The 80th Group Army ), formerly the 26th Group Army, is a military formation of the Chinese
People's Liberation Army Ground Forces (PLAGF). The 80th Group Army is one of twelve total
group armies
Group armies () or army groups or combined corps, which are corps-level military formations of the People's Liberation Army Ground Force of China.
Some may use or translate 'Group Army' loosely to mean the same as Army Group through various t ...
of the PLAGF, the largest echelon of ground forces in the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, and one of three assigned to the nation's
Northern Theater Command
The Northern Theater Command (is) one of the five theater commands of the People's Liberation Army, founded on 1 February 2016. Its predecessor is the Shenyang Military Region and Beijing Military Region. Its headquarters is in the Heping D ...
.
History
Korean War
It was composed of the
76th,
77th, and
78th Divisions, and was augmented by the
88th Division from its parent unit, the
30th Army.
During the Korean War, the 26th Army was commanded by Lieutenant General Zhang Renchu.
The PLA's 9th Army Group began moving into Korea on 5 November. After the 20th Army had moved in, followed by the 27th Army, the 26th CCF Army followed, moving east to Linjiang and Huchang as army group reserve, and defending against any advance down the Yalu River by the US Army 7th Infantry Division. On 2 December, General Song Shilun ordered the 26th Army south from the Huchang River to take over the attack on Hagaru-ri. Movement of the 26th Army was slowed and delayed by air attacks. Further, according to one of the Chinese histories, some elements got lost in a snowstorm. The 26th Army failed to reach Hagaru and launch an attack on the 5th Marines. Advanced elements did reach East Hill and attempt to hold that. And, on the night of December 6, as the 1st Marine Division was attacking towards Hagaru-ri, advance elements of the 26th Army did attack the column but failed to organize a coordinated attack. The 26th Army suffered some 10,000 cold-weather related casualties.
Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989
In May 1989, the 26th Army’s 138th Infantry Division was airlifted to
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
to
enforce martial law and suppress the
Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
The Tiananmen Square protests, known in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident (), were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing during 1989. In what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, or in Chinese the June Fourth ...
.
[Based on Wu Renhua's study. (Chines]
Wu Renhua, "进京的戒严部队和进京路线" 《1989天安门事件二十周年祭》系列之十二
Accessed 2013-06-29
Dennis Blasko wrote in 2013 that during the force reductions which began in 2003, the 138th and 199th Brigades, along with the 8th Artillery Brigade, were created from former divisions. The
83rd Division has also been associated with this army in public reporting in the last few years.
Organization
In 2013 Dennis Blasko estimated the army comprises the:
[Blasko, 2013, p.95]
*
77th Motorized Infantry Brigade (Haiyang, Shandong)
*
138th Motorized Infantry Brigade (Laiyang, Shandong)
*
199th Motorized Infantry Brigade (
Zibo
Zibo (, ) is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, China. It borders the provincial capital Jinan to the west, Tai'an to the southwest, Linyi to the south, Weifang to the east, Dongying to the northeast, and Binzhou to the ...
, Shandong)
*
8th Armored Division (
Weifang
Weifang () is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, People's Republic of China. The city borders Dongying to the northwest, Zibo to the west, Linyi to the southwest, Rizhao to the south, Qingdao to the east, and looks out to the L ...
, Shandong)
*
8th Artillery Brigade (
Weifang
Weifang () is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, People's Republic of China. The city borders Dongying to the northwest, Zibo to the west, Linyi to the southwest, Rizhao to the south, Qingdao to the east, and looks out to the L ...
, Shandong)
*Air Defense Brigade (
Jinan
Jinan (), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized as Tsinan, is the Capital (political), capital of Shandong province in East China, Eastern China. With a population of 9.2 million, it is the second-largest city i ...
, Shandong)
*
7th Army Aviation Regiment (Liaocheng, Shandong)
*'Mighty Eagle' Special Operations Dadui (Laiwu, Shandong)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:80th Group Army
80
80
Military units and formations established in 1949
Northern Theater Command
Jinan Military Region
Weifang