The battle of Taiyuan in Xinkou was a large-scale general assembly battle organized by the Kuomintang to defend Taiyuan in World War II after the fall of Ping Jin and the beginning of the Battle of Songhu. The fighting lasted nearly two months from1937 September13-165438+1October 8. In the battle, the Eighth Route Army led by 15 Division and 129 Division * * * successively won the Pingxingguan victory and attacked Yangming Fort at night, which effectively cooperated with the frontal battle. However, because the Kuomintang's command was ineffective and its operations were ineffective, it eventually lost Xinkou and Taiyuan. Since then, the North China barrier has ceased to exist. There was no war on the frontal battlefield in North China, and the Eighth Route Army led by * * * went deep behind enemy lines, opened up base areas and launched guerrilla warfare, which gradually became the main body of the war of resistance in North China.
First, the Japanese invaders invaded northern Shanxi.
After the fall of Ping Jin, the Japanese soldiers in North China were divided into three roads: all the way south along Pinghan Road and into Henan; Go south along Jinpu Road and invade Shandong; All the way to attack Shanxi, Chayu and Suiyuan along the west of Pingsui Road, and the strategic attack was focused on Shanxi. Shanxi is located in the eastern part of the Loess Plateau, surrounded by Taihang Mountain, Luliang Mountain, Hengshan Mountain and Zhongtiao Mountain. The terrain is dangerous, easy to defend but difficult to attack, and it is a natural fortress in North China. China's army will pose a serious threat to the flank of the enemy invading the North China Plain if it can hold on to its important position in Shanxi. In order to ensure the occupation of Ping Jin, the Japanese army attempted to invade the south further and tried to control Shanxi. On the battlefield where the two armies are at war, a battle is inevitable. The intersection of Zheng Tai Road and Tongpu Road in Taiyuan, the provincial capital, is an important town to control mountains and rivers. Xinkou in the north is its barrier, and Niangziguan, Pingxingguan and Yanmenguan of the Inner Great Wall are connected with sanitation. If China's army can hold this strategic position, it can ensure Shanxi and threaten the Japanese army in Peiping and Tianjin.
1In August, 937, the Japanese army organized the "North China Army" sequence, with Kuichi in the temple as the commander and the main fifth division as the main attack on Taiyuan. In addition, a special mission of the Kwantung Army Chahar, with tojo hideki as the commander, was set up to cooperate with the actions of the Fifth Division. After the Japanese army captured the stronghold of Pingsui Road in Chahar Province in late August, the main force of the Japanese Kwantung Army Chahar Dispatching Army and the Fifth Division immediately directed their troops to Tianzhen and Yanggao in the north of Shanxi, knocking on Datong, the gateway of Shanxi. On September 10, Japanese troops captured Yanggao and Sanqianling, and Tianzhen fell. Li, the commander of the army, abandoned the city and retreated, disrupting Yan Xishan's Datong campaign plan, and Li was shot. After the Japanese army occupied Tianzhen and other places, it mobilized the main force to besiege Datong. Yan Xishan ordered to abandon Datong and concentrate his forces on the Great Wall. /kloc-In September of 0/2, the Kwantung Army sent troops to Chahar to occupy Datong without bloodshed. On September 13, the Japanese invaders split up and headed for Taiyuan along Tongpu Road.
At the same time, after occupying Yangyuan and Yuxian, the important places in Cha 'nan, the Japanese Fifth Division broke through the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei provincial boundary and attacked Guangling, an important town in Shanxi. China's army was forced to retreat to the Great Wall such as Shenchi and Yanmenguan, and stopped the Japanese Fifth Division from invading the west from Tea Province by virtue of natural barrier. In order to ensure Shanxi's natural fortress, four squadrons of China Air Force went north to support operations and determined that the 18th Army of Zhu De was under the command of World War II. /kloc-in September of 0/4, the Japanese army captured Guangling. In June, 5438+05, China's Second World War Zone was adjusted and deployed: Yang Aiyuan, commander-in-chief of the Right Army, and Sun Chu, deputy commander-in-chief, under the jurisdiction of 33 Army and 17 Army; Fu, commander-in-chief of the Left Army, has jurisdiction over 6 1 Army, 34 Army, 35 Army and 19 Army. The reserve forces are the 7th1Division and the 72nd Division. The whole army occupied the mountain position in the south of Lingqiu, passed through Hengshan, Lingyunkou, Beiloukou, Yu Lang, Ruyuekou, Guangwu Town, Yangfangkou and Limin Fort, refused to be blocked by the enemy, and prepared to send troops to control Fan Shi and Daixian.
