First encirclement campaign against the Hubei–Henan–Shaanxi Soviet
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The first encirclement campaign against the Hubei–Henan–Shaanxi Soviet was an encirclement campaign launched by the Nationalist Government 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 ...
against the
Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...
's Hubei–Henan–Shaanxi Soviet and its local
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 ...
. The Red Army successfully defended the Soviet against Nationalist attacks from January to February 5, 1935.


Order of battle

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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 ...
(NRA): (6,500 total): **116th Brigade **126th Brigade **2nd Garrison Brigade *Chinese Red Army: (2,500 total): **25th Army


Situation

In late January, 1935, the Nationalist 126th Brigade and the 2nd Garrison Brigade occupied regions to the east and to the south of
Zhen'an County Zhen'an County () is a county in the south of Shaanxi province, China. It is under the administration and located in the southwest corner of the prefecture-level city of Shangluo, and has an area of and a population of as of 2004. Administrativ ...
as they began their encirclement campaign against the local Communists. The 25th Army of the
Chinese Red Army The Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army or Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army, commonly known as the Chinese Red Army or simply the Red Army, are the armed forces of the Chinese Communist Party. It was formed when Communist ...
only number around 2,500 and simply could not face an enemy almost twice its strength. The Communists decided to trick the enemy into dispersing its forces and then destroy them by concentrating their own forces. To do so, the Communists deployed their forces to the region of the Yuanjiagoukou (袁家沟口) by marching northward from the border region of Shanyang and Yunxi. The Communist force subsequently moved to the region of Fenghuangzui, suddenly appearing directly behind the enemy line. On January 31, 1935, the town of Zuoshui fell into Communist hands, forcing the Nationalist 2nd Garrison Brigade to move westward to reinforce the region, thus the Communists had successfully achieved their objective of dispersing the enemy. On February 1, 1935, as the 252nd Regiment of the Nationalist 116th Brigade reached the region of Caiyuyao, it was ambushed by the waiting enemy and one battalion of the 252nd Regiment of the Nationalist 116th Brigade completely annihilated while the other two were badly mauled. The Communists subsequently withdrew to Gepai Town to rest and regroup. On February 5, 1935, the Nationalist commander-in-chief Liu Yanbiao, the commander of the Nationalist 116th Brigade, personally led the 251st Regiment and 248th Regiment of the Nationalist 116th Brigade to attack Gepai Town, in attempt to avenge the previous annihilation of the 252nd Regiment of the 116th Brigade. The Communists first checked the Nationalist advance at the Wengo Ridge by taking advantage of the terrain, and then launched their counterassault on the front and left flank. After two battalions were completely annihilated by the Communist onslaught, the Nationalist morale collapsed and the Nationalist troops fled southward. This final Nationalist defeat marked the end of the first encirclement campaign against
Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
Sichuan Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
Soviet. The Nationalist defeat in the campaign cost them over 1,200 casualties and in addition, five counties in southern
Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see #Name, § Name) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichu ...
that were originally plagued heavily with Communist guerrilla activities had since become communist bases, resulting in the expansion of the Hubei–Henan–Sichuan Soviet.


See also

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Outline of the Chinese Civil War The following is a topical outline of English Wikipedia articles about the history of the Chinese Civil War (1912–1949) The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and the forces of the Ch ...
*
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 ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:First encirclement campaign Against Hubei-Henan-Shaanxi Soviet Hubei-Henan-Shaanxi, encirclement campaign, 1st Conflicts in 1935 1935 in China Military history of Henan Military history of Hubei Military history of Shaanxi