About the Battle of Dabie Mountain?

The Dabie Mountains are located at the junction of Hubei and Anhui, straddling the Jianghan and Jianghuai Rivers. They have always been a battleground for military strategists. During the Anti-Japanese War, the 21st Group Army of the Fifth Theater established an anti-Japanese base here and repeatedly cut off the Yangtze River waterway, posing a huge threat to Japanese-occupied areas such as Wuhan, Hefei, and Nanjing. Therefore, the Japanese army must want to eliminate them quickly. After 1938, the Japanese army repeatedly attacked the Dabie Mountains without success. The base area has also been consolidated and developed, and by the end of 1942 it expanded to more than 20 counties with Lihuang as the center; people's lives gradually stabilized, forming a veritable "paradise". Someone once boasted: "The Dabie Mountain base area can not only stand behind enemy lines, but also develop and prosper day by day. It is actually a miracle of the Anti-Japanese War." In order to completely destroy this "model anti-Japanese base area" and destroy the National Government's will to resist, in December 1942 , the Japanese army launched the Dabie Mountain Campaign①, which caused great damage to the lives and property of the people in the Dabie Mountains. Now let me introduce the process of this battle based on the information collected.

1. Pre-war deployment of the 21st Group Army

The 7th Army (Commander Zhang Gan) headquarters was stationed in Dushan Town, Lu'an. The 171st Division (commander Cao Maocong) under its jurisdiction is stationed in eastern Anhui, the 172nd Division (commander Zhong Ji) is stationed in Lu'an, the 173rd Division (commander Li Tingxun) is stationed in Huangnanzhuangfan, and the 10th Column (commander Bai Chengjun) is stationed in eastern Anhui.

The headquarters of the 48th Army (Commander Su Zuxin) is stationed in Shengoupu, Huoshan. The 138th Division (commander Li Benyi) under its jurisdiction is stationed in Taihu and Qianshan; the 176th Division (commander Tan Heyi) is stationed in Tongcheng and Lujiang.

The headquarters of the 84th Army (Commander Mo Shujie) is stationed in the mall. The 176th Division (Commander Niu Bingxin) is stationed in Huangchuan; the 189th Division (Commander Zhang Wenhong) is stationed in Jingfu; the Fourth Column (Commander Zhang Xiangze) is stationed in Guangshan.

The headquarters of the 39th Army (Commander Liu Heding) is stationed in Tengjiapu. The 56th Division under its jurisdiction (division commander Kong Haikun) is stationed in Luotian; the temporary 51st Division (division commander Lin Maohua) is stationed in Huang'an and Macheng.

In addition, there are also the guerrilla column commanded by Cheng Shufen, the guerrilla commander-in-chief of Eastern Hubei, the security regiment of the Anhui Security Department, and the troops directly under the 21st Group Army.

The above-mentioned units have a total strength of more than 100,000 and are strong. However, due to the weak combat strength of the 39th Army and guerrilla columns in eastern Hubei, they have become a fatal weakness of defense.

2. The Japanese army’s attempt to invade the Dabie Mountains

In early December 1942, the Japanese army mobilized frequently in the northern section of the Ping-Han Line and the eastern section of Longhai Road, threatening to "open up the Ping-Han Line." The Fifth War Zone believed this and dispatched the 84th Army to Runan to strengthen the defense of Pinghan Road. The defense zone west of Lihuang was suddenly empty. On December 18, the military aircraft carried by Lieutenant General Tsukada, commander of the Japanese 11th Army, was shot down by the 138th Division's anti-aircraft artillery unit at Jiuzhuchong near Tianjiatan in Taihu Lake. All nine people on board were killed. On the 19th, the Japanese army attacked the Dabie Mountains in three directions: the 68th Division attacked Taihu from Qichun via Huangmei; the first part of the 116th Division attacked Qianshan from the west of Anqing; the 3rd Division attacked Luotian from Songbu and Xishui . The first two groups were responsible for searching for the corpse of Tsukada Gong and containing the 48th Army; the latter group was used as the main attack in order to defeat the 39th Army and march directly to Lihuang. At the same time, the enemies of Hefei also moved frequently in places such as Dashu Mountain to contain the 7th Army in Lu'an.

