The Jilin Self-Defence Army was an anti-Japanese volunteer army formed to defend local Chinese residents against the Japanese invasion of northeast China. General

Ding Chao Ding Chao (; 1883–1950s) was a military general of the Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China, known for his defense of Harbin during the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and 1932. Biography Ding Chao's forces commenced mobiliz ...

, Li Du,

Feng Zhanhai Feng Zhanhai (, 6 November 1899 – 14 September 1963), or Feng Chan-hai, was one of the leaders of the volunteer armies resisting the Japanese and the puppet state of Manchukuo in northeast China. Feng was born on November 6, 1899. At eightee ...

, Xing Zhanqing, and

Zhao Yi Zhao Yi (; 1727–1814) was a poet, historian, and critic during the Qing dynasty in China. Zhao is notable for his innovative poetry, his historical writings (including ''Notes on the Twenty-Two Dynastic Histories''), and for espousing unconve ...

organised the Jilin Self-Defence Army in order to prevent the fall and occupation of

Harbin Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest ...

city,

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 ...

province. This brought all their forces under a unified command. Calling for civilians to form volunteer units and join in the defense of the city, the army reached a strength of 30,000 men in six brigades of

Zhang Xueliang Chang Hsüeh-liang (, June 3, 1901 – October 15, 2001), also romanized as Zhang Xueliang, nicknamed the "Young Marshal" (少帥), known in his later life as Peter H. L. Chang, was the effective ruler of Northeast China and much of northern ...

s Northeastern army. Jilin Self-Defense Corps – Commander-in-Chief Li Du * Frontline commander-in-chief – Wang Yu * Chief of the general staff – Yang Yaojun * Chinese Eastern Railroad Defense Army – Commander-in-Chief –

** 28th Brigade – Ding Chao * 22nd Brigade – Zhao Yi * 25th Brigade – Ma Xianzhang * 26th Brigade – Song Wenjun * 29th Brigade – Wang Ruihua * Temporary 1st Brigade –

* 1st Cavalry Brigade – Gong Changhai * 2nd Cavalry Brigade – Yao Dianchen * Wooded Mountain Guerrilla Force – Song Xizeng The defense of Harbin was at first successful and succeeded in repulsing the Manchukuo forces sent against them for a time. After its initial success, the army was forced out of Harbin when the Japanese sent their own troops under Jiro Tamon.

Ting Chao Ding Chao (; 1883–1950s) was a military general of the Republic of China, known for his defense of Harbin during the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and 1932. Biography Ding Chao's forces commenced mobilization in November 1931 at the r ...

's beaten Jilin Self-Defence Army retired from

and marched to the northeast down the

Songhua River The Songhua Postal Romanization, or Sunghwa River (also Haixi or Xingal, russian: Сунгари ''Sungari'') is one of the primary List of rivers of China, rivers of China, and the longest tributary of the Amur. It flows about from the Chang ...

, to join the Lower Songhua garrison of General Li Du and together reorganized, swelling its ranks with volunteers to 30,000 men in nine brigades by April 1932. It continued to resist, occupying the towns along the eastern section of the

Chinese Eastern Railway The Chinese Eastern Railway or CER (, russian: Китайско-Восточная железная дорога, or , ''Kitaysko-Vostochnaya Zheleznaya Doroga'' or ''KVZhD''), is the historical name for a railway system in Northeast China (als ...

, between Harbin and the Soviet border. Feng Zhanhai, former regimental commander of the Jilin Guards Division, retreating from Harbin into the west of Jilin province raised a sizeable independent volunteer force, the

Northeastern Loyal and Brave Army {{no footnotes, date=March 2013 Following the defeat of the forces of Ting Chao at Harbin in February 1932, Feng Zhanhai withdrew his forces to Shan-Ho-Tun, a village in the Wuchang District. He then called for volunteers, and the Public Safety Bur ...

estimated by the Japanese as 15,000 men in June 1932.

References

Coogan, Anthony, The volunteer armies of Northeast China, History Today; July 1993, Vol. 43 Issue 7, pp.36-41Notes On A Guerrilla Campaign, from http://www.democraticunderground.com accessed November 4, 2006
*
a more readable version here and some photos, from http://forum.axishistory.com, accessed November 4, 2006
* China's Anti-Japanese War combat operations ** Author : Guo Rugui, editor-in-chief Huang Yuzhang ** Press : Jiangsu People's Publishing House ** Date published : 2005-7-1 ** {{ISBN, 7-214-03034-9 *

Anti-Japanese Volunteer Armies Military units and formations established in 1932 Disbanded armies History of Jilin

See also

References