The Beginning and End of the Fall of Northeast China in September 18 (III)
Before the outbreak of the September 18 Incident, the Northeast Army had to dispatch elite troops to the south because of Zhang Xueliang's serious illness and Shi Yousan's rebellion, and not only did it transfer the elite of the National Defense Forces in Liaoning and Heilongjiang, but also Wan Fulin, the elder of Heilongjiang, also went south into the customs, and two of the three northeastern provinces not only did not have many troops, but also had no chiefs.
After suppressing Shi Yousan's rebellion, there was actually enough time for the Northeast Army to transfer troops back to defense. But at this critical time, the Japanese who controlled the railway not only obstructed it, but also released Yan Xishan in Dalian, allowing him to "secretly" hire Japanese planes to fly back to his hometown in Shanxi.
1. Yan Xishan knew that the Japanese were plotting against the northeast
As for the truth about Yan Xishan's flight back to Shanxi, we have not been able to know at present, and we have no way of knowing whether he reached an agreement with the Japanese and returned with a mission, or whether he saw that the situation was not good and was afraid of being turned into a puppet by the Japanese and quickly fled. But one thing needs to be made clear: Yan Xishan already knew in advance that the Japanese were plotting against the northeast, and he not only did not give warning, but also tried to touch the fish in muddy waters and take chestnuts in the fire!
According to Xu Yongchang's subordinate Zhao Zhengkai, after returning to Shanxi, Yan Xishan immediately secretly summoned Xu Yongchang and told him that the Japanese were about to break with Zhang Xueliang and make trouble. It is said that this important news made Xu Yongchang at that time embarrassed and hesitated to report to the Nanjing state government.
But at that time, yan Xishan did not tell him what the Japanese were going to make trouble and when they were going to make trouble. Moreover, Xu Yongchang was busy dealing with the contradictions between the Northeast Army and the Jin Sui Army, anxious to calm the anger of the old Chiang Kai-shek and the young marshal, and if he rushed to report it, I am afraid that he would be even more suspicious, not only to the point of no help, but also unfounded, it was difficult to believe, after thinking about it repeatedly, Xu Yongchang finally did not report it.
Just 43 days later, the "918 Incident" broke out, and the Japanese army raided and occupied the northeast. Let us suppose that if Yan Xishan was still in Dalian at that time, he would most likely have been abducted and used by the Japanese like Puyi and became the head of some "North China Autonomous Government" similar to Yin Rugeng. And at that time, Yan Xishan had no soldiers and no power, was that not a puppet like Puyi? The charge of traitor and traitor is properly convicted.
It is said that at that time, Xu Yongchang once lamented, "It can be seen that Mr. Yan is smart." From the perspective of Jin Suijun and Yan Xishan, this choice is undoubtedly correct. However, for the people of the whole country, especially the people of the Northeast, the wound of being stabbed in the back by the Japanese without receiving any warning is indeed painful.
Second, the Northeast Army pressed Shanxi to force Yan to leave immediately
At that time, the common people did not know the plot of the Japanese, and when the news of Yan Xishan's return to Shanxi reached the whole country, the response from top to bottom was very strong. Everyone is confused and worried, afraid that once Yan Xishan regains power, will it repeat the "Central Plains War"? Is it hard to stop in northern China, is it impossible to destroy life? Therefore, at that time, for Yan Xishan's return to Jin, there was a nationwide condemnation.
At that time, the strongest opposition was between the two winners of the Central Plains War: Chairman Jiang and Zhang Shaoshuai. These Yan Xishan soldiers were defeated in the wilderness, and the initiators were these two, but they hated them to the bone. If he is put back on the stage, will it be repaid? Chiang Kai-shek's government made it clear that Yan Xishan had to leave Shanxi. Zhang Xueliang, who was gradually recovering, was even more uneasy, and he was afraid that Yan Xishan would find him to avenge the "knife in the back" during the Central Plains War, so he urged Yan Xishan to leave Jin. Even to this end, the deployment of the withdrawal of the Northeast Army was interrupted, and most of the main forces were allowed to turn around and head west. He put on a posture of wanting troops to enter Shanxi and tried to force Yan Xishan to leave Shanxi again.
