Chapter 86 12. Iron Armored Hate——The Mystery of the Whereabouts of Northeast Army Tanks in the Middle East during the "September 18th" Incident

According to historical records, when the "September 18th" Incident occurred, the Northeast Army in Shenyang had a tank unit. So, what was the fate of this mechanized unit, which was rare in China at that time, during the incident?Japan's "Manchuria Incident Photo Collection" shows some photos of weapons seized after he captured Beidaying and Shenyang, one of which is one of them.Shown are the Northeast Army tanks captured by the Japanese army in Beidaying.It can be seen from the picture above that there are at least six tanks in the Beidaying garrison.These tanks were analyzed and determined to be the Renault FT-17 French-made light tanks equipped by the Northeast Army of Zhang Xueliang's department.

Renault FT-17 light tank, in 1917, the first prototype was produced.In September of the same year, it went into mass production.It is a light tank produced by France in World War I. It is the first tank equipped with a rotatable turret in the world.The combat weight is seven tons, the maximum speed is ten kilometers per hour, and the crew is two.This is a relatively good tank in the early days. It was manufactured in large quantities and used by many countries. Until the Japanese army entered Indochina, the French army stationed in Vietnam was still using this tank. Among the various warlords in China before World War II, the Northeast Army was the first to use chariots.The Northeast Army in Zhang Zuolin's era was equipped with a batch of Renault FT-17 tanks, most of which were equipped with ZB-26 machine guns made in the Czech Republic.Most of the Renault FT-17 tanks owned by the Northeast Army were purchased from France, and some came from Poland and the Russian White Army in Siberia.General Zhang Xueliang seems to have a special liking for French weapons, and has purchased Godelong aircraft from France many times, but unfortunately he was also captured by the Japanese army during the "September 18th" Incident.

In 1926, in the battle with Zhili warlord Wu Peifu, the Northeast Army used these Renault tanks, and it was also the first time that the Chinese army used modernized tank vehicles to fight.Since then, the Northeast Army has used armored forces in many civil wars, and Renault tanks are its main force. Before the "September 18th" Incident, the Seventh Brigade stationed in Shenyang was the elite of the Northeast Army. According to records, the Ministry governed three infantry regiments stationed in the Beida Camp, and they were Zhang Xueliang's housekeeping troops.Equipped with mortars, flat-fire guns, light and heavy machine guns, vehicles, mules and horses, and even a batch of Renault tanks, it is the most well-equipped brigade in the Northeast Army.This photo of the Japanese army proves that the North Camp defenders equipped with tanks is not a myth.

However, during the capture of Beidaying, there are only records of Japanese chariots attacking the Northeast Army, but no records of the Northeast Army fighting with tanks.According to the memories of the old man of the Northeast Army, there were a total of 12 tanks in this batch.When the Japanese army attacked the Northeast Camp, because the Northeast Army was ordered not to resist, the tanks were neither refueled nor loaded, so as not to constitute an excuse for the Japanese to accuse the Northeast Army of "provoking aggression".When the situation became uncontrollable, it was too late for the tanks to go into battle or escape, so they had to give up, resulting in these tanks being captured by the Japanese army.After these tanks were captured in the Peking University Camp, there is information that the Japanese army used them to attack the Mazhanshan Department of Heilongjiang, and then transported some of the vehicles back to China for research, and some of the vehicles were handed over to the Puppet Manchukuo Army.

In fact, most of the combat vehicles invested by the Japanese army in Shenyang were wheeled armored vehicles. In terms of combat effectiveness, the Renault NC-17 tank was even better.Therefore, it is really embarrassing that the tank units of the Northeast Army with combat experience were captured without resistance. However, the Renault FT-17 tanks of the armored forces of the Northeast Army were not completely destroyed in the "September 18th" incident, and some vehicles were brought into the pass. In the spring of 1933, Zhang Xueliang presented Chiang Kai-shek’s Nanjing government with two Renault FT-17 chariots and four armored vehicles self-assembled by Shenyang Arsenal. These vehicles later became important equipment for the Armored Forces School.Training a group of armored cadets who were brave and fearless in the War of Resistance finally made their own contribution to the War of Resistance Against Japan.

On August 13, 1937, the Chinese army took the initiative to attack the Japanese army in Shanghai, besieged the Japanese marines in the concession, and almost wiped out the Japanese army in Shanghai.During the attack on Yangshupu, the Chinese tank troops dispatched three Vickers six-and-a-half-ton tanks to attack the Japanese positions desperately. However, due to being outnumbered and the Chinese infantry troops lacking experience in cooperating with tank soldiers in attacking, the three tanks fought one after another during the battle. destroyed.After one of the tanks was destroyed, the Japanese army opened the hatch of the tank and found that its commander and machine gunner were killed by Japanese artillery fire, but they still maintained their shooting posture. "This is rarely seen in previous battles. It can be seen that the Chinese army's determination to fight this time is extraordinary." They found his ID card in the pocket of the commander, who was an officer of the Chinese Armored Corps. Surname Qian, Manchu.

The tank commander who died in the battle in Shanghai should be one of the armored soldiers withdrawn from the northeast.