nanfeng with heavy artillery and aircraft support. The NRA forces advanced south along both sides of the Xu River leading towards Guangchang. The Northern Route NRA Army established new blockhouses on one side of the river before clearing the other side. It took the NRA forces roughly 2 weeks to advance down the riverway to Guangchang. By April 23rd, they breached the Red Army's defensive lines and seized control over some high ground surrounding the area. The Reds were forced to pull back into the city where they continued to build fortifications and trench lines. On the 27th the NRA began to artillery and aerially bomb the city, easily destroying the wooden fortifications and trench lines constructed by the Reds. On the 28th, the NRA stormed the city forcing the Reds to retreat south. The Reds had suffered 5093 casualties, roughly 20% of their defending force at Guangcheng whereas the NRA suffered 2000 casualties. It was very evident, the NRA were wielding superior equipment, notably the heavy artillery and aircrafts that the Red's had no real answer for.  After Guangchang the NRA advanced in all four directions. By May 1, NRA forces from the Western Front had taken control of both Shaxi and Longgang. Meanwhile, the Eastern Route NRA forces advanced and captured Jianning by May 16. By June, the CCP began feeling the strain from these assaults. A combination of the blockade and the baojia system was gradually eroded local support for the CCP. The attrition warfare strategy also took a toll on the quality of leadership and experience in the Red Army, as more inexperienced soldiers filled the ranks. Under pressure, many of these recruits deserted, further weakening the Red Army's effectiveness. Additionally, the shortage of supplies and food lowered morale and diminished public support for the Red Army's offensive. Even military and party publications gradually withdrew their support for the offensive, shifting focus to the promotion of guerrilla warfare to conserve resources. Recruitment efforts to replenish losses had little impact as the NRA's superior strategy continued to stifle the Soviet, reducing its control from seventeen counties to ten. In the summer of 1934, the Red Army began exploring new strategies, establishing a defensive perimeter stretching from Ninghua to Ningdu and Xingguo. By May, the Central Committee convened and concluded that the current offensive strategy was ineffective, likely necessitating the Red Army's evacuation from the Soviet area. They sought approval from the COMINTERN to change their approach, which was granted a few days later, stressing that the CCP's priority should be preserving the Red Army's combat strength. However, Braun and Bo Gu proposed a different method. Instead of immediately preparing to withdraw from the Soviet, they advocated for a final stand, urging everyone to give their all to defend the territory and secure victory. Alongside this shift in rhetoric, the Red Army maintained its defensive posture, constructing wooden blockhouses and trenches. Additionally, the CCP approved an expansion of guerrilla warfare across multiple fronts to defeat the NRA. In July, the NRA launched another offensive, focusing this time on the city of Shicheng, positioned between Ninghua and Ningdu as their entry point. The two forces clashed fiercely along this final line of defense for nearly a month. In early August, the Red Army mounted a strong counteroffensive during the battle of Gaohunao, inflicting over 4,000 casualties on the NRA. However, the Red Army also suffered heavy losses and was forced to retreat to the last defensive line just north of Shicheng. At Shicheng, the Red Army managed to hold the NRA in a stalemate. Ultimately, the NRA deployed twelve large howitzers, breaking through the defensive line in August. Shicheng eventually fell in October. The defense cost the Red Army 5,000 casualties, leaving it severely weakened and forcing its leaders to consider drastic actions. By this point, the Jiangxi Soviet had been reduced to a small area around Ruijin and Xingguo. With mounting casualties and the imminent threat of an NRA assault on Ruijin, the Red Army made a bold decision to retreat from Jiangxi on October 10, 1934, ending the Fifth Extermination Campaign. There has been a lot of thorough investigative work into why the CCP failed during the fifth encirclement campaign. This episode will be a bit different then previous ones as I thought it might be interesting to tell the overall story and then explain the finer details as to why it went down this way. Going back to when I discussed the NRA analyzing why their fourth encirclement campaign had failed. The analytics from that were incorporated into plans formed by the German advisers such as Hans von Seeckt and Alexander von Faulkenhausen. The Germans dramatically improved the NRA's performance across the board. This was seen in terms of training, the employment of more modern military tactics and of course the Germans sold the NRA some really good toys. Now again this was done in the vacuum of the Japanese invasion of Manchuria and Northern China. The real aim of the Germans' assistance was directed against the Japanese, but the advisers acknowledged how China must combat the external aggressor while not succumbing to internal threats. Ironically it was that exact situation that had toppled multiple Chinese dynasties in the past, take the Ming for example.  The NRA also employed effective counterinsurgent strategies that complimented their conventional warfare strategies. Beginning back in 1928 the KMT gradually re-instituted the baojia system. The NRA first cleared out Red areas and then established local administrators who were loyal to the KMT, protected by local militias. Through this the NRA was able to hold cleared areas and block any Red infiltration. Many residents in these areas actively began providing intel to the NRA. The Baojia system also supported the economic blockade, providing a system of sentries at the entrance of villages placing a lot of pressure on the Red Army and local populations. Chiang Kai-Shek's political reform “70% political, 30% military” also helped incorporate many disenfranchised Chinese, taking their support away from the Reds. The NRA also adopted a methodical, patient approach to tackle the Reds. The NRA quickly found out the Reds did not have the necessary weaponry to take out their concrete blockhouses, thus a war of attrition was on the table. Electing for a long campaign rather than a short one severely hurt the Reds who were incapable of conducting prolonged operations. The NRA also had learnt from the Red's usage of diversionary and feint attacks, not falling for them this time around. There was also obviously their NRA enormous advantage in numbers, they did toss nearly a million men at the Soviets. On the other side the Red Army suffered from numerous internal problems. The Red Army had undergone numerous measures to reform and professionalize the army, under the leadership of the 28 bolsheviks whom dominated the Central Committee. The mass recruitment efforts were directly primarily on uneducated peasants who required intensive training. Meanwhile the offensive strategy was decimating Red Army forces, many new recruits were tossed straight into the front lines without any training. The lack of training and political guidance, accompanied with low morale led to mass desertions. By the end of the fifth encirclement campaign the Red Army could not generate the proper forces to fill its demand and simply kept tossing more and more untrained peasants into the lines, degrading the combat effectiveness. The arrival of the Twenty-eight Bolsheviks in the CCP led to significant changes in the overall military strategy of the Red Army. Much of the new leadership's perspectives were shaped by Stalinist Soviet ideology, which markedly contrasted with the views of both Li Lisan and Mao Zedong, particularly in relation to Mao Zedong's approach, which was influenced by political considerations. These ideological differences also resulted in a substantial gap in military tactics. Nevertheless, both the Bolsheviks and Mao shared a similar stance on the expansion and training of the Red Army, emphasizing the vital importance of political training in building a robust party army. Ultimately, the CCP believed that the success of the Red Army hinged on the professionalization of the force, ensuring unity of command, a shared understanding of the mission, and an enhanced capacity to execute that mission. The primary advocate for the professionalization strategy of the Red Army was the Soviet Union. Stalin's interest in the Red Army was driven by both external and internal factors. The Soviet Union viewed an imminent threat from both Japan and Germany. Japan, a longstanding adversary of Russia, had expanded its presence in China, particularly following the 1932 occupation of Manchuria, which posed a direct risk to Russia's southern flank and national security. The Soviets believed that a large, professional Red Army, loyal to the Soviet Union, would serve as a formidable defense against Japanese aggression, and later, German threats. Additionally, the Soviets resumed discussions with the Nationalist government after years of silence to help ensure the security of their Chinese flank. For Stalin, the struggle for control over the CCP was intertwined with a broader power struggle within the Soviet Union against Trotsky. His internal conflicts with Trotsky solidified his communist ideology, resulting in a stringent approach within the COMINTERN and the new CCP. Through the COMINTERN and Bolsheviks, Stalin aimed to consolidate his power by eliminating Trotskyists in China. These internal Soviet political dynamics ultimately influenced the choice of Chinese political and military strategies, which had detrimental effects on the Red Army. At first glance, the policies of the Twenty-eight Bolsheviks closely resembled those of Li Lisan. Both groups viewed the urban proletariat as the central force in the communist revolution. They shared the conviction that merging the revolutionary spirit of the proletariat with modern strategies would empower the Red Army to achieve victory. Additionally, they felt that the conditions were ripe for revolution to spread into urban areas, emphasizing the necessity for the Red Army to engage in the cities to support students and workers involved in the movement. Wang Ming even remarked that although the 1930 assault on Changsha was a mistake, he did not see this failure as evidence against the soundness of the strategy of targeting urban centers. Upon closer inspection, the distinctions between the two factions were quite pronounced. Disputes between them arose early on; in June 1930, Li Lisan criticized Wang Ming, Bo Gu, and two other group members for opposing his plans. However, their differences ran deeper than mere political conflict. Ideologically, the Bolsheviks challenged Li Lisan's characterization of the bourgeoisie. In Wang Ming's The Two Lines, he asserted that all "capitalist bourgeois reformers were counterrevolutionary." This broadened the definition to encompass wealthy and middle-class peasants, who became targets during land reform efforts. Additionally, their strategies for confronting urban centers differed significantly. The factions also had contrasting views on the role of the Red Army: Li Lisan believed it should support urban proletariat uprisings to capture the cities, while the Bolsheviks regarded it as the primary force for seizing the metropolis. The distinctions between Mao Zedong and the 28 Bolsheviks were significant. Unlike Mao Zedong, the Bolshevik-led CCP rejected any form of alliance, insisting on the defeat of both the Nationalists and the Japanese. In their view, both groups were imperialists and posed equal threats to the Soviet Union and the communist movement. During the Mukden Incident, many nationalists and communists sought to forge a united front against Japanese aggression. However, the CCP opposed this, advocating for the overthrow of what they considered the agent of imperialism—the KMT.  The Bolsheviks also held a strong opposition to Maoist military strategies. They believed that an incorrect guerrilla warfare approach had infiltrated the Red Army, epitomized by the "lure the enemy in deep" tactic. Wang Ming likened this strategy to a form of "retreat" or "escape." The Bolsheviks advocated for the significant expansion and professionalization of the Red Army, aiming to move away from a peasant mentality. With a larger force, the Red Army could adopt an offensive stance, employing Soviet tactics to capture urban centers and extend Soviet influence. While guerrilla warfare was not entirely dismissed, it was relegated to local militias in rear and flank areas. In contrast, Mao had a more practical perspective on the capabilities of Red Army soldiers. He recognized that the Red Army lacked the technology necessary for conventional warfare. Moreover, Mao believed that achieving victory was not the sole priority; sustainability after victory and ensuring that the gains outweighed the losses were also crucial considerations. In hindsight, the positional warfare and offensive tactics advocated by Otto Braun and the students proved to be ineffective against the NRA. However, at the time, it is understandable why this approach was favored over Mao Zedongs strategy of "luring the enemy deep." This new offensive military strategy was predicated on the belief that the Red Army was strong and capable of launching attacks against the NRA. Although this assessment may have been overstated, the victories achieved during the Extermination Campaigns did boost the morale of the Red Army. Furthermore, their later success in resisting the Fourth Extermination Campaign reinforced the capabilities of the Communist military forces. This offensive strategy also marked a departure from the tactic of conceding territory, which had always posed challenges for the local population. The CCP garnered more support for its strategy by asserting that the Red Army was now strong enough to defend their territory and confront the enemy directly, allowing locals to remain in their homes. This simple shift fostered greater support for their cause. Conversely, Mao Zedong had a keen understanding of local conditions and recognized the detrimental effects of Bolshevik policies on land redistribution. The Bolshevik approach increased the burden on a larger portion of the local populace and threatened the fragile support necessary for waging a "people's war." Mao Zedong and his followers also aimed to delay and hinder large recruitment efforts, arguing that expansion would be an unnecessary distraction for locals who were already busy with agricultural work. Moreover, the Bolshevik offensive strategy was more conventional compared to Mao Zedongs concept of mobile warfare. At that time, Mao Zedongs approach of "luring the enemy deep" and other mobile warfare tactics were revolutionary in China and faced considerable criticism and skepticism. Even after the significant defeat of the Li Lisan line, the ability of the Bolsheviks and Otto Braun to revive a similar strategy two years later demonstrated the ongoing support for a more conventional military approach. In its new strategy, the Red Army blended traditional and modern tactics to engage the enemy. On the one hand, it maintained its reliance on established strengths in intelligence gathering and deception to outmaneuver the NRA. However, with the introduction of the Twenty-eight Bolsheviks and Otto Braun, the Red Army transitioned from a mobile defense approach to employing “short, swift thrusts” as offensive tactics against the NRA blockhouses during the Fifth Extermination Campaign. The Red Army also capitalized on advantages gained from previous campaigns. Improvements in signal intelligence, particularly through increased collection of wireless communications and the creation of training schools, enabled the Red Army to closely monitor NRA movements during the Fourth Extermination Campaign. Additionally, the Red Army integrated tactical intelligence into its operations, using plain-clothed soldiers and deploying double agents within KMT units to gather intelligence and disrupt them. The thoroughness of the Red Army's intelligence collection was a notable strength. For instance, an intelligence report on the KMT's Seventy-ninth NRA Division analyzed the background and motivations of its soldiers, revealing that many hailed from the same area as their commander, which fostered strong loyalties. This insight made the unit a less appealing target for subversion, given the traditional Confucian emphasis on hierarchical loyalty. The Red Army continued to execute feints and deceptive operations throughout its campaigns. The Eleventh Red Army effectively served as the main effort on two occasions. Moreover, the Red Army sent misleading communications to confuse NRA forces. For instance, while near Huangpi, NRA scouts “intercepted” a message claiming that the Red Army's main forces were positioned in Nanchang, prompting the division units to lower their guard in the city, only to be ambushed. The biggest change to Red Army tactics was the introduction of what Otto Braun described as “short, swift thrusts,” while Lin Biao defined this tactic as “sudden, rapid raids launched against the enemy who emerges from their blockhouses to advance the fortification line by a short distance, specifically between 2½ to 5 kilometers or even less. These thrusts aim to eliminate the main enemy forces before they can solidify their position. Although the tactics appeared straightforward, significant differences emerged in their application, particularly between Braun's theoretical approach and Lin Biao's practical execution. Firstly, the ultimate objectives of the tactics differed greatly. Braun's approach was part of a broader strategy aimed at safeguarding Soviet territory. Rather than seeking a decisive victory over the numerically superior NRA forces, the Red Army focused on defending territory and achieving small tactical victories that could translate into operational and strategic advantages. In contrast, Lin Biao viewed this tactic as a means to “annihilate the enemy or secure victory in the entire battle.”His emphasis was on defeating the enemy and achieving a decisive victory. Secondly, Braun promoted a more methodical strategy, where the Red Army would establish strong points with small clusters of fortifications. These areas provided defensive protection against artillery and air assaults, creating conditions conducive for the Red Army to launch rapid attacks on the NRA when they were away from their blockhouses. During an attack, Braun suggested that the Red Army should first fix the NRA in its rear, flank, or even front, followed by a strike aimed at weakening the enemy to disrupt its forces. Conversely, Lin Biao had a different perspective on the assault, prioritizing mobility and movement for the Red Army during these thrusts. The Red Army's primary defense relied on secrecy, moving quietly to occupy high ground while only establishing makeshift defensive structures for air and artillery protection. When the enemy entered their territory, the Red Army would encircle their forces, cutting off their retreat and swiftly attacking their flanks before they could construct fortifications. He advocated for the pursuit, believing it was the most effective way to convert a tactical victory into operational or strategic success. In contrast, Lin Biao rejected the idea of pursuit, reasoning that if his tactics were executed effectively, the enemy would have no escape route, making a pursuit unnecessary. These differing views on tactics underscored the challenges of translating theoretical military concepts into practical application. Otto Braun's offensive strategy stemmed from his experiences and understanding of Western military traditions. When applied to the Chinese battlefield, Lin Biao adapted his own experiences to formulate his interpretation of “short, swift thrusts,” which incorporated several of Mao's tactical principles. Given the circumstances of the Red Army, Lin Biao aimed for a quick, decisive victory, steering clear of prolonged battles with the NRA. He utilized intelligence and terrain—particularly through reconnaissance—to gain an advantage over the enemy. His strategy prioritized focusing on the enemy rather than merely securing territory, enabling his unit to engage in battle on favorable ground. While the localization of “short, swift thrusts” did not provide the Red Army with the decisive edge needed to overcome the NRA, it illustrated how the Red Army continued to adapt concepts to local conditions to achieve success in combat. Between 1932 and 1934, the Red Army reached its maximum size and level of professionalism, only to be outmatched by a stronger NRA force. With the rise of the Twenty-eight Bolsheviks, the Red Army adopted a more aggressive, offensive strategy. Although this approach would later be deemed a mistake, it initiated a series of reforms that enhanced the Red Army's professionalism. During this period, the Red Army nearly doubled its strength to six army corps. To promote uniformity and centralize command, all Red Army units, including local militia groups, were standardized. Additionally, the Red Army founded the Red Academy and the Red Army War College, alongside specialized schools to train and develop its officers. These reforms contributed to the Red Army's success in the Fourth Extermination Campaign against the NRA and facilitated the expansion of Soviet influence into four provinces. However, following their defeat, the NRA adapted and developed a more effective strategy against the Red Army. Lacking the necessary heavy weapons and supplies, the Red Army could not prevent the systematic encirclement of the Jiangxi Soviet during the Fifth Extermination Campaign. In order to survive the Red Army would have to embark on arguably one of the most important historic moments of the CCP's history, it was a notably very long march. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The 28 Bolsheviks wrestled control over the CCP and this had rather dramatic consequences. For one, Mao Zedong's strategies were thrown to the wind as full on offensive strategies took the center stage. In the face of the most intense NRA encirclement campaign as of yet, the CCP crumbled and would now have to march to away trying to survive.

