After the July 7 Incident in 1937, China began its war against Japan. In November, the Nationalist Army was defeated in the Songhu War of Resistance, and Nanjing fell into crisis. On November 20, 1937, the Nationalist government moved to Chongqing, which became the wartime capital. In November, the Japanese Army Aviation was then required to launch a strategic attack to destroy and attack the political, economic, industrial and other central institutions on the other side, and most importantly to defeat the will of the people through direct air strikes against civilians, which caused great panic among the people. Therefore, according to The Intention of Emperor Hirohito, the Japanese Military Department formulated the "
Continental Decree No. 241"
，
"Continental Decree No. 345"
"Mainland Order No. 925", "Mainland Order No. 1252"
and other basic camp tactics for invading China. Chongqing was identified as the "strategic and political center of the enemy country", and Chongqing was the main target of the "aviation offensive operation".
After the War of Resistance Against Japan reached a stalemate, the Japanese army was militarily restricted, so they began to adjust their strategy toward China. After the Battle of Wuhan, on the one hand, they supported the puppet government in the occupied areas. After 1938, puppet regimes appeared in northeast China, north China, and east China, and were rampant under Japanese patronage.
On the other hand, they not only wanted to establish a puppet regime, but also to eliminate the main armed forces of the Nationalist Army through movement on the local battlefield, thus forcing Chongqing to surrender. In order to cooperate with the frontal battle on the battlefield, the Japanese army also concentrated its forces on carrying out a severe blow. They carried out strategic bombardment of the city, and the Sichuan rear was the first to bear the brunt of it, and as the basis for a long resistance war, it also became the main strike point of Japanese aircraft.
From 1938 to 1944, the provincial capital of Chengdu was bombed by the Japanese army 31 times, killing more than 4,500 people, and in addition to Chengdu, Jieshan, Wanxian and other places were also affected.
In fact, the Japanese bombed Yan'an
As for the suffering suffered by our country during the War of Resistance Against Japan, I do not need to say much at all, and the bombing by the air force is also too numerous to describe. However, to the surprise of many, the Japanese army clearly grasped the initiative in air combat, but it seemed that the Japanese army never bombed Yan'an. So why didn't they bomb Yan'an?
In fact, the Japanese army did it in the early days of the War of Resistance Against Japan, and they bombed Yan'an. But the end result was not as good as expected. Since the war with the United States, Yan'an has never been bombed. The reason for this is simple: japan itself is known to be a resource-scarce country, and its aviation power is often disproportionate to the depletion and effectiveness of war operations.
This became even more pronounced after the outbreak of the Pacific War.
Bombing Yan'an was not cost-effective
Everyone knows that Yan'an itself is actually a very barren place. There were only millet plus rifles there, and there was only a limited armoury hidden in the cave.
And all the people lived in cave dwellings, and it was impossible to find anything of value. If the bombing of Yan'an is carried out in this way, the damage caused is not as expensive as Japan's gasoline and Japanese bombs.
That's really not worth it. In addition, the Japanese army did not have satellite navigation at that time. After the fighter leaves the airfield, it will be very dangerous if it navigates by the radio on the ground. Of course, because there are some liberated areas near Yan'an, there are lofty mountains near Chongqing, which is more complicated than Yan'an. So why the Japanese army can still get reliable ground navigation, the question is Chiang Kai-shek's business.
Chongqing was indeed an important capital of the Kuomintang government at that time
Of course, the first point that is very important is that Chongqing was indeed an important companion capital of the Kuomintang government at that time. Although Chongqing is not as wealthy as Chengdu, Kunming, and Xi'an, it is also a small new mountainous city and the seat of the Nationalist government. The bombing of Chongqing could destroy the morale of the anti-Japanese soldiers.
At the same time, the bombing of Chongqing can indirectly warn the central government: your escort is within my scope, and it can also serve as a deterrent to the Nationalist government.
This deterrent effect may be through prolonged bombardment, but it can also cause panic among civilians, which is conducive to public opinion and psychological warfare. And if you look at all the major powers involved in the Second World War, except for Washington, THE United States, which capital was not bombed, so it is not an abnormal operation not to carry out bombing ...
Observation conditions lag behind
Another reason was the backward observation conditions at the time. These people must rely entirely on the naked eye to determine the target of the bomb, and without reliable target instructions, the final result is essential.
They could not be like the Tyrant Carpet Bomb of the American Army, the Japanese army could not afford such an operation, and the Japanese army did not have reliable intelligence support in Yan'an, so there were still concerns about bombing. Finally, before the end of the Gulf War, the actual impact of air strikes on the war was actually very limited.
As for the outcome of the war, it can still be resolved by a ground war. Believing that the bombing of Yan'an did not completely destroy the resistance of the Eighth Route Army, the Japanese stopped bombing Yan'an. Instead, they bombed Chongqing as a real way to achieve their goals, and only later attacked Chongqing several times.
epilogue
According to the statistics of the book "Chongqing Air Defense during the War of Resistance Against Japan", from 1939 to 1941, 31,481 houses in 9570 buildings caused by Japanese bombing were damaged. The statistics of the Chongqing Explosion include 9250 buildings and 33300 houses; the Statistics of Chongqing Air Defense Chronicle are 17452 buildings with 37182 houses;
The General History of Chongqing shows that 17,608 houses were destroyed. Most of Chongqing's bustling urban areas have been reduced to rubble, and property losses are countless; Since 1998, Chongqing has declared June 5 every year as the anniversary of the Chongqing explosion. The wanton bombing and barbarism of Japanese militarism did not defeat the heroic city of Chongqing. On the contrary, it strengthened the enthusiasm of the people of Chongqing and the people of the whole country to resist Japan. In the end, it failed, and the Japanese army withdrew from China in disgrace.