Chapter 333 Battle of Songhu

After the September 18th Incident, anti-Japanese sentiment among Chinese people was rising, and Japan claimed that it would use self-defense measures to protect the interests of Japanese and overseas Chinese. At 4:00 p.m. on January 18, 1932, five Japanese monks including Kissen Tianzaki were beaten outside Sanyou Industrial Club on Mayushan Road, Huajie, which is adjacent to the eastern district of Shanghai Public Concession, one died and one seriously injured.

The Japanese side said it was done by the factory picket team. On January 20, 50 members of the Japanese Overseas Chinese Youth Comrades Association set fire to Sanyou Industrial Club. After returning to the concession, three Chinese police officers from the Ministry of Industry and Technology were killed and injured.

On the same day, 1,200 Japanese expatriates gathered at the Japanese Residents Group on Wenjian Shi Road and marched along North Sichuan Road to the Japanese Marine Corps Command at the northern end of the road, asking the Japanese Marine Corps to intervene. On the way, when they approached Qiujiang Road, riots began and attacked Chinese shops.

On January 24, the Japanese Marine Corps increased troops to Shanghai. At that time, the 19th Route Army, which was in charge of defending Shanghai, was commanded by Jiang Guangnai and Cai Tingkai, and the commander of the Beijing-Shanghai garrison was Chen Mingshu. Chen Mingshu and the 19th Route Army advocated dealing with the provocations of the Japanese army, but after the ** government meeting, it advocated tolerance, and on January 23, Minister of Military Affairs He Yingqin ordered the 19th Route Army to change defense from Shanghai within five days.

At 23:30 on January 28, under the cover of tanks, 2,300 Japanese Marines occupied the Songhu Railway defense line west along each branch on the west side of North Sichuan Road. At Tiantong'an Station, they encountered the resolute resistance of the 19th Route Army of the Chinese garrison. The January 28th Incident broke out.

In fact, in December 1931, Jiang Ruiyuan was forced to step down because of Zhang Hanqing's fault. Now that he only controls the army in his hands, he also does not want his direct troops and the Japanese to consume too much, otherwise his power would be difficult to protect.

Therefore, a policy of compromise and concession was adopted to prevent one's own troops from getting involved in this dispute.

In mid-February, the 24th Mixed Brigade, the 9th Division and other reinforcements arrived in Shanghai one after another. In view of the Japanese army's increase in troops in Shanghai, the 19th Route Army's single force may not last long, Zhang Zhizhong, the commander of the 87th Division, volunteered to Jiang Ruiyuan, and finally obtained approval.

On February 14, the Minister of Military Affairs of the ** Government, He Yingqin, in accordance with Jiang Ruiyuan's instructions, formed the 87th and 88th Divisions stationed in Beijing and Shanghai and Beijing to form the 5th Army. Zhang Zhizhong, the commander of the 87th Division, served as the commander, and unified command of the 87th Division, the 88th Division, the CSKA Military Academy Teaching Corps and the Mountain Artillery Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the ** Artillery Corps to Shanghai to join the 19th Route Army.

At this time, the 5th Army gathered the 87th Division, the 88th Division and the Teaching Corps, all of which were German-style troops and were absolutely ace elites in the Central Military system. All of them were devoted to such elite elites, which showed the National Government's anti-Japanese spirit.

The 261st Brigade of the 87th Division, led by the brigade commander Song Xilian, first set out from Nanjing, and officially took over the line from Hujiazhai on the north bank of Yunzaogang in Shanghai to Caojiaqiao in the west end of Wusong on the 14th. The 259th Brigade of the 87th Division also arrived in Nanxiang on the 15th under the leadership of the brigade commander Sun Yuanliang. At the same time, the 88th Division also drove from the Shanghai-Hangzhou Line to gather near Nanxiang on standby.

On the morning of February 16, Zhang Zhizhong led the 5th Army headquarters to board the train from Hepingmen, Nanjing, and arrived in Nanxiang on the same day. He began to deploy his subordinate troops to replace the defense of the 19th Route Army. The 5th Army was deployed along the line from Yunzaobang to the western end of Wusong at the northern end of Jiangwan via Miaoxing Town, and served as the warning of the river along the north and south Zhadong of the Shizilin Fortress, Chuanshakou, Liuhekou, Yanglinkou and Qiyakou.