After the Japanese army occupied Guangling, they immediately divided their forces to pursue Lingqiu and Hunyuan. Although China's army resisted tenaciously, the Japanese army captured Hunyuan on June 5438+07 and Lingqiu on June 20th. The defenders of China were caught between Scylla and Charybdis, which was difficult to last, and they were forced to move to Pingxingguan area. China's army decided to use the dangerous level pass to stop the enemy. From September 2 1 day to September 29, China's frontal defenders fought fiercely with the Japanese army at Pingxingguan, and both sides suffered heavy losses. However, the Japanese offensive was more fierce, the position changed hands several times, and the war situation was in a stalemate. At this time, the Eighth Route Army 15 Division was ordered to reinforce Lingqiu. After the fall of Lingqiu, the 15 Division ambushed the Japanese army in Pingxingguan on September 25th, and won a great victory. In one day, more than 1000 people were killed and countless treasures were seized. The victory of Pingxingguan broke the myth that the imperial army was invincible. It was the first victory of the China army since the beginning of the Anti-Japanese War, which greatly inspired the people of the whole country to fight against Japan. However, on September 28th, Japanese troops occupied Ruyue, and China troops retreated to Tiejiaoling, west of Fan Shi. The Japanese army followed closely, and after a bloody battle, Tiejiaoling fell that night, and Fan Shi fell. Pingxingguan China defenders were cut off, and the situation was critical. In order to avoid being besieged, China army abandoned Pingxing Pass and moved to Daixian County in Wutai Mountain and the line from Yanmenguan to Yangfangkou. After occupying Ruyue, Tiejiaoling and Pingxingguan, the Japanese army joined forces in Fan Shi, and jointly captured Daixian on June 10, while another Chahar Corps attacking Suiyuan captured Shuoxian on September 28th, and attacked Ningwu, a traffic hub in northern Shaanxi, with 30 orders. At this point, China's Great Wall defense line was once again broken by the enemy, and the Japanese army approached Xinkou.
Second, the Xinkou General Assembly War
Xinkou is the gateway to Taiyuan in northern Shanxi and the last line of defense to defend Taiyuan. In order to defend Taiyuan, the Kuomintang World War II Command concentrated six group armies, with a total of 3 1 division and 31brigade, with more than 280,000 people. Wei Li Huang, the deputy commander of the Second World War, served as the commander-in-chief of the former enemy and organized the battle of Xinkou. The specific deployment of troops is; The 9th, 15, 17, 19 and 14 armies formed the Central Corps, which was under the command of Wei, the deputy commander, and was responsible for guarding the frontline positions of Caijiagang, Lingshan, Nanhuaihua and Yangmingbao. 18th Army (except120th Division), 73rd Division and1kloc-0/Division formed a right-wing regiment, which was commanded by Zhu De, commander-in-chief of18th Army, to guard the front position of Wutai Mountain. The 68th, 6th1,120th Divisions and the Independent Seventh Brigade formed the Left Wing Corps, which was commanded by the Commander-in-Chief of the Sixth Army, Yang Aiyuan, and defended the position from Heiyu Village to Yangfangkou. With the 34th Army, the 35th Army and the 66th Division as the reserve team, Fu, commander-in-chief of the 7th Army, took command and coordinated the parties in Dingxiang and Xinxian. The Japanese army participated in the battle of Xinkou with about 3 divisions and more than 70,000 people, equipped with more than 350 cannons, more than 50 chariots/KLOC-0 and more than 300 planes.
1 01October1day, more than a thousand Japanese troops attacked Yangming Fort, fought fiercely with the 19th Army of China, and occupied Yangming Fort. On the 2nd, with the cooperation of planes and artillery, we attacked Yan County. On the 4th, the Japanese army merged into the 1st15th brigade, detoured from the west of Yanxian County, and stormed Yuanping Town. At this time, the Wei department transferred from Pinghan Road to Shijiazhuang has not yet arrived, and the Jin Suijun transferred from Wutai Mountain to Xinkou will arrive in two days. The situation is very critical. In order to make the main force have enough time to gather Xinkou to fight against the enemy, the World War II District Command ordered the China garrison to defend the county and Yuanping until the follow-up troops arrived. In May and June, the Japanese aggressors concentrated their artillery fire on the defenders of China in this county, and almost all their positions were bombed. 19 Army 407th Regiment suffered heavy casualties. On the 7th, the number of Japanese troops besieging Ma County increased to five or six thousand. The Japanese army bombed the county town for six hours with more than 20 planes and more than 30 heavy guns. The north city wall was destroyed, and all 4 1 regiments were killed or injured. The enemy took the opportunity to break into the house. The defenders of the east and west walls fought bravely and fought hand-to-hand with the enemy in the street. At night, garrison officers at all levels in China personally led the troops to resist the enemy, and the Japanese army increased, and the situation was irreversible. On the 8th, the army general Wang Jing had to lead the rest to break through, and Ma County fell.
