Chapter 4 Chapter 2 Armored Kunlun
Liao Boqun——T-26 tank driver of the 2nd Battalion and 3rd Company of the 19th Regiment of the 200th Division of the Fifth Army
Xu Wanshou——At that time, he was the deputy commander of the mortar company of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Chariot Regiment directly under the Fifth Army Headquarters
Wang Dixian——At that time, he was the second lieutenant platoon leader of the 96th Division of the 36th Army
Liu Xun——At that time, he was a student soldier of the Fifth Army
Before doing this episode, I rewatched Saving Private Ryan, and Band of Brothers, and War in the Pacific, when all the war movies I've seen come back to mind, frankly Said, what kind of film can be made in this episode, I have no idea.
My knowledge of all war scenes basically comes from movies and TV.Blood and horror, what kind of scene should it be, I have never seen it, and I can't explain it clearly.I have never experienced the risk of death with my head pinned to my trouser belt, nor do I have any intuitive experience.
There used to be a movie called "Blood Battle at Kunlun Pass", which told the story of the national army soldiers driving tanks to fight the enemy bravely at Kunlun Pass. It is said that the scene was grand and the fight was wonderful.We don't have more investment to allow us to reproduce the fighting scene on the battlefield, so we can only vaguely feel the artillery fire from the stories told by the old people who experienced that battle.
I have complained about these old people's expressive ability, and even complained that these old people refused to tell more details about their closure of Kunlun Pass.
Because all the old people who told us about the bloody battle at Kunlun Pass can clearly tell us why we fought such a tragic battle.But there is no way to clearly describe any of the most direct battles they witnessed in that campaign.
Maybe the battle was so far back that they don't remember it.What the old people repeatedly emphasized was the interesting stories of driving tanks during the pre-war training, and the strange rocks all over the mountains they saw when they first arrived at Kunlun Pass, and the description of the battlefield was only the various sounds on the battlefield.But I know that on such a battlefield, they have all faced death.I want to know, at the last moment of life, what will they think in their hearts?
When the film was about to be completed, I suddenly discovered that the Kunlun Pass experienced by these old people was exactly what they told themselves.The sound of gunfire, grenades, bayonets and the howling of Japanese ghosts and wolves.Because then and there, they don't have time to think beyond the battlefield.Maybe those heroes who died generously after resolutely were not a minority in that era, but among the old people I interviewed who witnessed that battle, there were no such people.It's not that they are not heroes, it's just that at that time and that place, they didn't have time to think.
"The Fifth Army had an artillery regiment that concentrated its firepower on the Kunlun Pass." Liao Boqun recalled.He remembered that it was at 1 o'clock in the morning on December 18, 1939. The Battle of Kunlun Pass started, and the most elite troops of China and Japan fought against each other.At that time, he was the driver of a T-26 tank in the second battalion and third company of the 19th regiment of the 200th division of the fifth army.
Wang Dixian, who was the second lieutenant platoon leader of the 96th Division of the 36th Army at the time, was very envious of the 200th Division where Liao Boqun was. "The 2nd Zero Division is the ace unit of the Fifth Army and Du Yuming's direct line unit. This is China's first mechanized unit, with chariots, anti-aircraft guns, armored vehicles, and cannons. So people only need to talk about the fifth Army, I only know the 2nd Zero Division."
The opponent of the 200th Division is the Fifth Division of the Japanese Army, also known as the Itagaki Division. "The Banyuan Fifth Division is the most powerful in the Japanese invasion of China. They call themselves the Steel Army. They fought from Nankou in North China to Guangzhou, and fought all over China. They participated in the Taierzhuang Battle and the Taiyuan Battle. This unit Well, most of the officers and soldiers are from Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, and the people in that area are more sturdy." Xu Wanshou, who was the deputy commander of the mortar company of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Tank Regiment directly under the Fifth Army Headquarters at the time, said.
Xu Wanshou recalled the scene when the Battle of Kunlun Pass started: "As soon as the chariot opened fire, the mortar also fired, and the mortar hit the enemy's left flank. At that time, putting your head on the waistband was a matter of life and death." Don't care."
