The Battle of Siping (四平战斗), also known as the Battle to Liberate Siping (四平解放战), was a battle fought between the
Communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
forces and the
Nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
forces in
Jilin
Jilin (; alternately romanized as Kirin or Chilin) is one of the three provinces of Northeast China. Its capital and largest city is Changchun. Jilin borders North Korea (Rasŏn, North Hamgyong, Ryanggang and Chagang) and Russia (Prim ...
,
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 ...
for the control of
Siping during the
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on m ...
. It took place immediately after the Soviet
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
withdrew from Siping in March 1946, and resulted in a Communist victory.
Prelude
On January 8, 1946, Liu Handong (刘瀚东), the commander of the Nationalist 107th Division, arrived at Siping with over a hundred associates to discuss the city's transfer from the Soviet
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
to the Chinese administration. The Red Army still occupied the city at the time. Subsequently, on January 10, the Nationalists created the
Liaobei
Liaobei ( Wade-Giles: Liaopei) also known as Liaopeh is a ''de jure'' province of the Republic of China under ROC law as the government of the Republic of China formally claims to be the sole legitimate government of China. Located in Manchuria ...
province, with Liu Handong named the chairman of the province, and Nationalist provincial governmental member Li Chongguo (李充国) named the mayor of Siping.
The Nationalists had neither sufficient troops nor enough transportation assets to effectively assume control of the previously Japanese-occupied region of China, and they could not spare enough forces to hold the city long enough for reinforcements to arrive. The Nationalists at Siping recruited bandits in the region, including members from the Good Under the Heaven (天下好) and Flying Over the Grass (草上飞) gangs, to secure the local garrison.
Enlisting the gangs were angered by the local populace, which already blamed the Nationalists for losing the region to the Japanese invaders. As a result, the Nationalists lost popular support in the region, a problem exacerbated by the fact that the hired bandits had fought the Nationalists both prior to and during the war and had cooperated with the Japanese invaders. The Nationalists recruited forces from the former Japanese puppet regime
Manchukuo
Manchukuo, officially the State of Manchuria prior to 1934 and the Empire of (Great) Manchuria after 1934, was a puppet state of the Empire of Japan in Northeast China, Manchuria from 1932 until 1945. It was founded as a republic in 1932 afte ...
, such as the Iron Stone Units (Tie Shi Bu Dui, 铁石部队), to be part of the local garrison, which only increased the hatred from the local populace, which had suffered under the Japanese puppet regime.
First Nationalist offensive and counterattack
On January 25, 1946,
Lü Zhengcao
Lü Zhengcao () (4 January 1904 – 13 October 2009) was a Chinese military officer. He was one of the original ''Shang Jiang'' of the People's Liberation Army.
Lü was born in Haicheng, in the province of Liaoning. He joined the Chinese Comm ...
, the
commander-in-chief of the communist Western Manchurian Military District, and
Li Fuchun
Li Fuchun (; May 22, 1900 – January 9, 1975) was a Chinese Communist revolutionary and politician. He served as a Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China.
Biography
Li Fuchun was born in Changsha, Hunan Province. After completing middl ...
, the
political commissar of the communist Western Manchurian Military District, redeployed the communist 10th Brigade and the 24th Brigade to the Pear Tree (Li Shu, 梨树),
Changtu, and
Gongzhuling
Gongzhuling () is a county-level city under the administration of Changchun. It is located in central Jilin province of Northeast China, halfway between Siping and Changchun, along the main railway line in the Northeast. Major employers in the ci ...
regions surrounding Siping.
In an attempt to eradicate the enemy and secure the city, the Nationalists launched an offensive against the Communists in late February. However, the former bandits proved no match for combat-hardened Communists who were veterans of the
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
. The Nationalist force, consisting of former bandits from the Pressuring Nine Dragons (Ya Jiu Long, 压九龙) gang, attacked the communist Siping Group and inflicted more than a dozen fatalities and injured a Communist squadron commander, Cheng Bizhen (程秉贞). The Communists quickly
counterattack
A counterattack is a tactic employed in response to an attack, with the term originating in "war games". The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy during attack, while the specific objectives typically seek ...
ed, completely annihilating the attacking Nationalists.
The failed attempt by the Nationalists provided an excellent excuse for the Communists to counterattack, and, in a short period of several days, the Nationalist strongholds at Crouching Tiger Village (Wo Hu Tun, 卧虎屯), Maolin (茂林), Baokang (保康), and Twin Mountains (Shuang Shan, 双山) fell into Communist hands. All the Nationalist garrisons guarding these strongholds were former bandits from various gangs, including the Old Second Brother (Lao Er Ge, 老二哥), Seven Stars (Qi Xing Zi, 七星子), Old Man Smile (Lao Tou Le, 老头乐) and Nine Provinces (Jiu Sheng, 九省) gangs. The Nationalists were forced back on the defensive after their failure in the rural regions and the fighting temporarily stopped.
