The Type 88, sometimes known as "Hanyang 88" or Hanyang Type 88 () and Hanyang Zao (Which means ''Made in Hanyang''), is a Chinese-made

bolt-action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-action ...

rifle, based on the German

Gewehr 88 The Gewehr 88 (commonly called the Model 1888 commission rifle) was a late 19th-century German bolt-action rifle, adopted in 1888. The invention of smokeless powder in the late 19th century immediately rendered all of the large-bore black powder ...

. It was adopted by the

Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...

towards the end of the 19th century and was used by multiple factions and formations like those in the Republic of China, until the end of 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 ...

. The name of the rifle is derived from

Hanyang Arsenal Hanyang Arsenal () was one of the largest and oldest modern arsenals in Chinese history. History Originally known as the ''Hubei Arsenal'', it was founded in 1891 by Qing official Zhang Zhidong, who diverted funds from the Nanyang Fleet in Gua ...

, the main factory that produced this rifle. The rifle was due to be replaced as the standard Chinese rifle by the

Chiang Kai-shek rifle The Type Chiang Kai-shek rifle (), also known as the Zhongzheng/Jiang Jieshi Rifle (depending on the romanization of Chinese), Generalissimo rifle, and Type 24 (二四式), named after the Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, was a Chinese-mad ...

. However, manufacture of the new rifle never managed to match demand, and the Type 88 continued to be manufactured and to equip the National Revolutionary Army during 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 ...

History

This firearm was a rifle directly patterned on the German

and was initially fielded by the

New Armies The New Armies (Traditional Chinese: 新軍, Simplified Chinese: 新军; Pinyin: Xīnjūn, Manchu: ''Ice cooha''), more fully called the Newly Created Army ( ''Xinjian Lujun''Also translated as "Newly Established Army" ()), was the modernised a ...

of the

. From the start of production in 1895, the Type 88 was modified twice to improve performance in 1904 and in 1930. It served as one of the standard battle rifles used by the National Revolutionary Army from its founding in 1925 until the late 1940s, after the end of World War II. Japanese forces in China captured large amounts of Hanyang 88s and issued them to second-line units and collaborationist Chinese troops. It was also used by the Chinese Communists, who not only used it during the same time period, but also during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Some were reportedly supplied to the

Viet Minh The Việt Minh (; abbreviated from , chữ Nôm and Hán tự: ; french: Ligue pour l'indépendance du Viêt Nam, ) was a national independence coalition formed at Pác Bó by Hồ Chí Minh on 19 May 1941. Also known as the Việt Minh Fro ...

. Production of the rifle ceased in 1944, 1.1 million rifles having been produced. Initially manufactured at Hanyang Arsenal, production was moved to the 21st Arsenal in Chongqing after Wuhan

fell A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of Man, pa ...

to Japanese forces in 1938. Further production halted when the Chiang Kai-Shek rifle was instead being produced in 1944. When the rifles were used by the People's Liberation Army, they were either used by militia forces or were used as training/drill rifles.

Design

The Hanyang 88 was essentially a copy of the

, with a few minor differences, including the absence of the

barrel shroud A barrel shroud is an external covering that envelops (either partially or full-length) the barrel of a firearm, to prevent unwanted direct contact with the barrel (e.g. accidental collision with surrounding objects, or the user accidentally tou ...

, and an extension of the bayonet. It was a bolt-action rifle that cocked on opening, and its Mannlicher-style magazine could hold 5 7.92×57mm Mauser rounds. The magazine was loaded by using a 5-round en-bloc clip. When the last round was chambered, the clip would fall out of the magazine via a hole in the bottom. It can also be equipped with a bayonet. The main advantage of this kind of loading mechanism was that it allowed the user to reload very quickly. The disadvantages, however, were that the hole in the magazine could allow dirt to get in, thus possibly causing reliability issues. In 1904, the rifle's design was changed to remove the barrel shroud and more wood placed on it to protect the person's hands from being burned. Other changes included the rear sight based on the Kar98. Although the 5-round en-bloc clips of Hanyang 88 can accept the new round, mass conversion of Hanyang 88 to accept the

spitzer bullet The spitzer bullet (or spire point) is a pointed projectile that is primarily used in small-arms. The pointed nose shape, which was developed for military purposes in the late 19th and early 20th century, was a major design improvement compared ...

, despite having been planned, did not take place. The Hanyang 88 also had a carbine variant, which was shorter and lighter, albeit with inferior accuracy and range, similarly to the Gewehr 1891 carbine and a short rifle variant.

Performance

The Hanyang 88 was originally chambered for the German round-nose 7.92×57mm I round. By World War I, this round had already become obsolete. Nevertheless, it was the most numerous rifle used by the Chinese National Revolutionary Army in their engagements with the Japanese during the

Users

* : Known to be used in the Boxer Rebellion. * : Used by various Warlords and the NRA. * : Used by the PLA before they were phased out. * : Some used by second line units. ** Some Hanyang 88s used by

Collaborationist Chinese Army The term Collaborationist Chinese Army refers to the military forces of the puppet governments founded by Imperial Japan in mainland China during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. They include the armies of the Provisional (1937–194 ...

forces. *: Used by second-line units of the

Manchukuo Imperial Army The Manchukuo Imperial Army ( zh, s=滿洲國軍, p=Mǎnzhōuguó jūn) was the ground force of the military of the Empire of Manchukuo, a puppet state established by Imperial Japan in Manchuria, a region of northeastern China. The force was pri ...

* : Some supplied covertly to Viet Minh forces.

References

External links