3. Early Battles

Towards Taihu and Qianshan

On December 19, the 68th Division of the 11th Japanese Army invaded from Qichun via Huangmei and Susong. In Taihu, part of the 116th Division of the 13th Army attacked Qianshan from Anqing, and fell into Qianshan, Taihu and other counties within a few days. On the 25th, the enemy's 68th Division captured Mido Temple and found Tsukada's body. At this time, Su Zuxin, commander of the 48th Army, discovered that the group army headquarters had mishandled the battle situation, and immediately changed the deployment of his army, determined to block and destroy the invading enemy, lure the enemy deep, and concentrate superior forces to destroy it. At dawn on the 27th, the 138th Division and the 176th Division violently counterattacked Taihu and Qianshan, charging and killing the enemy several times, leaving the enemy dead and wounded. On the 28th, the 528th Regiment of the 176th Division attacked Gaohebu, broke into the street and engaged in melee with the enemy, killing and wounding more than 100 enemies; the 526th Regiment fought in Chenjiapu and wiped out more than 180 enemies. On the 30th, the enemies of Miduo Temple were ambushed by the 412th Regiment of the 138th Division near Hualiangting and Longshan Palace, causing more than 100 casualties and more than 20 horses. On the 31st, the 412th Regiment and the 413th Regiment wiped out more than a hundred enemies on the Longshan Palace River Beach. By 17:00, the number of enemy casualties in the Taihu direction reached more than 500.

4. The fall of Lihuang

On December 28, the Japanese army advanced in the direction of Lihuang in three routes: the eastern route took the Yingshan East Boundary Ridge and was repulsed by the first section of the 48th Army. After reinforcements, they advanced to Manshui River and destroyed the 48th Army grain depot in Zhongjie Ridge; the west road took Macheng Muzidian, passed Changling Pass, and left Wujiadian; the main force of the 3rd Division on the middle road set off from Luotian County and passed through Dahe'an, Xiaojia'ao, straight towards Shangbao. At this time, Zhang Yichun had realized that the Japanese army might raid Lihuang and was greatly alarmed. He urgently ordered the 84th Army to rush to Lihuang's aid and mobilized the 21st Group's 2nd Military and Police Regiment, 3rd Police Regiment, Lihuang Self-Defense Brigade and 4th Security Regiment to take over the defense. Lihuang's second line of defense - Songzi Pass. But completely contrary to Zhang's expectation, the Japanese army did not go through Songzi Pass. On December 30, after the main force of the 3rd Division of the Japanese Army on the Middle Road captured Tengjiapu, one unit moved towards the border ridge in North Vietnam toward the mall to contain the 84th Army and the 173rd Division; the other 68th Regiment mainly formed the Lutian Detachment. Suddenly marched eastward and stormed Wengmen Pass. A battalion of the 9th Bao Regiment of the Wengmen Pass defenders rose up to resist and fought fiercely with the enemy for four hours until their position was destroyed before withdrawing. On January 1, the Japanese troops on the West Route also arrived at Changling Pass. At this point, the Songziguan defense line was completely useless. Zhang Yichun had no choice but to order the Lihuang Self-Defense Brigade to run to pick up Wujiadian, which was 15 miles away from Songziguan. That night, the Lihuang Self-Defense Brigade arrived at Wujiadian, but the Japanese troops had already passed.

After the Japanese troops entered Wengmen Pass on the middle route, under the guidance of the traitors, they crossed Houfan northward, climbed over the Siwang Ridge with high mountains and steep roads, and entered the Sizhou River Valley. At the southwest end of the river valley is Shijing Mountain, at the foot of which lie six ammunition depots of the National Army. Even the locals didn't know about these ammunition depots, but the Japanese army knew them very well. Within two hours, the Japanese destroyed all six ammunition depots. After blowing up the ammunition depot, the Japanese army marched towards Longmen Stone. The Sizhou River Valley is only thirty miles away from Longmen Rock. However, due to the high mountains and dangerous roads, the Japanese army set off at dawn on December 31 and arrived at Longmen Rock at one o'clock in the afternoon. At Longmen Rock, the Japanese army burned more than a dozen captives alive. After dark, they lit fir trees piled by the river and lights in small shops on the roadside. Then we crossed Ma Mian Mountain and headed straight towards Bahe River. At midnight on January 1, the vanguard of the Japanese army arrived at Xiabahe. Its commander decided to take a short rest and wait for the follow-up troops to arrive before attacking Maoping.