At the beginning of the Anti-Japanese War, China opened up an international transportation line from Vietnam's Haiphong and Hanoi to Yunnan and Guangxi via the Yunnan-Vietnam Railway and the Gui-Vietnam Highway, and imported combat materials and various equipment.After the Japanese occupied Shanghai, Xiamen, Guangzhou, Hainan Island, and Shantou, the Yunnan-Vietnam Highway and the Guizhou-Vietnam Highway became the main channels for China to import military supplies from overseas.
In April 1939, the Japanese Navy proposed to "capture Nanning, cut off China's foreign trade routes passing through the area, and open up the navy's air base pointing to the inland".
In September 1939, the European War broke out, Britain and France declared war on Germany, and were unable to take into account the Far East. The Japanese army decided to take the opportunity to launch an operation in southern Guangxi, occupying Nanning and Longzhou, the throats of the Sino-Vietnamese communication line. Chen Bing's goal was to cut off China's overseas supply, and facilitate subsequent invasion of Vietnam.
The Japanese army determined that cutting off the line of communication between China and Vietnam would inevitably make China lose its ability to resist, so that the war of aggression against China could be ended quickly.Kyoji Tominaga, Chief of Operations of the Army Department of the base camp, even announced: "This is the last battle of the China Incident."
On November 10, 1939, the Japanese army assembled in Sanya, Hainan Island, and began to land in Qinzhou Bay, Guangxi on November 15. Fangcheng and Qinxian County fell one after another. On November 24, the Japanese army occupied Nanning.
Liu Xun, who was a student soldier of the Fifth Army at the time, recalled: "At that time, there were too many people fleeing. The army withdrew to Guilin, the common people also evacuated there, the students also wandered, and there were people on the top of the train."
In order to consolidate the occupation of Nanning, the Japanese army continued to advance northward and pursued the Chinese army.There are two main highways in the north of Nanning, one leads to Binyang through Kunlun Pass in the northeast, and the other leads to Wuming in the north through Gaofeng Pass.The Chinese 16th Army judged that the Japanese army would surely occupy Gaofeng Pass and Kunlun Pass, and ordered the various departments to delay the Japanese army's northward advance, and ordered the 188th Division to occupy a position at Kunlun Pass to cover the transfer of the main force of the group army to Shanglin, Binyang, and Wuming. .
On December 1, the Japanese army captured Gaofeng Pass, and on December 4, they captured Kunlun Pass. The two warring sides took the Kunlun Pass line of mountains as the boundary, and temporarily confronted each other.
Kunlun Pass is located 50 kilometers northeast of Nanning, surrounded by continuous mountains and dangerous terrain, forming a barrier for Nanning.It was first built in the Qin Dynasty and has always been a battleground for military strategists.Di Qing, a famous general of the Northern Song Dynasty, led an army to raid Kunlun Pass on the night of Shangyuan in 1053 A.D., and pacified Guangnan in one fell swoop. This was the famous battle of Kunlun Pass in history.
The Kunlun Pass in Xu Wanshou's impression: "Although the mountain is not big, there are many bamboo shoots and cliffs. The terrain is that one man guards the pass and ten thousand men cannot enter."
Three ponds, four ponds, five ponds, six ponds, seven ponds, eight ponds, and nine ponds from Nanning to Kunlun Pass are all strategically important points.
At this time, Kunlun Pass has become a key point to keep China's overseas supply lines.
"Without this line, this battle would be impossible. There would be no gasoline, no bullets, no weapons. You only have people, and you can only hold kitchen knives with your bare hands." Xu Wanshou said.
To regain Kunlun Pass, Chiang Kai-shek had no choice. On December 8, Bai Chongxi, director of the Guilin camp who commanded the Battle of Southern Guangxi, conveyed Chiang Kai-shek's decision to counterattack to the various ministries, with the goal of "attacking Kunlun Pass and then recovering Nanning." In mid-December, the build-up of the Chinese army was basically completed.
