When it comes to Japan, many people will think of the heinous crimes it committed during its invasion of China, and although they were eventually driven out by the concerted efforts of the Chinese, the heavy blow that Japan inflicted on China was indelible.
In the stage of stalemate in the War of Resistance Against Japan, Japan adjusted its tactics toward China, changing from a hard-line defeat of China to the establishment of a puppet government, and suppressed various parts of China by force.
Japanese aircraft
Japanese bombardment of rear cities
The method of suppression by the Japanese army is very simple, that is, to use aircraft to bomb the rear cities that support the War of Resistance, so that the rear cities can take care of themselves, so that they can win without a fight on the battlefield, taking Sichuan, the rear of the War of Resistance, only from 1938 to 1944, Chengdu, Sichuan was bombed 31 times by the Japanese army, and the number of casualties reached more than 4500.
Judging from such data, Chengdu is still lucky, and Chongqing in the same period is even more miserable. According to Chongqing records, in the five years after 1938, the Japanese army launched a total of 203 bombings on Chongqing, causing 24,000 casualties among the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians.
The Japanese bombed Chongqing
This made many people wonder very much, from the perspective of the Japanese army, why did they not bomb Yan'an during the War of Resistance? For this reason, some people have specifically learned that the Japanese army said that it tried to bomb Yan'an, but the cost was not high and it was not cost-effective. So why were the Japanese so obsessed with bombing Chongqing?
Why did the Japanese bomb Chongqing?
First look at Chongqing, Chongqing is actually not prosperous, so many people think that the Japanese bombing of Chongqing is not good, just a mountain city, bombing will not lose a lot of money, but it is not. As a mountain city, although Chongqing is not very prosperous, it is the seat of the National Government, and the Japanese bombing of Chongqing can well hit the anti-Japanese morale and enthusiasm of the National Government.
Bombing Chongqing can also serve as a warning to the working people of the National Government in Chongqing, and this warning is that I can bomb Chongqing and prove that you are all under my control. This will make the people in Chongqing more nervous, and the Japanese army will spread some more remarks at this time and use the power of public opinion to control Chongqing, which is simply easy. However, when there is a war in every country, the capital will be bombed, and it is somewhat abnormal not to bomb.
Chongqing after being bombed by the Japanese
The second reason for bombing Chongqing is also because Chongqing is a large rear base in the southwest. Because the war broke out, the Japanese army also occupied many places, in order to survive, people had to retreat step by step and come to the mountain city of Chongqing to establish their own homes. Many schools and factories also came to Chongqing with the migration of the population. Although Chongqing at this time was not prosperous, it was the hope of many people to rebuild their homes.
In Chongqing, with factories, weapons can be produced, and with weapons, there is the confidence to confront the Japanese army, and this is where the Japanese army is afraid. The Japanese army bombed day and night, only to stop Chongqing's industry, so that Chongqing's studies could not start normally, so that the people of Chongqing lived in the accident of artillery fire, did not have the heart to regain production and living industry, and let Chongqing lose from the inside without a fight.
The sinister intentions of the Japanese army are frightening, but the will of our people is very firm, and no one can defeat them. The people worked overtime to make weapons, and more people took to the streets to protest against the bombing behavior of the Japanese army, so that the public opinion of the Japanese army gradually collapsed, so that the people's hearts in Chongqing were re-condensed, and the people's lives regained hope. After the US military seized air supremacy, the Japanese army also gave up bombing Chongqing.
Chinese the people fought harder and harder
Why did the Japanese give up bombing Yan'an?
After reading Chongqing, look at Yan'an. In fact, the Japanese army did not bomb Yan'an at all, but according to the data, the Japanese army bombed Yan'an 17 times, dropped 1690 shells, and caused 398 casualties. Compared with Chongqing, this data can only be said to be a small witch, so why didn't the Japanese army invest a lot of money to bomb Yan'an?
The first is because of the geographical location of Yan'an, Yan'an is located on the Loess Plateau, due to the harsh environment of the Loess Plateau, so there are fewer people living on it, coupled with the ravines of the Loess Plateau, naturally there is no housing close to it.
Dropping a shell in Chongqing may be able to hit people, and even if it is not good, it can destroy the house, but if a shell is dropped in Yan'an, there may be no casualties, and because most of the people on the Loess Plateau live in cave dwellings, even the house may not be blown up.
Yan'an during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression
Shells are also very expensive, in Yan'an it may take 10 bombs to blow up a person, while in Chongqing, 10 shells can blow up dozens of houses, and the Japanese army's finances do not support them to do such a costly cost to do an uncertain thing, which is purely useless.
The second reason is that the price-performance ratio is too low. When bombing Chongqing, the Japanese would determine the location of their bombing based on intelligence, often a large building such as a factory, and the results after bombing were very remarkable. But Yan'an is different, there are no decent factories in Yan'an to bomb the Japanese army, there are only a few important leaders, but it is unrealistic to be able to blow up the leaders by casually dropping shells, and the Japanese army knows this.
When in Yan'an, many people in Yan'an had extreme anti-Japanese enthusiasm, and the Japanese army wanted to send people to set up some information and intelligence like Chongqing, it was simply as difficult as ascending to the sky, there was no reliable intelligence, and it was impossible to achieve the bombing effect that the Japanese army wanted by relying on themselves blindfolded, so bombing Yan'an was a next strategy for the Japanese army, which was still lacking in resources.
Houses of residents after being bombed by the Japanese army
Whether the Japanese army bombed Chongqing or Yan'an, it did not break the will and determination of our people to resist Japan, which is not only the strong will of our people, but also some external factors.
The first factor is because the resources of the Japanese army are relatively scarce, can not achieve the degree of continuous bombing, the most intensive bombing of Chongqing is also once in ten days, ten days can actually do a lot of things, let the factory resume work for a day or two, let the children learn for a while, so that it can stimulate the Chinese never give in to the fighting spirit.
The second factor is that the Japanese army did not obtain air supremacy, and the bombing of various areas was carried out when the Japanese army did not fully obtain air supremacy; after the Intervention of the Flying Tigers, the Japanese army has begun to reduce the bombing of Chongqing.
Yan'an
epilogue:
Our good life today was bought by many ancestors through countless cannon fires, and their tenacity and bravery are the cornerstones of our happy life. As future generations, we must remember their spirit and their kindness, and at the same time we should make efforts to let the happy life continue and let their spirit be passed on from generation to generation.