Among them, the 88th Division's defense is from the northern end of Jiangwan through Miaoxing Town, Zhouxiang to the south bank of Yunzaogang, and the 87th Division is responsible for the line along Hujiazhuang along the north bank of Yunzaogang through Caojiaqiao to the west end of Wusong. One of the teaching team's unit warns the areas along the north bank of Lion Forest North and South Zhadong, Chuanshakou, Liuhekou, Yanglinkou and Qiyakou. The above deployment was taken over on the 18th.

Zhang Zhizhong also served as the commander of the left wing army, while Cai Tingkai, commander-in-chief of the 19th Route Army, was appointed as the commander of the right wing army, and the headquarters of the 5th Army was also pushed from Nanxiangqian to Liuxing Town.

The 24th Mixed Brigade of the Japanese Army started at 7:30 am on February 20, and with the support of heavy artillery and aircraft, the 88th Division, which was defending the temple, resisted stubbornly, and gave the Japanese army major killing and wounding, and stood firm.

After entering the evening, the Japanese army continued to attack fiercely, and the battle became more intense, and the sound of guns and cannons continued to stop at night. Most of the fortifications of the 88th Division were destroyed under the fierce Japanese artillery bombardment, but the officers and soldiers hid in broken trenches and remained calm. They waited until the Japanese infantry approached, and then used grenades and rifles to strike head-on, and then fought with hand-to-hand combat. In this way, the Japanese army fought for two days and nights, and the Japanese army retreated due to casualties.

On the morning of the 22nd, the Japanese army rushed into the 3rd Battalion of the 527th Regiment of the 264th Brigade of the 88th Division in the east of Miaoxing Town by heavy fog. Battalion Commander Chen Zhenxin personally led the troops to counterattack, but failed to repel the Japanese army under the fierce artillery fire of the Japanese army. Chen Zhenxin died in the position. Li Yannian, deputy commander of the 88th Division, personally led the 264th Brigade to quickly enter all reserves to block the gap. The battle situation was very fierce.

Tang Dun, the battalion commander of the 88th Division, was killed in battle, Qian Lunti, the 264th Brigade Commander and Huang Meixing, the deputy brigade commander, were injured, and the front line has not yet recovered. Due to the breakthrough of the Miaohang position, the entire 5th Army front line was seriously threatened. Commander Zhang Zhizhong personally led the main force of the reserve team to provide assistance, and ordered the brigade commander Sun Yuanliang, the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division, to lead his troops to reinforce the Miaohang.

Brigade Commander Song Xilian of the 261st Brigade of the 87th Division, which defended the north bank of Yunzaobang, led the main force of the brigade, crossing the river from Jijiaqiao to the enemy's side. The 88th Division also dispatched troops to carry out counterattacks on the Japanese breakthrough areas. The 19th Route Army of the Right-wing Army learned that the temple was in danger, and at 9 o'clock ordered a counterattack from Jiangwan to Yunzaobang.

Deputy Commander Zhang Yan of the 61st Division led the 4th and 5th Regiment from Zhuyuandun, northwest of Jiangwan, to support the Miaoxing defenders. In this way, the teaching corps and the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division were on the front of the Miaoxing, the 261st Brigade on the left, and the two regiments of the 61st Division were on the right, forming three-sided attacks on the breaking enemy. After fierce battle, the Japanese army was left in the Jinjiazhai and the Maojiazhai area, and continued to resist stubbornly, and the main force retreated in a hurry.

The remnants of the Japanese army were not completely cleared until 8:30 pm. On this day, the battle was tragic that was unprecedented since the 128th Incident. The chief and deputy brigade commander of the 88th Division was injured, with 9 battalion commanders, more than 20 platoon commanders, and more than 2,000 soldiers.

Chinese and foreign newspapers unanimously agreed that this was the most brilliant record of the ** Army in the Shanghai War of Resistance. On the 26th, the ** government issued a telephone call: "Since the battle of Miaoxing Town on the 22nd, our army's reputation has increased tenfold internationally. Public opinion from various countries has praised our army for its invincibility in recent days, and the reputation of the Japanese pirates has plummeted. I hope that the officers and soldiers will be encouraged to work hard."

Although Jiang Ruiyuan was hesitant, it did not mean that he did not intend to fight against Japan. This was a strategic choice and could not be achieved by passion and impulse. The most important thing is that the team that advocated the fight against Japan on the front battlefield was not the only 19th Army of Jiang Guangnai.