The cards in Bai Chongxi's hand are: the Sixteenth Army of the Guangxi Clan, including the Thirty-first Army and the Forty-sixth Army, with a total of about 6 divisions; the Thirty-eighth Army of the Central Army, including the Fifth Army, the Sixth Army Army, Ninety-ninth Army, and Thirty-sixth Army, with a total of about 13 divisions; Twenty-sixth Army 4 infantry regiments, Sixty-fourth Army 2 divisions, Sixty-sixth Army 2 divisions, Fourth Army One division of the Thirteenth Army, the teaching corps, the second air force stationed in Guilin (about 100 aircraft), together with auxiliary troops, totaled 300,000 people.Among them, the Fifth Army led by Du Yuming was the only mechanized army in China at that time, with three divisions under its jurisdiction. In addition, there were two infantry supplementary regiments, two tank regiments and armored vehicle search regiments, engineering regiments, automobile regiments, and heavy artillery regiments directly under it. , Supply Corps and other troops are well-equipped, and the whole army has about 50,000 people.The Guangxi army is known for its bravery and strict discipline. Lin Biao, who has fought against Bai Chongxi many times, said: "Bai Chongxi's troops are good at climbing mountains and trees, can swim, run fast, and fight like monkeys." .”
Bai Chongxi's opponent is Rikichi Ando, commander of the Japanese 21st Army.The Fifth Division under the 21st Army, together with the Marine Corps (more than 70 warships) and the Air Force (100 aircraft), totaled about 30,000 people.
Bai Chongxi divided all the troops into north, east, and west routes: the North Route Army was responsible for the frontal and side attacks of Kunlun Pass, and was the main combat direction; the East Route Army attacked the rear of the Japanese Army and disrupted its traffic; Attack from one side to contain the Japanese army, and one of them advanced to the vicinity of Sitang in the northeast of Nanning to prevent the Japanese army from Nanning from reinforcing Kunlun Pass to cooperate with the main force of the North Route Army.Air Force Second Line provided air support to ground forces after the battle had begun.
On December 16, the combat order was issued, and the attack was scheduled to start in the early morning of December 18, with the Fifth Army as the frontal attack mission at Kunlun Pass.
Zheng Dongguo, who was the commander of the Honorary First Division at the time, revealed in his memoirs that the attack deployment of the Fifth Army was: the Honorary First Division and the Second Zero Division were the main frontal attack troops, and the army's heavy artillery regiment, tank regiment, armored search regiment, Corps, to assist the main attacking troops in combat; the newly formed 22nd Division is a right-wing detachment, crossing Kunlun Pass, choosing a small road to occupy Wutang and Liutang, cutting off the main traffic road between Nanning and Kunlun Pass, and blocking the enemy's reinforcements going north; Peng Bisheng, deputy commander of the 200th Division, led two supplementary regiments into a left-wing roundabout detachment, and occupied Qitang and Batang to respond to the frontal main attacking force's attack on Kunlun Pass.
In the impression of Chinese soldiers, the devil's tank is a tough nut to crack.In a Japanese poster titled "The Desperate Battle of Pocket Chariots", almost a platoon of Chinese soldiers was besieging a broken Japanese light tank.
Can the Chinese tanks have a supernatural performance?Can the Fifth Mechanized Army fight a good battle at Kunlun Pass?People are full of expectations.
In the early morning of December 18, the mortar company of the Second Chariot Regiment directly under the Fifth Army, where Xu Wanshou was the deputy company commander, was responsible for coordinating the attack of the main attacking force. "Five or six o'clock in the morning, launch an attack, and we will follow the chariot."
Liu Xun, who had never been on the battlefield before, saw, "More than a dozen tanks charged up at once, otherwise the infantry would not be able to charge up, and the enemy's machine guns burst out, very powerful. The tanks went ahead, and the infantry followed."
Liao Boqun recalled: "The fifth company of our second battalion went up first. After going up, the positions were captured, but the infantry couldn't keep up."
Seeing the young men of the 200th Division driving their tanks towards the enemy's position, Wang Di felt a little disappointed.He regretted that his 96th Division could not become the same mechanic as the 200th Division. "The 96th Division is equipped with an ordinary infantry division. Specifically, it only has rifles, light machine guns, heavy machine guns, and mortars. It has no mountain guns or cannons. It is such a unit. We are assigned to the No. After the Ninety-sixth Division, it happened that the troops went to Kunlun Pass to participate in the battle."