Last time we spoke about the first encirclement campaign against the CCP. The Jiangxi Soviet expanded despite opposition, but urban uprisings struggled, with labor union support declining. Li Lisan pushed for urban revolts, while Mao Zedong favored rural expansion. In 1930, failed attacks on Nanchang and Changsha deepened the divide between their strategies. Mao's forces later captured Ji'an, but tensions led to purges, including the Futian Incident. Meanwhile, the Nationalist Army launched an encirclement campaign. Mao's strategy of “luring the enemy in deep” ultimately positioned the CCP for survival and future success. The NRA exploited internal conflict among the Reds, launching attacks on Donggu. Miscommunication led to friendly fire between NRA divisions. Despite capturing towns, overextension weakened the NRA, allowing the Red Army to counterattack. Through guerrilla tactics and local support, the Reds encircled and decimated multiple NRA divisions, capturing thousands of prisoners and weapons. Mao Zedong's strategies proved effective, bolstering Red Army morale and influence. By the end of the third campaign, the Jiangxi Soviet had expanded significantly.   #127 The fourth encirclement campaign  Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The CCP had just survived 3 brutal encirclement campaigns in 1931, collectively known as the First Encirclement Campaign. The Reds were quite lucky in 1931, for China had major problems requiring Chiang Kai-Sheks attention. Understandably one of those major problems was a full blown Japanese invasion of Manchuria, that rest assured we will tackle in depth in future episodes, but for coherency sake I thought it best to try and get through all the other events before we start talking about the beginning of the 15 year war. The Japanese invasion immediately began influencing the KMT-CCP conflict. The Japanese invasion directly threatened Soviet interests and Moscow looked at the CCP as a potential bulwark against the Japanese. From 1930-1931, the CCP's Red Army was successful in defending their territory against the NRA extermination campaigns, however they still suffered from a lack of discipline, supplies and professionalism. New leadership came from the new Central Committee, now led by the 28 Bolsheviks and a new comintern representative, Otto Braun. The Red Army began adopting a series of initiatives in 1932 to improve. All Red Army units were standardized to establish better command and control. Political indoctrination and military training also became standardized with waves upon waves of manuals distributed to the forces. The Red Army expanded the Red Academy by establishing the Red Army War College for mid-grade and senior officers. Branch schools and speciality schools to increase competency and training. Political mobilization remained cornerstone to the Red Army. Recruitment of new troops also began to see a renewed emphasis on urban proletariats. A large change to the operations for the Red Army was the adoption of Soviet offensive tactics to seek out decisive battles. CCP leaders were under the misbelief that revolutionary fervor would simply have the Red Army victory. What they lacked initially was professionalism, alongside good weaponry and equipment. Couple this with the NRA's adoption of more and more effective counterinsurgency tactics, the Red Army really began to suffer terrible casualties. Now as the Red Army defeated the NRA in the third extermination campaign of 1931 not to be mistaken for the large third extermination campaign later, another intraparty power struggle was brewing in the CCP. After the fall of Li Lisan, a group of students returning from studies in the USSR began a systematic operation to gain control over the CCP. This group became known as the 28 Bolsheviks. 20 or some of them returned to China with the new Comintern adviser, Pavel Mif in 1931. Two key members of the group, Qin Bangxian known colloquially as Bo Gu, and Chen Shaoyu as Wang Ming would seize key positions at the top brass of the CCP. Many of these students attended Moscow's Sun Yat-Sen University, where they became acquainted with Mif, the head rector of said university. This university was a breeding ground for ultra-orthodox Stalinist communist doctrine. It goes without saying the students were indoctrinated with a very Moscow perspective. Mif regarded them as a very well disciplined force and used them to purge out divergent groups within the university. During the third Plenum in September of 1930, Mif attempted to use the forum to denounce Li Lisans plan, but had failed to convince the majority of the Central Committee. After Li Lisan was condemned and recalled to Moscow, Mif saw a major opportunity. At the fourth Plenum in January of 1931, Li Lisan and 11 of his supported were ousted from the Central Committee, with their best positions seized by Moscow aligned CCP members. The next year, the 28 Bolsheviks unleashed a brutal intraparty war with other factions. By late September the Bolsheviks effectively destroyed most of the opposition and incorporated the surviving members into a the Central Committee loyal to Moscow. Bo Gu was appointed head of the Central Committee from Wang Ming who returned to Moscow. Once the 28 Bolsheviks were in control of the CCP at Shanghai, they then set their eyes upon Mao Zedong and the Red Army Soviet areas. During the first All-China Soviet Congress of November 1931, they launched their first attack. Mao Zedong received prior word of their intentions from loyal followers in Shanghai and prepared to face them. Before the Central Committee arrived at Ruijin, Mao had just emerged victorious from the encirclement campaigns, had suppressed dissension amongst his ranks and established a delegation of loyalists within the Soviet Congress. The Bolsheviks failed to gain a majority within the Congress, taking only 2 seats in the Central Executive Committee of the Soviet. Meanwhile Zhu De was appointed Commissar of War and other Mao loyalists took high ranking positions. To try to break Mao Zedongs monopolistic control over the Red Army, the Bolsehviks employed Zhou Enlai.  In early 1932, the CCP urged the Red Army to expand Soviet territory as its forces grew. Successful defenses against encirclement Campaigns brought many NRA soldiers into the Red Army, some willingly, others by force. A key boost came on December 14, 1931, when the NRA's Twenty-sixth Route Army rebelled and joined, forming the Fifth Red Army Corps. With this and other recruits, the First Front Red Army grew to about 70,000, requiring more territory to sustain itself and the revolution. On January 9th of 1932, the CCP Central Committee issued a resolution outlining a new strategy for the party and the Red Army. The resolution assessed the current situation in China, that of a major depression, the effects of the Mukden Incident and the string of CCP successes against the encirclement campaigns. The resolution reasserted the renewed commitment to recruit urban proletariats for the revolution and “expand the territory, link up the separated Soviet areas to form an integrated Soviet area, and take advantage of the present favorable political and military conditions to seize one or two important central cities so as to win an initial victory of the revolution in one or more provinces.” The Red Army would conduct a series of offensive to expand their Soviets and connect them starting in early 1932. They would target southern Jiangxi, such places as Ganzhou, Jiujiang, Nanchang and also Fujian's Fuzhou, Xiamen and Zhangzhou. The resolution also pushed for a “positive and offensive line, rather than the luring of the enemy into the deep strategy, as it was no longer viable”. Furthermore the resolution directly attacked Mao Zedong's strategy as “being right opportunism that underestimated the situation and maintained a pessimistic attitude, and all party and army members should actively guard against its incorrect mindset”. This cemented the divide between the Bolshevik groups adoption of offensive strategy vs Mao Zedong's defensive lure the enemy in deep strategy. The next operation would be against Ganzhou in Jiangxi. The city linked the Hunan-Jiangxi border areas with the Fujian-Jiangxi border areas and provided a nice launching point against Ji'an in the north. During another meeting in 1932 at Ruijin, Mao Zedong expressed his reservations about the operation, stating the Red Army did not have the necessary weapons or supplies to seize a major city. Zhu De backed him up, but the Central Military Committee vetoed them and continued planning the Ganzhou operation. On January 10th orders were handed out for the 1st, 3rd and 5th Red Army corps, along with the Jiangxi Soviet military regional forces to conduct the operation by February. On the other side, the KMT were well prepared to meet an attack against Ganzhou, they were also most likely tipped off.  On February 3rd of 1932 the Red Army arrived at Ganzhou quickly encircling the city. The next day the 5th Red Army Corps, roughly 20,000 men were the first to attack the city. They struck the East Gate, breaching the defenses slightly before being repelled. On the 17th and 23rd the Red Army forces conducted two major assaults, expanding the attacks to the West and South gates, but failed to gain a foothold. During the siege, two NRA brigades reinforced the Ganzhou garrison. Then on March 4th, the Red Army conducted a fourth major attack and was likewise repelled. Three days later the Red army retired to Jiangkou to reorganize after they had suffered 3000 casualties. Despite this the CCP leadership remained undeterred, believing the offensive strategy was still optimal. When Japan began rooting itself permanently in Manchuria, the CCP saw this as the perfect condition for a real revolution to take place. At a meeting on March 18th, Mao Zedong again argued his strategy fit the current conditions much more and that the offensive strategy was too ambiguous. Yet his arguments fell on deaf ears and the CCP leadership had the Red Army reorganized into two route armies. The west route army consisted of the 3rd army corps and was made responsible for expanding the Soviet areas west of the Gan River in Hunan-Jiangxi with a focus built around Zhuchuan, Taihe and Wan'an. The Central Route army consisted of the 1st and 5th Red army corps and would take Mao Zedong's recommendations to perform expansion operations in south Fujian with Xiamen being the final target. On March 26th, the Central route red army occupied Changtin under Mao Zedongs guidance. There they conducted political mobilization of the local populace. Yet seeing little military action taking place, Zhou Enlai pushed Mao Zedong to stop the political mobilization and instead engage the enemy in the direction of Zhangzhou. Thus the Reds headed south and attacked the 49th NRA division. On April 10th the Reds managed to seize Longyan where they annihilated a single brigade of the 49th NRA division. The 5th NRA corps attempted to reinforce the 49th NRA division, but lost two brigades in the process. The Reds then continued marching south and on April 20th seized Zhangzhou where they defeated the 49th NRA division. At Zhangzhou they seized 1675 prisoners, 2000 rifles, some artillery pieces, 13,00 rounds of ammunition, two aircraft and over a million yuan. Alongside that came a lot of provisions, salt, oil and other goods needed to keep their men moving. After the success Mao Zedong telegrammed Zhou Enlai, requesting the Red army move back to Jiangxi with their booty to improve operations in the soviet area. It was Mao Zedong's belief the Reds had made great gains at Zhangzhou but could not hold onto the area. Instead he wanted to expand operations in Fujian using smaller local militia and guerilla groups. The CCP yet again overruled Mao Zedong and on June 5th ordered him to keep up the offensive, now turning towards Guangdong military forces currently occupying southern Jiangxi.  Once that was completed they were to advance north up the Gan River Valley and attack Ganzhou, Zhangshu, Ji'an and Nanchang so as to foster a revolution in Jiangxi. The Red army then reorganized its forces placing the 1st, 3rd and 5th red army corps under the First Front Red Army who advanced into Guangdong. From late june into early July the Reds seized Shuikou, Nanxiong and defeated 15 Guangdong based NRA brigades and expanded the Soviet into the province. Yet even with the string of offensive victories, Mao Zedong still remained vocally in opposition towards the strategy, constantly submitting his recommendation to adjust their footing. On July 25th, Mao Zedong and Zhu De sent a joint communique to the CCP leadership requesting a change of strategy. They argued instead of immediately attacking Ji'an and Zhangshu they could perform clearing operation on the eastern part of the valley, focusing on Yihaung and Le'an. The CCP central committee was initially against the proposals, however Zhou Enlai intervened and gave his support to them. In August the 1st front red army held a conference and confirmed they would attack Yihaung and Le'an. They took Le'an shortly after, defeating the 27th NRA division. With that victory they gained 5000 prisoners, 4000 rifles, 20 machine guns, 20 artillery pieces and 3 wireless communication sets. Afterwards the Reds contemplated attacking Ji'an, however after consideration Mao Zedong argued on September 25th, the NRA presence at Ji'an was too strong. He instead recommended they conduct political mobilization operations around the Le'an Yihuang area. By this point the CCP Central Committee was really pissed off with what they considered insubordination from Mao Zedong. By this time the 28th Bolsheviks had gained enough power and began striping Mao Zedong of key positions with the Red Army. First he was removed from the Military Committee of the Central Bureau of the Soviet Areas. Have I mentioned how much communists love making endless committees? Later in October of 1933 an emergency conference was held at Ningdu to plan future operations on the eve of an impending KMT campaign. Participants included Zhou Enlai, Zhu De, Chen yi, Liu Bocheng and Peng Dehuai who all agreed they should take up offensive actions outside the Soviet. Alongside this the party condemned Mao Zedongs strategy called it inadequate and outdated. Zhou Enlai then argued for “expanding Soviet territory swiftly, engaging the enemy on KMT territory, bringing Jiangxi and its neighboring Soviet areas together by force, taking key cities in the Gan valley, including Nanchang, Ji'an, Ganzhou, and Pingxiang, so as to achieve preliminary successes in one or more provinces.” After the Ningdu conference, the Red Army continued with the offensive operation, now attacking Jianning, Lichuan and Taining in October. By November the 1st front army took the Jiangxi county seats of Zixi and Jinxi. This helped the CCP expand the Soviet in the eastern Gan valley, but it also placed them on a vulnerable footing, just in time for the KMT's 4th major encirclement campaign. During the CCP's expansion activities, the KMT had been performing a communist suppression campaign in Shanghai, driving out the Bolsheviks and other CCP members towards the Jiangxi Soviet by late 1932. Their arrival to the Jiangxi Soviet added further tension to the Red Army who were facing a new encirclement campaign. The presence of high ranking Central Committee members also changed their politics. The Mao Zedong adapted Marxist-Leninist theory was replaced by more orthodox and Moscow leaning theory. Many of 28 Bolsheviks moved to many Soviets sparking a new phase.  Before the start of the 4th major encirclement campaign, the Red Army from the Jiangxi Soviet conducted expansion operations into Fujian and Guangdong. Other Red army units performed similar operations in Hunan, Hubei and Sichuan. All of this red activity was enough to push Chiang Kai-Shek to refocus his military operations against them. On April 9th, 1932, Chiang Kai-Shek created the Bandit Suppression Headquarters in Wuhan with He Yingqin as its commander. Beginning in June 1932 He Yingqin had a force of 500,000 soldiers who unleashed a brutal encirclement and suppression campaign against the Hubei-Henan-Anhui and western Hubei-Hunan Soviet areas. By November of 1932, both soviets collapsed. After this Chiang Kai-Shek ordered He Yingqin to direct his efforts against the Jiangxi Soviet. In December Chiang Kai-Shek shifted over 400,000 troops and 30 divisions to the Central Soviet Operation. He even personally moved down to Nanchang to supervise the operation. The main forces consisted of 3 columns, roughly 150,000 troops in 12 divisions led by Chen Cheng. The KMT plan was to build a series of blockhouses as a means of economically blockading the Soviet. Around 240,000 troops were allocated for the blockade, in addition to the main force which brought the entire figure to 400,000 men. Each flank of the blockade had 70,000 troops, roughly 6 divisions who would conduct blocking operations in the Jiangxi-Guangdong border area and the Fujian-Jiangxi border area. Around 100,000 would be used to conduct anti-guerilla operations in the northwest and northeast of Jiangxi as well as in southeast Hunan and southwest Jiangxi. Was the blockade was set, the NRA would deploy 3 columns along separate routes converging upon the Red Army's rear for a concentrated attack. Over on the other side, the Red Army based near Lichuan had roughly 70,000 men from the 1st, 3rd and 5th Red army corps and the 11th,12th, 21st and 22nd Red Armies. The 4th encirclement campaign coincided with the Red Army's urban offensives. By December of 1932 the Reds had targeted Nancheng. The Central Committee issued the attack orders but due to the large NRA reinforcement efforts had to order the Red Army to withdraw from the outskirts of Nancheng. The next potential target was Nanfeng. The Central Committee again pushed for urban offensive as Nanfeng was attacked beginning in February of 1933. On February 7th the Red Army besieged the city. The NRA quickly dispatched the Central Route Army to reinforce the city and conduct a counterattack. Seeing the large concentration of NRA in the area, on February 13th Zhou Enlai ordered the forces to pull out and head over to Luokou.  The Red Army set up a diversion to cover their withdrawal. Using similar tactics employed during the third encirclement campaign, the 11th Red Army pretended to be the main force and suddenly attacked Lichuan. The NRA took the bait immediately sending 3 columns to Lichuan. While marching the 1st NRA column's 52nd and 59th NRA division became separated. On February 25th the two divisions moved west towards Huangpi along two routes separated by a mountain ridge. As they did so, their distance from the NRA 2nd and 3rd columns increased making mutual support efforts impossible. On the 27th the 1st and 3rd Red Army corps and 21st Red army unleashed a surprise attack against the 52nd NRA division. The next day the 5th Red army corps and 22nd red army attack the 59th NRA division around Huangpi. The division was annihilated with its commander captured. After the victory the Red Army pulled back to Luokou.  After the loss the NRA reorganized its force into 2 columns and changed strategy. Now instead of heading in 3 wide columns they would concentrate as 2 down the center of the Soviet. On March 16th, the two NRA columns began their advance as the Reds deployed their 11th army to perform more deception operations. The 11th Red army made a feint towards Guangchang, attracting the NRA front column. This action separated the two columns by 50 kms and isolated the 11th NRA division near Caotaigang. On March the 20th the 1st front red army attacked the 11th NRA division near Xuzhuang decimating them and severely defeating the 9th NRA division. For the remainder of the 4th encirclement campaign there were no other major battles. During March of 1933 the Reds conducted political operations near Le'an until NRA forces moved there to secure the city.  In April the NRA began to withdraw from the Jiangxi Soviet area, effectively ending their encirclement campaign. The NRA had suffered considerable losses for their efforts. They had lost the equivalent of 3 divisions; over 10,000 prisoners were taken. The Reds and seized 10,000 rifles, 300 German made machine guns and 40 artillery pieces. Another consequence of the failed encirclement campaign was the validation of the Bolshevik led offensive strategy. The CCP then adopted a series of reform measures hoping the Red Army could seize large cities. First the CCP attempted to expand the Red Army's overall strength by launching a large recruitment drive. In addition they incorporated all the local militias in the main Red Army. To fund the expansion the CCP adopted a large land distribution policy to generate revenue. Under the guise of performing a land investigation the CCP distributed 80% of the land within the soviet area. During the distribution the CCP attempted to raise nearly one million yuan. During the summer of 1933 the CCP also focused on suppressing counterrevolutionaries. One of the 28 Bolsheviks greatest critics was Luo Ming, the secretary of the Fujian-Guangdong-Jiangxi soviet committee. A large amount of recruitment and taxation had hurt the morale of the local people in the Soviet. When the Central Committee wanted troops there to deploy for action Luo Ming argued they needed to stay for local defense and that they should scale back offensive operations. However from the perspective of the 28 Bolsheviks it looked very similar to Mao Zedongs lure the enemy in deep strategy. At this point there were still many loyal to Mao Zedong and his strategy, so the Bolsheviks saw an opportunity to hurt him through punishing Luo Ming. They created a new pejorative term “Luo Min Line” to describe any non-offensive strategy and began a purge of the Fujian-Guangdong-Jiangxi Soviets leadership. The “Luo Ming line” became a new slogan to describe any in the CCP opposing the offensive strategy. During the summer of 1933, the Central Committee, emboldened by surviving the fourth encirclement campaign, continued to press on with their offensive strategy. With the Bolshviks and Otto Braun, the Jiangxi Soviet increased the central oversight over the Red Army and gradually seized direct control over military matters. On May 8th, the CCP passed a resolution separating the Central Military council and the Red Army leadership. Zhu De and Zhou Enlai remained in charge of the Red Army, but Bo Gu gained greater control over the military council and now controlled the Red Army's strategy and the employment of its military. Also Otto Braun would play a much larger role in military strategy, leveraging his experience at the Frunze Academy to push for offensive action.  The Red Army also reorganized its units to facilitate the execution of the new offensive strategies. In June the CCP divided the 1st front red army into the eastern front red army and central red army. Bo Gu and Braun believed that the Red Army had grown strong enough, both in firepower and manpower, to no longer require coordinated, mutually supportive operations. Instead, they felt the Red Army units could carry out independent operations in different regions. The Eastern Front Red Army, composed of the Third Red Army Corps, was stationed in western Fujian, while the Central Red Army, formed from the First Red Army Corps, remained in the Central Soviet area. Under the guidance of the new Central Military Committee, the Eastern Front Red Army launched expansion efforts into Fujian after the NRA vacated the region. Peng Dehuai's forces embarked on a three-month campaign in Fujian, expanding Soviet-controlled territory, securing supplies—especially salt—and raising funds, addressing key shortages for both the Red Army and the CCP. Before the Fifth Extermination Campaign, the Central Soviet controlled an impressive 60,000 square kilometers, spanning parts of three provinces. However, as they focused on territorial expansion, the Red Army neglected to monitor the KMT, which was preparing for another encirclement campaign. Now we have primarily focused on one of the major Soviets implicated in the fourth encirclement campaign. In reality the fourth encirclement campaign had been a large scale operation against three major soviets: the Hunan-Western Hubei Soviet also referred to as the Honghu Soviet; the Hubei-Henan-Anhui or Eyuwan Soviet and the Jiangxi Soviet. You would be led to believe and rightfully so because many lets just say, CCP aligned sources like to highlight the Jiangxi Soviet story, that the communists had kind of duped the NRA and stolen their victory from them. It was much more of a mixed bag overall. The campaign against the Hunan–Western Hubei Soviet saw the NRA successfully defeat the local Red Army forces, overrunning their main base in southern Hubei and Hunan. The majority of the fighting occurred around Jingzhou and overall was seen as a loss for the CCP. For the campaign against the Eyuwan Soviet, drought, famine and epidemics severely hurt the CCP forces in 1932. Between July and September, Chiang Kai-Shek had allocated more than 300,000 troops for the operation. The CCP suffered tremendously because of the numerical superiority of the NRA. The NRA General Xia Douyin unleashed a scorched earth campaign, killing countless, burning many villages and destroying to seizing crops. Historians like Chen Yaohuang argue the fourth Red Army who participated in this area were defeated largely because they had adopted conventional warfare tactics. The peasantry were very hostile to the NRA, forcing their forces to depend on unreliable local elites for provisions, creating a very vulnerable supply line. However the CCP failed to exploit this weakness by not committing guerilla warfare. Despite the NRA victory, it was a rather incomplete one and they ended their campaign prematurely celebrating. The fourth red army had successfully retreated into the border region between Shaanxi and Sichuan leaving behind a small force to conduct guerilla warfare. The remaining Communist forces in the Eyuwan Soviet, led by Gao Jingting and Xu Haidong, capitalized on the early Nationalist withdrawal to rebuild a guerrilla movement. They hid in the mountains, survived by foraging, and organized poor peasants to seize grain from landlords and public granaries. The 25th Red Army, under their leadership, managed to maintain a Communist presence in the region for several more years. After all was said and done, as was the case with the previous encirclement campaigns, reports from field commanders were far too optimistic. Many reported to Chiang Kai-Shek exaggerated numbers of casualties inflicted, prisoners taken and areas secured. In reality what the communists were doing was simply moving around to give off the impression of major defeats. Sure the Reds were taken enormous losses, but they were constantly recruiting and spreading. They could probably sustain these yearly encirclement campaigns if the NRA did not do something much more bold…like actually encircle the Reds. As great as the Reds were becoming at outwitting their opponent, their luck would eventually run out. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Reds had survived 4 large encirclement campaigns. The 28 Bolsheviks and their moscow allies were greatly emboldened thinking it was their time to go on the offensive and usher in a true revolution. However those like Mao Zedong knew the dire reality of the situation and were bracing themselves for the coming storm.

