The 73rd Group Army is a formation of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

People's Liberation Army Ground Force The People's Liberation Army Ground Force (PLAGF), also referred to as the PLA Army, is the army, land-based service branch of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), and also its largest and oldest branch. The PLAGF can trace its lineage from 192 ...

(PLAGF) subordinated to the

Eastern Theater Command The Eastern Theater Command () is one of the five theater commands of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), founded 1 February 2016. It replaced the Nanjing Military Region. The command is headquartered in Nanjing. Its jurisdiction includes Jia ...

(ETC). The ETC's area of responsibility includes

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

, and the 73rd Group Army includes amphibious forces. The 73rd Group Army was known as the 31st Group Army until April 2017. The group army was considered an elite unit.

History

Chinese Civil War

The 31st Group Army traces its lineage to the Shantung Column of the Shantung Military Region which was formed around 1941. By 1945 the column had been reorganized and redesignated into several military districts, including the Chiao-Tung Military District. By 1946, elements of the Chiao-Tung MD were reorganized and redesignated 9th and 13th Columns. The 13th Column, commanded by Chou Chih-chien was composed of three divisions, including the 37th, 38th, and 39th. In the mid-to-late 1940s the 13th Column was reorganized and redesignated as the 31st Corps, also commanded by Chou Chih-chien. The 31st Corps was composed of the 91st, 92nd and 93rd Divisions. By August 1949, 31st Corps was subordinated to the 10th Army of the

Third Field Army The Third Field Army was one of the five main forces of the Chinese Communist Party's People's Liberation Army during the Chinese Civil War. It was established in early 1949. Initially known as the East China Field Army, it was formed by the New ...

. 29th and 31st Corps captured

Zhangzhou Zhangzhou (, ) is a prefecture-level city in Fujian Province, China. The prefecture around the city proper comprises the southeast corner of the province, facing the Taiwan Strait and (with Quanzhou) surrounding the prefecture of Xiamen. Nam ...

in late-September. It participated in the capture of

Xiamen Xiamen,), also known as Amoy ( ; from the Zhangzhou Hokkien pronunciation, zh, c=, s=, t=, p=, poj=Ē͘-mûi, historically romanized as Amoy, is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Stra ...

and

Gulangyu Gulangyu, Gulang or Kulangsu is a pedestrian-only island off the coast of Xiamen, Fujian Province in southeastern China. A UNESCO World Cultural Heritage, UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, the island is about in area, and is reached by an 8 ...

, and the

Battle of Guningtou The Battle of Kinmen ( zh, t=金門戰役), also known as the Battle of Kuningtou ( zh, t=古寧頭之役) or the Battle of Guningtou, was fought in October 1949 on the island of Kinmen (Quemoy), located in the Taiwan Strait, during the final ...

, in October. The corps became the core of the 31st Group Army.

21st century

In early October 1991 the 258th Regiment of the 86th Motorized Infantry Division, along with units from various military sub-districts, conducted defensive exercises and combined militia exercises in the Banding Area, Lianjiang Xian, Fujian Province. In mid October to early November 1991 the

92nd 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Hindu–Arabic digit Circa 300 BC, as part of the Brahmi numerals, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bot ...

and 93rd Infantry Divisions (since disbanded) of the 31st Group Army conducted routine training and field training activities in the

Fuzhou Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, China. The city lies between the Min River (Fujian), Min River estuary to the south and the city of Ningde to the north. Together, Fuzhou and Ningde make up the Eastern Min, Mindong linguistic and cultural regi ...

area of Changpu and Nanan. In early April 1992 the signal corps of the 31st Signal Regiment conducted routine training and an overall signal training and evaluation between veterans and replacements in Xiamen, Fujian Province.Richard H. Yang eds. China's Military: The PLA in 1992/1993 (Taipei: Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies; 1993): p. 191-2

Composition

In 2024, the formation included the following components: * 1 special operations brigade * 1 armored brigade * 1 mechanized infantry brigade * 2 infantry brigade * 2 amphibious brigades * 1 artillery brigade * 1 engineering/NBC brigade * 1 support brigade * 1 helicopter brigade * 1 air defense brigade

References

Citations

Sources

* * * * * {{Structure of People's Liberation Army Ground Force since 2017 Field armies of the People's Liberation Army Eastern Theater Command Military units and formations established in 2017