Chapter 107 15. Inventory

The Hundred Regiments Campaign began on August 20 and ended on December 5, and lasted three and a half months. There were two stages, and then the anti-"mopping up" operation was carried out. The Hundred Regiments War created extremely brilliant results.A total of 1,824 large and small battles were carried out successively, killing and wounding more than 25,000 Japanese and puppet troops (including 18 officers above the Japanese battalion commander); captured 281 Japanese soldiers and more than 18,000 puppet troops; 37, 11 tunnels and a large number of rails and sleepers.A total of more than 5,800 guns (trunks), 53 cannons, and more than 370,000 shells were seized.In addition, a large number of military supplies were destroyed and seized.

In the Hundred Regiments War, the Eighth Route Army also paid a huge price, with a total of more than 17,000 casualties. The great victory in the Hundred Regiments War not only greatly enhanced and inspired the strong confidence of the entire Chinese people in winning the War of Resistance, stabilized the situation in China, but also dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese invaders who were eager to "end" the Sino-Japanese War as soon as possible in order to draw out the Chinese people who were trapped in China. The main force of the Japanese army on the battlefield, the strategic plan of attacking the Soviet Union in the north and Britain and the United States in the south, made important contributions to the favorable situation in the Eastern battlefield of World War II and the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War.It dealt a heavy blow to the aggressive ambitions and arrogance of the Japanese invaders.As Commander-in-Chief Zhu De of the Eighth Route Army pointed out in his article "The Great Victory in the Expansion of the Hundred Regiments War":

"It restrained the enemy's attempt to attack our northwest rear and southwest... broke the enemy's 'cage policy' against our anti-Japanese base areas...severely hit the enemy's plot of 'supporting war with war'..." Deputy Commander-in-Chief Peng Dehuai also pointed out in a talk to a reporter from Xinhua Daily: "The victory of the Hundred Regiments War this time not only dealt a blow to the enemy's military frontal attack and spying on the Northwest, but also dealt a blow to the enemy's political conspiracy to induce surrender, so that the enemy's attempt to 'solve the China Incident' was severely hit by our iron fist. Therefore, the internal contradictions within the enemy will continue to intensify... These circumstances will also make it more difficult for the enemy to implement the policy of advancing southward.”

Even the Japanese aggressors themselves had to admit that they had been hit hard, saying: "The Communist Army took advantage of its significant increase in power and suddenly launched the 'Hundred Regiments War', which dealt a severe blow to the North China Front Army. The Japanese army suffered from the Communist Army's 'Hundred Regiments Offensive', from the corps in various places to the armies and front armies. Valuable lessons have been learned from painful experience, and the understanding of the Communist Party has been changed." The victory of the Hundred Regiments War also caused a shock in the world.The Soviet "Red Star" commented:

"The Chinese army in North China is currently conducting active operations in Shanxi Province. The Eighth Route Army is launching a large-scale offensive. Guerrilla warfare is also intensifying in Shandong Province and the vicinity of Peiping. Strength has faith. The Chinese people are fighting for freedom and independence and for the final victory, and they still show the greatest determination and cannot be shaken." The United Press and other reporters stationed in Peiping broke through the strict blockade of the Japanese army and continuously reported the news of the Hundred Regiments War to the world.The famous American journalist Smedley described the Hundred Regiments War as follows:

"The entire North China region, from the mountains of northern Shanxi to the east coast, from the Yellow River in the south to the Great Wall in the north, has become a battlefield. Fighting day and night lasted for 5 months. A hundred regiments attacked the enemy's entire economic and communication lines and the blockade network, the battle is fierce and ruthless. The coal mines, power plants, railways, bridges, roads, vehicles and telecommunications occupied by the enemy have all been destroyed.” Zhu De, Liu Bocheng, and Nie Rongzhen all commented on the strategic decision and tactics of this campaign. There have been very objective and comprehensive evaluations: at the Seventh National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Zhu De and Liu Bocheng had evaluations of the Hundred Regiments War.Zhu De said:

"The War of Resistance in North China generally implemented the strategic policy of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China... As for the Hundred Regiments War, there were achievements in tactics, and the troops fought well. The problem was that at that time our strength was not enough to defeat the enemy alone. When the enemy attacked However, when we defended and even retreated, we used our strength to stop the enemy's attack and turned it into an offensive defense. This is wrong. In addition, in the Hundred Regiments War, several relatively small battles were of an offensive or frontal nature. Defensive in nature, this should not be fought."

Liu Bocheng summed up the military lessons. He believed that the Japanese army’s technology—railway technology and technical equipment was underestimated in combat. It was manifested in tactical guidance, and more positions were used in the form of positional warfare or even positional defense warfare. conditions, resulting in unnecessary losses.He said that this lesson should be remembered.Such well-intentioned military strategist criticism can only help win more battles. Nie Rongzhen said in his memoirs: "Of course, this large-scale battle has lessons in hindsight. Over the years, there have been different opinions on the evaluation of this battle. My opinion is that the results of the battle are huge, and generally speaking, it should be affirmed. However, there are relatively large deficiencies and problems in the victory." "This large-scale battle that shocked China and the world has passed more than 40 years ago. Today, judging from its role in the history of the War of Resistance Against Japan, we I believe that this war should not be denied. Of course, on the premise of affirmation, there are also lessons. The brilliant victory and the existing problems, these two aspects, should not be forgotten by us.”