The defenders of Yuanping Town are Chiang's 196 Brigade. In order to enable the main force to complete the assembly in Xinkou, the General Division of World War II Zone ordered him to "defend the original flat position for seven days (10 to 1 hour)". On the way from Daixian to Yuanping, the Japanese army has already caught up. Twenty miles from the original level, Jiang Brigade engaged with the enemy's 15th Huncheng Brigade, fighting and retreating. Outside Yuanping City, Jiang ordered his men to build fortifications to defend railways and highways. With superior equipment and with the cooperation of planes, heavy artillery and chariots, the Japanese army launched a storm on Yuanping. Jiang personally commanded, and the enemy's repeated attacks were repelled. The casualties of Jianglv are getting heavier and heavier, and the position is gradually shrinking. The Japanese army surrounded Yuan Ping. Finally, Jiang Brigade had to retreat into the city. On the seventh day, the Japanese army invaded from the northeast corner of the city, occupied the eastern half of the city, and resisted Lv Jiang across the street. At this time, I was ordered to keep Jiang for another three days. He immediately said: "Swear to the death of the war of resistance, and never leave the unreasonable scholars." 654381October 8 After the fall of Yingxian County, a large number of Japanese troops besieged Yuanping, and the northwest of the city was also captured. At this time, Jiang's 5,000 men, only 200 to 300 people, were besieged in the northeast corner of the city, but the soldiers were fearless. Under the leadership of Jiang, they fought with the enemy in street battles, hand-to-hand combat and battle by battle. It lasted until June 10 night, and completed the task of guarding the city. Then, lead the rest of the troops to break through the river. Unexpectedly, she was hit by enemy shells outside the city and died. In this campaign, Jiang Brigade fought bloody battles with the enemy for 10 days, and fought against strong bandits with inferior troops, almost all of whom died heroically. On June 1 1 day, Japanese troops occupied Yuanping.
After the fall of Maxian and Yuanping, Xinkou was completely under the direct attack of the Japanese army. Xinkou is located in the north of Xin County, with Tongpu Road at the crossroads, Wutai Mountain Range on the right and Ningwu Mountain Range on the left. There is a valley between the two mountains, including a heaped-up mountain several tens of meters high, on which semi-permanent fortifications are built. 101October 12, World War II headquarters adjusted its deployment, and transferred Fu's reserve corps to join the Central Corps to continue fighting the enemy at the front line of Xinkou. 13, the Japanese army mobilized more than 5,000 troops, and under the cover of planes, artillery and chariots, stormed the central position of Xinkou-Huaihua South, trying to implement the central breakthrough. Under the fierce attack of the Japanese army, the South Huaihua position was almost razed to the ground. Although the defenders of China were trapped in scorched earth, they fought bravely, fought fiercely until late at night, and changed hands 13 times, and finally surrounded and annihilated the enemy who broke into South Huaihua. 14, the Japanese army sent thousands more troops and stormed the South Huaihua position again, and the fierce fighting between the defenders of China and the Japanese aggressors became more intense. The fifteenth army of the right-wing China garrison fought fiercely with the enemy until the evening, and rushed a Japanese army to the foot of Lingshan; The tenth division of the left defeated the enemy and recovered the old Lianzhuang and other places, but the main position of South Huaihua fell into the enemy, and there was a gap in the defense line, and the tug-of-war intensified.
