Chapter 2: A Name on the Map
Chapter 2: A Name on the Map
Artist's depiction of the Imperial Japanese Army invading China.
On July 7th, 1937, Japan began an invasion of mainland China. The Nationalist Chinese, having fought to exhaustion against the communists in the north, were hard pressed to rush to defend against the Japanese onslaught from the north. One month after the invasion began Kuomintang forces were losing ground in the north at an alarming rate. To make matters worse the Japanese began landing troops on the eastern coast.
The situation second week of August, 1937.
By the end of October the situation was deteriorating very quickly.
Japanese advance by the end of October, 1937.
On December 16th elements of the Imperial Japanese Army entered Nanking after a month long siege of the city. It is becoming increasingly obvious that the Nationalists cannot stop the Japanese. It’s only a matter of time before they succumb. This is bad news for the communists. Once the Nationalists fall, who’s to say the Japanese won’t come after them next?
Meanwhile, Mao Zedong planned to seize the opportunity of the Nationalists being distracted and began planning for an invasion of neighboring Xibei San Ma. Spies had infiltrated that nation the year before and the time was drawing near for Mao to put his plans into action. His plan was remarkably simple: the communist hordes of militia would swarm over the border and overwhelm all resistance, seizing valuable resources in the process. Communist China was facing the very real possibility of completely running out of energy within the year if things did not improve.
The 4. Fangmainjun, Li Xiannian commanding, is the first to attack at Lianzhen. The 1. Fangmainjun under Chen Yi invades Shizuishan. Both attacks are successful but not without considerable casualties for both sides.
The Xibei San Ma campaign went according to plan. Chinese forces advanced quickly after breaking the initial resistance of Xibei forces. That isn’t to say Chinese forces didn’t encounter resistance. The battle for Shizuishan was the second engagement of the war but the costliest. The CPC suffered 5,000 killed during that single battle alone. Early Chinese tactics boiled down to mass human waves of soldiers charging forward and overwhelming the defense. This would be a staple of CPC attacks during the war; CPC military doctrine dictated so. However, as it would become apparent to Party leadership during future conflicts, such recklessness with soldier’s lives creates a serious shortage of manpower.
Chinese forces battling Xibei San Ma forces during the opening battles of the war; the fighting at Shizuishan would last the better part of a month and cost the CPC over 3,000 in casualties.
Major combat operations had ended after the battle of Darlag, with a CPC victory despite over a thousand dead in the mountain passes. Fighting in the Gobi was surprisingly scarce and the communists were relieved to traverse the wasteland as quickly as possible. By 10th July of 1938 Xibei surrendered to communist forces.
While the communists were making gains in the north, the nationalists were in dire straits in the south. Japanese forces continued to drive them back and during March the Kuomintang changed capitals three times. On May 14th Japan seized the last seat of Kuomintang power, effectively ending organized Nationalist resistance. Small bands of partisans would continue to harass the Japanese for the duration of their occupation. That front would be particularly brutal.
As Mao and the CPC braced for the Japanese war declaration the Japanese offered an unexpected olive branch by offering transit rights into Japanese occupied China. Mao took the offer, but only if because it gave a somewhat guarantee that Japan would not invade CPC territory, at least for the time being. This uneasy assurance of peace with Japan gave Mao the security he needed to go ahead with his next invasion.
Japanese political developments after the fall of National China. Japanese influence threatens CPC membership in the Comintern.
Communist territories after the defeat of Xibei San Ma. For the first time the name Communist China appears on maps.
The victory over Xibei was an immense boon for Mao and the Party. It solidified communist control of the north and secured valuable resources for industry along with giving the People’s Liberation Army invaluable combat experience. If communism was to rule China it would be installed at the tip of a bayonet. Japan remained a formidable force within the region and future conflict between the PLA and IJA was inevitable. Mao knew that every advantage must be secured before the conflict with Japan.
By November of 1938 the energy crisis was becoming serious, despite having secured more resources with the invasion of Xibei. It was simply not enough. The CPC traded extensively with Persia, and Saudi Arabia for energy, but the supply was small and came in fits. A more stable source would have to be acquired if the CPC was to succeed in driving Japan from the mainland. So, with all of 17 days stockpile left, Mao invaded Yunnan to the south.
Chinese invasion of Yunnan.
The invasion of Yunnan by the CPC lasted from November 12th, 1938 until June 16th 1939. While considerably shorter than the Xibei campaign it was more costly, with about 13,000 killed. This is in comparison to the 8,000 killed during fighting with the Xibei. More than half of the losses during the Yunnan campaign were the result of two battles: the Battle at Wengshui Crossing and the Battle of Chuxiong Pass.
The fighting near Wengshui Crossing was a month long attempt by the CPC to cross the river that defined the border between the two nations. The CPC underestimated the amount of force required to take the crossing, resulting in heavy losses. The battle was also the spearheading attack on a CPC thrust to cut off Yunnan forces at the border. However, because the battle to take the river crossing took longer than anticipated most of the Yunnan army was able to withdraw and escape encirclement.
Despite the frustrating delay at Wengshui Crossing CPC forces eventually managed to push back the Yunnan army to the narrow mountain pass of Chuxiong. Chuxiong was the only avenue to the Yunnanese capital, Kunming, and it was here that they made their last stand. The CPC paid for every meter of ground with blood as the Yunnan army fought for their very survival. When it was finally over there were over 10,000 killed on both sides. Chuxiong Pass was the costliest battle the CPC fought thus far, with an estimated 6,000 killed. When the PLA broke through at Chuxiong Kinmang fell shortly thereafter on June 16th, 1939, ending the war altogether.
The defeat of Yunnan by the CPC extended Mao’s influence even more and secured much needed energy sources. The CPC was running a positive energy balance for the first time. However, invading Yunnan had a dual purpose. Yunnan extended the front with Japan considerably and most of that border was left undefended by the Japanese. From a staging ground in Kunming, it is hoped that PLA forces could quickly overwhelm IJA elements there and secure the rich provinces of southern China.
After the defeat of Yunnan there was one more warlord Mao had his sights on. The invasion of Sinkiang was the quickest and most efficient compared to the previous invasions. It lasted only a month with less than a thousand killed while quadrupling that number for Sinkiang.
Communist territory after the fall of Sinkiang.
Major battles of the PLA from 1938-1938
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That's it so far. The plan is to build up as much as I can and then hit the Japanese with everything I've got. I've run out of neighbors to invade. I briefly thought about waiting for my neutrality to dip to levels where I could invade French Indochina but dismissed that idea quickly when I realized I'd be at war with the Allies and therefore Great Britain. All my newly conquered territory would be for nothing when the Gurkhas came storming over the Himalayas.