Maoping is located on the old Liuli Highway, adjacent to the Xipei River. It is a small market town on the way from Liubo to Lihuang. On New Year's Day night, the small streets of Maoping were filled with young men from the Shucheng Division District heading to Lihuang, civilians transporting military supplies, and passing vendors. Before dawn on January 2, the Japanese army entered Maoping. The strong men's brigade rose up to resist and after killing and wounding several enemies, they were eventually outnumbered and all died for their country. After occupying Maoping, the Japanese army became more brutal and slaughtered 561 soldiers and civilians in the town, both young and old.

The news of the approaching Japanese army reached the headquarters of the 21st Group Army, and Zhang Yichun was terrified. At this time, the main force of the 173rd Division originally stationed in Nanzhuangfan had been transferred to the Huangchuan and Guangshan areas, and the 84th Army was still on the way. Lihuang only had the 4th Special Company of the headquarters, the 173rd Division Headquarters (only two companies of combat troops) and Su Zuxin and Zhang Gan quickly mobilized the emergency 414th Regiment of the 138th Division and the 513th Regiment of the 171st Division. what to do? Thirty-six strategies, walking is the best. On January 1, Zhang Yichun appointed Li Tingxun, commander of the 173rd Division, as the commander of the Lihuang Garrison, responsible for "commanding the division, the 414th Regiment, and the 513th Regiment to resist the enemy on the line between Dingjiabu and Nanzhuangfan, and cover the evacuation of the headquarters agencies"②; At the same time, Su Zuxin was ordered to mobilize the 413th Regiment of the 138th Division to return to aid Lihuang. However, the appearance of running away from the former commander-in-chief still needs to be done. In order to calm people's hearts, Zhang Yichun specially arranged a New Year's Day celebration party at Lihuang Airport on the morning of January 1. At the meeting, he also declared: "Although Dabie Mountain is not an iron wall, it will never allow the enemy to invade easily..." But who would have thought that at nine o'clock that night, Commander-in-Chief Zhang, who had been so sworn in the morning, would leave with the personnel of the 21st Group Army Headquarters. The soldiers and civilians of the city fled Lihuang in a hurry. ③After that, each army called the headquarters, but could not get through, and they fell into a chaotic state of fighting independently.

On the afternoon of January 1, Xiao Xiangyang, commander of the 513th Regiment, led a battalion to Maoping. The group army headquarters urgently ordered them to set up defenses in the Challing and Changchong Ridge areas. Xiao Xiangyang immediately notified the 8th Company to go to Liushugou that night to provide forward security; he led the regiment headquarters and two companies to Chaerling. After arriving at Challing, Xiao Xiangyang immediately called the headquarters to inquire about the enemy's situation. The headquarters informed that the Japanese army would attack from Liuli Highway. But at 8 o'clock in the evening, the headquarters suddenly informed that the enemy had left Longmenshi from Zhangfan and was heading towards Bahe. Xiao Xiangyang was shocked. No matter whether the enemy came from Xiabahe to attack from Maoping or Huangmaojian, the terrain was unfavorable to him. He was outnumbered and difficult to defend. So he personally hung up the phone and went to the headquarters to request instructions. The headquarters has been evacuated and cannot be contacted.

After much consideration, he made up his mind to leave the 8th company in Liushugou to delay the Japanese troops. The regiment headquarters and the two companies he led retreated to Huangmaojian, and then moved to Dongda Mountain in Huashi the next day.