In the old China at that time, in fact, everyone had fallen into a chain of suspicion, when the warlords were in a dark forest, suspecting each other that others were going to stab themselves in the back, and would give up the bottom line to betray national interests in order to strengthen their own strength. At the beginning, many big traitors actually thought that if you cooperate with the Japanese anyway, that is, if you don't cooperate with me, there will always be someone who will cooperate. When the time comes to let others get the benefits, it is better to sell it myself first, and I will not recognize the account after the sale is sold out, and then find it after I am in power.
It was under this psychological hint that this dark forest of old China at that time cultivated many traitors and traitors. At that time, it was very difficult to stick to the bottom line at the last minute. The Japanese, on the other hand, made full use of this chain of suspicion, engaged in wind and rain in China, annexed the three eastern provinces and then entered the Rehe River, ate the Rehe River and crossed the Great Wall, and even thought of annexing North China and gradually encroaching on China. And all these changes were actually the subsequent Xi'an Incident and the anti-Japanese national united front under the auspices of our Party. It is precisely because of these acts of disregarding personal interests and gains and losses that this chain of suspicion has really been broken, and the whole nation has been united, all previous grievances have been discarded, and the whole nation has truly entered the stage of the nation's resistance to Japan.
Without mentioning the latter, let us go back to the end of August 1931, just when the Northeast Army soldiers Jia Jinsui was preparing to threaten Yan Xishan to leave immediately, but unexpectedly found that Shanxi had a large number of troops, and the elite of the Northeast Army did not have a clear advantage in terms of strength or firepower, and even had the possibility of reuniting the Jin Sui Army and the defeated Northwest Army. Therefore, the Northeast Army fell into an embarrassing dilemma, on the one hand, the northeast hometown was empty but could not withdraw, on the other hand, it was insufficient to deal with Shanxi, and whether it was to transfer troops from the hometown or directly start a war with Jin Sui, it was impossible to catch it.
The essential reason for this is that when the Jin Sui Army was defeated a year ago, the young marshal was soft on it and did not carry out really nerve-wracking and reorganization.
3. The Jin Sui Army, which was retained as a whole when it was defeated and reorganized
The strength of the Jin Sui Army was once very strong, and during the Battle of the Central Plains, the Jin Sui Army swelled to the limit. At that time, Yan Xishan occupied the four provinces and two cities of Jinsui-Cha-Ji Pingjin, and had a huge army of ten infantry corps (a total of 30 divisions), four cavalry divisions, four security columns, seven artillery brigades (14 artillery regiments), ten engineer battalions, and ten heavy battalions. In addition, Yan Xishan also has an independently organized ironclad train unit and an air force of dozens of aircraft, with a total of more than 250,000 strong troops.
After the defeat of the Central Plains War, the strength of the Jin Sui Army was not greatly damaged, and it almost completely retreated into Shanxi and Suiyuan Provinces together with the remnants of the Northwest Army. At this time, the two armies joined forces, although they could not defeat the powerful Northeast Army and Lao Jiang, but they were also enough to protect themselves. Therefore, when Zhang Xueliang reorganized the remnants of Yan and Feng's troops later, he retained a considerable number of troops for them. The main reason for this is the difference between the old and new establishments.
1. The original intention of old Chiang's downsizing of the Jin Sui Army
At the end of 1930, after the end of the Central Plains War, the Nanjing Government revised the army establishment in 1929 and issued the "Provisional Organization Table of Army Divisions in the 19th Year of the Republic of China", which for the first time divided the division level into three types:
Division A: Three infantry brigades are organized, each brigade has two infantry regiments, and the division directly administers one battalion each of artillery, engineering, and reinforcement.
B Division: Two infantry brigades are organized, each brigade has three infantry regiments, and the division directly administers one battalion each of artillery, engineering, and reinforcement.
Division C: Two infantry brigades are organized, each brigade has two infantry regiments, and the division directly administers one battalion of artillery and one battalion each.