The 96th Division, as a reserve force, was left less than two kilometers away from the battlefield.At this moment, what Wang Dixian is looking forward to most is to repel the enemy as soon as possible, and obtain supplies through the international supply line again, so that his troops can also be equipped with chariots.
At this moment, Liao Boqun noticed that the Chinese army's offensive suddenly slowed down. "Since our Chinese army had chariots, it was the first time that our Chinese army fought a major battle. Kunlun Pass was the first time. So when the first battle was fought, the infantry and tanks couldn't cooperate, they couldn't coordinate, and they couldn't keep up. The Japanese saw this In this case, the defensive guns were turned around immediately, and the fifth company was wiped out with ping-pong-pong, and the commander of the fifth company was killed. As soon as the sixth company went up, it was also bombarded. Some of the tanks were reimbursed. Because the place at Kunlun Pass is quite steep and the road is narrow, there is a sharp turn before the pass. Tanks must slow down in this sharp turn, and the enemy's guns will hit you as soon as they slow down."
It wasn't until this time that Liao Boqun realized that a tank as strong as a fortress was not invincible.Some tanks were destroyed by Japanese artillery fire when they first entered the battlefield.The 2nd Zero Division was forced to retreat to the Kunlun Pass by the Japanese army.And just one day ago, Liao Boqun firmly believed that as long as we drive tanks, we can easily capture Kunlun Pass.
Just after dawn, the 200th Division, which had failed in the first attack, launched a counterattack.Xu Wanshou's fifth army, directly under the Second Chariot Regiment, also attacked again.However, when the chariots began to cooperate with the infantry, Xu Wanshou discovered that these chariots with superior performance could not drive fast. "There are a lot of gravel in Kunlun Pass, and a big rock often pops up on the ground, so the chariot didn't move fast, and the loss was not small."
The extremely dangerous Kunlun Pass prevented the Chinese army's chariots from advancing smoothly, but provided favorable protection for the Japanese army.
Combining the reasons for the previous defeat and the difficulties encountered by the chariot regiment, the frontline commanders and fighters began to adjust their combat strategy.
Xu Wanshou recalled: "Our company has three platoons, one platoon with two guns, and we follow the tanks alternately. When the tanks stop, we stop. The mortars always follow the tanks in this way, mainly based on the terrain and enemy conditions at the time. .Sometimes the infantry is at the back, sometimes the infantry is at the front, covering each other with the chariots."
In the early morning of December 18, China's first armored division finally learned the coordination between tanks and infantry after a bad start in the battle of Kunlun Pass. This time the attack went much smoother.Under the cover of the chariot, Xu Wanshou and his comrades rushed to the mountainside. "When approaching the top of the mountain, the grenade was used. The Japanese are very tough, and they did not retreat."
The real bloody battle also starts from this moment.
"When we got to the mountain, we fought hand-to-hand, and the bayonet saw red. At that time, on the battlefield, the sound of bayonet clashes, gunshots, grenade explosions, shouts of killing, and the Japanese howling ghosts and wolves rang together." Xu Wanshou said, "hand-to-hand combat Well, the chariot works. The chariot can both hit and roll. When the chariot approaches the enemy artillery position, the machine guns blare, and the enemy's artillery is usually not trained in hand-to-hand combat, so they usually disperse. , the chariot crushed all the enemy's cannons."
Xu Wanshou recalled: On every hilltop position, both sides were fighting fiercely. "The enemy retreated for a while, and then went up again; the enemy retreated for a while, and went up again for a while. Hand-to-hand combat mainly relied on grenades. The grenades are easy to carry, and you can carry a lot of them. Fight until dusk."
After fierce fighting, the highlands such as Jinlong Mountain, Fairy Mountain and Lao Maoling near Kunlun Pass were conquered by the Chinese army one by one.Zheng Dongguo "sees through the binoculars that all our officers and soldiers have outmatched the tigers, fighting and charging all the way, with extraordinary courage. At about 14 o'clock, our army captured one or two small hills, and the Japanese defense line was shaken."