8 After receiving the order from the regiment commander, they drove to Liushugou in the evening of the same day, evacuated the people overnight, and completed the deployment. At 6 o'clock in the morning on the 2nd, the enemy's leading troops arrived at Liushugou. First search the ditch as a small team. When the Japanese search team entered the ditch, the right-wing gunner of the 8th company who was lying on the tip of Pu Dao couldn't hold his breath and fired a shot, hitting the middle of the enemy's column, killing 8 enemies, 2 horses and a wolf dog. The enemy soon came back, concentrating firepower to suppress the right wing of the 8th Company, allowing the large force to pass through the range of our artillery and rush towards the road leading to Challing. The left wing of the 8th Company, which was lying in ambush at the bend of the road, waited for the enemy to pass and suddenly launched an attack from the side and rear. The Japanese army was caught off guard, suffered heavy losses, and was forced to retreat. The accidental damage in Liushugou made the Japanese command extremely nervous: the 56th Division had already arrived at Songzi Pass, and the 189th Division was also close to Lihuang. If Lihuang could not be captured quickly, the Japanese army was in danger of being surrounded and annihilated. As a result, the Japanese army changed its original plan. In addition to the troops that attacked Liushugou head-on, they also divided one unit from the Crow River mouth through Shilu Ridge to directly attack the headquarters of Chen Chong's 21st Group Army and contain Cha'er Ridge.

At around 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the Japanese army failed to break through the 8th company's position despite launching multiple attacks, so they used Changchong Ridge, climbed over the candle tip, and detoured to Cha'er Ridge. By the time the 8th Company discovered it, the situation was irreversible. Someone advised the company commander Zhou Ming to evacuate in time. But Captain Zhou said calmly: "My machine gun is not mute, and I have the right to prevent the enemy from passing here. If we evacuate alive, how can we be worthy of the many brothers who died in the battle? Hold on for a moment, it is a moment, and you are determined to live or die with the position!" "Then he led the remaining personnel to fight with the enemy and finally died heroically.

After the fall of Liushugou, two battalions of the 517th Regiment of the 173rd Division arrived at Challing. Due to the interruption of communication with the headquarters and the unknown situation, they encountered an enemy attack near the top of the mountain. All the leading platoons were killed and were forced to retreat to Nanzhuangfan. The Japanese army did not pursue them and approached Gubeichong along the highway. At 7 o'clock in the evening, they arrived in Gubeichong and burned down the streets and Anhui College.

Before the headquarters of the 21st Group Army retreated, Zhang Yichun was afraid of being pursued by the Japanese army, so he ordered the training regiment and the combat regiment to stop the Japanese troops in the Chenchong area. The cadets of the dry training regiment had neither weapons nor military training, so only a few lookout posts were left. The combat cadre group was composed of more than a hundred officers with rich combat experience. After receiving the order, they immediately ambush on both sides of the road from Shiluling to Chenchong. At 11 o'clock in the morning on January 2, the Japanese troops climbed to Shiluling. Seeing no movement, they relaxed their guard and boldly advanced towards Chen Chong. The students from the Zhangan Regiment suddenly jumped up from the roadside and swept across with their pistols. The enemy was caught off guard and rolled down the ridge. While the fighting group was still breathing, the Japanese army reorganized their forces, opened the way with machine guns and volleys of artillery, and rushed up Shiluling again. The combat regiment only had a few training rifles and was unable to fight back, but it still resisted for more than four hours at the cost of more than 30 casualties. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, the Japanese army passed Shiluling. After the Japanese army arrived in Chenchong, the few rearguard troops left behind by the Secret Service Battalion of the 21st Group Army Headquarters resisted for a while and then withdrew from the battle. The Dengfang Battalion of the 44th Regiment, which was ordered to reinforce, was also blocked on the way. The Japanese army effortlessly occupied the 21st Group Army Headquarters and immediately Burn it. Late at night, he met the Japanese troops who came from the ancient monument in Lihuang City. Then the whole city of Lihuang was burned to the ground. The fire illuminated the area around Lihuang for 20 to 30 miles, making it look like daylight.