From the 25th, the Japanese army changed its tactics and concentrated the main force of the 9th Division to attack the Maijiazhai position at one point. By 8:00 on the 26th, after 100 minutes of artillery preparation, the Japanese army launched a general attack on the Maijiazhai position. At this time, all the fortifications of the 87th Division had been destroyed, and the defenders suffered heavy casualties, so the position was lost at 11:00.

The 19th Route Army immediately mobilized the 61st and 78th Divisions to rescue the Japanese army that had just entered the position with a powerful counterattack.

On February 29, the second batch of Japanese reinforcements, the 11th Division, arrived in Shanghai. After the Japanese army's troops increased, they launched an attack on the entire line of Songhu on March 1, especially the first part of the 11th Division landed at Qiyakou, Liuhe behind our front line at 6 a.m.

Although the ** Army Command has long instructed to pay close attention to the Liuhe front line and to deploy at least three regiments of troops. However, in the fierce battles in recent days, all front lines were suffering heavy casualties, and they were really stretched in the deployment of troops. Therefore, they stretched dozens of miles across the Liuhe front line. At this time, the troops were only one battalion of the Teaching Corps and one company of Feng Yongyi's brave army.

After the Japanese army landed, they trapped the Fuqiao, Liuhe Town and other places, and rushed towards the critical pass of Qianjing. A company of the defending army's teaching corps fought to the death, and all casualties were all killed. Zhang Zhizhong urgently dispatched two regiments of the 261st Brigade to provide assistance, attempting to annihilate them when the Japanese army was not yet stable, while reporting to Commander-in-Chief Jiang Guangnai to send troops to reinforce.

After receiving the order to rush to assist, the 261st Brigade immediately set off from Gujiazhai Bus Station to reinforce Liuhe at around 9 o'clock, but only 11 cars were collected and only one battalion could be transported at a time.

Brigade Commander Song Xilian had to take the lead in the 1st Battalion of the 521st Regiment, the 1st Battalion of the 521st Regiment, set off by car. After arriving at Liuhe at 12 noon, he ordered the Battalion of the 521st Regiment to lead his troops to advance to Qianjing Camp quickly, occupy Qianjing Camp as soon as possible, and cover the subsequent troops to launch.

As soon as the 1st Battalion reached the south gate of Qianjing Camp, it was shot by the Japanese army that had occupied Qianjing Camp. The two sides encountered an immediate encounter. Due to the close distance, the outpost troops were full of hand-to-hand combat.

It was not until around 3 pm that Liu Anqi, the commander of the 521st Regiment, led the 2nd Battalion to Liuhe. Japanese planes bombed Liuhe Station indiscriminately, and all cars and houses near the station were blown up, and the subsequent troops had to advance on foot.

The reinforcement speed was greatly affected. At this time, the battle near Qianjing Camp became more and more intense. The Japanese army dispatched more than 20 aircraft to fly low and carried out intensive bombing of the ** military positions. For a time, the bombs fell like rain. The Japanese warships in the Liuhe River also opened fire with naval guns to assist in the war.

At around 4 o'clock, the main force of the Japanese army detoured to the left wing of the 521st Regiment, and one battalion of the right wing teaching corps was killed and injured. In this way, the 1st Battalion of the 521st Regiment, which fought hard in Qianjing Camp, was in the front, left and right, and more than half of the casualties were killed and half. However, the officers and soldiers of the battalion fought bravely, and even rushed into Qianjing Camp with a broken division several times to fight with the Japanese army. In the end, because the Japanese army's firepower was burning and the number of troops was huge, they failed to succeed.

It was not until 6 pm that the 3rd Battalion of the 521st Regiment arrived. Brigade Commander Song Xilian ordered the 1st Battalion to hold on to the existing position and block the enemy's advance. The 2nd and 3rd Battalions quickly set up defenses along the south bank of Liuhe River, waiting for the 522nd Regiment to arrive, and then counterattack at night. Until 11 pm late at night, the 522nd Regiment had not arrived due to the long journey, and the hiking army had not arrived yet.

The ** Army only resisted several times the enemy in Qianjing Camp with only one battalion. From noon to late at night, the enemy did not make any progress again. In this battle, the soldiers of the ** Army were killed and continued, causing the enemy to stop at Qianjing Camp with a division, and could not cross the Liuhe River for half a step.