Last time we spoke about the establishment of the Jiangxi Soviet. After the CCP's failed uprisings, Mao Zedong and Zhu De fled to rural China, determined to build a strong, agrarian-based Red Army. Mao narrowly escaped capture and regrouped with fewer than 1,000 soldiers, facing morale and loyalty issues. To rebuild, he implemented reforms, creating political structures within the army to strengthen revolutionary spirit and establish troop soviets for democratic centralism. Seeking refuge, Mao negotiated with local bandit leaders Yuan Weicai and Wang Zuo to secure Jinggangshan, a defensible mountain area. The Red Army began guerrilla operations, seizing nearby villages and towns, rapidly expanding territory. Over time, despite facing encirclement campaigns by Nationalist forces, Mao's Red Army persevered, using flexible tactics, alliances, and propaganda. This period laid the groundwork for the growth of the Jiangxi Soviet, where the Red Army united diverse groups and adapted communist policies to local conditions, eventually strengthening their movement for future battles.   #126 The first Encirclement Campaign Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. We last left off with the establishment of the Jiangxi Soviet and its expansion into Fujian province. In spite of the continuous attacks by provincial and NRA forces, the communist movement was flourishing in the countryside. After the multiple failed uprisings in 1927, support for urban insurrection as the cornerstone of the revolution was fragmented. Likewise the KMT unleashed anti-communist campaigns inside major cities, cracking down on communist activities, driving them underground. The urban labor unions were also not very receptive to communist propaganda. A lack of enthusiasm for communism was evident in the early party demographics. In 1928 peasants made up ¾'s of the CCP membership while Shanghai labor union members dropped from 3000 to 700 by 1930. In the face of these statistics, the CCP continued to look at the urban centers as the key to the communist revolution. It was an issue of philosophy. The Central Committee maintained an unwavering belief that the proletariat should carry out urban uprisings as a means of inciting the grand revolution. As the head of the CCP propaganda department, Li Lisan was one of the largest proponents for the urban insurrection model. Li Lisan had returned to China from France in 1928 and argued the proletariat was still very much the center of the movement and that “the peasantry is petty bourgeois and cannot have correct ideas regarding socialism. Only a proletarian mentality can lead us onto the correct revolutionary road.” Li Lishan pushed for the occupation of large cities, rather than expanding the rural Soviets. However his attempts to reinvigorate the labor movements in urban centers was not going well. In 1929 Joseph Stalin came under the belief the communist revolution in China was heating up, citing the economic depression because of the market crash of 1929 as evidence. He had the comintern to begin publishing a series of guidances and measures in February and June of 1929 that reemphasized urban insurrection. In September the Comintern pushed for the CCP to leverage labor unions as a means of delivering the revolution to the masses. In October the Comintern estimated that a crescendo was met and that the revolutionary upsurge was well on its way. Yet the Comintern did not know when the revolution would begin and its subsequent guidance became incoherent to the CCP. Regardless, the CCP took the guidance and prepared to start a revolution. By 1930 the Red Army remained the only force able to lead urban uprisings. Urban labor movements were still not complying, thus Li Lisan was forced to depend on the Red Army. He planned to gain control over the Red Army by establishing central party control over it, dividing the forces away from their leaders. In April of 1930 the Central Committee issued two resolutions for the creation of a General Front Committee to lead urban uprisings. Li Lisan also requested Mao Zedong and Zhu De travel to Shanghai to separate them from their troops. Neither would end up coming to Shanghai. In 1930 the CCP began promoting the Cominterns October directive, reaffirming to all conditions were ripe for revolution, despite the urban labor realities. In February the Conference of Delegates from the Soviet Areas repudiated Mao Zedong's strategies of encircling cities in favor of urban insurrections. To this the Central Committee chastised Mao Zedong and Zhu De's forces for having what they termed a “hide-and-disperse view,” and instead pushed for the Red Army to concentrate and attack. Clearly the Li Lisan plan was counter to Mao Zedongs. Mao Zedong was promoting slow expansion focusing on land distribution and establishing Soviets, rather than a full frontal attack and seizure of a city like Changsha. Mao Zedong foresaw a slow bottom up model; recruits would start as local village militia, become Red Guards, join the local Red Army forces and then the main Red Army units. Li Lisan saw this as defeatist and wanted to concentrate weapons instead of dividing them equally amongst local militias, Red Guards and other Guerilla units. Li Lisan also complained to his colleagues Mao Zedong's strategy was too slow and famously said “by such tactics our hair will be white before the revolution is victorious.”  By 1930 the CCP focused on two provinces to ignite its revolution. A series of uprisings would be unleashed in Nanchang, Changsha and Wuhan. It was believed if Wuhan fell, the revolution would spread to Shanghai setting off a worldwide chain of revolutionary events. Things were not looking good for uprisings in cities. From 1926 to 1930 the working class membership of the CCP had dropped from 66% to 8%. The Red Army, despite growing, suffered from a lack of equipment and training. Mao Zedong and Zhu De had their misgivings about the uprisings, but were something of a minority and complied nonetheless. On June 22nd they both issued orders to conduct attacks.  The 1st Red Army Corps, formed from the 4th Red Army was to attack Nanchang while the 3rd Red Army Corps, formed from Peng Dehuai's 5th Red Army would attack Changsha. Yet against the wishes of Li Lisan, Mao Zedong left 3 army units back at the Jiangxi Soviet to defend the area. The 3rd Red Army corps was the first to attack, capturing Changsha on July 29th. Peng Duhai quickly established a Soviet government with Li Lisan acting as its chairman. However the arrival of Red soldiers did not illicit an urban uprising. On July 30th, British, American, Italian and Japanese ships sailed up the Xiang River to defend their concessions and citizens. Naval bombardment coupled with a lack of urban support dislodged Peng Dehuai's men from the city by August 3rd. They did however grab as much money and supplies as they could on the way out. After their withdrawal, the NRA occupied the city and began purging all communist sympathizers they could find.  The first Red Army corps did not do much better. Mao Zedong and Zhu De's men attacked Nanchang, but initially dispatched reconnaissance forces into the city on August 1st. It was quickly determined that little progress could be made, so the forces moved to Liuyang in Hunan. At Liuyang the 1st and 3rd Red Armies consolidated their forces into the first front red army and planned their next move. The assessment for Changsha and Wuhan was quite grim. NRA forces had recently begun reinforcing the two cities while also establishing a defense in depth. Foreign naval ships were stationed along the Yangtze River providing fire support. Mao Zedong and Zhu De both argued against it, but reluctantly agreed to attack Changsha on September 1st.  The second attack against Changsha was a complete disaster. The better equipped enemy, within strong defensive positions, tossed the Red Army on its ass. After 10 days of fighting and facing severe losses, Mao Zedong and Zhu De made a bold move. They ordered a withdrawal on the 13th, stating that Li Lisan was wrong and a change of plan was required. This caused a deep divide in the Red Army, with many political commissars objective to the order. But the Red soldiers complied and conducted an orderly withdrawal. Now there emerged a faction in the CCP backed by Li Lisan calling for another attack against Nanchang. Mao Zedong and Zhu De believed it was impossible as the NRA held an even stronger position at Nanchang. Thus Mao Zedong came up with a compromise: they would attack Ji'an, a strategic city centered on the Jiangxi Soviet. If captured, the southwestern portion of the Jiangxi Soviet would be joined together to greatly expand the Soviet area.  On the morning of October 4th, the Red Army with local militias advanced into Ji'an from 3 different directions and by nightfall captured the city. This was facilitated by a large influx of peasant support for the Red Army, some claim over a million peasants marched upon the city to support the Reds. They also covertly raided the KMT HQ in Ji'an where they discovered documents about an upcoming NRA encirclement campaign. With this discovery the Li Lisan strategy ended as the CCP now needed to secure their survival. Li Lisans epic failure released a cascade of internal power grabs, that influenced the political and military direction going forward. After the second failure at Changsha, Mao Zedong began publicly attacking Li Lisan to increase his own standing. Within the Red Army two diverging viewpoints emerged, that of Mao Zedong's rural encirclement strategy and Li Lisans urban uprising strategy. Political commissars labeled Mao Zedong as treacherous for attacking Li Lisan, while the peasant troops all agreed with Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong was also confronted with another issue, the Jiangxi Provincial Action Committee was also looking to power grab. They were a newly formed committee who were vying for control over the Red Army. Mao Zedong was currently performing a survey over the rural area of Xingguo and while doing so he suddenly identified suspicious linkages between the KMT funded Anti-Boshevik Corps, aka the AB Corps, who had undercover agents charged with sabotaging communist units and the local Jiangxi Action Committee and 20th Red Army leaders such as one Li Wenlin. Armed with this evidence, Mao Zedong unleashed a huge purge of the Red Army. In November he arrested 4000 members of the 20th Red Army, including all but 2 members of the Jiangxi Provincial Action Committee, all charged with treason. The purge effectively negated his little problem, what a coincidence, but it would cause him some headaches. The following month, a battalion of the 20th Red Army led by Liu Dizao captured Futian and there they released 40 recently purged comrades who were suspected to have ties to the AB Corps. The men who let released them then took them across the Gan River to establish a new Soviet in Yongyang. From the Soviet the accused men looked to clear their names and appealed to the Central Committee as well as Zhu De and Peng Dehuai. The 20th Red Army argued they were wrongfully accused of being AB Corps members. It was their argument that Mao Zedong accused them because they had criticized him. A large group of the 20th Red Army left the Soviet apparently to perform peace talks in July of 1931, but would be arrested, put on trial and executed.  This became known as the Futian incident, though quite slanderous, it did not pick up a lot of steam at the time, mostly because the Comintern and Central Committee were too busy condemning Li Lisan for his failures. Zhou Enlai was sent back to Russia to try and clean up the embarrassing Changsha debacle. When h arrived, he distanced himself and the party from Li Lisan, and this effectively handed the congruence to Mao Zedongs strategy, further helping him consolidate power. Added to this the Comintern sent a letter to the CCP in November of 1930 stating Li Lisans ideas were inconsistent with the Cominterns guidance and antagonistic to the greater communist cause. Li Lisan was recalled to Moscow where he tried to save his ass. In the meantime the CCP's leadership had a difficult time regaining traction until late 1931. Now going back to the documents found, speaking about an encirclement campaign. The NRA dispatch a large force to deal with the Reds. It consisted of the 9th route Army led by the governor of Jiangxi, Lu Diping; the 6th route army from Hunan ld by Zhu Shaoling and the 19th Route army led by Jiang Guangnai. Altogether they were 44,000 men strong, divided into 5 divisions and 3 air-bombing corps. The plan was to encircle the Jiangxi Soviets, pressing them back into the mountains. Once fully encircled the NRA would attack Donggu, Longgang, and Dongshao. After the capture of Ji'an, the Red Army leadership alongside the Jiangxi Action Committee held a conference at Luofang on October 25th, to figure out how to respond to the incoming encirclement campaign. Many called for re-attacking Nanchang and Jiujiang to try and divert the NRA forces away from the Jiangxi Soviet. Mao Zedong argued instead to perform his classic “lure the enemy in deep” strategy. Essentially Mao Zedong wanted to trade land for time. Initially the Red ARmy would evacuate the western areas of the Gan River and head east to mobilize the local people, raise funds and recruit. The eastwards movement would also lure the NRA across the river into Red Army terrain, overstretching their logistics lines. This way the Reds could choose where to face the enemy and hopefully divide and conquer them. It was Mao Zedongs belief the only feasible way to defeat the NRA was to lure them in and then attack places like Nanchang and Jiujiang when they were depleted of defenders.  On November 1st the Red Army began advancing across the Gan River into Ji'an, Jishui, Xingan, Le'an, Yongfeng, Yihuang, Chongren and Nanfeng counties. Within 6 days the Red Army had seized 400,000 yuan and enlisted the support of the local populaces. During this time, members of the 3rd Red ARmy corps rebelled against Mao Zedong's strategy, arguing instead to occupy the western Gan River area. Peng Dehuai was able to suppress the dissension and by mid November the entire Red Army was occupying the eastern bank of the Gan River. The NRA followed the Reds across the Gan River. By November 18th the NRA were advancing in 3 columns; the first occupied Yongfeng and Jishui; the second occupied Le'an and Yihuang and the third occupied Ji'an. As the NRA continued to advance they had limited engagements against the Reds. By the 26th the Reds were now occupying Donggu, Nanlong and Longgang. Things were all going according to plan, but then the Futian incident hit on December 7th. The mutiny jeopardized the Red Army's western flank, forcing them to abandon Donggu and the Futian area by December 15th. The remainder of the 3rd ARmy corps advanced to the northern area of Ningdu county and then occupied Pingtian and Anfu.  NRA intelligence began figuring out there was internal strife amongst the Reds and exploited it. On the 16th Lu Diping ordered 2 divisions to encircle and attack Donggu. The 5th and 18th NRA divisions attacked Donggu forcing the Reds to withdraw while attacking the 5th NRA as they did so. The 2 NRA divisions entered the Donggu area each on the opposite side of a ridgeline unable to know what was going on with the other. On the 20th the 18th NRA attacked Donggu with artillery, unknowingly firing upon their comrades in the 5th NRA for half of a day. By the end of December the NRA forces had taken most of the Jiangxi Soviet. However the NRA forces logistical lines were overextended, exposing them to constant guerrilla attacks. They had captured numerous towns each requiring occupation forces seeing only a third of the troops actually at the front lines. The communist efforts to gain the support of the local populaces also saw them hindering the NRA occupational forces. The local populace spied upon the NRA and provided the Reds with information about a pending attack against Longgang.  2 brigades of the NRA 18th Division were going to attack Longgang on December 30th. With this information the Red Army countered by encircling the 2 brigades using mountainous terrain to mass fires and cut off any reinforcements. On the morning of the 30th, the NRA forces entered Longgang only to be surrounded. The 1st Red Army Corps attacked the 2 brigades while the 4th red Army and elements of the 3rd Red Army Corps blocked the 18th NRA division's rear preventing them from helping from Donggu. By the end of the day the Reds had taken 9000 prisoners, including the divisional commander, Zhang Huizan. Hearing word of the 18th Divisions plight, Lu Diping ordered a withdrawal of the forces to consolidate and reorganize. Tan Daoyuan's 15th NRA division advanced south towards Yuantou. Again the local populace spied and fed the Reds intel, allowing them to quickly pursue them. On the morning of January 3rd, the Red ARmy attacked the 15th NRA division near Dongshao from 3 different directions. The NRA routed under the attack, many of the troops simply tossed weapons and ran. Meanwhile the 3rd Red Army was unable to fully encircle them allowing many to escape. But nonetheless they managed to capture 3000 prisoners, 4000 rifles, 40 machine guns and a cache of ammunition. The defeats at Longgang and Dongshao effectively ended the first NRA encirclement campaign, providing the Reds with numerous recruits, a lot of equipment and much experience. The destruction of multiple NRA divisions saw 15,000 prisoners, 12,000 weapons captured and had validated Mao Zedongs strategies. The victories spread word of the communist forces' strength in the region and this began to swing the tide of public favor. The Red Army followed this up by executing Zhang Huizan, the commander of the 18th NRA division. His head was sent to Ji'an to serve as a warning. From march to April the Red Army held 4 different meetings to determine strategy going forward. During the first meeting on March 18th many were calling for vacating the Soviet areas because of the NRA's numerical superiority. Yet no decision was made. The next meeting a month later the same argument was made, but others also advocated for staying and dividing into small units in order to conduct coordinated attacks to break the encirclement and destroy their enemy. Again no decision was made. A third meeting occurred days later, this time acting on Mao Zedong's advice, the Red Army leadership invited different military units to participate. Dividing forces gained traction, but now they were first asking to make a concentrated attack on the 19th NRA route army to establish a route out of the encirclement. Mao Zedong agreed to this idea, but argued it should be levied against the 5th route army who were facing many issues. The 5th route army were originally from Northern China, thus unfamiliar with the territory. The meeting saw an agreement on attacking and then dividing, but no agreement on target. The final meeting was held in late April, this time with Mao Zedong given the floor to present his perspective. He gave an impassioned speech arguing that luring the enemy in deep made the most sense for 2 reasons. 1) the Red Army and local populace had experience and resolve to defeat the enemy; 2 ) they knew the terrain, Mao Zedong outlined how they could sweep east across the Soviet, hitting the enemy from Futian to Jianning. With the terrain would allow the Reds to isolate the NRA from providing mutual support and allowing them to use overwhelming firepower. Mao Zedongs speech world, the strategy was finally approved. During the period between March and April, while the meetings were held, the Red Army began withdrawing troops from the fringes of the expanded Jiangxi Soviet. Beginning in March the Red Army abandoned the newly acquired towns of Toubei, Dongshao, Luokou, Futian, Tengtian and Zhaoxie. By April 23rd the Red Army had relocated with the 3rd army corps based in Longgang; the 3rd and 4th Red Army's were stationed in the mountains between Donggu and Futian and the rest of the first front red army in the vicinity of Ningdy. As NRA forces slowly occupied Futian and began advancing east towards Donggu, up in the Jiucun mountain range, the 4th Red Army, overlooking the road from Futian and Donggu prepared an ambush. On May 11th, the 47th and 28th NRA divisions walked directly into the ambush. The Red forces initially rolled boulders from the mountain tops, causing casualties and confusion. The 2 NRA divisions were taken by surprise and began signaling for help, but the Red Army severed their wired communications. Because of the mountains and treelines aerial visibility was poor, neutralizing the NRA's air forces.The 3rd Red Army descended the mountains and attacked the divisions fiercely. On the night of the 17th, the NRA forces had been defeated. 5000 guns, 50 machine guns, 30 artillery pieces and numerous supplies were captured. Meanwhile the 43rd NRA division originally enroute towards Tantou, received word of the defeat at Zhongdong, so they changed direction towards Shuinan. They planned to ford the Xiaolong River near Shuinan to consolidate their forces. However local communist militia groups had taken the bridge forcing the NRA to advance to Baisha. On May 19th the Red Army defeated the 43rd NRA division at Baisha, seizing 4000 weapons, 30 machine guns and 2 artillery pieces. The NRA attempted to reinforce them with the 19th route army, but they were too late to the scene and upon seeing the destruction pulled back to Xingguo. These 2 defeats effectively destroyed the 5th NRA route army.  Initially the 26th NRA route army was ordered to occupy Nantuan and then advance east. However once they occupied the city, their 27th division received orders to reinforce the NRA position at Zhongcun while the 25th division remained in Nantuan. Before the 27th division could advance, the 3rd Red Army Corps and 4th Red Army attacked Zhongcun, decimating its defenders and occupying the city on May 22nd. That night the Red Army continued to Nantuan where they destroyed the 25th division. This caused the remaining NRA forces to retreat to Le'an and Yihuang. The Red Army captured 3000 weapons, 10 machine guns and effectively eliminated the 26th NRA route army.  Hearing of the destruction of the 26th and 5th route armies, the NRA began withdrawing back to Nancheng. The 5th Division was the last unit trying to depart Guangchang when it was attacked by the 3rd and 4th Red Armies on May 27th. The 5th Division performed a fighting withdrawal to Nanfeng, losing many in the process. Meanwhile at Jianning in Fujian, the 4th Red Army was occupying Guangchang trying to consolidate their gains with a single division advancing north towards Nanfeng. The 3rd Red army corps and 12th Red Army advanced east, hunting down NRA forces into Jianning by May 30th. The attack caught the 56th NRA division completely off guard. They had not yet even established any defensive works. They were routed as the Reds occupied Jianning destroying a NRA regiment in the process. Along with captured numerous war materials the Reds also got their hands on much needed medical supplies. In the course of two weeks the Reds had traveled over 300km's captured 30,000 prisoners and captured 20,000 weapons. The newfound equipment was enough to outfit the entire first front red army with all modern weaponry, while the older equipment was given to local militia groups. The Red's success was due to good intelligence and mobility. The second encirclement campaign attempt by the NRA had caused the Soviet to grow nearly 5000 square miles. In June the first front Red Army was still in Western Fujian conducting operations. Initially the Reds did not expect the NRA to initiate a third encirclement campaign so quickly after their failure. The Rds had planned a 3 phase expansion operation in the meantime. Its first phase would encompass political mobilization in Jianning, Taining and Lichuan; the second phase involved marching back into southern Jiangxi to consolidate strength in the rear area; the last phase would send the Red Army back to its original base area focusing on the western Gan River area to try and connect the Jiangxi Soviet with the Hunan-Jiangxi Soviet.  The Red army were beginning to receive intelligence reports stating the NRA were beginning to move towards Jiangxi. In response to this the Central Committee issued advice in June of 1931 to counter the new encirclement campaign. They basically just adopted Mao Zedong's strategy used in the first two campaigns. They argued it was essential to politically mobilize local populaces and support small guerilla units to perform attacks on the NRA forces and prevent them from gaining a stable foothold in the area. They also advocated for the consolidation of the Soviets in the area, this being the Henan-Hubei-Anhui Soviet, Hunan-Hubei Soviet and northeast Jiangxi Soviet. The ultimate goal was to link them all up to form a Red Hunan-Hubei-Jiangxi area and perhaps even establish communications with some other Soviets in the north. After sending the advice the Central Committee was forced back underground as the KMT unleashed a suppression campaign in Shanghai. It would not be until August 30th when the Central Committee re-established communications with the Soviets, but by that time the encirclement campaign was over. On June 30th, the Red Army got to work preparing defenses. All local militias, Red Guards and guerilla units were activated to conduct delaying actions and defend localities from the NRA advance. The Red Army, roughly 30,000 men strong pulled back inwards into the central base areas in Jiangxi.This was a difficult task as many of them were spread far into western Fujian and southern Jiangxi. After the 2 failed encirclement campaigns, Chiang Kai-Shek had taken notice and personally took over the third campaign. With him came his own troops as he deployed the 5th and 6th NRA divisions to Jiangxi to attack the 1st and 3rd red army corps. Chiang Kai-Sheks entire force consisted of 2 army corps, with another in reserve and one garrison army. Altogether they were 130,000 strong. In late June the NRA forces advanced into the Jiangxi Soviet. By the end of July they had encircled the entire Jiangxi Soviet. Even with the encirclement the local populace continued to support the Red Army, providing supplies and food. On July 31st the Red Army conducted a daring breakthrough from Xingguo, moving west to Wan'an before circling back to Futian to hit the NRA rear. The Red Army managed to escape the encirclement, but while heading to Futian, the NRA discovered what they were doing and quickly reinforced the area and seized Xingguo. On August 3rd the Red Army began occupying the areas near Gaoxing and Laoyingpan. The Red Army conducted a feint in the north using the 35th red Army, 35th division, 12th red army and the 4th and 5th independent divisions to draw the NRA's attention west towards Wan'an. As the NRA advanced the first red army corps began attacking through Longgang and Huangpi. On August 6th the 47th NRA division entered Liantang as the 54th NRA division occupied Huangpi. With only one NRA division occupying Liantang, the Red Army took the advantage and isolated them and attacked. The 3rd, 4th and 12th red armies attacked the lone NRA division, routing it before continuing towards Huangpi to attack the 45th NRA division. The 45th divisions HQ was annihilated in the process and by August 7th, two NRA brigades had been destroyed. The two NRA divisions had suffered more than 1000 casualties, with 3500 men captured and 3000 weapons and 14 artillery pieces lost. The Red Army then focused its attention against the 8th NRA division in Huangpi. On the 11th the 3rd Red army distracted the forces in Longgang with sporadic engagements trying to prevent them from reinforcing Huangpi. Meanwhile the 4th and 12th Red armies combated the 8th NRA division while the 3rd Red Army corps and 7th Red Division maneuvered east to cut off their escape route. Within the rainy and foggy weather the Reds annihilated 4 brigades, resulting in more than 1000 casualties, capturing 4000 prisoners, 3000 weapons, 11 artillery pieces and large ammunition cache. The victories also revealed the location of the main Red forces to the NRA. Chiang Kai-Shek acted by deploying all of his forces to surround the Huangpi area, effectively encircling the Red Army. For over a month the Red Army was under siege. Facing starvation and defeat, Mao Zedong and Zhu De hatched a bold plan to break out of the encirclement. They planned to split their forces, first by disguising the 12th red army as the bulk of their forces, having them advance northeast to attack Le'an and Yihuang. The remainder would then move west and occupy Xingguo. On the night of August the 16th the first front red army, minus the 12th red army silently slipped through a 10 km gap between the 1st and 2nd NRA corps heading towards Xingguo. As soon as elements of the 12th Red Army began attacking Le'An Chiang Kai-Shek pounced on them, deploying the 10th NRA division and 1st and 2nd NRA route armies. For two weeks the NRA chased the 12th Red army up and down mountain ranges. The NRA forces were exhausted and consumed a large part of their supplies, constantly attacked by guerillas. In the meantime the 1st the 3rd red army corps arrived at Xingguo undetected where they refitted and reorganized. By the end of August the NRA realized they had been duped and found out the main bulk of the Reds were at Xingguo. The NRA wheeled around to advance upon them, but just before they could two Guangdong Warlord factions rose up against the KMT, forming a rival government. Fearing an attack against Nanking, Chiang Kai-Shek temporarily lifted the encirclement campaign. As the NRA forces pulled away, the Red's attempted to exploit the situation.  On September 7th, the 3rd Red army and 5th independent red division attacked the 4th NRA corps at Laoyingpan, capturing 2000 men, 2000 weapons and 10 artillery pieces. On the 13th the 7th red army encircled the 4th NRA corps at Fangshiling mountain range while they were trying to retreat to Ji'an. In the process the Reds destroyed the 52nd NRA division and a brigade of the 9th NRA division. With that they captured 5000 prisoners, 4500 rifles and 200 horses. These victories however would be overshadowed by a major defeat at Gaoxing. On that same day the 4th Red Army and 3rd Red army corps were coordinating an assault against the first NRA corps. Based on poor intelligence, the Red Army misjudged their strength resulting in a bloody stalemate. By the end of the encirclement campaign the NRA had suffered greatly. The Reds had destroyed 17 NRA brigades, nearly 30,000 casualties. The Reds losses were quite heavy as well and compromised their position. Yet after these 3 failed encirclement campaigns the Jiangxi Soviet stood at 50,000 square kilometers, encompassing 28 counties in Hunan, Jiangxi and Fujian.  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Thus the Reds had survived 3 brutal encirclement campaigns. Even when Chiang Kai-Shek took notice and personally directed his own forces to quell the Red menace, they simply slipped through his hands. Mao Zedong's strategies were working and further boosting his standing amongst his comrades.  