At that time, the Jin Sui Army was the defeated side, and according to Chiang Kai-shek's vision, it was included in the last class of the C division, with two brigades and four regiments in each division, and the original 10 corps and 30 divisions were compressed into 4 armies and 8 C divisions, and the overall establishment was reduced by 73%, and the remaining 27% were also changed from army commanders to division commanders, and division commanders to brigade commanders. Moreover, such a C division has only two brigade headquarters per division, and the officer establishment of one brigade is missing, so that although 10 commanders can have 8 division commanders, 30 division commanders can only compete for 16 brigade commanders, which is exactly half eliminated! In terms of the most critical artillery, the Jin Sui Army should be directly reduced from 7 artillery brigades with a total of 14 regiments to 8 artillery battalions and less than 3 regiments, and the overall strength should shrink by nearly 80%! On the surface, the reorganization, which was set by Chiang Kai-shek and presided over by Zhang Xueliang, has made the strength of the Jin Sui Army much less, and it is not an exaggeration to say that after this reorganization, the overall strength of the Jin Sui Army can be reduced by more than half, and basically it can no longer pose any threat.
2. The young marshal retained the artillery of the Jin Sui Army during his execution
However, although this idea is very good, it has gone wrong in actual implementation. The young marshal had a cheerful personality and could not withstand a few good words. Under the mediation of various persuasions, he first agreed that the Jin Sui Army retained most of the technical branches, and only reorganized the artillery of its seven brigades and 14 regiments into 10 artillery regiments as a whole. That is to say, after subtracting the losses in the Central Plains War and the elimination of old artillery, the artillery of the Jin Sui Army had no losses at all, and even more capable and flexible - by the way, the Northeast Army only had 10 artillery regiments at that time, and even after suppressing the Shi Yousan rebellion, it was reduced to 8. His whole army only retained 8 artillery regiments, but let the former enemy retain 10 artillery regiments, why it was so good to the defeated enemy, I really could not understand the young marshal's brain circuit.
3. Retained the cavalry intact
After this, the young marshal agreed to keep a large number of auxiliary troops in the Jin Sui Army. The Jin Sui Army originally had a cavalry army with a total of 4 divisions, and the young marshal agreed to reorganize it into a cavalry division with four cavalry brigades. The final result was that only the commander became the division commander, the division commander was changed to the brigade commander, and no one was laid off. And this treatment, in fact, is the same in the reorganization of the whole country, the past establishment was inflated, and the commander of the old Chiang Kai-shek also had to be demoted--this treatment of defeat and victory in the battle is really amazing.
4. Nine-tenths of the infantry was retained
Aside from this, the biggest problem lies in the reorganization of the infantry army. At that time, the original plan was to reduce the 10 infantry corps into 8 C divisions, and at least two corps would be cut. As a result, Sun Chu, the commander of the First Army, heard that his troops were going to be dismantled, so he tried everything to entrust his friends to take relations, and finally he insisted that the young marshal agree to set up another "Zhengtai Road Escort Road Army", and the whole structure retained the First Army. The final result was that ten military commanders were either promoted or changed to division commanders, and only one eighth army commander, Zhang Huizhao, was later appointed deputy commander of the Taiyuan garrison, which was the worst mixed. The end result was that 10 infantry corps became 9 divisions, but only one corps was actually abolished.
The original infantry corps of the Jin Sui Army was very small, and its infantry division did not have the brigade level, but was directly subordinate to three regiments. And its regiment is a small regiment system, a regiment has only 1500 people, a division actually only has about 5000 people, and an army is only 15000 people. In this way, the army was changed into a division and a division was changed into a brigade, but in fact, the number of people was not small, but it was only deserved. The same thing happened in the security column, and the young marshal reorganized his four security columns into three garrison brigades. The change of 10 heavy battalions to 9 divisions of heavy battalions was only a change of name.
