On July 7, 1937, the outbreak of the "Lugou Bridge Incident" marked the beginning of Japan's all-out war of aggression against China, the Kuomintang and the Communists quickly reached a cooperation agreement, the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army was successively reorganized into the National Revolutionary Army, of which the main force of the Red Army in the northwest was reorganized into the Eighth Route Army of the National Revolutionary Army, referred to as the Eighth Route Army. The main forces of the Eighth Route Army were the 115th Division, the 120th Division and the 129th Division.
The 129th Division was reorganized from the Red Fourth Front, the Red Army in Northern Shaanxi and other units, with jurisdiction over the 385th Brigade, the 386th Brigade and the Instruction Regiment, and in September 1937 the 129th Division went to the anti-Japanese front, entered the Taihang Mountain area in October, and relied on the Taihang Mountains to create the Jinji-Hebei Yu Anti-Japanese Base Area, and in early 1938 Chen Zaidao, Song Renqian, and other units led their troops into southern Hebei to open up the anti-Japanese base area in southern Hebei, and the units under the 129th Division grew rapidly. By the beginning of 1940, the 129th Division had formed nine new brigades.
The newly formed 1st Brigade was formed in February 1940 by the 688th Regiment of the 344th Brigade and the Jinyu Guerrilla Detachment, and was subordinate to the 2nd Column of the Eighth Route Army, and was part of the 129th Division in May 1940. The commander of the newly organized First Brigade was Wei Jie, political commissar Tang Tianji, and he had jurisdiction over the first and second regiments, with a total strength of more than 6,000 troops. A native of Donglan, Guangdong, Wei Jie joined the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army in 1929 and was awarded the rank of lieutenant general in 1955.
The newly formed Second Brigade was reorganized on April 30, 1940 by Huang Kecheng and the Second Column of the Eighth Route Army to the south, Luyu, and the Jiluyu Detachment, with three regiments in the whole brigade, the brigade commander was initially Yang Dezhi, later Tian Shouyao, and political commissar Wu Xinquan. Yang Dezhi is a native of Zhuzhou, Hunan Province, and was awarded the rank of general in 1955. Tian Shouyao, a native of Lu'an, Anhui Province, was killed in a battle north of Lianyungang in 1943.
The newly organized Third Brigade was formed on April 30, 1940 by the Zhao Tan Detachment, the Jiluyu Detachment Independent Brigade, and the Yubei Brigade, with three regiments under its jurisdiction, with the brigade commander Han Xianchu and the political commissar Tan Puren. Han Xianchu was a native of Huang'an (present-day Hong'an), Hubei Province, and was awarded the rank of general in 1955.
The newly formed Fourth Brigade was formed in May 1940 by a young anti-Japanese guerrilla column with three regiments under its jurisdiction, with the brigade commander Xu Shenji and political commissar Wu Fushan. Xu Shenji was a native of Huang'an (present-day Hong'an), Hubei Province, and was awarded the rank of lieutenant general in 1955.
The newly formed 7th Brigade was formed in May 1940 by the Eastward Column of the 129th Division, with the brigade commander Yi Liangpin and political commissar Wen Jianwu, with 3 regiments under the jurisdiction of the brigade. Yi Liangpin, a native of Macheng, Hubei Province, was killed in 1943 in a fight against the Japanese "sweep".
The newly formed Eighth Brigade was formed in May 1940 by the Zhuxian Column and the Advance Column, with jurisdiction over three regiments, including Zhang Weihan, political commissar Xiao Yongzhi, and the deputy brigade commander wang Jinshan. Zhang Weihan is a potter of Hebei Guan and was awarded the title of colonel in 1955.
The newly organized Ninth Brigade was composed in May 1940 by the military sub-districts of the Ji'nan Military Region, with Gui Gansheng as the brigade commander and Li Dingzhuo as political commissar, and the whole brigade had 3 regiments. Gui Gansheng was a native of Luoshan, Henan, and died in Shanxi in July 1945.
The newly organized Tenth Brigade was composed of all the former Pinghan Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Columns, the 1st and 3rd Regiments of the Border Column, and the 6th Security Regiment, with a total of three regiments, and the brigade commander was Fan Zixia, the former commander of the Pinghan Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Column, and Lai Jifa, political commissar. Fan Zixia, a native of Feng County, Jiangsu Province, was killed in the anti-"sweeping" battle in Shahe, Hebei Province in 1942.
The newly organized 11th Brigade was formed in May 1940 by the Western Hebei Guerrilla Column, the 2nd Regiment of the Border Column, and the Zanhuang Independent Regiment, with the brigade commander Yin Xianbing, the political commissar Huang Zhentang, and the deputy brigade commander Qin Jiwei. Yin Xianbing is a native of Hanchuan, Hubei Province. He was the first commander of the Sixteenth Army and was awarded the rank of colonel in 1955.