Several Japanese aircraft bombed and strafed the Chinese army positions.Immediately after the air strike, Japanese reinforcements launched a fierce counterattack with the cooperation of tanks and armored vehicles.This is the 21st Regiment of the 21st Brigade sent by Imamura Jun, the commander of the 5th Division of the Japanese Army. They set off from Nanning, broke through the obstruction of the Chinese army along the way, and rushed to Kunlun Pass for reinforcements.The enemy guarding the Kunlun Pass also took the opportunity to counterattack and took away the small hill just occupied by the second regiment of the first honor division. The regiment was forced to shrink its position and confront the enemy.The Chinese army fought fiercely with the Japanese army until late at night, causing heavy casualties. The Honorary First Division alone suffered more than a hundred casualties and lost 3 tanks.
On December 19, the Honor First Division stormed the 653 Heights.Jung Dong-kook said in his memoirs:
This highland is the key point in the northeast of Kunlun Pass, where you can overlook the entire Kunlun Pass battlefield, and more than 200 Japanese troops are defending it.From dawn onwards, the division's left-wing third regiment organized several charges but failed, resulting in heavy casualties. The Japanese army took advantage of the setback of our army's attack to launch a counterattack, and the two sides fought fiercely.At this critical moment, our army's company commander Yang Chaoxuan and platoon leader Yang Ming led a commando team, armed with bayonets and grenades, rushed into the enemy's formation, fought hand-to-hand with the enemy, wiped out most of the enemy, and finally took control of this important commanding height.Furious, the Japanese army continued to launch counterattacks against Highland 653 under the cover of aircraft, and fiercely counterattacked the defenders at Laomaoling and Highland 441. They fought fiercely all day, but were repelled by our army and suffered heavy losses.In order to save the defeat, the Japanese army sent reinforcements from Nanning in 40 military vehicles to forcibly pass through the blockade of our new 22nd Division in Wutang to help Kunlun Pass.The unexpected arrival of this enemy has aggravated the combat difficulties of our army.
Kunlun Pass has become a piece of scorched earth.In the sky above Kunlun Pass, the air forces of China and Japan also began to fight.
On December 19, the 135th Division and part of the 170th Division of the Chinese West Route Army launched an attack on Gaofeng Pass, but failed to break through the Japanese position. Forming a two-sided attack on the 135th Division, the 135th Division then retreated.The 131st Division, the 188th Division and the first part of the 170th Division cut off the way for the Japanese army to reinforce northward from Nanning and Longzhou.The 175th Division of the East Route Army and the New 19th Division destroyed the communication in the rear of the Japanese army and responded to the battle at the Kunlun Pass.The battle situation was chaotic.
In the early morning of December 20, the 200th Division stormed Kunlun Pass.Chung Dong-kook wrote in his memoirs:
At about 7 o'clock, our chariot once broke into Kunlun Pass, and the infantry also pushed in on the enemy guarding the pass from the east, west, and north. However, the Japanese army stubbornly refused to retreat. Do not exit Kunlun Pass.Since then, our army has continued to attack for two days, but failed to take the pass, and there were heavy casualties.
The captured positions were lost again, causing the Chinese officers and soldiers to sigh.Xu Wanshou recalled that on the battlefield, the stone helped the enemy attack. "The enemy's artillery shells hit the rocks, and the rocks exploded into flakes and turned into bombs. The position was occupied for about two or three hours. When it was dark, the enemy took the position again. The Fifth Army The comrades-in-arms retreated, instead of retreating to the original starting point of the attack, they retreated to the mountainside."
After a short rest on the mountainside, the officers and soldiers of the Fifth Army launched another attack on the top of the mountain. "Anyway, it's just repeated fights," Xu Wanshou said. "At this time, whether it's the 200th Division, the newly created 22nd Division, or the Honorary First Division, after a long period of fighting, the casualties are not small. Tired too."
In the middle of the night of December 22, as the battle fell into a stalemate, the Chinese army's offensive might be wasted at any time because the enemy received reinforcements from Nanning. An important highland, and finally solve the enemy of Kunlun Pass.
On December 24, the Assault Battalion of the Second Regiment of the First Honorary Division captured the important support point of the Japanese army - the Luotang Highland in the northwest of Kunlun Pass through hand-to-hand combat. Only a few dozen people remained in the assault battalion.