One battalion of the teaching corps fought alone and the 521st Regiment rushed to support him in a hurry, all of whom were determined to die to resolve the danger of being surrounded by the entire line. At the same time, all units of our army were completely oppressed by the superior enemy, and all officers and soldiers fought bravely, with great casualties. But the whole country knew that his innocent heart was known to him, and this was the spirit that the Chinese people should have.

At 3 pm, the position of the 78th Division was broken by the Japanese army, the right wing of the 5th Army was exposed, and the reserves had been exhausted, and the gaps on the front could not be supplemented. However, all units tried their best to support it until dark before retreating to Yang Huanqiao, Shuechetou, Tanjiazhai, and Mengjiajiao.

In view of the critical situation on the Liuhe front line and no more troops were reinforced, facing this irreparable gap behind the entire front, Commander-in-Chief Jiang Guangnai had no choice but to order the entire line to retreat at 21:00 that night.

Just as the troops retreated, the German division also made a name for themselves. According to the order of Commander-in-Chief Jiang Guangnai, the 5th Army occupied the shelter position in Hujiazhuang and Yang Jiaxing. The main force retreated to Jiading and Taicang Line at 11:00 p.m. today, using Jiading City and Taicang City as the stronghold and sent a unit to guard Luodian and Liuhe.

At 9:30 p.m., Zhang Zhizhong issued an order to change positions of the left wing army, ordering the 88th Division to retreat from Maqiaozhai to Jiading City, the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division to retreat from Tangqiao to Loutang Town, the 261st Brigade and the Teaching Corps to retreat from Liuhe to Taicang, the 1st Regiment of the ** Brigade retreated from Penglang Town, the 2nd Regiment assembled in Qianmentang, and the 156th Brigade of the 78th Division also assembled in Jiading.

After receiving the order, each unit retreated on time and arrived at designated locations one after another. The 5th Army headquarters and its direct troops also arrived at Qianmentang Town.

Just when the troops were ordered to move to the new position Jiading and Taicang, the 517th Regiment of the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division carried out the most tragic battle with the Japanese army in the Loutang and Zhujiaqiao areas near Gelong Town.

At around 1 o'clock in the evening on March 3, the 517th Regiment arrived from the temple to camp near Loutang. This place was only fifteen miles away from Liuhe. The officers and soldiers of the regiment fought hard for many days, and their clothes were still wet. Suddenly, more than a thousand Japanese troops rushed from Liuhe. The 517th Regiment was arranged in Loutang Town, Zhujiaqiao and Sizhuqiao three outposts to resist.

After the battle started, the Japanese army had more and more troops, and their artillery began to bombard the positions of the ** Army. The cordons of these three outpost companies reached three thousand meters wide, and the casualties exceeded one-third, so the strength was quite weak. All three outpost positions were surrounded, but all the troops fought to the death and refused to retreat. The Japanese army would remain near Loutang in the future.

The fierce battle lasted until 8:00 on the 3rd. The main force of the Japanese army arrived and began to launch a full-line attack on the 517th Regiment's position and detoured to the right wing of the **. At this time, the ** was stepping up the construction of fortifications and responding to the battle in a hurry. The troops were finally disparate. The Japanese army broke through the front line and rushed to the front of the 517th Regiment's department on the north bank of Zhujiaqiao. The entire regiment's front line was in danger. At this critical moment, the 3rd Company of the 1st Battalion rushed bravely and repelled the Japanese army that broke into the position.

At around 10 o'clock, Sun Yuanliang, the commander of the 259th Brigade, rushed to the 517th Regiment headquarters to command the battle, and the commander ordered the troops to resist stubbornly. After hearing the news, Zhang Zhizhong urgently ordered the 1st Regiment of the ** Brigade stationed in Penglang Town to quickly reinforce, while ordering the 261st Brigade located in Taicang to cover the left wing of the 259th Brigade, and ordered the 88th Division of Jiading to defend Jiading City and block the right wing of the 259th Brigade.

At this time, the Japanese army on the front line of Loutang had increased to 70,000 to 8,000, and the offensives were wave after wave. The 517th Regiment fought alone and the ammunition was exhausted. After noon, various positions were successively broken by the Japanese army. The Japanese army occupied nearby villages through Loutang Town, and the troops were directly trapped in Hejia Village. Brigade Commander Sun Yuanliang, who was commanding the battle in Gelong Town, wrote a letter in person at 15 o'clock and ordered someone to send him to the commander of Zhang Zhizhong.