Last time we spoke about the Central Plains War. Chiang Kai-Shek faced a formidable anti-Chiang coalition led by Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang, and Li Zongren. Zhang Xueliang, initially absent, worked tirelessly from Mukden to prevent Northern warlords from joining the coalition. The conflict, exacerbated by severe famine in Shaanxi that fueled unrest, saw major battles as Chiang's forces clashed with the anti-Chiang fronts across multiple railways. Despite initial setbacks, Chiang's strategic maneuvers and alliances, including a pivotal deal with Zhang Xueliang, gradually turned the tide. The Young Marshal's entry into the fray and the subsequent defections from Feng Yuxiang's camp weakened the anti-Chiang forces. By October, the anti-Chiang leaders, overwhelmed and isolated, sought peace. The Central Plains War, a grueling seven-month struggle, ended with the anti-Chiang factions disbanding, leaving China's civil war landscape dramatically altered. Within the vacuum, the CCP was thriving, but now the Generalissimo could direct his full attention on the Red Menace.   #125 From the Jinggangshan Mountains to the Jiangxi Soviet Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The last time we were talking about the CCP, they had performed the Nanchang uprising, Autumn Harvest Uprisings and the Guangzhou uprising. These all did not go very well and literally saw the surviving CCP forces fleeing for their lives into the mountains. Their experiences during these uprisings reinforced the idea they required a strong military force to push forward a new agrarian-based communist revolution. To develop such conditions favoring a revolution, Mao Zedong and Zhu De adapted the Red Army and CCP policies to the local conditions in order to recruit, sustain and retain loyal troops and build a relationship between the army, local populaces and party.  After the collapse of the Harvest Autumn Uprisings, the Red Army scattered into the rural parts of China. Mao Zedong himself narrowly escaped capture by the NRA, as he made his way to Sanwan of Jiangxi province. Countless were killed, arrested or deserted. Less than 1000 Red soldiers remained from the original uprising force. Moral was law, there lacked direction, there existed conflicting loyalties and many blamed Mao Zedong for the failings. In order to counteract this, Mao Zedong held a conference on September 29th of 1927 whereupon he implemented a series of radial policies to stave off an implosion. He began streamlining the command structure, instituted political representatives within each unit to instill revolutionary spirit within the troops. A political cell was established in each squad, a branch at company levels and a party committee at the battalion and regiment level. Next he established troop soviets within the units to provide a form of democratic centralism within the units. Additional he began spinning the narrative in his own favor, shifting blame for the failed uprisings to the collective poor understanding of the revolutionary course within China, rather than upon her leadership. Now initially a large part of the Red Army wanted to return to their hometown of Anyuan, but the local military presence was too strong there. Another option was needed and quickly as they had many sick and wounded amongst their ranks. They looked to the nearby Jinggang Mountain Area as a temporary fix. Many of Mao Zdong's former Peasant Movement Training students knew the area well. Jinggangshan meaning “well ridge mountain”, derived its name from the 5 villages around its main city of Ciping: Big Well, Middle Well, Little Well, Upper Well, and Lower Well. The mountain is situated in the Luoxian range, straddling the border between Jiangxi and Hunan. It also happens to be a place where 4 counties converge: Lingxian, Suichuan, Ninggang and Yongxin. Surrounding it were factional and political enemies, thus preventing most provincial forces from really coordinating efforts or massing against them. The terrain provided ample defensive obstacles. It also stood in the midpoint between Changsha, Nanchang and Guangdong, offering the Red Army flexibility to try and finish the uprisings they started in those locations. Given the weak state the Red Army was in, it would not be feasible to occupy Jinggangshan by force. Jinggangshan was controlled by two bandit leaders named Yuan Weicai and Wang Zuo. Mao Zedong was forced to negotiate with the two to come to an arrangement. The CCP was of course concerned about the trustworthiness of the two bandit leaders. At an early meeting in Gucheng, some CCP members of the front committee doubted the revolutionary character of Yuan and Wang, believing them to only be bandits at heart. Mao Zedong on the other hand argued the two leaders and their loyal followers were crucial to the communist movement. I would argue Mao Zedong was grasping at straws.  As for Yuan and Wang, their primary concerns were the impact of a new military force affecting the regional balance of power. In essence the mountain areas outside the major cities had a complex power dynamic. Bandits and local elites maintained the status quo, any change to that power dynamic could lead to problems. There was also an ethnicity issue. Jinggangshan was considered something of a Hakka ancestral land, and the Han settlers amongst them were more like guests. There always remained a Hakka-Han tension, and this prompted Hakka to vet any Hans coming in. Mao first convinced Yuan how a partnership would be mutually beneficial. In exchange for food, housing and local support the Red Army would provide weapons, training and support Yuan and Wang's operations. Mao presented Yuan with a gift of 100 rifles to sweeten him over. Mao then made a similar gesture to Wang, sending him 70 rifles. The two bandit leaders let the Red Army right in. Upon arriving, the Red Army began conducting guerilla operations and peasant mobilization. On October 7th, 1927 the began activity in Maoping and moved to Ciping. While marching they passed through Lingixan and Shuikou villages, attacking the local elites and their militias, freeing prisoners in jails and holding mass rallies to recruit. On the 22nd they reached Dafen, where they were ambushed by a local militia. Using their knowledge of the terrain the militia inflicted severe casualties, forcing the Red Army to retreat towards Wang Zuo for aid. Wang Zuo was wary of them, but Mao Zedong won him over by promising more weapons and training for his bandits. Mao also pledged to support him against his local rivals, one of whom was Xiao Jiabi. Wang's bandits and the Reds joined forces in Dajing and together seized Shimen. Then the Reds arrived in Ciping on October 15th. They quickly seized the city center and within a month's time established a base of operations. The CCP quickly expanded its influence in the surrounding area, preying upon local populations where government control was weak or in flux. By mid November the Red Army dispatched a battalion west to capture Chaling. This success allowed them to further expand into Suichang in January of 1928. In February the Red Army occupied its first major city, Xincheng in Ningang country. Within two months of action the Reds had nearly doubled their territory now occupying portions of 3 counties. For the most part Mao Zedong was left alone because of the political shakeup after the failed uprisings in the larger metropolitan areas. Contact with the provincial and regional CCP community still existed though. Zhou Lu, a member of the southern Hunan special committee heard about the CCP expansion in the mountain areas and came to inspect them. While at Jinggangshan he gave Mao Zedong orders to dispatch his unit to support Zhu De's forces in a uprising about to hit southern Hunan. After the failed Nanchang Uprising, Zhu De took the remnants of his forces and fled into southern Jiangxi and then Fujian where he linked up with a fellow Yunnanese NRA leader, Fan Shisheng. They stayed with Fan Sisheng's unit awhile, but once rumors spread he was harboring Reds they had to go. By January of 1928 they fled for southern Hunan to try and support urban uprisings. Upon arriving, Zhu De's force began augmenting the local peasantry forces and Zhou Lu said he would get Mao Zedong to lend his support. However the uprising never really got its legs. It began in late January, but the urban workers and local populace couldn't rise as expected. Instead local support turned against the communists. Likewise Mao Zedong's men never made it to southern Hunan, he had intentionally dragged his feet on the issue. Instead Mao Zedong focused his attention in central Hunan holding rallies and mobilizing local peasant groups. Thus Zhu De was pounced upon by local warlord groups in Guangdong and Hunan. Zhu De's Red Army engaged the warlord armies as they slowly retreated into Jinggangshan. Zhu De and Mao Zedong would meet in Maoping for a conference. On May 20th, 1928 they agreed to establish the Jinggangshan Special Committee, with Mao Zedong as its general secretary. Additionally the 4th Red Army was created and nicknamed the Ironsides Army. The 4th Red Army was roughly 12,000 men strong consisting of Zhu De's Nanchang uprising force, now designated the 28th regiment, Mao Zedongs Autumn Uprising force now designated the 31st regiment, Yuan Wencai and Wang Zuo's bandits, later designated the 32nd regiment and the Hunan uprising force now designed the 29th regiment. Zhu De's arrival also brought in a traditional military mindset, adding some more professionalism to the Red Army. Here Zhu De also made a famous quote “When the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy halts and encamps, we harass them; when the enemy seeks to avoid battle, we attack; and when the enemy retreats, we pursue”. This statement would guide much of the Red Army's actions going forward. The increase in communist numbers brought unwanted attention immediately from Jiangxi and Hunan forces. The first major military campaign against the Reds began in May of 1928 and was led by Zhu Peide wielding Jiangxi provincial military units. The campaign was based out of Yongxin with the Jiangxi government unleashing the 27th division. One regiment garrisoned at Yongxin was held as reserve while the division sent another regiment to attack the Red Army stronghold in Nanchang and another regiment flanked to the east. The Reds countered by stationing a regiment in the mountains to protect the base, another regiment to defend the mountain passes and 2 regiments to conduct spoiling attacks on the Jiangxi regiments flank. The Red Army was able to destroy the flanking unit, forcing them to retreat back to Yongxin. They pursued them to Yongxin, destroying its garrison regiment in the process. The Red Army then maneuvered to the rear of the Jiangxi division pushing them to pull back to Ji'an. Thus the Reds occupied Yongxin where they went to work establishing a worker-peasant government, expanding the Soviet across the county.  A second encirclement campaign was unleashed in late MAy, with the same Jiangxi 27th division leading the action. This time they were reinforced as they quickly recaptured Yongxin and began cautiously pursuing the Reds into the mountains. The Reds tried to exploit the terrain for guerilla warfare but was met with little success. The Red 28th regiment was soon forced to help distressed red forces at Chaling county. However the Jiangxi Division did not account for the Red Army's mobility. The Red 31st regiment quickly assumed the 28th regiments former defensive positions offering a stiff fight against the Jiangxi forces. When the 28th regiment returned to reinforce the 31st they hit the enemy's rear and advanced upon Yongxin again while the Jiangxi forces pulled back to Ji'an again.  Another encirclement campaign was unleashed the following June this time seeing Jiangxi and Hunanese forces work together against the Reds. The Jiangxi 9th division was deployed in combination with the remaining 2 regiment of the 27th Jiangxi division. The Jiangxi forces performed a frontal attack through the mountain passes using 3 regiments. Meanwhile the Red Army had to perform a feint attack in the east to occupy a Hunanese division. The Red Army deployed a battalion augmented by local guerilla groups along the western flank of the mountain passes. Guerilla attacks on the eastern flank of the Jiangxi forces caused the commander to maintain 2 regiments at Yongxin. Exploiting the mountain terrain the Red Army managed to destroy one regiment as they funneled up the passes. This small victory brought much needed arms and new soldiers who quickly recaptured Yongxin for a third time.  By the end of June, the Jinggangshan base had basically hit its apex in terms of size. They now controlled Ninggang, Yongxin, Lianhua counties and parts of Ji'an and Anfu. At this point Chiang Kai-Shek took notice of the Red gains and directed a new campaign against them. Another series of campaigns were unleashed seeing Hunanese and Jiangxi armies attack the 4th Red Army beginning in July 1928. The Hunan 8th Army began their attack from the west through Ninggang while the Jianxi army unleashed 11 regiments from the 3rd and 6th armies through Yongxin against the eastern border of Jinggangshan. To meet this threat the Reds kept 2 regiments to defend the bases while the 28th and 29th regiments advanced west to slip behind the Hunanese forces to conduct raids against their rear. Meanwhile local Red Army militia forces began a scorched earth strategy removing all food, poisoning water sources and evacuating villagers to deny their enemy. The Hunan 8th army was forced to retreat in the face of this, allowing the Reds to focus on the Jiangxi forces around Yongxin. The 28th and 29th regiments advanced west to support the attack against the Jiangxi forces, but then suddenly turned south towards southern Hunan, citing orders to assist the Southern Hunan Special Committee. Then these 2 regiments attacked the city of Chenzhou, roughly 200 kms away from the Jinggangshan mountains. There they defeated local forces. Afterwards the Red troops began strolling through the streets of Chenzhou as civilians, many of them had families in the area. Some began looting the area. They had made the egregious error of now pursuing their enemy further and gave them too much respite to reorganize themselves. The local forces counterattacked driving the 28th regiment to withdraw with little casualties. The 29th regiment fared much worse, being ambushed trying to retreat over the only bridge leading in Chengzhou. They suffered heavy casualties and many of their surviving forces simply joined the 28th regiment as a result. Meanwhile with the 2 regiments gone from the mountain, the NRA forces were emboldened. 3 Hunanese regiment joined 11 Jiangxi regiments to attack the Jinggangshan mountains. The remaining Reds employed every tactic they knew to survive. They began giving up terrain as the enemy penetrated closer to the mountain base. The 31st and 32nd regiments found themselves retreating to the protection of higher ground, where the established defensive positions along key routes to maximize casualties upon the invaders. Mao Zedong took a battalion from the 3st regiment south to escort the incoming 28th regiment, further weakening the lines. Meanwhile guerillas raided the flanks and rear of the advancing NRA forces heading up the mountain. After repeated failed attempts to get to the peaks of the mountains,the Jiangxi and Hunanese forces ultimately had to withdraw come September allowing the 28th regiment to safely get back to Jinggangshan. From there the Red Army contuined to fight and recapture lost territory. By October they retook Ninggang county and portions of Suichuang, Lixing and Yongxin, but were unable to reclaim everything they once had.  Another campaign coincided with an economic blockade and the arrival of General Peng Dehaui's 5th Army. The Jiangxi and Hunanese forces adopted blockade tactics, normally employed against bandits, to try and deprive the Reds from using markets in the lowlands. Starting in the fall of 1928, NRA and local militias established checkpoints along all routes and trails leading into the Jinggangshan mountains. Local private armies with troops familiar with the area conducted interdiction patrols to capture anyone trying to get past blockades. The blockade halted most local trade, meaning little medicine, clothing, food or salt was getting into Janggangshan. The Reds began subsisting on sweet potatoes and pumpkins, then Peng Dehuais 5th army arrived in December worsening the burden on the area. Simulteanously NRA forces from Fujian were added to the Jiangxi and Hunanese to fully surround the mountains in preparation for a offensive.  In the face of all of this the 4th Red Army's leadership convened a conference at Bailu. The attendees all were trying to figure out how to overcome the situation but their options were very limited. Many called for the same tactics that had been winning them the battles as before. Some called for withdrawing to a safer area momentarily and launch a counterattack when the enemy lightened up. The economic blockade exacerbated the civilian military relations in the mountains and it seemed the local populace was no longer willing to help the Reds. The last option many advocated for was to mount a defense of the mountain range, but this would not allow for any withdrawal route for the 6000 or so troops. Ultimately the adoptd a hybrid solution. The 4th army would break through the blockade to try and draw forces away from the mountains while also obtaining supplies. The 5th army who were pretty battered from their march would defend mountains and base. On January 14th of 1929 the 4th army led by Zhu De and Mao Zedong broke through the blockade and headed south into Jiangxi.  The 4th army at first was only meeting light resistance as they captured Suichuan and Shangyu. After this they headed for Dayu, but there found 3 Jiangxi regiments who ambushed them. The Reds were forced north into the Xingguo-Ji'an area. They marched 30 days, often 30 miles per day to avoid their pursuers, while taking casualties and losing equipment. They found themselves at Dabaidi village on February 10th where 2 regiments of the 15th NRA division fought them. The Reds routed the NRA forces and even captured the two regimental commanders alongside 800 soldiers and their equipment. This victory earned the 4th army a safe place to rest up for quite some time. As we saw in the former episodes, the Chiang-Gui and Central Plains War engulfed Chiang Kai-Sheks attention, giving the Reds some breathing space. During this period, Mao Zedong and Zhu De expanded that is referred to as the Jiangxi Soviet. They did so through a series of campaigns into western Fujian. In February 1929 the 4th army incorporated 2 independent guerilla regiments and used them to occupy Ji'an, Ningdu and Ruijin. In March they entered western Fujian and captured Tingzhou. At Tingzhou the Reds got 3000 NRA soldiers to defect. From Tingzhou they expanded the Jiangxi Soviet to encompass over 20 counties in Jiangxi and Fujian. In light of their major accomplishments, Mao Zedong dispatched word to the Central Committee proclaiming all they had done in Jiangxi and Fujian. In May the Red Army unleashed a second campaign into western Fujian, this time capturing Longyan and Yongding. With every successful campaign the Red Army recruits more soldiers, obtained more equipment, more territory and acquired further fundings sources.  The early days of the Jiangxi Soviet were quite chaotic. Despite the Red Army's expansion, in reality they were not a unified force. Numerous factions with their own ideologies existed. The Red Army was an amalgamation of different groups coming together less so of a common goal, more so out of survival. Many of the soldiers were former peasants, but there were also former NRA troops, warlord troops and bandits. The traditions of these different groups, coupled with a lack of education in the rural areas creating a boiling pot of bad behaviors and this hurt morale. To accommodate this the Red Army made itself extremely flexible in the early days. In the early days it was only about survival. Mao Zedong and Zhu De recognized the fact, in a conventional battle the Red Army stood no chance against even a Warlord Army, let alone the NRA. Thus the 4th army created a new political-military strategy within the rural areas to protect and grow the revolution. The first part of the strategy adopted by Mao Zedong was making alliances. It was a no brainer, increase numbers, gain more legitimacy, learn more about local areas, keep expanding. Yet the Central Committee frowned upon being too open to alliance, like with lets say, bandits? In 1928 a resolution from the CCP 6th Party Congress called for expelling bandits from the Red Army, but this obviously ran counter to everything going on in Jinggangshan. To remedy this, Mao Zedong simply did not comply and vetoed any plans made against the bandit leaders such as Yuan and Wang. The second strategy was adapting communist policies to local conditions. Contrary to the CCP guidance of attacking landlords and rich peasants, the Red Army tended to just attack those disliked by the local community. They often would avoid attacking popular landlords or rich peasants because it could endanger local support. Instead they would use propaganda and negotiations to win over such popular figures. Yet over time the strategies changed from survival to expansion. Mao Zedong described the CCP expansion to come in a series of waves. He believed a systematic development of rural Soviets was an effective way to encircle cities and create the conditions necessary for revolution.  To survive and expand the Red Army had to create a new way to fight their superior enemies. A famous slogan “the enemy advances, we retreat”, became doctrine quickly. The Red Army combined mobile warfare, guerilla warfare and propaganda against their rival the KMT. During the Jingangshan and Jiangxi Soviet period, guerilla warfare was the mainstay. It's purpose was not to gain victory, but to gain time, so the CCP could continue growing. The Red Army in Jinggangshan and Jiangxi focused on small-unit tactics, emphasizing scouting, patrolling, ambushing, mobility and so on. Most guerilla units were local militia units trained by Red Army officers, many of whom were also political leaders. They always sought to meet the enemy via ambush, during a raid, a feint attack or attacks to the rear and flank. Yet the Red Army did often find itself facing those like the NRA in conventional warfare. For these engagements it tended to be done only by the professional Red Army units. A major issue facing the Reds was logistics. They were guests in most of the areas they occupied and had to abide by the local customs. They also could not consume all the local resources in an area, it would hinder growth and foster resentment. Thus the Red Army had to make sure they gained as much as possible from battle. The capture of Tingzhou in 1929 was essentially an economic choice. There the Red Army captured 2 arsenals and a clothing factory. The Red Army also focused strongly on propaganda. Early on propaganda teams were created, each assigned 5 soldiers. These teams had one oratory section and one product section. The oratory section was responsible for spreading propaganda in village markets, centers and halls. The products section was responsible for creating propaganda products. They would go around towns placing up signs and banners to increase awareness. Typically in a month the propaganda teams would hold a large mass rally in the center part of town to vie for local support. They would try to tailor their messaging to meet the local needs. These efforts would help recruitment, elicit support and differentiate them from the run of the mill bandits. If the conditions became ripe and a local populace was sufficiently agitated by social inequalities, the Red Army leaders would make a call for action to topple the local government and push the people to create their own. The Red Army was very careful on who to replace in such situations as the local leadership typically proved useful at transitioning. The Red Army had a selective way of executing key leaders who would be the most troublesome towards their communist needs.  When a new local government sprung up, the CCP would entice everyone to join the Red Army. This saw people join different parts of the Red Army. For teenagers there was the communist youth organization which was basically a feeder unit into the Red Army. The Red Guard was a local militia group that protected the community and supplemented the Red Army when needed. Those who proved themselves capable could join the Red Army proper. The Red Army instituted a series of organizational changes to establish loyalty to the CCP and allow for a dispersion of forces. Initially the Red Army applied the Russian Soviet and NRA models, but changes were necessary to meet local conditions. When the 4th Red Army captured Sanwan, Mao Zedong established party rule over the army by using party representatives and soldier soviets. The party representatives and army leaders held equal footing, allowing for both to have greater oversight into the issues and concerns of the other. It was commonplace in Warlord armies and the NRA for soldiers to be abused. This quasi democratization allowed soldiers to have a greater voice. On June 22nd of 1929 the 4th Red Army held their 7th representative congress in Longyan. Mao Zedong spoke much of party control over the military, ruffling a lot of feathers and would contribute to his failure at becoming the Front Committee secretary General that year. In the wake of that loss, Mao Zedong departed for Fujian to assist the mass mobilization going on over there whence he became quite ill. During that period, Chen Yi representing the 4th Red Army in Shanghai reported to the Central Committee. Based on his reports they authorized political communist control over the Red Army units. At least vindicated that his ideas were accepted, Mao Zedong attended the 9th Representative Congress in Gutian county of Fujian. Here he would issue a famous statement “On the Rectification of Incorrect Ideas in the Party” . It outlined his views on the Red Army and what needed to be improved. That same conference gave a platform to Mao Zedong and Zhu De to push for further centralization of power within the Red Army. The Red Army had suffered numerous casualties, desertions and received numerous new recruits. Because of this Mao Zedong believed the military structure needed change. There was also the issue of factionalism within the Red Army. Mao Zedong believed more educated and centralized control would help maintain the unity of the armed forces.  In December of 1929 a conference was held in Gutian seeing more initiatives adopted to help consolidate military power under party control. The Red Army adopted the political commissariat system from the Soviet Red Army, placing greater control of the army into the hands of the political commissar. The political commissar had political training, but did not have the same power over political operations. The introduction of former KMT and NRA members into the Red Army increased a need for more political indoctrination. Alongside this the Gutian Conference reiterated the equality amongst soldiers and civilians. Mao Zedong and Zhu De understood the important role of military training for the Red Army. Two major groups of soldiers already had formal training, former NRA and graduates of the Peasant movement training institute. Many of these men were lost in the initial battles however leading the Red Army to be filled with peasants with little to any combat experience. Another issue was the Red Guards lacking any experience, requiring Red Officers to be pulled from front lines to help them out. By developing a competent and trained local force, this further allowed the Red Army to advance outside its borders and expand.  With a lack of discipline a lot of property damage became common. To combat this, Mao Zedong initially instituted three disciplines in 1927 (1) obey orders in all your actions; (2) don't take anything from the workers and peasants; and (3) when attacking the local bullies, turn over whatever you take from them. This was expanded further into 8 by 1930 (1) Put back the doors [you have taken down for bed boards]; (2) put back the straw [you have used for bedding]; (3) pay fairly for what you buy; (4) return everything you borrow; and (5) pay for anything you damage. Mao and Zhu later added two more points of attention: (7) defecate only in latrines, and (8) do not steal from captives. The purpose of such rules was two-fold, to curb reckless soldierly behavior and to not piss off local communities.  Yet discipline alone does not guarantee success in war. The 4th Army held many senior leaders who had trained at Baoding, Whampoa and the Yunnan military schools. But at the lower levels the military experience was quite uneven. The Red Army needed to create a universal standard. Mao Zedong established the first training unit, the 31st regiment training units in December of 1927 at the Longjiang academy in the Jingangshan mountains. Zhu De and Chen Yi would create similar units. Once in Jiangxi the Red Army established mobile schools that accompanied the forces to the front lines. The pressure from the KMT led encirclement campaigns made it impossible to implement a normal education system. While schools were important, for many soldiers the only way to learn was from doing. Sometimes conditions did not allow for the training, and the students were thrust into combat immediately. Mao stated “to learn warfare through warfare—this is our chief method.” However many of the new recruits and junior leaders never received formal education and found classes and training boring. To retain interest, practical exercises were used. By the beginning of 1930, the 4th Red Army had expanded from Jinggangshan to Jiangxi, Hunan and Fujian. Additionally 7 other Soviets were established in the interior of China, demonstrating the viability of the CCP model. For a large part it was the efforts of Mao Zedong and Zhu De that allowed the CCP to thrive. However major issues loomed externally and internally. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Mao Zedong had forged a seed in the Jinggangshan mountains the would grow into the base of a new 4th Red Army. Forming alliances with local groups and adopting new innovative strategies to survive allowed the 4th Red Army to expand and with it Mao Zedong's career. Yet externally and internally enemies lay everywhere.   