After the estimated budget, the entire so-called drawdown plan, the Jin Sui Army only changed the name of the original high-equipped army, and in fact only one division plus one security brigade was abolished. Under the seven deductions and eight reductions, it is actually equivalent to only cutting the part lost in the Central Plains War, and the overall strength has not weakened at all. For the generals of the Jin Sui Army who survived after the war, they were naturally grateful to Zhang Shaoshuai.
Fourth, the comparison of the strength of the Northeast Army and the Jin Sui Army
However, in this way, when contradictions arose between the two sides, the Northeast Army that entered the pass was actually a huge Jin Sui Army with nine infantry divisions (including an escort army), a garrison division (three garrison brigades), a cavalry division (four cavalry brigades), and ten artillery regiments.
At that time, the Northeast Army entered the customs was 13 national defense infantry brigades, 6 cavalry brigades, and 6 artillery regiments. Although the northeast army's national defense brigade structure in the same period was relatively large, a brigade had three large regiments, plus directly subordinate units, the daily operation was more than 8,000 people, and in wartime it was as many as 10,800 people. But it is only 13 divisions against 10 divisions, and there is no essential advantage.
At this time, there was also a problem, that is, there were other troops in Shanxi at that time. Before the Central Plains War, Feng Yuxiang's Northwest Army was the second largest military group in the country after the Central Army, with a total strength of more than 400,000 troops. After the war, about 70,000 people of the Northwest Army, led by Song Zheyuan, Zhang Zizhong, Liu Ruming and others, retreated into Shanxi one after another. When this part of the people were reorganized, the overall strength was also preserved. Cumulatively:
1. The Third Army (later the 29th Army), the commander was Song Zheyuan. This part of the army was the main force of the old Northwest Army, with a total of 30,000 or 40,000 people, and after the defeat, it was formed into a corps with two divisions.
Commander of the Thirty-seventh Division, Feng Zhi'an
Zhang Zizhong, commander of the Thirty-eighth Division
2. The First Division (later the 39th Division), Division Commander Pang Bingxun, Deputy Division Commander Ma Fawu. This part of the old Northwest Army also has more than 10,000 people.
3. The Second Division (later the 40th Division), the division commander Sun Dianying, originally had more than 10,000 people. However, the ministry was not only not damaged, but when the young marshal was sorting out the Taiyuan Arsenal, he took in a large number of Taiyuan factory workers, and later made more than 20,000 bayonet-intrusive "Palace English rifles", and the overall strength of the troops increased.
4. Bao Gang and Fang Renjie's brigade was probably stationed in the Jiexiu area at that time.
5. The Eleventh Division (later the 84th Division), Division Commander Gao Guizi. It is stationed in the fenyang and xiaoyi areas.
If you add these five divisions and one brigade, the strength of the entire Jinsui is 15 infantry divisions, 1 infantry brigade, 4 cavalry brigades, and 10 artillery regiments, and the overall strength is comparable to the northeast army's entry strength. In this way, the Northeast Army that entered the customs was firmly fixed, and the Shanxi troops looked at each other, and could no longer withdraw troops to withdraw to their hometown in the northeast.
Fifth, Xu Yongchang, who mediated at both ends
However, at that time, it was good that the Jin Sui Army was not monolithic, and the forces opposing Yan Xishan were not small. Shang Zhen, the former chairman of Shanxi Province, left Shanxi with two brigades loyal to him by "begging for stones", leaving the Jin Sui Army with one less division forever. This Yan Xishan returned without prior notification, and the Jin Sui cadres all felt sudden, and those who were loyal to him, such as Yang Aiyuan and Zhao Chengshou, were excited. Some people who have taken power independently, such as Xu Yongchang and Fu Zuoyi, are more shocked and puzzled. Fortunately, the strong opponent Shang Zhen had already left Shanxi with his own troops, so there was no opposition within the Jin Sui Army for a while.
Objectively speaking, many of the important generals who tasted the taste of power in the Jin Sui Army at that time did not want Yan Xishan to return to power. Yan Xishan, who was shrunk in his hometown of Hebian Village, did not actually regain military power at that time, but only used the more than one million yuan of property in his hand to bribe generals at all levels. During this period, Yan Xishan's belongings were even targeted by thieves, and the famous "Treasure Buddha Theft Case" was committed, which made him very embarrassed. Therefore, the direct use of Yan Xishan to return to Jin is the only excuse for the Northeast Army to be unable to mobilize troops to return to defense, and it is also quite far-fetched.