The content of the telegram is: The 517th Regiment is now surrounded by the Japanese army and the regiment commander is missing. His rank is planning to die in Gelong Town. In danger, Qianmentang will be in danger. Please transfer the army commander quickly.

The military situation was urgent, and the regiment commander was killed. Even Zhang Zhizhong, who was the commander, had to be transferred. It can be seen how critical the situation was.

After receiving the report, Zhang Zhizhong called Sun Yuanliang immediately and told him that the 1st Regiment of the ** Brigade could reach the 1st Regiment. The 517th Regiment insisted on retreating to Gelong Town after sunset and occupied the position on the river and coastline. At 16 o'clock, the 1st Regiment of the ** Brigade finally arrived at Gelong, and immediately controlled the final resistance line and reinforced the front line.

At this time, the 517th Regiment had reached its last moment, and the left wing of Zhujiaqiao was also broken by the Japanese army. Regiment Commander Zhang Shixi led his officers and soldiers to fight to the death to Jiangjia Village. Under the fire of Japanese machine guns, the soldiers of the ** Army continued to advance but not retreat. The sound of killing shocked the field and was unstoppable.

The Japanese army could not resist the desperate attack of this army and retreated. The danger of Loutang Town was relieved. The remnants of the 517th Regiment rushed to Waigang to meet with the 88th Division, and then passed through Kunshan to go to the new position.

In the battle of Loutang, the Japanese army concentrated its main force to break through the middle areas of Jiading and Taicang, directly descended the railway and cut off the retreat route of the ** army. If it weren't for the 517th Regiment's courage and death, once the Japanese army entered Gelong, trapped Qianmen, and went straight down the railway, the retreat routes of the 5th and 19th Route Army would have been completely cut off, and the consequences would be unimaginable.

In this battle, Zhu Yaozhang, the battalion commander of the 1st Battalion of the 517th Regiment, was shot seven times and died heroically. There were also officers who fell into battle, including two company commanders, six platoon commanders, and nearly a thousand soldiers were injured or killed.

On the afternoon of March 3, just when the 517th Regiment fought bloody battle in Loutang, the 5th Army received another telegram from Commander-in-Chief Jiang Guangnai and retreated to the front line of Lujiaqiao, Shipai and Baimaxin City. The 5th Army was ordered to retreat, the 88th Division retreated to Changshu, the 261st Brigade of the 87th Division retreated to Baimaxin City, the 259th Brigade retreated to Shipai, the military headquarters entered Dongtangshu, the 2nd Regiment of the ** Brigade and the teaching corps retreated to Dongtangshu.

On March 5, the various departments arrived at designated locations one after another, rectified the troops, and prepared fortifications to fight again. Jiang Ruiyuan was not blindly tolerant of Japan. He had already taken the blame for Zhang Hanqing, a slut, as a slut, in the Northeast, but Shanghai was his foundation and should not be given up easily.

On May 5, under the tough attitude of the ** Army, the two sides signed a truce agreement in Shanghai, and the 128th Shanghai Anti-Japanese War ended here. On May 7, the ** government ordered the 88th Division to be stationed in Wuhan, the 87th Division to be stationed in Changshu, and then transferred to Nanjing.

During the Battle of Shanghai, 83 officers were killed, 242 were injured and 26 were missing. The number of soldiers was killed in the war. The number of casualties reached 1,533, 2,897, 599 were missing, a total of 1,616 were killed, 3,139 were injured, 625 were missing, and the total number of casualties was as high as 5,380.

Even the military advisers of Germany and the China Union were heartbroken about this

Jiang Ruiyuan also sighed, his destiny was not with him. He originally wanted to develop light industry vigorously and use the money he earned to arm his army with the weapons and equipment of Germany and Hualian. As long as he was given five years, he could use his huge national strength to maintain a balance of power with Japan.

Even if there is a defeat in one battle, there will be no danger of national destruction. However, Japan was aggressive. It was first September 18th, but now there is something wrong with one or two eighth. It is continuous and pressing step by step, which only makes the ** army have no chance to breathe.

Chapter 333 Battle of Songhu

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