Last time we spoke about the first Encirclement Campaign against the CCP. Amidst ongoing attacks, the communist movement thrived in rural Jiangxi, even as urban support dwindled. Li Lisan championed urban uprisings, opposing Mao Zedong's focus on rural encirclement. Failed assaults on Nanchang and Changsha highlighted their discord. The Red Army's strategy shifted after capturing Ji'an, bolstered by peasant support. As the NRA prepared an encirclement, Mao proposed luring them deep before striking. Internal strife peaked with the Futian Incident, leading to a purge that solidified Mao's power but weakened the Red Army's defenses. Amidst internal strife, the NRA launched attacks on the Reds but faced fierce resistance. Lu Diping's forces encircled Donggu, leading to heavy losses as artillery mistakenly struck their own troops. The Reds capitalized on local support and guerrilla tactics, inflicting significant defeats on the NRA in Longgang and Dongshao. Despite Chiang Kai-Shek's attempts to reclaim territory, the Reds successfully executed a series of ambushes and strategic retreats. By the end of the campaign, the Jiangxi Soviet expanded significantly, validating Mao's strategies and shifting public favor towards the communists.   #124 Sino-Tibetan War of 1930–1932 Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. For those who know their Sino history, we are drawing close to the year of 1931. This is arguably the year WW2 actually began, some of you might be confused by that statement, but I assure you mainland Chinese would argue this point very much. Once we breach that door its going to be a very long time before we can talk about the multiple other things going on in China. For example, a lot happens in China's northwest. So I thought it would be best to tackle some of that before we jump into the 15 year China War. Do forgive me for being a tease. So the first thing I wanted to talk about is the Second Sino-Tibetan War of 1930-1932. Now this is a huge can of worms as they say and to truly understand it we need to cover a lot of history. There has always been conflict between whatever we consider historically China and Tibet. Historians have often broken things down into three major conflicts during the early 20th century that led directly to the second Sino-Tibetan War. After the outbreak of the Xinhai Revolution, the 13th Dalai Lama closely monitored the political changes in mainland China and the situation of the central government's officials and military stationed in Tibet, preparing to organize Tibetan forces and initiate an anti-Han Incident movement. In March 1912, the Dalai Lama issued a "Public Letter" through the Ganden Palace via the Kashag. The Kashag was the governing council of Tibet during the rule of the Qing  all the way to the 1950s. Following the release of this letter, the 13th Dalai Lama immediately formed a "Tibetan People's Army" of over ten thousand troops, deciding to use force to expel the Sichuanese army. The Tibetan forces first dealt with the Sichuan troops stationed in Yadong, Jiangzi, and Shigatse, and then besieged the Sichuan troops in Lhasa. Fearing being attacked from both within and outside, the Tibetan forces hastened to eliminate the Sichuan troops already within Tibet. The local Tibetan authorities also initiated an offensive against the region known as the Kham in the west of Sichuan. After 1939 this would be called Xikang, so to make things easier I will refer to it as such. The extensive eastward expansion of the Tibetan army shocked the entire nation, prompting military and political figures from Sichuan, Yunnan, and other areas to issue telegrams or contact the central government, demanding military action to quell the unrest and stabilize Tibet. In response to the chaotic situation in Tibet and Xikang, the Yuan Shikai government adopted a strategy of sending troops to suppress it. On May 25, 1912, Yuan Shikai issued an order for a westward expedition, and on June 14, the Beiyang government directed Governor of Sichuan,Yin Changheng to lead the troops westward. On July 10  Yin Changheng led 2,500 Sichuan troops westward from Chengdu. At the same time, Cai E also dispatched Yunnanese troops northward to meet the Sichuan army in Tibet. In August, the Sichuan army split into two routes: the southern route led by Zhu Senlin attacked Hekou, modern day Yajiang and Litang, defeating the Tibetan troops and capturing the key strongholds of Maguizong, Jianzibay, and Xie Luoluo, subsequently laying siege to Litang; the northern route was led by Liu Ruilin, who provided assistance to Chengdu and Batang. Meanwhile, the Yunnanese troops entered Tibet via the Nu River, capturing the gateway of Yanjing in northern Yunnan. At the end of August, Liu Ruilin attacked the eastern Tibetan stronghold of Chengdu. On September 3, Zhu Senlin's forces captured Litang and recaptured Gongjue, Sanyan, and Tongpu; shortly thereafter, the areas of Zhanhua, Baiyu, Daocheng, Xiangcheng, and Zha Ya also surrendered. On September 16, the western expeditionary army advanced westward from Chengdu, attacking Jiangda. By the end of September, the western expeditionary army had recovered all territories belonging to the late Qing dynasty's Sichuan-Yunnan border affairs department, except for the counties of Kema and Chayu in the southern route, and Dingqing represented by roughly 39 clans, Shobanduo, Lari, and Jiangda in the northern route.  On September 12, the Beijing government ordered the change of Jiangda in Tibet to Taizhou Prefecture, Lari to Jiali Prefecture, and Shobanduo to Shodu Prefecture. On the 25th, Yin Changheng was appointed as the pacification envoy at the Sichuan border, overseeing the Xikang region, which was divided into the eastern and western border areas, governing the six prefectures of Kangding, Lihua, Ba'an, Dengke, Chengdu, and Jiahe, as well as the two states of Dehua and Ganzi. Just as the western expeditionary army was achieving victory and preparing to enter Tibet from Kangding, the British colonial authorities publicly intervened, trying to prevent the expeditionary army from entering Tibet. Under British pressure, Yuan Shikai was forced to order the Sichuan and Yunnan armies to delay their advance, effectively halting their progress at the Nu River line. At the same time, the Beiyang government's policy towards Tibet shifted from suppression to pacification. Although the Sichuan and Yunnan armies ceased their military actions against Tibet, the significance of the western expedition was profound, as it enabled the central government to basically recover Xikang and played a significant role in curbing the British colonizers and Tibetan separatist forces, preventing Tibet from repeating the fate of Outer Mongolia. Thus ended the first period of conflict. What proceeded was known as the Simla Convention, we actually covered that event in some detail a long time ago in this series. More or less the convention divided Tibet into Outer and Inner Tibet, which also were referred to as U-Tsang and western Kham, ie: Xikang. With the support and assistance of Britain, the Tibetan local government gathered troops in Eastern Tibet to confront the Sichuan army, aiming to use military force to advance the control area of the Tibetan government to Dajianlu. In September 1917, two Tibetan soldiers from the Lhoka area invaded the Sichuan army's defense zone and were captured and sent to Chengdu by the border troops. After questioning by Commander Peng Risheng, it was made clear that the captured Tibetans would have to be detained. Tibet sent a letter to negotiate, requesting the return of the captured Tibetans, to be handled by Tibetan officials. Peng, without assessing the situation, executed the captured individuals and sent their heads back, which obviously infuriated the Tibetans, leading them to mobilize a large force to attack En and Lhoka. The British immediately supplied the Tibetan army with 5,000 quick-firing rifles and 5 million rounds of ammunition to support a large-scale offensive against Enda County and Lhoka. By January 1918, Enda County had fallen, and the counties of Chaya, Ningjing, and Changdu were all under attack from the well-armed Tibetan army. In March, Ningjing County was lost, and the Chengdu garrison, who were quote “surrounded on all sides, though there was plenty of food in the city, had run out of ammunition.” In June, the Tibetan army captured Chengdu, and after accepting Peng Risheng's surrender, advanced rapidly eastward across the Ningjing Mountains and the Jinsha River, capturing the counties of Dege, Dengke, Shiqu, Baiyu, Gongxian, Wucheng, and Ningjing, until they were stopped by fierce fighting from the border troops at Ganzi.  On August 8, 1918, the Dalai Lama expressed his unwillingness to oppose what he called “the Chinese benefactor” but agreed to ceasefire negotiations. On August 21, a ceasefire agreement consisting of thirteen articles was reached in Chengdu among Liu Zanting, a representative of the Sichuan border troops, Jiangbadan, a representative of the Tibetan side, and a representative of the British government. They agreed that the Tibetan army would withdraw from the recently occupied counties of Zhanhua and Ganzi and return them to the Sichuan border, while the remaining occupied counties would be managed by Tibetan officials. They also agreed to a ceasefire for one year starting from October 17, 1918, awaiting a resolution to the Tibetan issue from the central government and the Dalai Lama. This “Thirteen-Article Agreement” effectively recognized the Tibetan army's occupation of the border areas in legal terms. After this, Chengdu and the aforementioned seven counties west of the Jinsha River came under the control of the Tibetan local government. Thus ended the second period of conflict.  Here we come to the year of 1930. Now a lot had occurred during the 1920's. The Beiyang government had tried to maintain the indirect administrative structures of the former Qing Dynasty. In the absence of effective Chinese political control over Tibet, implementation of national policy fell onto regional actors, in this case Fu Zuoyi in Suiyuan and Liu Wenhui in Xikang. Along the Qinghai/Amdo frontier, Sino-Muslim leaders like Ma Bufang projected military authority from the provincial capital of Xining. Now a lot of what we are about to talk about revolves around a place called Yushu. Yushu is a mountainous region of the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau. The Tanggula Mountains form the southwestern boundary of Yushu, bordering Tibet. In the largely uninhabitable northwestern region of Yushu, you'll find the renowned Kekexili nature reserve and the railway connecting Xining to Lhasa. The main branch of the Kunlun Mountains, which splits Qinghai province into northern and southern regions, forms Yushu's northern boundary, while a branch of the Kunlun range, the Bayanhar Mountains, defines its northeastern edge. Yushu is the source of three of Asia's major rivers. The northeasternmost section of Yushu drains into the Yellow River as it flows towards Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu. Central and southeastern Yushu give rise to the headwaters of the Mekong and Yangzi, known locally as the Zhaqu and Tongtian rivers. The Qinghai provincial government emphasized the region's prominent topographical features—mountain ranges and river systems. Provincial reports meticulously described the mountain passes that link Yushu to key areas such as Lhasa, Chengdu in Xikang, Sichuan, Xinjiang, and Xining, along with the challenging passes within Yushu. Yushu is a very difficult terrain for communication and transportation, quite the obstacle for governance. The journey between the provincial capital and Yushu totaled over 1620 li, a highway connecting such a path would not be built until 1944. A strong local governance was found in the form of Tibetan tribes known as the 25 peoples of Yushu. Yet the Qinghai provincial government sought to govern the land and those in Xining viewed Yushu as a barbarian region, where pastoral nomadism reigned. They would speak of Yushu as being an endless steppe inhabited by barbaric people who wandered aimlessly. Yushu had a complicated economic geography with monasteries occupying the richest land and concentrating monetary, spiritual, and political power on the local scale and pastoral tribes migrating in the areas in between. The monasteries acted as sites for periodic markets of trade, throughout Yushu. As much as they were Tibetan Buddhist monasteries for religious devotion, they were also landowners with powers of taxation. The hereditary tribal ladders of the 25 peoples of Yushu were thus a secondary network of political and economic authority in Yushu. The pastoral tribes who traversed the borderless region of Yushu, Xikang and Kham confused outsiders. The Beiyang government, as I have said, tried to simply adopt the former Qing policies. For Yushu they were ruling through an indirect system of local headmen. Each tribe determined their title, either company commander or battalion commander and were responsible for bi-annual taxes and periodic military conscription to the government in Xining. One of these tribal leaders, Cai Zuozhen, the leader of the Buqing tribe came from Huangyuan, lying between Xining and the Riyue mountains. His father worked as a translator for the Xining tribute tax collection missions. The 1920's were continuous years of strife, especially between the tribes. No governing body really understood or had any real control over the region. In 1929 Yusuhu became an official county and on August 6th of that year, Ma Qi advocated an 8 point plan for calming her border problems. The plan included reconstructing a civilian government, promoting Tibetan Buddhism, opening more land for agriculture, training troops, establishing factories and mills, improving transportation and securing borders. He sought to implement all of this through the Yushu county government. However in the same year the Civil Affairs Bureau recommended adding 7 new counties some of which would carve chunks out of Yushu. The plan never materialized due to ongoing government difficulties, but remained on the table. In the meantime the government began a provincial level training program for self-government regions within Qinghai. 50 graduates came out of this program, none came from or were sent to Yushu. By the late 1920's the region was being fought over by multiple parties for multiple reasons. There were 3 overarching reasons for why war would break out. Number 1 was because of the border disputes between Tibet and China. The Tibetans claimed areas inhabited by their people in the neighboring provinces of Qinghai and Sichuan were being ruled by warlords with loose connections to the Nanjing government. 2) There was a dispute between the 13th Dalai Lama and 9th Panchen Lama. To clarify the Panchen Lama is second to the Dalai Lama, to be more specific “the Panchen Lama is the reincarnation of Amithaba, the Buddha of Boundless Light, while the Dalai Lama is the reincarnation of Avalokiteshvara (Chenrezig in Tibetan), the Buddha of Compassion. Traditionally, each acts as mentor to the other, and plays a key role in identifying the other's reincarnation”. Anyways the 9th Panchen Lama had been exiled and seen to be quite pro Chinese. 3) was the complex disputes of the people in regions like Yushu. Now the catalyst for the war was a chieftain from the town of Beri, which is in Yushu but is in an area claimed by Tibet, but under control of Sichuan. This chieftain whose name I cannot for the life of me find, seized items from the Targye Monastery. It is alleged the 9th Panchen Lama incited this action. The monks of the monastery rallied forces and took back the properties. The chieftain then asked for help from the governor of Sichuan, Liu Wenhui. Liu Wenhui unleashed forces into the area, forcing the Targye monks to ask for help from the Tibetan government who drove his men out. Thus began a series of clashes. The KMT Muslim official Tang Kesan was dispatched to negotiate an end to the conflict. Muslim General Ma Fuxiang, as head of the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission, sent a telegram instructing Tang Kesan to break the agreement with Tibet, fearing political rivals in Nanjing were exploiting the situation. In the following years, Tibetan forces launched repeated attacks on Liu Wenhui's troops but were defeated multiple times. In 1932, the Tibetans rallied 6000 troops along the Jinsha river, an area that acted as the boundary between Yushu and Xikang. In response to the Tibetan threat, in March the Qing government established the Qinghai Southern Border Region garrison under Ma Bufang. Two brigades deployed in Yushu; the first brigade was led by Ma Xun and the 2nd by Ma Biao. The Tibetans invaded, but only Ma Biao's men were ready at the border as Ma Xun's were still enroute from the provincial capital. At the time of the attack Ma Biao had one camp of cavalry, alongside some headquarters personnel for a combined total of 400 men. He dispatched his secretary Wang Jiamei to Tibet to try and negotiate a peaceful settlement. It is believe he did this simply to delay the enemy as he immediately telegrammed Ma Bufang for reinforcements, but they would not arrive until mid-june. On March 24th the Tibetans attacked Lesser Surmang, gradually forcing their way into southern Qinghai. After 8 hours of battle, both sides suffered tremendous casualties. During that night within the county seat of Jiegu, Ma Biao convened a conference attended by chieftains, merchants and important town leaders. At the meeting, Ma Biao asserted “our strength is sufficient to protect the lives and property of Yushu's residents. Not only will we resist Tibetan incursions, but in the future we will tie our war horses at the gate of the Tibetan government compound!” However Ma Biao would find it quite difficult to make due on these promises. On March 26th, the Greater Surmang contingent of his forces met 500 Tibetans on the battlefield just southeast of Jiegu. As told to us by Cai Zuozhen “the Tibetans simply overwhelmed the undermanned provincial forces by at least five to one”. They retreated to a camp near Duolongduo where they quickly became surrounded by Tibetan forces. At the same time a detachment of other provincial forces at Lesser Surman, just 30 men were encircled by 100 Tibetans. The provincial forces continuously retreated in the face of an enemy 5-10 times larger than them. The Tibetans methodically seized territory heading north to encircle the county seat of Jiegu. At the same time a contingent of 300 troops from Xikang forded the Tongtian river to attack the monasteries at Labu and Xiewu situated on the two vital thoroughfares heading north to Jiegu. The Tibetans held a strong military position and in one incredible move sweeped and occupied all the areas surrounding Jiegu's southern portion, severing the county seats communication with Xining. Jiegu was the site of Yushu's county government and nominally held the headquarters of the southern Qinghai garrison, thus it was the key holding Xining's position in the southern borderlands. Now outnumbered 10 to 1 by the Tibetans and with their communications severed, the situation for Xining and the Qinghai forces was quite dire. It seemed likely the Tibetans would shut the door, locking Xining out. The Southern Qinghai border region garrison, a mouthful to be sure, under Ma Biao were digging in for a long drawn out defense of the Yushu county seat while Xining went into a frenzy of actions. On April 19th, Ma Lin and Ma Bufang telegrammed the Military affairs commission in Nanjing with strong recommendations for improving the situation. They wanted to move the Southern Qinghai garrison roughly 20 li west of Jiegu and station a regiment between Jiegu and Xining at Daheba to protect the lines of communication. They also requested 2000 rifles, 20,000 rounds of ammunition, 40,000 yuan and 5 wireless telegraphs. While this sounds like peanuts, but do remember Japan is currently full blown invading Manchuria. On the last day of april, Ma Bufang requested Ma Lin dispatch the Southern Qing Border Region garrison's 1st brigade commander Ma Xun, cause everyone's a Ma in this episode, to the southern front as Yushu's Pacification Commissioner. He also again stated he wanted a peaceful settlement to the conflict. 4 days later, Ma Bufang and Ma Lin telegrammed Xi'an announcing Ma Xun's appointment as “Yushu xuanwei shi”, the Yushu Pacification Commissioner. Yet it was not until May 24th, that Nanjing's response reached Xining via Xi'an. Within the communique, Chiang Kai-Shek approved their suggestions and would meet their requests for military aid although at lower levels than requested. Only one wireless telegraph set was sent by Nanjing, but it dramatically improved communications.  On May 26th, Ma Xun departed Xining for Yushu with others stating “regardless of whether peace can be maintained, the communications route between the provincial capital and Jiegu must be protected at all costs”. Ma Xun departed with roughly a regiment of 100 troops, some provincial officials with Mongolian and Tibetan language skills, and a surveyor. Meanwhile Ma Bufang led another expeditionary force as far as Daheba, the site of a proposed garrison between Xining and Jiegu. Ma Xun's Mongolian and Tibetan specialists had orders from Nanjing to visit Qinghai and awe the “barbarians” into loyalty to the new government by offering them doctors, dentists, botanists and anyone who could dazzle the “backward superstitious locals”.  For two months, Ma Biao and his men struggled to maintain Jiegu's defenses, till finally on June 18th, Ma Xun's group arrived. He would soon be followed up by 2 waves of reinforcements on August 20th and September 20th. Despite efforts made by Cai Zuozhen and other small contingents of Qinghai troops, the Tibetans simply have overwhelming numbers. The Qinghai troops however inflicted much more casualties upon them when they fought. A battle broke out on June 27th at the Changu Monastery, 5 li south of the county seat, where Qinghai forces led by Ma Biao defeated a Tibetan force twice their side who also enjoyed high ground advantage. The same forces also fought again near the Tongtian River due north of Jiegu where the Tibetans were forced to withdraw. It also seemed the Tibetans lacked adequate artillery, as was evident with their inability to take Jiegu. Many of the civilians within Jiegu noted the Tibetans fired over forty cannon rounds into the city, but none of the rounds exploded. On July 23rd, Ma Bufang dispatched a regiment led by La Pingfu to Yushu. Despite the combined forces of Ma Biao and Ma Xun engaging the Tibetans three times, they had still not seen the full strength of the Tibetans. There was a great concern on the Chinese side that the Tibetans were trying to lure as many in as possible before overwhelming them with numbers. Ma Bufang also dispatched reinforcements led by Ma Lu to the southern borderlands. On August 20th, La Pingfu arrived at Jiegu and freed the city of a Tibetan encirclement. La Pingfu's troops were exhausted from the incredible 20 day march through insane terrain, they quickly took up defensive positions. This allowed the forces of Ma Biao and Ma Xun to depart south with 800 local militiamen to attack the Tibetans. They found Tibetans in the dead of night. The Qinghai forces used Dadao dui swords to hack them during hand to hand combat. The Tibetans dispersed, but reorganized themselves the next morning. The Qinghai forces took some high ground and met the counter attack, this time decisively defeating the Tibetans who suffered tremendous casualties. After four months, the Jiegu encirclement seemed to finally be broken. Afterwards the Qinghai forces formed three groups to advance south to retake lost territory. Ma Biao and Ma Xun led route armies while La Pingfu followed behind. Ma Bufang ordered a punitive mission against the local Tibetans, hoping they would simply withdraw from Yushu peacefully. He also ordered law and order to be brought back to the region. Military commanders were to gather local religious and political elites who could deal with the inevitable issues like refugee waves. To further push the Tibetans to pull out orders were mandated that medical care be given to wounded Tibetan soldiers with promises of funding for their return journey to Tibet as POW's. Me Bufang also issued communiques to all the inhabitants of Yushu asking them to get their local leaders and militia to expel Tibetan soldiers, promising rewards. Cai Zuozhen's reports differed greatly from Ma Bufang's orders. Cai Zuozhen received reports for example that Ma Biao's men routinely killed POW's, attacked Tibetan civilians and robbed Tibetan merchants. Cai Zuozhen would go on the record to accuse Qinghai forces of burning entire villages, looting monasteries, raping women and even nuns. During this time folk songs emerged in Qinghai talking about bitter lives under the oppression of Xining overlords who conscripted soldiers, stole horses and property to feed themselves on “human soup” while the common people ate husks and chafe. It was often sung “the sun doesn't rise in the Ma Family's Qinghai” As the Qinghai troops continued advancing south they punished locals for helping Tibetans. One local headman in Nangqian who had helped Tibetans had 10,000 jin of Tsampa, 20,000 jin of barley, 3000 jin of yak butter, 200 head of cattle and 40 sheep commandeered by Ma Biao. Many headmen would be forced to give goods to Ma Xun, Ma Biao and La Pingfu, such things as pelts, antlers, horses and money. It was said Ma Biao took enough to be worth 2000 silver dollars from the nomads of Laxiu. During late August and early September, the Qinghai forces fought the Tibetans for the Surman region and the southeastern part of Yushu. They unleashed artillery on their enemy, trapping 2000 Tibetans soldiers into a confined area. They encircled them and systematically annihilated them, massacring 200. Little Surmang quickly came back under Xining's control as the Tibetans fled to Greater Surmang. On September 2nd, La Pingfu led 300 men to occupy the rear exit of Greater Surmang. Despite a valiant defense led by two of Tibet's best generals, they suffered a string of defeats and were forced to relinquish Greater Surmang.  Then the third wave of reinforcements arrived from Xining, Ma Lu's brigade who came to Jiegu on September 20th. This effectively solidified the Qinghai position. Ma Lu, Ma Xun, Ma Biao and Ma Biao all met south of Jiegu at Batang where they agreed they would set out for the Jinsha River which marked the border between Yushu and Xikang. There they would decisively defeat the enemy upon the western shore at Xidengke. At the Qingke monastery, facing the Dengke river, a major connecting point to Changde was the Tibetan powerbase in the region. The monastery's defenses were very solid, 3 lines of over 5000 troops. On October 15th, the Qinghai artillery began raining hell upon the monastery as the infantry encircled the area. The Qinghai forces split their approaches attacking and moving while encircling. They were aided by Xikang troops who also bombarded the monastery from across the Jinsha river. The Tibetans could not withstand the joint attacks and gradually gave up their positions. The Qinghai and Xikang armies then connected across the river. Liu Wenhui led the Xikang forces and was communicating with Ma Bufang who ordered his forces to accept orders from the Xikang army.  Many historians believed Liu Wenhui had coordinated this joint military campaign against the Tibetans, taking advantage of the Japanese invasion of Manchuria. It seems Liu Wenhui thought it was an opportune time to “solve the Tibet problem once and for all”, this would have been a hell of an escalation. Liu Wenhui sent word to Ma Bufang who notified Chiang Kai-Shek of their joint operation. However Chiang Kai-Shek demanded they halt hostilities and try negotiations with the Dalai Lama. Meanwhile the Dalai Lama received reports of their string of defeats and the loss of territory east of the Jinsha river, so he agreed to begin negotiations. What came from this was the Qinghai-Tibetan Peace Treaty, which more or less just set everything back to pre-war status quo. The Tibetans would never again pose a serious threat to Qinghai's domination of Yushu. Yushu's strategic passes would remain in Qinghais control well into the founding of the Peoples Republic of China. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. While it would appear as a major side quest in the greater scheme of things, the small war between Tibet and Sichuan was just another example of how not unified China still was. Despite all the grand claims, the new Nanjing government was still overseeing quite a fractured nation, who were about to face the full might of the Empire of the rising sun.   