The enemies on the West Route who attacked from Wujiadian also arrived at Caofan, north of Jinzhai, on the night of the 2nd. The next morning we also entered Lihuang City. In the next three days, the Japanese army carried out mass killings. Lihuang City was filled with loud cries and corpses strewn all over the ground. It was too horrible to see. In addition, the Japanese army also sent troops to attack everywhere, fighting against the 173rd Division, 189th Division, 513th Regiment and other units around Lihuang, and chasing the 21st Group Army headquarters. The battle was unprecedentedly fierce. But at this moment, the 56th Division of the 39th Army, which had arrived at Songzi Pass earlier, stopped and sat on the mountain to watch the fight between tigers and tigers. On the 4th, a group of Japanese troops set out from Lihuang and swooped into Shenkoupu in Huoshan Mountain. The headquarters of the 48th Army is stationed in Shengoupu, but at this time, the main forces of the army are in the direction of Taihu, Qianshan, and Tongcheng. The 413th Regiment and 414th Regiment of the 138th Division have gone to Weihuang, and most of the troops directly under the army are also in Yingshan, There were almost no combat troops in the Manshui River and Shengoupu areas, so Su Zuxin had no choice but to retreat to Yuexi.

5. The National Army’s Counterattack and the Japanese Retreat

On the afternoon of the 3rd, Zhang Yichun led a group of people from the headquarters to wander around the mountains for a day and night before arriving at Emaoling, where the 173rd Division Headquarters is located. . At 9 a.m. on the 5th, more than 200 enemy troops attacked Emaoling.

At that time, "most of the headquarters and the 173rd Division were non-combatants. The only combatants they could control were the 4th Special Company of the headquarters, the 173rd Division's Special Agent Company and the 8th Company of the 518th Regiment. The total number of rifles and pistols was no more than a hundred." ④, unable to resist. At the suggestion of Commander Li Tingxun, Zhang Yichun led his headquarters to the 7th Army Headquarters in Dushan at 10 o'clock that night. The next day, according to the instructions of the Fifth War Zone, the headquarters of the 21st Group Army issued an operational order to recapture Lihuang: "1. Except for the necessary minimum force of the 84th Army to monitor and deny the enemy at Changchongkou, the rest of the main force will be divided into troops on the evening of the 6th. Heading south along the Tangjiahui and Zaoxue rivers, they aimed to counterattack Lihuang City before dawn on the 8th. 2. Commander Li commanded the 518th Regiment and the 414th Regiment to gather near Hudianzi and Banpeng on the evening of the 7th, and attack Tazihe and Chuangpeng Street at dawn on the 8th. If the two regiments do not cross to the south of Shihe, they will be under the command of Commander Mo. In addition to leaving the 2nd battalion near Lu'an and the Li Jiao regiment (one battalion missing), they will be under the direct control of the 513th regiment ( The 2nd Battalion) and the 517th Regiment passed through Donglianhuafan and Liubotuan, and were responsible for attacking the enemies near Lihuang in the southeast area on the 9th. The 4th and 171st Divisions immediately launched their own independent troops and waited for orders. Attack the enemies near Shen (Gou) Pu. In addition to one unit of the 6th and 39th armies monitoring and blocking the enemies in eastern Hubei, the main force should attack Lihuang from Wujiadian before dawn on the 8th..."⑤ However, Zhang Yichun did not know that the main force of the Japanese army had withdrawn from Lihuang the day before he issued this order. 1

On January 5, the Japanese army retreated from Lihuang in three routes: the first route passed through the Shi River, passed through the Shang River and Tiechong City; the second route passed through Yejiaji and headed for Gushi; the third route passed through Yejiaji and headed towards Gushi; Passing through Huoshan, they met up with the enemy at Manshui River and then returned to the Xihe River in Yingshan. All armies then engaged in a battle to pursue and block the retreating Japanese troops.

