The Battle of Pingxingguan was the eighth route army's first battle against Japan, and in a sad atmosphere of routing troops, the 115th Division made a decisive attack, giving the arrogant Japanese army a blow in the head, greatly enhancing the confidence of the Chinese nation in resisting the war and inspiring the fighting spirit of officers and men on the front line.
It is no exaggeration to say that the Battle of Pingxingguan was a great victory in the War of Resistance Against Japan. However, there are still many rumors about the Battle of Pingxingguan, some say that the Eighth Route Army did not dare to fight with the regular units of the Japanese army, only the third-rate troops of the Japanese army, and some said that the 115th Division, more than 10,000 people, could not defeat 1 brigade of the Japanese army...
These points seem to make some sense, but they don't stand up to scrutiny. This article will first see if the 115th Division really sent more than 10,000 people to participate in the Battle of Pingxingguan today.
The 115th Division has 5 regiments, namely the 685th Regiment, the 686th Regiment, the 687th Regiment, the 688th Regiment, the Independent Regiment, the 4 directly subordinate battalions, namely the Artillery Battalion, the Heavy Battalion, the Cavalry Battalion, and the Engineer Battalion, and the additional divisions and brigade headquarters have a total of more than 15,000 people. However, not all of them participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan, on the contrary, there were many troops who did not participate in the battle for various reasons, specifically:
1. The artillery battalion and the heavy battalion remained in Yan'an
2. The Independent Regiment blocked the Japanese reinforcements at the waist station and did not participate in the Battle of Pingxingguan
3. The 688th Regiment was blocked by flash floods and could not reach the Pingxingguan Battlefield
4. The Political Training Office (Political Department) of the Divisional Headquarters, the Cavalry Battalion, the Teaching Brigade, and 1 Company of the 686 regiment went to jixi and did not participate in the battle of Pingxingguan
It can be seen from the above that there were two regiments, 3 directly subordinate battalions, as well as the political training office of the division headquarters and the teaching brigade, and only 3 regiments and 1 engineer battalion actually participated in the battle. Moreover, 1 regiment was partially evacuated.
So, how many troops did the 3 regiments that participated in the battle have?
Presumably, this is something that everyone is very concerned about.
Although the 115th Division had more than 15,000 men, the regiments as field units were not well organized. At that time, the most effective independent regiment was only more than 1,700 people, and the other regiments were about the same, and the 3 regiments that participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan added up to more than 6,000 people, not to mention that the 686 regiment was also drawn out of some troops.
When an ambush occurs, although one side of the ambush is in the initiative, it cannot all participate in the battle, and command, liaison, vigilance, and ammunition delivery require personnel. On the contrary, the ambushed side can all be put into battle. In the Battle of Pingxingguan, although the 115th Division surpassed the Japanese, it was only slightly exceeded.
Under the circumstance that the troop strength is not absolutely superior, the 115th Division can strike decisively, is this not exactly the "bright sword" spirit that our Chinese nation needs? Otherwise, how can we defeat the US military armed to the teeth in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea?
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