Last time we spoke about the Chiang-Gui War. China was reunified, but not was all well in Camelot. Chiang Kai-Shek initially popular, faced opposition from various factions, including Northern warlords and rival generals. The KMT decided to relocate the capital from Beijing to Nanking, which sparked resistance from those attached to Beijing's rich history. The KMT then struggled with demobilizing the massive National Revolutionary Army, which had over 2 million troops. Chiang Kai-Shek aimed to reduce this number significantly but faced challenges, including discontent among warlords like Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan. Tensions escalated into the Chiang-Gui War, where Chiang defeated the Guangxi Clique led by Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi. This victory, however, did not end the turmoil as Feng and Yan formed an anti-Chiang coalition with Wang Jingwei. The struggle led to a dramatic showdown, culminating in the Taiyuan Conference where Yan Xishan was promoted to commander-in-chief, setting the stage for further conflict.   #123 The Central Plains War  Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. We last left off with basically every other big dog in China getting ready to gang up on Chiang Kai-Shek. Yan Xishan was now the commander in chief of an anti-chiang coalition with his deputy commanders being Feng Yuxiang, Li Zongren and Zhang Xueliang….however Zhang Xueliang was nowhere to be found. During what has been referred to as the “telegram war” period, the Young Marshal had actually spent the entire time in Mukden frantically telegraming all the significant North Chinese warlords and generals to not join the anti-chiang movement.  To take a small sidestep. In the last episode I explained why Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi and their Guangxi clique turned against Chiang Kai-Shek, but what motivations did someone like Feng Yuxiang and his Guominjun have to do so? A severe famine hit the Guanzhong region of Shaanxi, where Feng Yuxiang held power. This famine, which occurred in the 18th year of the Republic of China, is also referred to as the "Famine of the 18th Year of the Republic of China." Within Shaanxi, a year without any harvest is called a famine year, two consecutive years of poor harvest are also labeled famine years, and three consecutive years are considered a severe famine. During the 18th year of the Republic of China, the region faced an extreme famine with virtually no harvest for six consecutive seasons over three years. Some considered it a once-in-a-century event, while others claimed it was a disaster seen once in 300 years. According to modern historical records and newspaper reports, Shaanxi experienced drought in 1928, which caused poor summer wheat yields, while autumn and winter crops could not be planted due to a lack of rain. By 1929, the drought worsened. No rain fell from spring through autumn, drying up wells and rivers like the Jing, Wei, Han, and Bao. Most trees withered, and crops failed—summer harvests only amounted to 20%, and autumn yields were nonexistent. The famine was so severe that grass roots and tree bark became scarce, with the roads littered with corpses and countless people fleeing the area. According to a report by the Shaanxi Disaster Relief Committee on September 5 of that year, 91 of the province's 92 counties were affected by the drought. Except for a few counties along the Wei River that had some green crops, the rest were barren. Among the 91 counties, 24 were extremely severely affected, 27 severely affected, 15 moderately affected, and 25 slightly affected. The most severely hit areas included Chang'an, Wugong, Fengxiang, Fufeng, Qianxian, Qishan, Meixian, Xingping, Xianyang, Lintong, Weinan, Zhouzhi, and others. Out of a total population of over 9.4 million, 2.5 million people died of starvation, approximately 400,000 fled, and over 200,000 women were sold to other regions such as Henan, Shanxi, Beiping, Tianjin, and Shandong. Back in 1927, Chiang Kai-shek established the KMT's new government in Nanking. By June, Chiang and Feng Yuxiang succeeded in uniting the two Kuomintang warlord factions during the Xuzhou Conference. In February 1928, Chiang and Feng solidified their alliance by becoming sworn brothers. Before the launch of the "Second Northern Expedition," Chiang Kai-shek had control over the central KMT government and occupied affluent areas like Shanghai, Nanjing, and Hangzhou. Feng Yuxiang, on the other hand, controlled the impoverished and remote northwest, where transportation was difficult. He saw the Northern Expedition as an opportunity to expand his own influence, particularly eyeing Beijing and Tianjin for their wealth and strategic transportation routes. After the expedition, Chiang Kai-shek, concerned about Feng's growing power, exploited tensions between Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang. He ceded control of Hebei, Beijing, and Tianjin to Yan Xishan, appointing him commander of the Beijing-Tianjin garrison and allowing his 3rd Army to enter Beijing. Feng's 2nd Army, however, was restricted to Nanyuan and denied entry into the city, which greatly displeased Feng. In response, he ordered his troops to retreat to Shandong and Henan, and feigned illness in Xinxiang, Henan, refusing to travel to Beijing. In the political realm Feng Yuxiang advocated for "civilian politics" and stood against dictatorship. Within the Kuomintang, he opposed Chiang Kai-shek's views, calling for the establishment of a clean government, promoting joint industrial development, providing aid to disaster victims, and fighting corruption. He also opposed salary increases for central government officials, argued for distributing leadership roles based on the strength of different factions, and rejected Chiang Kai-shek's dominance over party matters and the Nanjing government. These positions sharply conflicted with Chiang Kai-shek's ideas. After the success of the "Northern Expedition," Chiang Kai-shek proposed a reorganization of the army. This initiative sparked intense conflict between Chiang and Feng Yuxiang. On July 6, 1928, Chiang invited Feng, Yan Xishan, Li Zongren, and Bai Chongxi to a symposium in Beiping. However, Feng and other faction leaders strongly opposed Chiang's plan to reduce the army, leading to an unsatisfactory end to the meeting. On August 8, 1928, Chiang presided over the Fifth Plenary Session of the Kuomintang's Second Central Committee in Nanjing, where he sought to force the various factions to comply with his military reduction plan. Supported by the Guangdong-born members of the Central Committee, the proposal was passed, and the army reduction plan became part of the Kuomintang's official resolution. Feeling threatened by this plan, Feng traveled along the Longhai Railway, inspecting the Northwest Army, and held a commemorative military parade marking the second anniversary of the Northwest Army's Wuyuan Oath-taking Ceremony. In October 1928, after the reorganization of the Nanjing National Government, Chiang appointed Feng as Vice President of the Executive Yuan and Minister of Military Affairs, asking him to report to Nanjing immediately. Feng, however, refused, citing various excuses. Under increasing public pressure, Feng and other faction leaders were eventually forced to attend the demobilization meeting in Nanjing. On December 26, 1928, Chiang chaired a preparatory meeting for the demobilization conference, using factional politics to manipulate and divide his rivals. Feng proposed a "three haves and three demobilizations" plan, which was initially opposed by Yan Xishan and Li Zongren. Secretly, Chiang won over Yan, encouraging him to submit a proposal that would counter Feng's influence. When the National Demobilization Meeting convened on January 1, 1929, most attendees supported Yan's proposal over Feng's. The "Outline of the Procedure for the Demobilization Committee of the National Army" was passed, favoring Chiang's position. Eventually, Feng, Yan, and Li shifted from opposing each other to uniting against the demobilization process. In March 1929, as we saw in last episode, the Chiang-Gui War broke out. In order to concentrate military forces and eliminate the Guangxi clique, Chiang Kai-shek sent Shao Lizi and others to Huashan to win over Feng Yuxiang. They offered Feng the chance to continue cooperating with Chiang and send troops to help Chiang defeat Guangxi in exchange for the premiership of the Executive Yuan and the territory of Hubei and Hunan provinces. Feng agreed to Chiang's request on the surface. He then frequently deployed troops on the border between Henan and Hubei, hoping to seize the opportunity to send troops to occupy Wuhan when Chiang and Guangxi were both defeated. However, Chiang soon defeated the Guangxi clique, which increased Chiang Kai-shek's resentment and made the contradiction between Chiang and Feng irreconcilable. Now that pretty much covers Feng Yuxiang's motivations, but what about Yan Xishan? In January 1930, after Yan Xishan returned to Taiyuan from Zhengzhou, central Henan began to experience increasing turmoil. On February 10, Yan sent a telegram to Chiang Kai-shek, urging a spirit of courtesy for the country's sake that they "share the burden" to resolve party conflicts. Chiang responded on February 12 with a telegram stating, "Revolution to save the country is an obligation, not a right. The country is in dire straits, and it is not the time for us to be arrogant." By February 21, Li Zongren, Huang Shaohong, Bai Chongxi, Zhang Fakui, and Hu Zongduo all stated supported Yan Xishan to be the commander-in-chief of the anti-chiang national army, navy, and air force. In many ways the issue was simply thrust onto him. Meanwhile Yan Xishan's army went to Peiping, current day Beijing, disarming the KMT forces there and setting up a HQ. With perhaps a stronger backing, Chiang Kai-Shek would have gone to war against the anti-chiang cabal much earlier, but was reluctant to do so now. The terrain was the difficulty, he would have to fight his way into Shandong, where the local sympathy rested on Feng Yuxiang. So for now he battled them through the use of diplomacy. Within the chaos, the CCP also managed to cut their own piece of the pie by capturing Changsha in late July. They would only hold the city for a few days however, before burning it down and fleeing. Early into the conflict Chiang Kai-Shek's attention was drawn to Manchuria. The Young Marshal had not made a move in either direction and he was sitting upon an army 200,000 plus strong. Where did his sympathies truly lie, everyone was waiting to see. Chiang Kai-Shek believed chances were slim the Young Marshal would rebel against him, he was not very much like his tiger of a father. Zhang Xueliang was a thinker, an idealistic and most importantly he had been an opium addict for a long time. Such a life conditioned the young man to be a lot more passive. Zhang Xueliang seemed to be looking to pledge himself to a real leader who could deliver salvation to China. But who was the better choice for him? Chiang Kai-Shek or Wang Jingwei? Chiang Kai-Shek did not wait for an official answer to this question he hastily announced that Zhang Xueliang was his new deputy commander in chief. Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan followed this up by offering Zhang Xueliang a place in the Peiping state council, yet Zhang Xueliang remained quiet until the middle of September. It was a real nail bitter for both sides, Zhang Xueliang had a large, decently trained and pretty well armed army, he would tip the tides for either side. The waiting game had Yan Xishan thinking strongly about pulling out of the coalition. In the meantime the war truly began to heat up in May when Chiang Kai-Shek swore a public oath to attack Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang. On May 11th, both sides began engaged another along a north and south front. The main battlefield in the north was centered around Henan with a secondary front in Shandong fought mainly along the Pinghan, Longhai and Jinpu railways. In the southern theater the fighting was fought mainly in the Yuezhou, Changsha and Xiangjiang river areas. To be more specific the anti-Chiang Kai-shek army organized a total of 8 war front areas: the Guangxi clique army was the 1st front, led by Li Zongren, going north from Hunan and heading towards Wuhan; the Northwest Army was the 2nd front, led by Feng Yuxiang, with Lu Zhonglin being responsible for the Longhai and Pinghan lines in Henan; the Shanxi Army was the 3rd front, led by Yan Xishan, with Xu Yongchang responsible for the Jinpu and Jiaoji lines and the eastern section of the Longhai line in Shandong; Shi Yousan's troops were the 4th front; the Northeast Army, which was designated by Zhang Xueliang, was the 5th front though whether he took up the post or not was yet to be seen; Liu Wenhui's troops were the 6th front; He Jian's troops were the 7th front, and Fan Zhongxiu's troops were the 8th front. The Northwest Army and the Shanxi Army, as the main forces, had been fully mobilized and marched to the Longhai, Pinghan, and Jinpu lines. Yan also appointed Shi Yousan as the chairman of Shandong Province, leading his troops to attack Shandong from Henan, and appointed Sun Dianying as the chairman of Anhui Province, attacking the Bozhou area of ​​Anhui. Altogether the Anti-Chiang forces were about 260,000 men strong The fighting kicked off in mid May. The strategy of the anti-Chiang army was for the first front army, the Guangxi army led by Li Zongren to march into Hunan and advance towards Wuhan; the second front army, the Northwestern Army of Feng Yuxiang, was responsible for the Longhai and Pinghan routes in Henan Province, and would attack Xuzhou and Wuhan respectively; the third front army, the Shanxi Army of Yan Xishan was responsible for the operations along the Jinpu and Jiaoji routes in Shandong Province. It would join Feng Yuxiang to attack Xuzhou, then advance southward along the Jinpu Line and attack Nanking; Shi Yousan was in charge of the Fourth Front Army, which would use its main forces to attack Jining and Yanzhou, and would use part of its forces to join the Third Front Army in the attack on Jinan; Zhang Xueliang's Northeast Army was designated as the Fifth Front Army, and efforts were made to jointly fight against Chiang Kai-shek, but again his status was still unknown; Liu Wenhui of Sichuan was appointed as the Sixth Front Army, and He Jian of Hunan was appointed as the Seventh Front Army. In order to encourage generals of non-directly affiliated units, Shi Yousan was appointed as the chairman of Shandong Province, Wan Xuancai as the chairman of Henan Province, and Sun Dianying as the chairman of Anhui Province. After this, Fan Zhongxiu was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Eighth Front Army. Chiang Kai-Shek deployed the NRA 2nd Corps led by Liu Zhi along the Longhai railway line; the 3rd Crops of H Chengjun was deployed on the Pinhan line; the 1st Corps of Han Fuju was deployed along the Jinpu line and Chiang Kai-Shek set up his HQ in Xuzhou to personally command forces. On May 11th, Chiang Kai-Shek issued his general attack orders, with the 2nd corps attacking Guide from Xuzhou. The two sides began clashing, with the KMT gaining the upper hand rather quickly as they held an advantage in air power. A NRA division led by Chen Jicheng occupied Mamuji due east of Guide. Then Liu Maoen defected to Chiang Kai-Shek handing his forces over at Ningling while also luring Colonel Wan Xuancai into a trap. This left Guide to be easily captured by Chiang's forces as the only other enemy division was that of Sun Dianying who withdrew to Bozhou. Although Chiang Kai-Shek had won technically the first major battle, his situation was not at all enviable.  After losing Guide, Yan Xishan urgently reinforced the Longhai Railway line area with divisions led by Yang Yaofang, Sun Laingcheng and Ji Hongchang. This saw Chiang Kai-Sheks forces suffer extremely heavy losses over the course of 10 days of fighting. Chiang Kai-Sheks forces were reeling from the fierce fighting and forced to retreat into the southwestern portion of Shandong. Along the Pinghan railway, Chiang Kai-Shek ordered He Chengjun's 3rd Corps to depart the Yancheng area and attack northwards. The 3rd Corps quickly found themselves fighting the northwest Army in the Linying and Xuchang areas. The 3rd Corps were trying to contain and isolate the northwest army who were currently receiving reinforcements along the Longhai line.  On May 25th, He Jians forces began occupying Linying and by Juny 7th Xuchang. At this time the Guangxi army invaded Hunan and by the 28th of May had taken Yongzhou, Qiyang, Hangzhou and Baoqing. On June 8th they took Changsha and Yueyang, with their vanguard entering Hubei. Feng Yuxiang took advantage of the situation to launch a full scale attack along the Pingham line. After two days of fighting, Chiang Kai-Sheks men were retreating south to Luohe. However, Feng Yuxiang made an error. His subordinates urged him to link up with the Guangxi army and attack Wuhan. Instead he ordered his forces to advance into eastern Henan where he might annihilate a large portion of Chiang Kai-Sheks army. Meanwhile Chiang Kai-Shek had suffered major defeats across the Longhai and Pingham lines and lost the key city of Changsha, his men were demoralized. By mid June Feng Yuxiang adjusted his battle plan and launched another offensive along the Longhai line as Chiang Kai-Shek came to Liuhe to supervise the battle. Chiang Kai-Shek tossed some of his elite divisions equipped with heavy artillery to attack Feng Yuxiang from Qixian to Taikang, hoping to seize Kaifeng and Chenliu. Yet he fell directly into a pocket-sized encirclement and his forces were battered. Over on the Jinpu line front, Yan Xishan had organized 6 divisions and 3 artillery regiments to perform an offensive against Jinan. They advanced south along the Jinpu line and formed two pincers against the city. Han Fuju knew he would lose considerable forces in a defense of the city and ended up simply pulling out to conserve his strength, handing Jinan over.  July brought significant change to the war. Over in Hunan, Chiang Kai-Shek organized 3 armies to counterattack Changsha; a naval fleet under Chen Skaokuan would assist them and he ordered the 8th route army under Jiang Hauangnai and Cai Tingkai to retake Hengyang. The Guangxi army could not focus on two fronts, so they abandoned Yueyang and Changsha to meet the enemy at Hengyang. The two sides fought bitterly in southern Hunan, but by July 4th the Guangxi army was forced to retreat to the province of Guangxi. Afterwards Chiang Kai-Shek's forces took Bozhou within the Longhai/Jinpu triangle area, effectively trapping forces led by Sun Dianying. On July 8th Chiang Kai-Shek diverted a bunch of divisions from the Longhai line to the Jinpu Line. By the end of the month Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed a general offensive along the Jinpu line. Feng Yuxiang retaliated by launching an offensive over the Longhai line trying to seize Xuzhou. Feng Yuxiang hoped by doing so he could unite the Jinpu and Longhai lines for a combined assault of Xuzhou. Chiang Kai-Sheks Longhai forces were quickly pushed back to an area south of Guide, but mother nature tossed a curveball. Colossal amounts of rain caused river floodings, forcing Feng Yuxiangs men to advance through mud greatly diminishing his supply lines. It was enough to give Chiang Kai-Shek time to stabilize the front as his offensive on the Jinpu line successfully recaptured Jinan by August 15th.  On August 21st Chiang Kai-Shek convened a meeting in Jinan where it was decided they would divert forces from the Jinpu line to the Longhai and Pinghan lines. They would focus the most on the Pinghan line while forces on the Longhai line would try to cut off the retreat of Feng Yuxiang's army. Chiang Kai-Shek even offered 200,00 yuan for the first unit to take Gongxian and 1 million yuan for the occupation of Luoyang and Zhengzhou. On September 6th, Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed another general offensive. Feng Yuxiang believed he had the numbers to win, so he deployed his forces pretty evenly over the Pinghan, Longhai and Zhengzhou fronts. He did urge Yan Xishan to try and help him out if his fronts could afford to spare units. Yet Yan Xishan sought to preserve his strength, and moved his Longhai forces to pull back north of the Yellow River. This action made linking up with Feng Yuxiang pretty much impossible. By the 17th Chiang Kai-Shek captured Longmen very close to Luoyang, effectively cutting off Feng Yuxiang's line of retreat heading west. Thus Feng Yuxiang had no choice but to retreat into northern Henan. Taking another sidestep, you may have noticed one of the largest players remains unmentioned, what about the Young Marshal? Back in March, Zhang Xueliang issued a telegram expressing his neutrality. This of course prompted Chiang Kai-Shek to personally call him, whence negotiations began. On June 10th, Li Shi and Zhang Xueliang discussed the conditions for him to send troops to help the NRA out. The first condition was 2 million yuan to cover the cost of deployment. On June 21st the KMT officially appointed Zhang Xueliang as deputy commander. The next day Zhang Xueliang telegramed everyone suggesting that both sides agree to a cease-fire and establish a buffer zone. In August Li Shi came to meet with Zhang Xueliang again, where the Young Marshal then demanded 5 million yuan for military use and a loan of 10 million yuan to stabilize the northeast economy. Chiang Kai-Shek agreed to the terms on the spot. Then Zhang Xueliang said if Chiang Kai-Shek could capture Jinan, he would send troops. As mentioned this occurred on August 15th. Thus Zhang Xueliang began speaking with his generals. Meanwhile on the other side, the Anti-Chiang leadership began establishing a competing government in Peiping in July whereupon they appointed many Fengtian clique members to be the heads of certain departments. Yet on September 2nd, Zhang Xueliang told Fu Zuoyi, a anti-Chiang representative that he did not support their Peiping government. Then Zhang Xueliang recalled all the Fengtian members they had appointed as officials.  Then on September 18th, Zhang Xueliang issued a telegram urging "all parties to stop fighting immediately to relieve the people's suffering and wait for Nanking to take action." At the same time, he dispatched Yu Xuzhong and Wang Shuchang with the 1st and 2nd armies of the Northeast Frontier Defense army to enter the pass. On October 9th, he officially took up office as the deputy commander for the NRA. Yan Xishan soon received word from forces in Tangshan that Zhang Xuliang was advancing, so he called for a meeting to figure out countermeasures. Zhang Xueliang then sent word to Yan Xishan that he should withdraw from occupied areas. Yan Xishan did indeed comply as Zhang Xueliang quickly occupied Ping and Tianjin without firing a shot. To maintain cordial relations with Yan Xishan, Zhang Xueliang had his army only advance into Hubei and Chahar, but left Shanxi alone. This prompted Yan Xishans forces to cross the Yellow River and retreat back into Shanxi using two routes.  Meanwhile a wave of defections to Chiang Kai-Shek began in late September, severely crippling the Pinghan line for Feng Yuxiang. Along the Longhai line, Chiang Kai-Shek's forces took Kaifeng on October 3rd and were advancing towards Zhangzhou. The KMT government then began announcing amnesty for all Generals if they would stand down. The next days many of Feng Yuxiang's subordinates called upon him to issue a ceasefire. Feng Yuxiang was basically screwed, Chiang and Zhang were surrounding him slowly as his own Generals defected or abandoned the cause. On the 5th Feng Yuxiangs deputy commander withdrew to Xinxiang, due north of the Yellow River. The next day Zhengzhou fell to the NRA 11th division of Chen Cheng. On the 5th Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang and Wang Jingwei jointly telegrammed Zhang Xueliang expressing their desire for a ceasefire and to open up negotiations.  By the 15th Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang stepped down together as commanders in chief. Yan Xishan handed command to Xu Yongchang and Feng Yuxiang to Lu Zhonglin. Both men then stated they would go temporarily abroad, though neither truly did. In truth Yan Xishan fled to Dalian under the protection of the Japanese and Feng Yuxiang hid in Yudaohe in Shanxi. That same day Lu Zhonglin telegramed to the Northwest army "withdraw defense immediately upon order inform all injured units to stop fighting and rest the people." On November 4th, Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang telegramed the dissolution of the anti-chiang movement, ending the war. The Central Plains War lasted roughly seven months, with both sides mobilizing more than 1.1 million troops, spending 500 million yuan, and suffering 300,000 casualties. At least half of them were young and middle-aged men from Hebei, Shandong, Henan and other provinces. It was the largest civil war in China after the Northern Expedition to unify China. The war spread to Hebei, Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi and other provinces. Most of the national troops originally prepared to suppress the Communists were mobilized, allowing the Chinese Communist Party to breathe and develop. Warlords imposed additional donations and taxes on the common people and issued paper money indiscriminately. As usual the ones to suffer the most were of course the common people. Within the Central Plains, 27 counties including Luoyang in Henan Province were severely affected, with agricultural losses amounting to 160.2% of the annual output value; farmers in more than a dozen counties including lost an average of 0.22 heads of livestock and 0.07 carts per household. Within Henan Province, it was said “over 120,000 people died in the war, over 19,500 were injured, over 1,185,000 fled, and over 1,297,700 were forced into exile by the army, of which over 30,000 died in combat, not including soldiers. The total property losses, including the destruction and burning of houses, amounted to over 651,469,000 yuan. It is estimated that it will take 10 years to recover all the losses.” Source in Zhengzhou stated “Since the beginning of the war, planes have been arriving every day, dropping bombs. … Every time a bomb is dropped, five or six people are killed and several buildings are destroyed. This situation is not limited to Zhengzhou. It is the same everywhere in the battlefield cities, the counties and villages near the Longhai and Pinghan railways, even in broad daylight.”  Industry declined and agriculture went bankrupt. The war caused great damage to industrial and agricultural production, seriously hindering the development of the social economy. “The national finances and social economy were both exhausted.” For railway transportation alone saw  “capital losses amounted to 22,165,504 yuan; withdrawals from garrison troops amounted to 4,206,155 yuan; military transport losses amounted to 29,958,042 yuan; and operating losses amounted to 17,018,271 yuan. The total was more than 73 million yuan.Among agricultural products, tobacco leaves were harvested in the three provinces of Henan, Shandong and Anhui, and the war was at its most intense. The losses were between 20 and 30 million yuan. The losses were twice as much as the war expenses.”  Chiang Kai-Shek had won the war, utterly breaking his opponents. Feng Yuxiangs northwest disintegrated into four factions. Yan Xishans Shanxi army took heavy losses that they would not recover from. Zhang Xueliang profited the most, his northeast army gained further territory in North China. He would gradually incorporate a large part of the forces in Shanxi and Suiyuan and would emerge the second largest military faction in China. However, when Zhang Xueliang depleted the northeast of her military forces, this left the borders weak. Zhang Xueliang soon became focused on governing North China, taking his eyes off his powerbase of Manchuria, which Japanese eyes looked upon enviously.  Overall the Central plains war weakened the NRA, the KMT, depleted China of her overall strength and lessened efforts against the CCP. Within the background of the warlord-NRA conflict, the CCP would benefit greatly. The CCP had spread to 11 provinces, including Jiangxi, Hubei, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Henan, Sichuan, Anhui, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang. Their Red Army formed a total of 14 armies with a total of about 100,000 people. But with the Central Plains War ended, now Chiang Kai-Shek could redirect his efforts against the Red Menace.  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Chiang Kai-Shek had certainly faced a formidable enemy in the former of his past comrades in arms, Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan, Li Zongren and many others. At the last minute the Young Marshal saved the day, allowing the Generalissimo to retain control over the new Republic, yet in the background lurked enemies everywhere still.