10 On June 5438+05, in order to further expand the results, annihilate the enemy and recover the central position, China World War II Command transferred about five brigades from the Ninth Army and the 21st Division, and under the command of Hao, commander of the Central Corps and commander of the Ninth Army, launched a counterattack against the positions occupied by the Japanese. China's army attacked from the front and besieged the enemy from three sides. In front of the position, Commander Hao said to the soldiers: "In the past, we defended this area in the form of a regiment. Now there are only 100 people left, so we'd better defend this position in the form of a company. Even if there is only one person left, we must hold this position. As long as we die, our anti-Japanese responsibility will not be over. Before I set out, I had written my will at home, and I would never survive unless I defeated the Japanese aggressors. Now I will stick to this position with you and never retreat first. Any one of you can shoot me if I leave first. Whoever you are, just step back and I'll shoot him right away. Do you dare to stay here with me? " All the soldiers replied in unison: "Hold your ground to the death!" He said happily, "well, there will be a dead heart. I have no intention of being greedy for life." Then he wrote a scrawled word: "Where to stand, where to die" and told the whole army to land. 16 at 2 am, the counterattack began. Under the command of Hao, China's army joined several hills. By 5 o'clock, it was already dark. Hao was anxious to get to the front position of the fifth brigade to direct the operation. The officers and men told him that it was very dangerous for the road ahead to be blocked by enemy fire, and advised him to write a written order to send someone there. Hao Yue said, "If the crock never leaves the wellhead, the general will surely die in front of the battle." After that, he resolutely rushed to the front position. When crossing the position only 200 meters away from the enemy, he was unfortunately shot and died heroically at the age of 39. At the same time, the commander of the 54th division was killed, and then the brigade commander of the fifth independent brigade, Zheng, was killed and martyred. It is said that Hao volunteered to go north because of stationing troops in Guiyang. Earlier, he said to his wife: "I am a soldier. I've been fighting civil war for half my life, and I have no interest in my country. When the Japanese invaders invaded the northeast, the people were filled with indignation. Now the Japanese invaders are going to destroy China, and our country has reached the last moment of life and death. I should go to the war of resistance and fight the enemy. " When he led his troops to say goodbye to his family through Wuhan, he said to his children, "I love you, but I love our country more. Now the enemy is killing our compatriots every day, and everyone should kill the enemy. If the country dies, you will have no good life. " He couldn't bear to watch his family leave in tears, so he quietly wrote a suicide note for the children to open later. He wrote:
This time, I went north to resist Japan and made sacrifices. In case of death, listen to your mother and be filial to your grandmother. As for you waiting for school, I personally have no money. If the country wins in the future, you can go to the school for survivors. ……
At the forefront of the Xinkou position, he mobilized the officers before the war. He said: "this war is a war of national survival, only sacrifice;" If we retreat again and reach the Yellow River, there will be no soldiers. Why are there officers? This means that I am dead and alive, and the country is born and dead. "
In his letter to his wife on the eve of the decisive battle, he said: "This war of resistance is the last moment for the survival of the nation and the country. We are determined to sacrifice, or we will die if we fail. In order to win the final victory and let the Chinese nation live forever in the world, success doesn't have to be in me, so I sacrifice first. After my sacrifice, as long as the country exists, my children's education will certainly not be a problem ... I will be honored after my sacrifice. If you are a soldier, you will die for your country, and death can be said to be worthwhile! " 10 June 16, Hao died of illness, realizing his long-cherished wish to fight for the country and the nation. After Hao's sacrifice, the national government held a state funeral for him and posthumously awarded him as an army general to show his appreciation. On March 1938 and 12, comrades praised Hao and others as "lofty and great models" of the people of China, proving that "the Chinese nation is by no means a flock of sheep, but a great nation full of national pride and human justice".
Due to the heroic fighting of China defenders in Xinkou, the Japanese army attacked the central position of Xinkou from 10 to 13 and ended at 10. The two sides fought fiercely for half a month, but the Japanese army never completely occupied these areas.
While the front defenders fought the enemy tenaciously, our left and right wing corps constantly harassed the Japanese rear in Wutai Mountain and Ningwu Mountain. 65438+1October 65438+April, 18 Army 120 Division cooperated with the Independent Seventh Brigade to recover Ningwu County in one fell swoop. In June of 5438+05, the army wiped out the enemy 100 people in Guangling and Lingqiu, and recovered Guangling. 19, 18 Army 129 Division raided the Japanese Yangmingbao Airport at night, killing more than 100 people and blowing up more than 20 planes, which made the rampant Japanese army lose its air superiority in the battle of Xinkou. Our left and right armies harassed the enemy, especially the 18th Army went deep behind the enemy lines and launched guerrilla warfare, forcing the Japanese army to retreat to the rear with considerable strength, which helped to support the frontal battle in Xinkou. It was this effective cooperation that the Japanese attacked many times before the end of 10, but the position of New China was not broken by it, and the Japanese army was able to launch counter-attacks to annihilate the enemy many times.