Chiang Kai-shek replied to Zheng Dongguo: "The gains and losses of the Kunlun Pass had a great impact on the fighters in Nanning. The division fought fiercely for seven days and nights, and defeated the key points. It can be seen that the division commander was well-guided, and the soldiers worked hard, and they were rewarded deeply. Still Xi Ben's consistent spirit, We look forward to annihilating stubborn enemies and completing missions."
On the same day, the 21st Brigade of the Japanese Army was on its way to reinforce the Kunlun Pass. Masao Nakamura, head of the brigade, was shelled by the Chinese army and died in the early hours of the next day.
Before he died, Nakamura Masao wrote in his diary: "The reason why the 21st Brigade of the Fifth Division of the Imperial Imperial Army won the title of 'Steel Army' in the Russo-Japanese War was my tenacious victory. I have seen the tenacity of the Russians. However, at Kunlun Pass, I should admit that I encountered an army stronger than the Russians."
From December 25th to 28th, the Chinese army took a short break to formulate a final plan to capture Kunlun Pass.
At this time, the Japanese defenders at Kunlun Pass were besieged on all sides. Zheng Dongguo recalled: The Japanese army was surrounded by our army at this time, and they could only parry and have no power to fight back.Its ammunition supply is particularly difficult, and it is almost desperate.After the Japanese devils in the encirclement ate up the food they carried with them, they devoured the rice in the nearby fields raw, and finally had to pick leaves and grass roots.Some devil soldiers had to cut bamboo into spears to fight our army because they ran out of ammunition.Many of the corpses of Japanese soldiers lying on the mountains and killed by our army looked ragged, some even wore only a pair of shorts, and their bodies were filthy, which showed their distress.The Japanese army dispatched planes to drop supplies to rescue the trapped troops, but they were constantly intercepted by our army's artillery fire, and some parachutes were also seized by our army, including exquisitely crafted biscuits, meat, vegetables, salt, and canned food.We have enjoyed a few big meals "gifted" by the Japanese at the front.Under the heavy blow of our army, the morale of this once arrogant Japanese "steel army" began to decline.There was such a record in the Japanese combat diary seized by our army: "For several days, the enemy in front of us has attacked us fiercely, and its combat power has never been encountered since the war against China. Therefore, the casualties are extremely heavy, and it is really chilling."
According to the information provided by the local people, the Chinese army found a small road through which they could bypass the Kunlun Pass and go straight to the rear of the Japanese army.Liao Boqun recalled: "The ancient road that the local people dug across the Kunlun Pass to transport supplies is the only mountain road that can bypass the main peak of the Kunlun Pass."
If it can go straight to the rear of the Japanese army, it will undoubtedly make the Chinese army more active.
"Du Yuming gave an order to let the new 22nd Division send 10 small tanks to cross the path, and another engineering regiment was sent to bring a winch. When they reached a place that was difficult to pass, they used the winch to winch the tanks up. That kind of small chariot only weighs three and a half tons. When going down the mountain, it is also twisted down again." Liao Boqun said.
According to Liao Boqun's recollection: After five transports, the chariots of the newly formed 22nd Division went around to the rear of the Japanese army at Kunlun Pass.
In the early morning of December 29, the Chinese army launched another strong attack with the coordination of artillery and armored vehicles. The 200th Division, the Honorary 1st Division, the newly created 22nd Division and the 159th Division all went into the attack.At the same time, the chariots that circled behind the enemy also launched surprise attacks.
Although the Japanese army, which had been trapped for many days, still resisted stubbornly, it was not enough to withstand the powerful offensive of the Chinese army.By the 30th, most of the positions were captured by the Chinese army.
At dawn on December 31, the Fifth Army launched a final assault on Kunlun Pass with the support of artillery fire. By 11:00 am, all Japanese troops were wiped out and Kunlun Pass was occupied.
Liao Boqun's company was ordered to attack Kunlun Pass, and he drove the tank to the main position of Kunlun Pass.Liao Boqun recalled: "The chariots took down the Kunlun Pass, and the infantry followed up and occupied the position. The Japanese were all dead, and it was impossible to catch him alive. After that battle was over, dead people were everywhere. .”