Between December 1937 and January 1938 on of the great crimes of Japan's war against China occurred at the Chinese capital of Nanjing. Determined to break Chiang Kai Shek's nationalist forces, the Japanese murdered tens of thousands of captured soldiers and proceeded to slaughter the civilian population. The Japanese army went of the rampage, killing children and raping the city's female population. In 1985 a permanent memorial hall to the horrors inflicted on the city and on China by Japan was unveiled in the city and this podcast hears from Keith Lowe's Prisoners of History as the historian explores the memorial hall and explores its significance the the questions that arise from contested historical memory.I will be running a livestream Q&A for students on Wednesday November 20th. You can access it here, subscribe to the channel to get your reminder.Help the podcast to continue bringing you history each weekIf you enjoy the Explaining History podcast and its many years of content and would like to help the show continue, please consider supporting it in the following ways:If you want to go ad-free, you can take out a membership hereOrYou can support the podcast via Patreon hereOr you can just say some nice things about it here Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/explaininghistory. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last time we spoke about the Sino-Soviet Conflict of 1929. In 1919, Soviet Commissar Lev Karakhan promised China the return of the Chinese Eastern Railway at no cost, aiming to foster good relations amid the Russian Civil War. However, the Soviets retracted the offer, causing tensions. Over the next decade, control of the railway shifted between Chinese and Soviet hands, sparking conflicts. By 1929, Zhang Xueliang, a Chinese warlord, attempted to reclaim the railway, leading to military confrontations. Despite initial diplomatic efforts, the situation escalated into a full-scale war. The Soviets, under General Vasily Blyukher, launched a powerful offensive, using their superior military force to overpower the Chinese defenses. After intense battles, including naval engagements, the Soviets gained the upper hand, leading to heavy Chinese casualties and loss of territory. The conflict ended with the Soviets firmly in control, highlighting the fragile nature of Sino-Soviet relations during this tumultuous period.   #122 The Chiang-Gui War Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. With the reunification of China, China's Warlord Era was over…but it really wasn't. Chiang Kai-Shek came to Beijing via a trail laid open by Yan Xishan. The Northern Expedition had been completed by August, just as the Generalissimo promised it would. According to previous agreements amongst the KMT, he tendered in his resignation upon completing the Northern Expedition. But the party refused to accept it, instead the Generalissimo was commanded to go visit the tomb of Dr Sun Yat-Sen over in the western Hills. He was accompanied by many of his generals who all oversaw a impressive ceremony, culminating with Chiang Kai-Shek weeping before Dr Sun Yat-Sen's shrine. Now Beijing was of course a symbol of China's Manchu past. The KMT and all revolutionaries within China for that matter hated it for that reason. It was seen as suitable enough for the government of North China, but not for the national capital, no this was moved to Nanking. Nanking of course had been seen as the secondary capital for centuries and held ancient history as being the first capital of China. Yet there was a lot of opposition to this. The Northern Chinese of course wanted to retain Beijing as the capital, many Chinese scholars had arguments against it, the foreign legations were annoyed at the idea of moving their residence and staff, so on and so forth. There was a great love for the northern capital, for its wonderful shops, restaurants rich history and such. Many did not believe Nanking could match Beijing's beauty. But the KMT assured all Nanking would become the gem of China. Beijing, which was actually called Peking at this time, again I just keep using modern terms to not confuse you guys, but Peking was then changed to Peiping translating to “northern peace”. As much as the capital was ruffling feathers, another more pressing issue was the enormous NRA army now that they had no Northern Expedition to run. Armies are not cheap, demobilization obviously needed to be done. However the KMT dragged their feet on the issue. Demobilization is something many governments face, but China's situation was rather unique. The NRA held many professional armies, made up of men who had never been anything but soldiers with no desire to become civilians. Many of the NRA generals also did not wish to carry on as civilians. Most of these men were doing a career and knew nothing else. In June of 1928, over 2 million men were on military pay roll. The minister of finance, T.V Soong, believed in keeping straight books and protested the enormous military expense. The KMT central committee passed resolutions and formed a plan; the standing army, needed to be cut down to at least 715,00 men. But when it came to deciding who gets disbanded, here lay the troubles.  There was another issue, the mechanics of the new government. In the first days of the peace, Chiang Kai-Shek had proven himself a pretty good manager. He had a lot of help from his political right hand man, Hu Hanmin, and they were on good terms. Chiang Kai-Shek was quite popular in the beginning, many looked up to him. However as the days went by, things started to crumble. The first major conflict occurred when Chiang Kai-Shek attempted to do away with the political subcouncils in Guangzhou and Wuhan. Chiang Kai-Shek argued this new united China did not need any more than a single central federal government office. The regimes in Guangzhou and Wuhan needed to disband and become integrated properly at Nanking. However Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren were the respective governors of the two provinces that held these regimes and they very much liked their current status. They obviously resented what they saw as a slight against them by Chiang Kai-Shek. Both men began using the term “dictator” to describe Chiang Kai-Shek, they said things like he was getting too big for his boots.  Now going back to the roots of the KMT, Dr Sun Yat-Sen had hoped to implement a national constitution. Yet simply flinging out what Sun Yat-Sen had once written down was out of the question, a new constitution needed to be drafted. Thus, basically for the next 5 years, China went through an awkward transformation process, trying to become a real voting republic. But in the meantime the country was controlled by a government of 5 “yuans” (committees). These were the executive, legislative, control, judicial and examination committees. The high officials of these committees were members of the State council, also seen as a cabinet, headed by the President. Chiang Kai-Shek became the first president and was very careful on who he included in his cabinet. Yan Xishan became the Minister of the Interior and Feng Yuxiang Minister of War. Both of these men were still bonafide warlords, but they were the two leaders who helped reunify China with him. He had to keep them happy, they controlled vast private armies, he also knew to keep them close.  Nanking was fraught with activity, but no demobilization. Months went by. Chiang Kai-Shek was happy, it was quite a creative time for him, but the reality was, the government was filled with potential traitors, great amounts of land were not really assimilated, nor were their populations. Nonetheless China had not seen such unity in centuries. Chiang Kai-Shek felt an immense sense of pride, he himself was full of energy and overworking. Chiang Kai-Shek began promising to rebuild Nanking in a fitting style. A magnificent tomb was planned for the slope of Purple Mountain, above the ruins of the old Ming temple, where Sun Yat-Sens remains would be moved. The city was remodeled, its old narrow and messy streets were cleared out. Nanking possessed a certain antiquity look, and many were fond of it and hated the construction efforts. Chiang Kai-Shek envisioned retaining the Chinese style of architecture, with sloping roofs, painted ceilings, tiles and courtyards, but also clean, cool interiors with electrical appliances. He basically wanted to blend the new with the old. Chiang Kai-Shek found an American architect to help rebuild Nanking. He also began hunting down advisors for just about every field. He looked up foreign farmer experts, German military advisors, American educational advisors, medical advisors, highway construction advisors and such. The climax to it all was recognition of the new Nanking government from the great powers. Chiang Kai-Shek found himself stuck in interviews with diplomats nearly every day. It is said the Generalissimo worked from dawn to night, with his wife Meiling as his secretary. Her primary role was translating important work into English, she was also his English interpreter. Meiling pushed Chiang Kai-Shek to try and learn English so he would be less dependent on her. She taught him as best as she could, and he was apparently making good headway until he had a incident. One day he was meeting with the British Minister and tried to practice his english by saying “good morning, Lampson” but instead he said “kiss me, Lampson”. Henceforth he never tried talking in English with foreigners. In May came some excitement with the Sino-Soviet conflict. Zhang Xueliang literally tossed the Soviet ultimatum to Nanking, an unwelcome gift to Chiang Kai-Shek. Ultimately Zhang Xueliang could do nothing against the Soviet power. It was certainly a blow to China, but perhaps in the grand scheme of things, Chiang Kai-Shek's mind worried more about the Japanese. The Soviets and Japanese were not all Chiang Kai-Shek should have been worried about, there were plenty of internal enemies. Back in July of 1928, it was estimated the NRA held over 2.2 million soldiers within 84 corps and 272 divisions. This accounted for an annual expenditure of over 800 million yuan, when the national fiscal revenue was something like 450 million yuan. Chiang Kai-Shek advocated for demobilization, hoping to bring it down to 1.2 million with 80 divisions, thus reducing expenditures to 60% of the national budget. By January of 1929 the issue came up again, now based on German military advisors advice, Chiang Kai-Shek wanted to reduce the NRA to 50 divisions at around 800,000 troops. His First Army belonging to the central system would be reorganized into 20 divisions, and the remaining army groups would be divided into 10 divisions. Uh huh you see where this is going. Chiang Kai-Shek also proposed establishing a 200,000 man strong military police force. So if you remember from the end of the Northern Expedition, there were 4 NRA collective armies. The 1st was led by Chiang Kai-Shek, the 2nd by Feng Yuxiang, the 3rd by Yan Xishan and the 4th by Li Zongren. Each of these men were warlords in the own right with cliques behind them. For example Li Zongren was the leader of the New Guangxi Clique who controlled Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei and parts of the Shanhai pass connecting Hubei to Tianjin. The NRA 4th army had 16 divisions and 6 independent units, some 200,000 troops. When Wang Jingwei went into exile, Li Zongren inherited his Wuhan regime government. Li Zongren also had the support of Li Jishen who controlled Guangdong. Now Chiang Kai-Shek certainly had the upper hand, his first NRA army was 500,000 strong and he was the President of the nation. Yan Xishan had over 200,000 troops in his 3rd NRA army and controlled the Shanxi clique, Shanxi province, northern Hubei, Beijing and Tianjin. Lastly Feng Yuxiang had 400,000 troops in his 2nd NRA army, was the leader of the Guominjun and controlled a large part of northwest China, alongside Henan. Alone none of the others could challenge Chiang Kai-Shek, but what if they united against him?  The Guangxi clique led by Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren had won a lot from the northern expedition. They controlled Wang Jingwei's old Wuhan Regime, Guangxi, Hubei, but did not control all of Hunan. They both felt they should control Hunan and its lucrative revenues of course. Yet the governor of Hunan insisted the taxes collected were property of Nanjing. So Bai Chongxi and Li Zongrenplaced him under house arrest. After this Lu Diping was appointed by Li Zongren to preside over Hunan's civilian government affairs. Lu Diping was forced to work with a bitter rival, He Jian. What the Guangxi Clique members did not know was that Lu Diping had been groomed by Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek also began arming Lu Diping's private army in February of 1928. He Jian found out about this and reported it to the rest of the Guangxi clique. Li Zongren took notice of the situation and immediately had Lu Diping removed from office and deported. He was replaced by He Jian, go figure. Lu Diping then fled to cry to Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang Kai-Shek was furious his man had been taken out of office and began threatening the Guangxi clique. Li Zongren's family were living in Nanking at the time and he took them quickly over to the Shanghai concession as he believed a storm was brewing. Li Zongren then met with Chiang Kai-Shek striking a peaceful deal by march 2nd, both agreeing He Jian would temporarily serve as the chairman over Hunan. However back over in Hunan, the situation was quickly deteriorating. Guangxi troops were taking out political opponents in the province and looked to be fomenting a rebellion. Chiang Kai-Shek took decisive action and mobilized his forces to pacify the Guangxi clique. Li Jishen, fearing a war would break out at any moment, sped north to Nanking to mediate, only to be arrested upon arriving by Chiang Kai-Shek. He was charged with treason. With Li Jishen out of Guangdong, the Cantones Generals Chen Jizhen and Chen Mingshu tossed their lot in with Chiang Kai-Shek, thus severing the Guangdong-Guangxi alliance. On March 21st Nanking issued a statement expelling Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi and Li Jishen from the KMT, accusing the 3 men of treason.  Now Chiang Kai-Shek actually was dealing with a lot more than insubordination from the Guangxi clique, in fact there was a growing anti-Chiang Kai-Shek coalition forming. I wont get into it here, but Feng Yuxiang was raising hell in the northwest, Yan Xishan was not at all happy with the new Nanking government and even Wang Jingwei over in Europe was tossing public accusations against Chiang Kai-Shek. This led a lot of KMT officials to resign in protest. Chiang Kai-Shek had a serious rebellion, perhaps a civil war on the horizon. He reacted first by bribing key Northern Chinese leaders to be neutral for the time being so he could focus all of his attention on the Guangxi clique menace. Chiang Kai-Shek did another clever thing, he reconciled with the exiled Tang Shengzhi. Many forces under Bai Chongxi were former soldiers under Tang Shengzhi, many of whom were still loyal to him. Chiang Kai-Shek brought Tang Shenzhi back over to China from Japan and dispatched him to Tangshan in Hubei, where he was ordered to steal back two of his old divisions from Bai Chongxi.  Yes Chiang Kai-Shek was playing the divide and conquer strategy. First he bribed as many as he could, so he could focus on the Guangxi clique. Then amongst the Guangxi he tried to bribe some and arrest others, isolating Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren. In the face of the situation, Zhang Xueliang was the first to publicly express his support for Chiang Kai-Shek, he was followed by Liu Wenhui, the warlord over Sichuan, then Yan Xishan and finally a reluctant Feng Yuxiang.  Initially Bai Chongxi was going to lead his troops station in Hubei to march south to Xuzhou to try and link up with other Guangxi clique forces to advance east and attack Nanking. However as he quickly found out, most of his troops were loyal to Tang Shengzhi who purchased their service and stole them from him. Bai Chongxi lost control over a significant part of his army, panicked and fled Hubei by boat. He intended to flee for Hong Kong, but Chiang Kai-Shek ordered the Navy to halt the ship, and if it did not stop to sink it. Li Zongren quickly asked support from Japanese allies to get Bai Chongxi safely to Hong Kong. Meanwhile Li Zongren began mobilizing 3 armies under Guangxi Generals Xia Wei, Tao Wei and Hu Zongqi. These armies were intended to be deployed in Huangpu and Wuxue, however Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi could not physically get over to them to command them. Meanwhile Chiang Kai-Shek appointed General Zhu Peide in command of 5 divisions in Jiujiang and Nanchang. Their job was to occupy the Wuchang-Changsha railway, thus cutting off the withdrawal of any troops from Guangxi. Chiang Kai-Shek also placed General Liu Zhi  in command of 5 divisions over in Anhui and Hubei's border area with orders to attack Wuhan and General Han Fuju would take 5 divisions from southern Henan to attack Wuhan. On March 31st, Chiang Kai-Shek dispatched his general attack orders. Subsequently He Jian betrayed the Guangxi clique and joined Chiang Kai-Shek. Within the Guangxi clique, the Generals Hu Zongtang, Tao Shu, Li Mingrui and Yu Zuobai all began inhouse fighting over old petty grudges. Chiang Kai-Shek learnt of the situation and bribed Yu Zuobai and Li Mingrui to join his side for 400,000 silver dollars. On April 3rd, Li Mingrui's troops began to defect over in Huayuan and Xiaogan. A bunch of other Guangxi Generals began contacting Chiang Kai-Shek privately, tell him they would not participate in the civil war and asked if they could take their men safely out of the region. So many gaps in the Guangxi cliques defensive lines around Wuhan were exploited by Nankings forces coming from Anhui, Jiangxi, Henan and Yichang. Nearly surrounded at Wuhan, the Guangxi forces fled into western Hubei. At the same time, Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi both arrived in Hong Kong and made their way to Guangxi only to find the situation an utter mess.  On April 11th, Nanking issued a message calling upon the Guangxi clique's soldiers to give up resistance. The demoralized Guangxi troops of Xia Wei, Tao Jun, Hu Zongtang all began surrendering themselves at Shashi, Yichang and other places. On April 25th, Chiang Kai-Shek unleashed an offensive into Guangxi. The response by the surviving Guangxi Clique was to establish an anti-Chiang Kai-Shek coalition on May 5th. They dispatched a telegram calling upon everyone to join them and initiated an offensive first aimed at Guangdong. By the 15th, Feng Yuxiang heeded the call, and began discussing how the Guominjun might send troops to attack Chiang Kai-Shek. However Feng Yuxiangs colleagues, Han Fuyu and Shi Yousan urged Feng Yuxiang not to do so. Then Chiang Kai-Shek offered Feng Yuxiang the position as president of the Executive committee, control over Hubei and Hunan if he continued to support him and send forces against the Guangxi rebels. Feng Yuxiang superficially agreed to Chiang Kai-Sheks request, mobilizing his forces between Henan and Hubei. While this looked like he was helping Chiang Kai-Shek, in reality he was eagerly waiting in the shadows for Chiang Kai-Shek and the Guangxi clique forces to weaken so he might pounce upon Wuhan. By mid May Guangxi's troops began entering Guangdong from two directions, easily overwhelming he Guangdong Provincial army, and marched into Guangzhou. Chiang Kai-SHek mobilized further armies in Hunan, Yunnan and Guizhou to invade Guangxi. This soon saw major battle break out in the Baimu region, ultimately dislodging the Guangxi troops from Guangdong and back into Guangxi. However, simultaneously, the Guangxi forces advanced on the front lines in Guilin and Liuzhou, defeating the Xiangjun, Qijun, and Qijun troops. In the same month, in Hunan, a significant push was made from Shonan to Guilin; meanwhile, Chen Guangdong's forces attacked Zhaoqing from Wuzhou, He County, and Guizhou's Dushan County, ultimately seizing Liuzhou. Chiang Kai-shek quickly mobilized forces led by Li Mingrui, Yu Zuobai, and the old Guangxi clique army under Yang Tenghui to move south towards Guangdong and west to attack Guangxi. Thanks to the strong efforts of these forces, they swiftly captured Wuzhou and Guiping. Wei Yunwei abandoned the city, and the Guangxi forces were unable to sustain the fight. Guangxi Province was attacked from three fronts, with enemy forces advancing from Longzhou. By June, Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi, and Huang Shaoxiong had fallen. Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi, and others fled to Hong Kong, Sai Kung, Haiphong, and other locations. On June 27, Li Mingrui and his troops entered Nanning. The new Guangxi clique was defeated, and Chiang appointed Li Mingrui, Yu Zuopeng, and Yang Tenghui to govern Guangxi Province. The war concluded with Chiang's victory. What became known as the Chiang-Gui War had lasted for 3 months and ended in victory for Chiang Kai-Shek. It was a severe blow to the Guangxi Clique, though not a fatal one. The Guangxi clique leaders had lost considerable power, but those like Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi would return to cause further trouble.  Victory would be short lived however. As Feng Yuxiang arrayed his forces between Henan and Hubei hoping to pounce on Wuhan at the right moment, Chiang Kai-Shek defeated the Guangxi clique far too quickly. Feng Yuxiang's opportunity was lost and he became extremely bitter over this. Knowing full well what Feng Yuxiang had been planning to do, Chiang Kai-Shek mobilized forces in Shandong and Henan to suppress the Guominjun.  Feng Yuxiang then declared himself commander in chief of the Northwest National salvation army, officially joining the anti-Chiang Kai-Shek cause. Chiang Kai-Shek then bribed Generals Han Fuju and Shi Yousan to defect over to his side greatly hurting Feng Yuxiang. Chiang Kai-Shek also unleashed propaganda warfare accusing Feng Yuxiang of sabotaging the revolution, being treasonous, trying to obstruct the unification of China and such. On May 23rd, the KMT central committee removed Feng Yuxiang from all of his posts and permanently expelled him from the party. Two days later Chiang Kai-Shek personally called Feng Yuxiang, asking him to go into exile abroad and hand over his remaining forces. Completely isolated politically and militarily, Feng Yuxiang sent a nationwide telegram on the 27th expressing his resignation. In order to mitigate Chiang Kai-Shek's advances, and in order to see if he could gain an alliance, Feng Yuxiang took his family to Shanxi on June 21st, claiming to the nation he was about to go abroad. Instead he had Yan Xishan place him under house arrest within the Jinci Temple at Jian'an village.  Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan were not friends by any measure. But they were quick to reach an understanding. The two Warlords made a formidable combination and had similar attributes. Both were strongmen, with firmly loyal and affection forces. Feng Yuxiang had his theatrical Christian values and rustic simplicity. Yan Xishan had this record of being a just man of the people. Both understood their names combined would see many join their cause. They named their coalition the Peoples Army.Yan Xishan then joined Feng Yuxiang to publicly label Chiang Kai-Shek a dictator. Despite the energy and charisma, what the two men lacked as a brilliant political mind, and suddenly Wang Jingwei came out of the woodwork. Wang Jingwei joined their coalition, obviously hoping to get revenge and dethrone Chiang Kai-Shek. He supplied them with loftier motives and more stylish vocabulary. Together they publicly accused Chiang Kai-Shek of departing from the original spirit of the revolution; that he was the scourge of democracy; nothing more than a military man who sought to seize the power of government. Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren bandwagoned and it seemed a large part of China was becoming very anti-Chiang Kai-Shek. After this a “telegraph war: erupted for over a month. Yan Xishan demanded the currently KMT government step down so he and Wang Jingwei could lead a reorganization, implementing proper votes by all party members to determine the party's policies going forward in a more fair manner. Chiang Kai-Shek responded he was willing to step aside for Yan Xishan but not Wang Jingwei. Then Chiang Kai-Shek bribed Yan Xishan with 12.5 million dollars of foreign currency if he backed down. To make matters more complicated, during all of this, Feng Yuxiang sent a secret message with his subordinate Lu Zhonglin to forces in Shaanxi asking them to send people to contact Chiang Kai-Shek. He did this deliberately, making sure Yan Xishan found the note and of course suspected him of being in league with Chiang Kai-Shek. Some real game of thrones shit. It seems Feng Yuxiang pulled a big brain move, because Yan Xishan under the belief Feng Yuxiang was colluding with Chiang Kai-SHek, then publicly claimed he was the commander in chief of the anti-Chiang Kai-Shek coalition and that his deputy commanders were Feng Yuxiang, Li Zongren and Zhang Xueliang. So, it seems Feng Yuxiang had dragged Yan Xishan to be binded to the cause because perhaps he knew Chiang Kai-Shek was trying to bribe and divide them?  On February 23, under the leadership of Yan Xishan, 45 generals including Feng Yuxiang , Li Zongren, Zhang Fakui, He Jian, Han Fuju, Shi Yousan, and Yang Hucheng jointly sent a telegram demanding a "general vote of all party members to establish a unified party." On February 27, 1930, Yan Xishan personally visited Feng Yuxiang in Jian'an Village, where they apparently hugged each other and cried, saying to each other: "We live and die together, share hardships, and fight against Chiang until the end" Then they  pledged their blood to form an alliance. Very theatrical. The next morning Yan Xishan hosted a banquet for Feng Yuxiangs family where 34 representatives joined the anti-chiang kai-shek coalition. This became known as the Taiyuan conference. On March 1st the coalition sent officials into 19 provinces and cities including Peiping, Nanking, Guangzhou and overseas to attack Chiang Kai-Shek. They stated "If Chiang refuses to give up, the revolutionary forces will be increasingly destroyed by him. I sincerely hope that our compatriots and comrades throughout the country will , rise up together and eliminate the thieves together.". That sam month the Nanking government held their third plenary session where they expelled Wang Jingwei officially from the party. Yan Xishan then called Chiang Kai-Shek asking him personally to step down. On March 15th, 57 generals from the former 2nd, 3rd and 4th NRA armies sent representatives to Taiyaun to discuss the anti-chiang movement. There they listed 6 crimes Chiang Kai-Shek had committed and promoted Yan Xishan to officially be the commander in chief of the army, navy and air forces of a new Republic of China. Li Zongren, Feng Yuxiang and Zhang Xueliang would be his deputy commanders. Yan Xishan's army moved into the government offices in Peiping where KMT forces were disarmed. In April 1st, Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang and Li Zongren announced the inauguration in Taiyuan, Tongguan and Guiping of their anti-chiang army, however one name was not present, that of Zhang Xueliang. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. After performing the Northern expedition and finally reunifying China it took all but…what just over a year for it to collapse? It really seemed most of China hand banded together against the Generalissimo, but he was no fool and had planned accordingly. The anti-Chiang Kai-shek coalition would find themselves in a war they may very well lose. 