The Japanese army was stubbornly resisted by the China army near Xinkou and made little progress. So in June 5438+10/mid-October, it sent troops to attack Taiyuan along Zheng Tai Road. The China garrison stationed at Luniangziguan was commanded by Huang, the deputy commander of the Second World War Zone of the Kuomintang. From June+10/October1KLOC-0/day in 65438, the Japanese army and the China garrison fought fiercely in Zheng Tai Road and Niangziguan. 14, the defenders of China received reinforcements from Sun Lianzhong and his men near Niangziguan, and immediately counterattacked the invading enemy, killing hundreds of people that day. In June of 5438+05, more than 1500 people who invaded Guangou were annihilated, and an all-out attack was launched at dawn the next day, fighting bloody battles with the enemy and annihilating the enemy. However, by 19, the Japanese reinforcements increased greatly, and they got strong cooperation from planes and artillery. Although China's army continued to fight bravely, it was gradually at a disadvantage because of the disparity in strength. On the 26th, Niangziguan was captured by the Japanese. Niangziguan fell, and the defenders of Xinkou China were caught between Scylla and Charybdis. 165438+ 10 2, World War II headquarters had to order the defenders of Xinkou to retreat to defend Taiyuan. The new day, covered with China's blood, was occupied by the Japanese army that day, and the war turned to Taiyuan.
Third, the battle of Taiyuan
After the Japanese army succeeded in Xinkou and Niangziguan, they immediately attacked from left to right and approached Taiyuan. On the issue of defending Taiyuan, the World War II Command was divided. Wei, the deputy commander, thought Taiyuan was an isolated city and said nothing at the meeting. Huang Shaohong, another deputy commander, avoided fighting and wanted to save his strength. At Yen Hsi-shan's insistence, the World War II Command ordered Fu to be the commander of Taiyuan city defense, responsible for defending Taiyuan. At the same time, he ordered Wei to lead Xinkou troops to move to the surrounding areas of Taiyuan to help Fu stick to Taiyuan. However, the order of the troops retreating from Xinkou was extremely chaotic. Before occupying the northern position of Taiyuan, it was defeated by the enemy pursuers, and the defeated army fled westward across Fenhe River. Japanese troops in eastern Shanxi have successively captured Pingding, Yangquan, Shouyang and Yuci since October 26th, 65438. 165438+1On October 7th, Japanese troops arrived in the suburbs of Taiyuan, and Taiyuan City was surrounded by Japanese troops.
Since the early morning of 165438+ 10, the Japanese army, with the cooperation of planes, artillery and armored vehicles, stormed the city wall from the east and north, and the north tower was hit, with flames soaring, and Taiyuan City was plunged into a sea of fire, and the three-foot high city wall was blown less than two feet. At about 9 o'clock, the northeast and northwest corners were collapsed by the enemy's intensive artillery fire. Subsequently, the east and north walls were blasted at more than ten places. Under the cover of guns, enemy infantry rushed into the city, guarding China's army in Taiyuan, plunged into scorched earth and dying. While fighting and killing the enemies who attacked the city, they blocked the city walls and gates and fought hand-to-hand to annihilate the enemies who entered the city. But in the evening, the Japanese army suddenly launched airborne troops into the city, both inside and outside. China defenders in the west and south of the city were defeated by the enemy. Due to several days of bloody fighting, the defenders in China were outnumbered. Fu, the commander of the Yugoslav capital, was in tears, so he had to order the remaining two thousand soldiers to break through the south gate and move to Jinnan, and Taiyuan fell on the same day.
Although the battle of Taiyuan in Xinkou ended in failure, in this battle, Kuomintang soldiers cooperated closely with the Eighth Route Army and wiped out more than 20,000 Japanese troops at the cost of more than 654.38+10,000 casualties, setting a new record in the battlefield of North China. The battle of Taiyuan in Xinkou also disrupted the plot of the Japanese invaders to destroy China, supported the action of the defenders of Pinghan Road in China, and bought time for the defenders of Pinghan Road in China to gather south. The emergence of Hao, Jiang and other heroic generals in the battle greatly inspired my courage and confidence in the desperate struggle between the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians and the evil Japanese aggressors.