This article was written by Chairman Mao in May 1938, and the background at that time was: Our anti-Japanese forces, after experiencing dozens of battles of all sizes, such as the Lugou Bridge Incident, the Battle of Songhu, the Battle of Taiyuan, the Battle of Nanjing, and the Battle of Xuzhou, still lost all of northeast China and north China at the cost of huge casualties, and most of East China, Northwest China, and Central China, and nearly half of the splendid rivers and mountains of the land of China were already wreaked havoc by the iron hooves of the Japanese invaders. In this frustrating reality, many thoughts arise, some want to surrender, some want to flee, some want to rely on foreign aid, some want to continue the struggle. Obviously, the resolute and indomitable fighters are the most precious treasures of the Chinese nation, and they are those brave heroes who can rush out to protect our splendid and long-standing civilization at the most dangerous times. The Chinese Communists, represented by Chairman Mao, are the mainstay of them. So how do we continue to fight? Can you still win? How to win?
The Japanese occupied Shanghai
The answer given by Chairman Mao was: guerrilla warfare.
Prior to this, there was a theory, or rather a general consensus, that the only way to defeat the Japanese aggressors was to go to a frontal large-scale war and eliminate their main forces. However, the Communist-led troops, especially the Eighth Route Army, have concluded through actual combat experience that this kind of thinking is not in line with our actual situation. What is our reality? The enemy is strong and we are weak; the enemy country is small, our country is large; the enemy occupies a lot of our land, and there are fewer and fewer areas under our complete control. This led Chairman Mao to conclude that the protracted nature of the war had taken place.
Half of the country is lost
Some people believe that guerrilla warfare is nothing more than a group of scattered soldiers, weak in strength, attacking everywhere, firing a shot to change places, and cannot give the enemy a fatal blow at all. The actual situation in our country is different; first of all, the country is very large and there are many people; second, under the mobilization of the Communists in the past twenty years, quite a few mass forces have mastered the experience of organizing military struggles; finally, the people who do not want to be slaves to the country still account for the majority, and the hearts of the people are moving in unison. Therefore, if our enemies underestimate this, they must touch a big moldy head at this point. In the War of Resistance Against Japan, although guerrilla warfare was still in a subsidiary position, it must be examined from a strategic point of view. This is the content of the first chapter of this article: Why the strategic question of guerrilla warfare is raised.
The strategic problem of the anti-Japanese guerrilla war
In the second chapter, Chairman Mao famously put forward the idea that the basic principle of war is to preserve oneself and destroy the enemy. Why do we fight? The purpose is to expel Japanese imperialism and establish an independent, free, and happy new China. In specific battles and battles, we also advocate the spirit of bravery and sacrifice, and the two are not contradictory -- some temporary "no preservation" (sacrifice or payment) is necessary for the permanent preservation of the whole. This collectivist spirit of sacrificing the small self to complete the great self is often difficult for foreign countries, especially the Western countries where individual heroism is prevalent, and this is also an important part of the spiritual code that the Chinese nation can continue to this day. Why is the combat effectiveness of our party and our army strong? And why is the combat effectiveness of the Soviet Red Army era strong? Probably because the conductor shouted "Follow me!" " instead of "Give it to me!" "Right.
The spirit of bravery and sacrifice
Chapter III, Six Specific Strategic Issues of the Anti-Japanese Guerrilla War. There is more content, and I will share it in the next article.