Last time we spoke about the Guangzhou, Gansu and Red Spear Uprisings. During China's Warlord Era, the CCP faced many challenges as they sought to implement land revolutions and armed uprisings. Following the Nanchang and Autumn Harvest uprisings, the CCP held an emergency meeting criticizing Chen Duxiu for his appeasement of the KMT right wing. With strong encouragement from Soviet advisors, the CCP planned a major uprising to seize control of Guangdong province. In November 1927, the CCP saw an opportunity as petty warlords in Guangdong and Guangxi engaged in conflict. Zhang Fakui's troops, vulnerable and demoralized, were targeted by the CCP. Mobilizing workers and peasants, the CCP initiated the Guangzhou Uprising. The uprising was ultimately suppressed by superior NRA troops, resulting in heavy CCP casualties and brutal reprisals. The failed uprisings, though unable to achieve immediate goals, ignited a persistent revolutionary spirit within the CCP, marking the beginning of a prolonged civil conflict that would shape China's future.   #121 The Sino-Soviet Conflict of 1929 Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. All the way back in 1919, the brand new Soviet government's assistance Commissar of foreign affairs, Lev Karakhan, issued a manifesto to the Beiyang government, promising the return of the Chinese Eastern Railway at zero financial cost. That statement was made in late July and alongside the railway, he also mentioned relinquishing a lot of rights the former Russian Empire had acquired from unequal treaties, such as the Boxer Protocol. This all became known as the Karakhan Manifesto, and it was formed in a time when the Soviets were fighting the Russian Civil War, advancing east into Siberia. In order to secure the war in Siberia the Soviets had to establish good relations with the Chinese. Yet six months after the july manifesto, Karakhan personally handed over a second version of said manifesto, one that did not influence the rather nice deal of handing over the Chinese eastern railway for free. The Soviets official statement was that they had accidentally promised the deal prior. The truth of the matter was some real politik work at play. The Soviets had been trying to secure a Sino-Soviet alliance against the Japanese, but it looked to them it would never come to be so they simply took the deal off the table.  Henceforth the issue cause a lot of friction. In March of 1920 the Fengtian forces disarmed White Russian Troops along the railway and seized control over its operations. In February of 1922 China and the USSR signed a agreement stipulating the Beiyang government would set up a special agency to manage the railway. Then in November the Chinese announced an area within 11 km along the railway would be designated a Eastern Province special district. In December the Soviet Union officially formed and by May the two nations agreed to settle a list of issues. The Soviets agreed to abolish all the unequal treaties formed by the Russian Empire handing over all the leased territories, consular jurisdiction, extraterritoriality, Boxer payments and such, but the Chinese Eastern Railway would be jointly managed by China and the USSR. Now since the railway sat in the area that Zhang Zuolin came to control, in September of 1924 the Soviets signed an agreement with the Fengtian clique. In this agreement, the Soviets lessened the 80 year lease over the railway to 60 years. The Soviets also promised to hand full control to Chinese administrators, but had a trick up their sleeve. The Soviets let the Chinese think they were adding workers and officials loyal to them, in reality the Soviets were creating more jobs on the railway while hiring Soviet workers. In the end the Soviets controlled roughly 67% of the key positions. When Zhang Zuolin went to war with Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun this changed things considerably. In December of 1925, Zhang Zuolin's army owed the Chinese eastern railway some 14 million rubles, prompting the Soviet administrator over the railway, Ivanov to prohibit Zhang Zuolin's army from using it. Fengtian commander Zhang Huanxiang simply arrested Ivanov disregarding his ban. The Soviets then sent an ultimatum to the Beiyang government demanding his release. So Zhang Zuolin ran to the Japanese to mediate. Things smoothed over until 1928 when the Huanggutun incident saw Zhang Zuolin assassinated. As we saw at the end of the northern expedition, his son Zhang Xueliang responded by raising the KMT flag on December 29th of 1928, joining Chiang Kai-Shek. The next day Zhang Xueliang was made commander in chief of the Northeast.  Now Chiang Kai-Shek's government had broken diplomatic relations with the USSR after the Shanghai massacre purge. Thus Zhang Xueliang felt the old treaties signed by his father with the Soviets were null and void and looked upon the Chinese Eastern Railway enviously. To give some context outside of China. At this point in time, the USSR was implementing rural collectivization, ie; the confiscation of land and foodstuffs. This led to wide scale conflict with peasants, famines broke out, I would say the most well known one being the Holodmor in Ukraine. Hundreds of millions of people starved to death. The USSR was also still not being recognized by many western powers. Thus from the perspective of Zhang Xueliang, it looked like the USSR were fraught with internal and external difficulties, they had pretty much no friends, so taking the railway would probably be a walk in the park.  Zhang Xueliang began diplomatically, but negotiations were going nowhere, so he got tougher. He ordered his officials to take back control over the Chinese Eastern Railway zone police, municipal administration, taxation, land, everything. He instructed Zhang Jinghui, the governor of Harbin's special administrative zone to dispatch military police to search the Soviet embassy in Harbin and arrest the consul general. Zhang Jinghui did so and closed the Soviet consulates in Harbin, Qiqihar and Hailar. All of this of course pissed off the Soviets who responded by protesting the new Nanjing government, demanding the release of their people, while increasing troops to the border of Manchuria. The Soviets announced they were willing to reduce their control over the railway as a concession. This entire situation became known as the May 27th incident and unleashed a tit for tat situation. On July 13th, the Soviets sent an ultimatum giving three days for a response "If a satisfactory answer is not obtained, the Soviet government will be forced to resort to other means to defend all the rights of the Soviet Union." On the 17th the Soviets recalled their officials, cut off the railway traffic between China and the USSR, ejected Chinese envoys from the USSR and cut off diplomatic relations with China. In the background Joseph Stalin was initially hesitating to perform any military actions, not wanting to antagonize the Japanese in Manchuria. However the Soviet consul in Tokyo, sent back word that Japan was completely willing to stay out of any conflict if the Soviets limited it to just northern Manchuria. Thus Stalin decided to act. On August 6th, Stalin formed the Special Red Banner Far Eastern Army under the command of General Vasily Blyukher. It was composed of three infantry divisions; the 1st Pacific Infantry Division, the 2nd Amur Infantry Division, and the 35th Trans-Baikal Infantry Division), one cavalry brigade (the 5th Kuban Cavalry Brigade), and the addition of the Buryat Mongolian Independent Cavalry Battalion. The total force was said to be as many as 30,000 with their headquarters located in Khabarovsk. Blyukher also had the support of the Far Eastern Fleet, roughly 14 shallow water heavy gunboats, a minesweeper detachment, an aviation detachment with 14 aircraft, and a marine battalion commanded by Yakov Ozolin. Blyukher had served during the civil war and was a military advisor in China attached to Chiang Kai-SHek's HQ. He had a large hand to play in the northern expedition, and was one of the select Soviets Chiang Kai-Shek intentionally made sure got home safe during the purge. Blyukher would exercises a unusual amount of autonomy with his far east command, based out of Khabarovsk. For the upcoming operation a 5th of the entire Red Army was mobilized to assist. On the other side Zhang Xueliang mobilized as many troops as he could, including many White Russians hiding out in Manchuria. His total strength on paper was 270,000, but only 100,000 would be actively facing the Soviets as the rest were needed to maintain public order and to defend southern Manchuria. The person in charge of the Eastern Line of the Chinese Eastern Railway was the brigade commander of the Jilin Army, Ding Chao, and the western line was the brigade commander of the Heilongjiang Army, Liang Zhongjia, and the chief of staff was Zhang Wenqing. Wang Shuchang led the First Army to guard the eastern line, and Hu Yukun led the Second Army to guard the western line. The Soviet army also had a quality advantage in equipment. In terms of artillery, the Soviet army had about 200 artillery pieces, including more than a dozen heavy artillery pieces, while the Chinese army had only 135 infantry artillery pieces and no heavy artillery. At the same time, the Soviet army also had a quality advantage in machine guns because it was equipped with 294 heavy machine guns and 268 highly mobile light machine guns. The Chinese army was equipped with only 99 heavy machine guns. In terms of air force, the Chinese army had 5 aircraft that were combat effective. On July 26th the Soviets bombarded Manzhouli from three directions along the western end of the Chinese Eastern Railway. Two days later a Soviet infantry regiment, 3 armored vehicles and 4 artillery pieces advanced to Shibali station, cutting the lines to Manzhouli. They then ordered the Chinese military and police to withdraw as they captured Manzhouli. Then on the 29th the began bombarding Dangbi. On August 8th, 100 Soviet troops carrying two artillery pieces and 3 machine guns engaged Chinese forces outside the south gate of Oupu County street, casualties were heavy for both sides. 5 Soviet aircraft circled over Suifenhe City firing 200 rounds and dropping bombs over the Dongshan Army defense post and Sandaodongzi. The next day 40 Soviet soldiers established two checkpoints at Guzhan blocking traffic and they even began kidnapping civilians. That same day 300 Soviet soldiers and two gunboats occupied the Hujiazhao factory. On the 12th, Sanjianfang, Zhongxing and Lijia's Oil Mill were occupied by over 2000 Soviet troops. Meanwhile 80 Soviets amphibiously assaulted Liuhetun using 8 small boats, killing its defenders before returning to the other side. The next day two Soviet gunboats, 300 marines and 2 aircraft attacked Suidong county in Heilongjiang province while another force attacked Oupu county with artillery. On the morning of the 14th both counties fell. In response the Nanjing government dispatched Liu Guang, the chief of the military department to inspect the Northeast front. On the 15th Zhang Xueliang issued mobilization orders against the USSR, seeing his standing front line forces bolstered to 100,000. On the 15th the foreign minister of the Nanjing government, Wang Zhengting reported to Chiang Kai-Shek negotiations were going nowhere, the Soviets were adamant about getting their rights returned over the Chinese Eastern Railways. The next day, Wang Zhenting told reporters that if the Soviets attacked anymore China would declare war. The next day Zhang Xueliang was interviewed by the Chicago Daily News and had this to say. "The Soviet Union disregarded international trust, trampled on the non-war pact, and rashly sent troops to invade our country. We respect the non-war pact and have repeatedly made concessions to show our responsibility for provoking the provocation. If the Russian side continues to advance, we will be willing to be the leader of the war, so we have prepared everything and will do our best to fight to the death."  On the 16th two Soviet infantry companies and one cavalry company attacked Zhalannur from Abagaitu along the border. The two sides fought for 2 hours until the Soviets stormed the Zhalannur station. After another 5 hours of combat the Soviets pulled back over the border. By this point enough was enough. China declared war on August 17th escalating what was an incident around the Chinese Eastern Railway zone into a full blown war.  Blyukher had developed a plan for an offensive consisting of two rapid operations. The first would be against the Chinese naval forces and the second against the ground forces via a large encirclement. After the war was declared on the 17th, the Soviet Army advanced into Manchuria from the western end of the Chinese Eastern Railway. The Red Banner Special Far Eastern Army initially dispatched a total of 6,091 infantrymen and 1,599 artillerymen in front of Manchuria, equipped with 88 artillery pieces of 76.2 mm or above, excluding artillery belonging to infantry regiments, 32 combat aircraft, 3 armored trains, and 9 T-18 light tanks . The army units included: the 35th and 36th Infantry Divisions of the 18th Infantry Army; the 5th Cavalry Brigade; the Buryat Mongolian Cavalry Battalion; an independent tank company equipped with T-18 tanks, the 6th Aviation Detachment, the 25th Aviation Detachment, the 26th Bomber Squadron, the 18th Army Artillery Battalion, the 18th Engineering Battalion, and a Railway Battalion.  The first battle broke out around Manzhouli. Liang Zhongjia, the brigade commander stationed in Manzhouli, reported this to his superiors of the engagement “of the battle situation, the 38th and 43rd regiments under my command fought with a regiment of Soviet infantry and cavalry for 4 hours in the afternoon and are still in a standoff. The Soviet army has more than one division of troops near Abagaitu”. At 10:30 p.m. on the 18th, the Soviets began to attack the positions of the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the 43rd Regiment of the Northeastern Army in Zhalannur. At 1 p.m. on August 19, the Soviets added about 600 to 700 troops opposite the positions of the 43rd Regiment of Zhalannur. At 5 a.m the Soviets dispatched five aircraft from Abagaitu to Shibali Station. On the 19th, the Soviets captured Suibin County with ease. At 6 a.m. on the 20th, the Soviets used armored trains to transport more than 200 troops to attack the 10th Cavalry Regiment of Liang Zhongjia's troops. After fighting for about an hour, the Soviets retreated. On the 23rd a battle broke out in Mishan and on the 25th 400 Soviet cavalry began building fortifications roughly a kilometer near the Chinese 43rd regiment at Zhalannur. Zhang Xueliang spoke again to the Chinese and foreign press on the 25th stating this. "Foreigners have many misunderstandings about the Eastern Province's actions this time, thinking that it is to take back the Eastern Route and violate the treaty. In fact, we have no intention of violating the 1924 Sino-Russian Agreement or the Agreement with Russia, because China has signed it and has no intention of violating it. China has no intention of taking back the route at all. What it wants is to remove the Russian personnel who are involved in the communist movement. Moreover, in this matter, the Eastern Route is a very small issue. The real point is that the Russians use China as a base for communism, and we have to take measures in self-defense." Between the 28th to the 30th an intense battle broke out at Wangqing.  On the 31st, Soviet gunboats bombarded three garrisons around  Heihe. On September 4th, the Soviet army bombarded the right wing of the 43rd and 38th Regiments stationed in Lannur. At 4 pm on the 9th, a single regiment of the Soviet army, under the cover of artillery, launched a fierce attack on the Chinese army at Manzhouli Station from the Shibali Station, but by 8:30 pm, they pulled back. At 4 pm, 8 Soviet aircraft bombed Suifenhe Station, causing over 50 Chinese casualties and injured a regimental commander. On the night of the 16th, more than 100 Soviet troops attacked the Kukdoboka checkpoint in Lubin County and burned down the checkpoint. On the 18th, the Soviet government announced to the ambassadors of various countries that they had always advocated for a peaceful solution to the issue of the Chinese Eastern Railway, while China's attitude was hypocritical and insincere. It was believed that future negotiations were hopeless, and all previous negotiations mediated by Germany were terminated. From now on, they stated quote “the Soviet Union would not bear any responsibility for any ominous incidents caused on the Sino-Russian border”. With negotiations completely broken down, Blyukher was given the greenlight to launch a fatal blow.  On October 2, more than a thousand Soviet infantryman, supported by aircraft and artillery stormed the positions of the 3rd Battalion of the 38th Regiment in Manzhouli. The two sides fought until the morning of the 3rd. On the 4th Zhang Xueiliang drafted the “national volunteer army organization regulations letter” trying to embolden the population stating "when the foreigners invade the border, the first thing to do is to resist. All citizens or groups who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the country on the battlefield will be volunteers or volunteer soldiers." The new regulations stipulated that volunteers of this new group would be named as the National Volunteer Army. On October the 10th, 30,000 Soviet forces on the Baikal side advanced through the northeastern border of China. At this time, the brigade responsible for defending Liang Zhongjia had been fighting with the Soviet troops for dozens of days. There was no backup and they were in urgent need of help. According to Chinese observations, the Soviets deployed nearly 80,000 troops by land, sea and air on the Sino-Soviet border. Along the eastern front, the Soviets capture in succession Sanjiangkou, Tongjiang and Fujin. Meanwhile at 5am on the 12th the Far Eastern Fleet commanded engaged in a firefight with the Songhua River Defense Fleet, near Sanjiangkou. According to Chinese reconnaissance, the Soviet warships participating in the battle included: the flagship "Sverdlov" a shallow-water heavy gunboat led by Sgassk, the shallow-water heavy gunboat "Sun Yat-sen", the shallow-water heavy gunboat "Red East", the shallow-water heavy gunboat "Lenin", the inland gunboat "Red Flag", and the inland gunboat "Proletariat", with a total of 4 152mm cannons, 26 120mm cannons, 6 85mm anti-aircraft guns, 8 37mm anti-aircraft guns, and more than ten aircraft for support. The Chinese forces were led by Yin Zuogan who commanded six shallow-water gunboats, including the "Lijie" (flagship), "Lisui", "Jiangping", "Jiang'an", and "Jiangtai", and the "Dongyi" armed barge as a towed artillery platform. Except for the "Jiangheng" of 550 tons and the "Liji" of 360 tons, the rest were all below 200 tons, and the entire fleet had 5 120mm guns. In the ensuing battle the Jiangping, Jiang'an, Jiangtai, Lijie, and Dongyi, were sunk, and the Lisui ship was seriously injured and forced to flee back to Fujin.The Chinese side claimed that they damaged two Soviet ships, sunk one, and shot down two fighter planes; but according to Soviet records, five Soviet soldiers were killed and 24 were injured.  At the same time as the naval battle around Sanjiangkou, two Soviet gunboats covered four armed ships, the Labor, Karl Marx, Mark Varyakin, and Pavel Zhuravlev, carrying a battalion of more than 400 people from the 2nd Infantry Division Volochaev Regiment, landing about 5 kilometers east of Tongjiang County and attacking the Chinese military station there. The Northeast Marine Battalion guarding the area and the Meng Zhaolin Battalion of the 9th Army Brigade jointly resisted and repelled the Soviet's initial attack. The Chinese suffered heavy losses, with more than 500 officers and soldiers killed and wounded, and more than 70 people including the Marine Battalion Captain Li Runqing captured.  On the 14th, the Chinese sank 6 tugboats, 2 merchant ships and 2 warships in the waterway 14 kilometers downstream of Fujin, forming a blockade line; and set up solid artillery positions and a 13-kilometer-long bunker line nearby, destroying all bridges on the road from Tongjiang to Fujin. A battle broke out at Tongjiang and according to the the report of Shen Honglie “the Northeast Navy suffered more than 500 casualties (including marines), 4 warships were sunk, 1 was seriously damaged, and the "Haijun" gunboat (45 tons) was captured by the Soviet army and renamed "Pobieda"; 17 officers including the battalion commander Meng Zhaolin and 350 soldiers of the army were killed; the Chinese side announced that 2 Soviet planes were shot down (some sources say 1), 3 Soviet warships were sunk, 4 were damaged, and more than 300 casualties”. On the 18th, the Soviets completely withdrew from the Tongjiang, allowing the two regiments of Lu Yongcai and Zhang Zuochen of the 9th Brigade to recapture it. On the 30th, Admiral Ozolin led some Soviet land forces in a major attack in the Fujian area. He organized the troops under his jurisdiction into two groups. He led the first group personally, who were supported by heavy gunboats Red East, Sun Yat-Sen and gunboats Red Flag, Proletarian, Buryat, minelayer Powerful and the armored boat Bars. Their mission was to annihilate the remnants of the river defense fleet anchored in Fujin. The second group was commanded by Onufryev, the commander of the Soviet 2nd infantry division. His group consisted of the shallow-water heavy gunboat Serdlov, gunboat Pauper and the transport fleets steam carrying the Volochaev Regiment and the 5th Amur regiment who landed at Fujin.  On the other side the Chinese had concentrated two infantry brigades, 3 cavalry regiments and a team of police with the support of the gunboats Jiangheng,  Lisui, Liji and the tugboat Lichuan. At 9 am on the 31st, the 7 Soviet ships suddenly destroyed the river blocking ropes and entered the Fujin River bank, bombarding the Chinese army, as cavalry landed. The Chinese ships "Lisui" and "Lichuan" sank successively, and only the "Jiangheng" managed to participate in the battle, but soon sank after firing only three shots. At 7 pm 21 Soviet ships sailed up the Songhua River, as part of the cavalry landed at Tuziyuan, advancing step by step towards Fujin. At 9 pm 7 Soviet ships approached the Fujin River bank, with roughly 700 infantry, cavalry and artillery soldiers of the 2nd Amur Infantry Division landed. The Chinese army collapsed without a fight, retreating to Huachuan, and by11am, Fujin county was occupied. Chinese sources reported “the Soviet army burned down the civil and military institutions separately and destroyed all the communication institutions. They distributed all the flour from the Jinchang Fire Mill to the poor, and plundered all the weapons, ammunition and military supplies." On the evening of November 1, the Soviet infantry, cavalry and artillery withdrew from the east gate. On the morning of the 2nd, the Soviet ships withdrew one after another. According to Soviet records, nearly 300 Chinese soldiers were killed in this battle, with thousands captured, while the Soviet army only lost 3 people and injured 11 people . The Chinese Songhua River fleet was completely destroyed, and 9 merchant ships were captured. In early November, the weather in the north became freezing cold, leading the rivers to freeze. Soviet warships retreated back to Khabarovsk, and their infantry and cavalry also returned by land. The war on the Eastern Front was basically over.  As for the western front, the main battlefields revolved around Manzhouli and Zhalannur. Since August 1929, conflicts here continued, a lot of back and forth stuff. The soviets would storm the areas and pull out. Yet in November, the war in the west escalated.  The commander of the Soviet Trans-Baikal Group, was Stepan Vostrezov, wielding the 21st, 35th and 36th infantry divisions, the 5th Cavalry Brigade, 331 heavy machine guns, 166 light machine guns, 32 combat aircraft, 3 armored trains, 58 light artillery, 30 heavy artillery, 9 T-18 ultra-light tanks, amongst other tanks. The Chinese side had about 16,000 people. There would be three major battles : the Battle of Zhallanur, the Battle of Manzhouli, and the Battle of Hailar. On November the 16th, the Soviets unleashed a large-scale offensive, tossing  nearly 40,000 troops, 400 artillery pieces, 40 tanks and 30 aircraft against the western front. At 11pm the Soviets crossed over the border. At 3am on the 17th the 5th Kuban Cavalry Brigade set out from Abagaitui, followed by the 35th Infantry Division who crossed the frozen surface of the Argun River, hooking around the rear of the Chinese garrison in Zhalannur along the east bank of the Argun River. At 7am Soviet aircraft began bombing the western front. The Chinese garrison headquarters, tram house, 38th Regiment building, and military police station were all bombed, and the radio station was also damaged. At noon, the Binzhou Railway was cut off 10-12 kilometers east of the city, and Zhalannur was attacked. Supported by 8 T-18 tanks and fighter planes, they attacked Zhalannur several times. On the morning of the 18th, the Soviet 5th Cavalry Brigade launched an attack against the 7,000-man 17th Brigade of the Chinese Army guarding Zhalannur. At 1pm on the 18th the Zhalannur Station and the Coal Mine was occupied by the Soviet army. The Chinese defenders, Brigadier Han Guangdi and Commander Zhang Linyu, were killed in action. More than half of the brigade officers and soldiers were killed and more than a thousand were captured. After capturing Zhalannur the Soviets concentrated their forces against Manzhouli. On the 19th, 7 T-18s supported the 108th Infantry Regiment of the Soviet 36th Division to attack Manzhouli from the east and west. Artillery pounded the city, before it was stormed. The 15th Brigade of the Chinese Army guarding the area was quickly surrounded by the Soviet army. Brigade Commander Liang Zhongjia and Chief of Staff Zhang Wenqing, alongside nearly 250 officers, fled to the Japanese consulate and surrendered to the Soviet army on the 20th. According to Soviet records, in the battles of Zhalannur and Manzhouli, over 1,500 Chinese soldiers were killed and more than 9,000 were captured, while the Soviet side lost 143 people, 665 were wounded and 4 were missing. Additionally 30 Chinese artillery pieces and 2 armored trains were captured by the Soviet army. The Soviets claimed that Chinese troops from Lake Khinkai were attacking Iman, modern day Dalnerechensk. In the name of self-defense, the Soviets began bombing Mishan on November 17 and mobilized  the Soviet Primorsky State Army and the 1st Pacific Rifle Infantry Division. The 1st Pacific Division and the 9th Independent Cavalry Brigade advanced towards Mishan, 40 kilometers from the border. Soviet records showed that during this battle the Chinese army suffered more than 1,500 casualties and 135 prisoners. The Soviets seized 6 machine guns, 6 mortars, 500 horses, 6 mortars, 200 horses and a large number of confidential documents. On November 23rd, 12 Soviet aircraft bombed Hailar, before capturing the city the next day.  By late November the Chinese had suffered something in the ballpark of 10,000 casualties along various fronts and an enormous amount of their equipment was taken by the Soviets. The Chinese officially reported 2000 deaths, 1000 wounded with more than 8000 captured. The Soviets reported 812 deaths, 665 wounded with under 100 missing. The Japanese had actually been quite the thorn for the Chinese during the war. They had intentionally barred Chinese forces from advancing north through their South Manchurian Railway zone, a large hindrance. Likewise the Kwantung army stationed in Liaoning were mobilizing, giving the impression they would exploit the situation at any moment.  In the face of quite a catastrophic and clear defeat, Nanjing's ministry of foreign affairs tossed a cease fire demand asking for foreign mediation. By December 3rd, Britain, France and the US asked both sides to stop the war so they could mediate a peace. The USSR rejected the participation of a third nation and suggested they could negotiate with China mono e mono. Zhang Xueliang accepted the proposal, dispatching Cai Yunsheng quickly to Shuangchengzi who signed an armistice with the Soviet representative Smanovsky. On the 16th real negotiations began and on the 22nd a draft agreement was signed. The draft stipulated both nations would re-cooperate over the Chinese Eastern Railway and that the Red Army would pull out of Manchuria as soon as both sides exchanged prisoners and officials. Thus the entire incident was resolved after humiliating China. While this all seemed completely needless, perhaps not significant, don't forget, the Japanese were watching it all happen in real time, taking notes, because they had their own ideas about Manchuria.  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. And so the Soviets and brand new Nationalist Republic of China went to war over, honestly a petty squabble involving railway rights and earnings. It was a drop in the bucket for such a war torn nation and only further embarrassed it on the world stage. Yet the Soviets might not be the foreign nation China should be looking out for.