In addition to the opposition, there were also figures in the Jin Sui Army who understood the great righteousness. Just when the war between the Northeast Army and the Jin Sui Army was about to break out, an important figure at that time, Xu Yongchang, the de facto acting commander of the Jin Sui Army, the acting chairman of Shanxi Province, and the commander of the 33rd Army, played a big role. General Xu was one of the few high-ranking generals during the Republic of China period who was single-minded, did not care about selfish interests, and was honest and trustworthy, and when he co-opted Shi Yousan before his rebellion, he once said to Yan Xishan, who persuaded him to send troops to rebel:
"Even if we only say that we have agreed with others and that the two cooperation is to stabilize the north, we cannot ignore the faith and righteousness and repeat it for no reason." As for Mr. Yan's provenance, I feel that I can get out of the mountain when I have the opportunity, so why should I disregard success or failure, move chaotically and force it, and harm myself by harming the overall situation. ”
Now, at this critical moment, Xu Yongchang has traveled back and forth many times, trying to bridge the differences between the two sides and save the people from suffering from war and chaos. First of all, he painstakingly persuaded Yan Xishan many times to ask him not to come back for the time being.
At that time, the "North China Morning Post" on 9 September carried such news: "When Yan Xishan went abroad, Xu Cichang (Yongchang) sent his secretary Huang Qichu to Shanxi to meet Yan Xishan, where he urged and urged Yan xishan to go abroad and hoped that Yan would make his trip at an early date.
After persuading and appeasing Yan Xishan, Xu Yongchang did not hesitate to risk his life, and personally took Huang Qichu and Wang Ping, who had been sent to persuade Yan Xishan to leave Shanxi, to see Zhang Xueliang on the north plane, trying to eliminate the suspicion of the young marshal. They told Zhang Xueliang that Yan Xishan had suddenly returned to his hometown mainly to visit the sick, that he was reluctant to leave Jin until his father's illness had healed, and that he wanted to stay in Shanxi to continue to do something. Due to Xu Yongchang's guarantee, Zhang Xueliang's suspicions eased somewhat, and Xu Yongchang's situation was subsequently reported to the Nanjing government.
After this, the situation eased somewhat, and the Northeast Army that entered the pass withdrew the 20th Infantry Brigade to the Changtu area, and the 8th Heavy Artillery Brigade, which was not used in the Shanxi Mountains, to the northeast, while the remaining 12 national defense brigades remained in Guannei. The reason for this is nothing more than that the Northeast Army National Defense Brigade can retain at least a 1:1 reciprocal deterrent against a division.
It can be said that the Japanese only relied on the release of Yan Xishan alone, and took advantage of the chain of suspicion within the Chinese warlords at that time to turn the whole of northern China into a naked "dark forest", and the entire Northeast Army, the Jin Sui Army, and the hundreds of thousands of troops of the old Northwest Army raised their guns at each other and were completely restricted. The inability of these main Chinese troops to move was the most important reason why the Japanese were able to traverse the three northeastern provinces by relying only on more than 10,000 troops in the September 18 Incident.
Resources:
The Biography of Zhang Xueliang
Zhang Xueliang's Annals
Zhang Xueliang and Chinese Medicine
"The Legend of Yan Xishan"
"Confession of the King's Blessing"
Testimony of artillery history
"General Huang Xiansheng"
"The First Man of the Great Wall of Flesh and Blood - Biography of General Huang Xiansheng"
"My Contact with Zhang Zuoxiang" Wang Shixuan
History of Modern Chinese Military Engineering
The Biography of General Wang Tiehan
"The History of the Difficulties of the Post-918 Nation"
Archival Historical Materials of China's Modern Weapons Industry
China's Modern Arms Industry: The Arms Industry from the Late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China