Towards Taihu and Hubei

On January 1, in order to contain the main force of the 48th Army, part of the Japanese 116th Division invaded Tongcheng from the north. The 176th Division blocked the attack step by step. On the 2nd, a section of the Japanese army entered Jinshendun and was ambushed by the 176th Division, causing heavy casualties. On the 3rd, the Japanese army stormed Tongcheng. The 176th Division fought fiercely with the enemy based on the established positions and wiped out hundreds of enemies. The next day, the 176th Division took the initiative to withdraw from Tongcheng. On the 6th, the Taihu Japanese troops rushed into Yuexi County, killing 21 villagers, maiming 15 people, and raping 6 women in Liufan and other places. They were later repelled by the Yuexi County Self-Defense Forces. On the 8th, Su Zuxin led most of the 48th Army's military headquarters and directly affiliated teams to Tangquanfan, Yuexi. The next day, the Japanese army began to retreat, and the 48th Army launched a pursuit. On the 10th, the 138th Division recaptured Taihu Lake and the 176th Division recaptured Tongcheng. On the 11th, the 138th Division regained Qianshan. On the 12th, Susong was defeated again. On the 13th, the 138th Division entered Huangmei and formed a confrontation after a fierce battle with the enemy.

4 Battle of Dabie Mountain

On the 5th, the Japanese troops retreated from Shengoupu and Manshui River. The 48th Army directly affiliated team suffered too much losses in the early battles and was unable to pursue them. The next day, the 413th Regiment of the 138th Division arrived at Shengoupu from Lihuang on orders from the Army Group Headquarters and launched a pursuit, but failed to catch up. The Japanese army returned to Xishui via Yingshan Xihe, Luotian Shiqiaopu and Kuanghe. Due to the passive avoidance of the 39th Army, this Japanese army successfully reached Xishui on the 15th.

Recapture Lihuang

On the 5th, after the main force of the Japanese army withdrew, only a small number of traitors and cover troops were left near Lihuang to stalemate with the national army. The urban area of ??Lihuang became a Empty city. On the 8th, the 171st Division, the 189th Division, the 56th Division and the Zhangan Regiment attacked Lihuang and entered the city without fierce fighting. When the Nationalist officers and soldiers stopped on the streets of Lihuang, they saw devastation: broken walls and corpses everywhere; what's more, the Japanese army changed the city's slogan "Celebrate New Year's Day" to "Celebrate the End of the Year." Faced with this situation, everyone present burst into tears.

6. Ending

As of January 17, all the main forces of the Japanese army had withdrawn and the pre-war situation had been restored. The Battle of Dabie Mountain was over. On February 10, Li Pinxian, commander-in-chief of the 21st Group Army, rushed back to Lihuang. Zhang Yichun knew that he was mainly responsible for the defeat of the battle, so he left Lihuang the day before Li Pinxian arrived in Lihuang and went to Chongqing to "report on his work." Soon, Zhang Yichun was transferred to Lieutenant General Gao Shen of the Military Commission. Liu Heding, Commander of the 39th Army, was promoted to Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the 21st Group Army. The remaining vacancy was promoted to Deputy Commander Liu Shangzhi. At the same time, Lihuang Security Commander Qiu Qingying and Lihuang County Magistrate Yang Sidao were both dismissed. In mid-February, Li Pinxian presided over a review meeting of the Dabie Mountains Campaign to summarize the experiences and lessons learned from this battle. After the meeting, all armies strengthened training to improve combat effectiveness in accordance with the requirements of the theater and group armies. From then on, the Japanese army no longer carried out large-scale raids on the Dabie Mountains.

7. Postscript

As for the experiences and lessons learned in the Battle of Dabie Mountains, we can easily summarize them from the previous description, so I don’t want to talk about them anymore. Here, let me talk about my views on some relevant characters. In the article, we saw how brave the patriotic officers and soldiers of the national army fought. However, Zhang Yichun and his staff wrote many articles about this battle after liberation, accusing others of being greedy for life and afraid of death, which meant that "the whole world is drunk and I am alone sober", and pushed the responsibility to the lower level. I am surprised that there is still a huge market for such a "memoir" full of loopholes. ——It seems that they do cater to the tastes of some people in the country. I am writing this article to try my best to find out the truth of the matter, commemorate the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the country, and lash out at those "sycophants" who are incompetent in doing business but are very good at gaining fame and reputation.