Liao Boqun remembered that a dozen or so surviving Japanese soldiers hid in a small cave, trying to make a final resistance.No matter how the Chinese soldiers outside the cave persuaded them, these Japanese soldiers refused to surrender. "They just couldn't come out, they put smoke bombs in and still couldn't come out. Finally, they put smoke bombs in and blew chili noodles into it. At this time, they committed suicide collectively. When there was no movement inside, the comrades went in to have a look. Dozens of corpses."
In the last key battle, the Chinese army suffered heavy casualties.Xu Wanshou said: "My company lost a total of 2 tanks, 2 guns, and 14 soldiers."
Beginning on January 2, 1940, the Chinese army besieged Jiutang and Batang in the south of Kunlun Pass. However, due to the arrival of Japanese reinforcements and the strengthening of the defense force, the Chinese army continued to attack for 7 days but failed to capture it. The two sides formed a confrontation. On January 11, the 36th Army took over the defense of the Fifth Army and withdrew the Fifth Army to the rear to rest and replenish.The Battle of Kunlun Pass, which had been fiercely fought for many days, temporarily calmed down.At this time, newspapers around the country have begun to publicize the "Kunlun Pass Victory".
According to Zheng Dongguo: In this battle, the 21st Brigade of the Fifth Division of the Japanese Army was basically wiped out, more than 85% of the officers died, and more than 4,000 soldiers were killed.
The Japanese military history admits: "The scale of the Chinese army's offensive is very large, its fighting will is strong, and its actions are active and tenacious, which is rarely seen in historical offensives. Although our army has achieved great results, it has also suffered a lot of losses." " Looking at the entire period since the China Incident, this is the bleakest era for the Army.”
"Kunlun Pass Great Victory", in fact, the Chinese army suffered more casualties than the Japanese army: when the 13,000 Honorary First Division withdrew from the battlefield, there were only 700 combat soldiers left.The Fifth Army injured more than 11,000 people, killed more than 5,600 people, and more than 800 people were dead or alive. There were also 6,416 casualties and missing miscellaneous soldiers, with a total of about 24,000 casualties.Du Yuming said in the inscription on the Kunlun Pass Memorial War Stele: "The hardships and sacrifices of overcoming difficulties are rare since the founding of the army, and the overcoming of difficulties and dangers is the first of its kind in the War of Resistance."
After the "Kunlun Pass Great Victory", it was a fiasco.
On January 10, 1940, Bai Chongxi proposed to Chiang Kai-shek: Taking advantage of the new defeat of the enemy and the lack of reinforcements, launch an offensive with all the strength of all ministries and regain Nanning in one fell swoop.Chiang Kai-shek approved the plan.The next day, when Bai Chongxi issued a deployment order to prepare for war, Chiang Kai-shek, who had returned to Liuzhou, sent a letter to Bai Chongxi, overturning the decision made the previous day.Bai Chongxi had no choice but to issue a new order to change the combat deployment, and all Chinese troops entered a state of solidarity.The Japanese side gained time, transferred reinforcements, and deployed counterattacks.
On January 27, the Japanese army began to counterattack. On February 2, the Japanese army entered Binyang County, and the Chinese army was cut off.The Ninety-ninth Army, Thirty-sixth Army, Second Army, and Sixth Army defending Jiutang and Kunlun Pass lost the command of the group army and fought on their own. The morale of the army was broken and all retreated. On February 3, the Japanese army recaptured Kunlun Pass.The territory captured by the soldiers of the Fifth Army who had fought bloody battles for many days was surrendered in an instant.
After the bloody battle at Kunlun Pass, the Japanese army inscribed a large slogan: "Our imperial army defeated more than 30 divisions of Jiang's army and returned the biscuits to Binyang and Kunlun Pass."
In September 1940, Japanese troops stationed in strategic points such as Hanoi, Haiphong, and Lang Son in Vietnam, directly cutting off China's international traffic lines from Vietnam.In this way, the significance of the Japanese occupation of Nanning declined, and they gradually withdrew their troops from Nanning.Taking advantage of the retreat of the Japanese army, the Chinese army followed up and regained Kunlun Pass, Nanning, Longzhou, Qinxian and other cities.