Communist capture of Siping
The clash resumed after the Soviet
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
withdrew from Siping on March 13, 1946. On March 15, the airport in the western suburb of the city had fallen into Communist hands, and by the next day, the 6,000-strong Communist force had completed their
siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition warfare, attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity con ...
of the city. At 4:00 a.m. on March 17, the assault on the city began. After ten hours of fierce battle, the city succumbed, with its entire garrison defeated.
The Nationalist commander Liu Handong and his deputies, the former bandit chieftains Wang Dahua (王大化) and Wang Yaodong (王耀东) were captured alive. However, a few of the defenders, including the Nationalist chief of security Zhang Dongkai (张东凯) and deputy chief of security Wang Yongqing (王永清), were able to escape by disguising themselves as beggars. The Communists had also captured 69
machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
s, 32
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
pieces, over two thousand firearms, nearly two dozen automobiles, over 300 military horses and large amount of supplies from the Nationalist defenders. The Nationalists lost support from the local populace as a result of the defeat.
Nationalist counter-offensive
Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...
was furious that the city had fallen and sent out a force to retake the city. By March 21, 1946, the Nationalists had taken nearby
Liaoyang
Liaoyang () is a prefecture-level city of east-central Liaoning province, China, situated on the Taizi River. It is approximately one hour south of Shenyang, the provincial capital, by car. Liaoyang is home to Liaoning University's College of Fo ...
, and by March 22, the Nationalists took
Fushun
Fushun (, formerly romanised as ''Fouchouen'', using French spelling, also as Fuxi ()) is a prefecture level city in Liaoning province, China, about east of Shenyang, with a total area of , of which is the city proper. Situated on the Hun Ri ...
and
Tieling
Tieling () is one of 14 prefecture-level cities in Liaoning province of the People's Republic of China. Tieling is a city where coal mining is an important industry.
Demographics
As of the 2020 census, Tieling was home to 2,388,294 people, who ...
. On March 22, Chiang Kai-shek ordered Xiong Shihui (熊式辉), the chief Nationalist administrator in
Northeast China
Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as "Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east of t ...
and
Zheng Dongguo
Zheng Dongguo () was a field commander in the Republic of China National Revolutionary Army. He took part in the Second Sino-Japanese War, and was active in southern China and in the Burma theatre of the war, drawing troops from Yunnan. After t ...
, the commander-in-chief of the Nationalist force in
Northeast China
Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as "Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east of t ...
, to launch a
counter-offensive
In the study of military tactics, a counter-offensive is a large-scale strategic offensive military operation, usually by forces that had successfully halted the enemy's offensive, while occupying defensive positions.
The counter-offensive is ...
targeting Siping from the provincial capital of
Shenyang
Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a major China, Chinese sub-provincial city and the List of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Lia ...
. The goal was to take Siping before April 2. The Nationalist offensive was spearheaded by the
New 1st Army
The New 1st Army () was reputed to be the most elite military unit of the Chinese National Revolutionary Army. Nicknamed the "First Army Under Heaven" during the Chinese Civil War, it caused the most Imperial Japanese Army, Japanese Army casualties ...
and the 71st Army, and the Nationalist deputy commander-in-chief Liang Huasheng (梁华盛) was named as the frontline commander to set up headquarters at
Tieling
Tieling () is one of 14 prefecture-level cities in Liaoning province of the People's Republic of China. Tieling is a city where coal mining is an important industry.
Demographics
As of the 2020 census, Tieling was home to 2,388,294 people, who ...
.
Chiang's plan collapsed when melting snow turned the roads to mud, bogging down the highly mechanized Nationalist force, making it unable to reach Siping. The Nationalists would also suffer another defeat in the
Jinjiatun Campaign due to the harsh terrain which was hostile to the highly mechanized force.
See also
*
List of battles of the Chinese Civil War
The following is a list of Chinese wars and battles, organized by date.Xiaobing Li, ''China at War: An Encyclopedia.'' (ABC-CLIO, 2012).excerpt/ref>
Ancient China
Imperial China
Qin dynasty (221–206 BCE)
Han dynasty (206 BCE – ...
*
National Revolutionary Army
The National Revolutionary Army (NRA; ), sometimes shortened to Revolutionary Army () before 1928, and as National Army () after 1928, was the military arm of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the Chinese Nationalist Party) from 1925 until 1947 in China ...
*
History of the People's Liberation Army
The history of the People's Liberation Army began in 1927 with the start of the Chinese Civil War and spans to the present, having developed from a peasant guerrilla force into the largest armed force in the world.
Historical background
Thr ...
References
*
*
* (in two volumes)
*
*
* (in two volumes)
*
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* (volume 1), (volume 2), (volume 3), (volume 4), and (volume 5)
* Review by Johnny Spence
H-War, H-Net Reviews. January 2014
{{Chinese Civil War
1946 in China
Siping
Siping
History of Jilin