At this time, China's overseas supply line is only the China-Myanmar Highway.In order to defend this only lifeline, in the spring of 1942, the Chinese Expeditionary Force, including the Fifth Army, entered Burma to fight.
In addition to Xu Wanshou and Liao Boqun, Wang Dixian accompanied the army on the expedition to Burma.He finally got his wish and became a member of the mechanics.
They always think of Kunlun Pass, the blood and fire, laughter and tears of Kunlun Pass.
In a division of more than 13,000 people, there are only more than 700 people left. I asked about the situation of the first company that had covered me before the start of the battle. Only 4 people raised their hands. Zheng Dongguo was almost in tears, and I couldn't help feeling sad. ...The Soviet Union sent 18 bombers, took off from Liuzhou, and bombed Jiutang and 441 Heights respectively. The land and air coordinated and received results.The enemy of Jiutang was defeated, the head of the Japanese Nakamura brigade was killed, and the remnants retreated to Batang, still occupying the high ground between Jiutang and Batang, and continued to resist. 441 The enemy on the high ground also retreated between Jiutang and Batang, and joined the enemy of Jiutang.At this time, Kunlun Pass seemed to have recovered on the surface, but the Japanese army still occupied the highlands south of Jiutang, and the situation was no less dangerous than the 441 highlands facing Kunlun Pass.The highlands on both sides of the narrow and narrow roads of Jiutang, Batang and even Qitang were still occupied by the Japanese army. Our army attacked under such terrain and intensive firepower, coupled with clumsy command, how could we avoid heavy casualties! ...
At this time, the enemy planes were active and had mastered the air supremacy.The road from Jiutang to Qianjiang was greatly hindered by enemy air raids.Bai Chongxi led us to the front line. We were followed by an enemy plane near Taishouxu and attacked at low altitude. Fortunately, we were in an open car and got off quickly, so we were spared.
On February 21, 1940, Chiang Kai-shek flew to Liuzhou.Because of the traitor's secret report, enemy planes bombed Jiang's residence that night. On the 22nd, Chiang Kai-shek presided over a review meeting. In addition to blaming himself for his misjudgment, he also pointed out that the main reason for the failure of the southern Guangxi battle was the weak will of the superior commanders to fight, and that everyone was "arrogant and negligent, so that they became depressed, had no determination, and even suffered from this. Shame of failure".
At the end of the meeting on the 25th, Chiang Kai-shek announced the list of rewards and punishments for the generals of the battle: Deng Longguang, commander-in-chief of the 35th Army Group Army, He Xuan, commander of the 46th Army, and Wang Lingyun, commander of the 76th Division, each recorded merit once; The director Bai Chongxi led the troops to be ineffective and downgraded; on January 28, Chen Cheng, the head of the Political Department of the Military Commission who was transferred to command the battle, was unable to guide the downgrade; Ye Zhao, the commander-in-chief of the 37th Army, was detained and brought to justice; Xu Tingyao, Yao Chun, Chen Ji, and Fu Zhongfang, Commanders of the 36th Army, 66th Army, and 99th Army, Guo Su, Chief of Staff of the 36th Army, and Guo Su, Chief of Staff of the 49th Army, and the 160th Division Teacher Li Jingyi, Song Shitai and others were removed from their posts and investigated.This is the most punishment received by senior generals in all previous battles since the July 7th Incident.
More than 60,000 people in Binyang participated in the pre-support work, donated 3.15 million catties of military rations, purchased more than 2.7 million catties of military rations, raised more than 25,000 yuan for the army, donated 110,000 rice dumplings, 12,000 sugar cane, more than 10 dans of cakes, and more than 2,100 meat More than 10,000 pieces of jin, wood, hundreds of cattle, and more than 21,000 pairs of military shoes prepared by women in the county. More than 300 people joined the army and participated in the war, and more than 200 people gave their lives.More than 3,000 innocent people were brutally killed by the Japanese invaders, more than 3,780 houses were burned down, and countless other items were looted.
Notes:
Notes: