Armageddon 3: Battle of Pingjin
- Brief introduction
The Pingjin Campaign was a strategic decisive battle in which the Northeast and North China Field Armies annihilated the Kuomintang forces in the Beiping, Tianjin, and Zhangjiakou areas, and was also the last of the three major battles during the Liberation War (November 29, 1948 to January 31, 1949, lasting 64 days). In addition to the more than 50,000 enemy defenders in Tanggu who escaped by sea, a total of more than 520,000 Kuomintang troops were annihilated and reorganized, most of North China and important cities such as Beiping, Tianjin, and Zhangjiakou were liberated, and a large area of liberated areas in the northeast, north China, and north of the Yangtze River was connected.
- Comparison of troop strength
Pla:
There are more than 800,000 people in 12 corps, 1 railway column and special forces of the Northeast Field Army, 7 columns and 1 artillery brigade of the North China Military Region with a total of more than 130,000 people, together with the 8th Column of the Northwest Field Army and some local troops, totaling more than 1 million people.
The Kuomintang Chiang Kai-shek and Fu armies had 4 corps, 12 corps and 42 divisions and brigades, together with irregular troops, totaling about 550,000 people.
- Battle Objectives and Background:
At the beginning of November 1948, the Liaoshen Campaign ended in victory, the Huaihai Campaign was carried out smoothly, and the Kuomintang's Fu Zuoyi clique of "suppression" in North China was jointly wrapped up by the Northeast and North China Field Armies, mistakenly believing that the Northeast Field Army would rest for at least 3 months before entering the customs operation, and did not immediately retreat, but decided to temporarily hold on to North China, maintain the land and sea passage between Tanggu and Zhangjiakou, lure US aid, expand strength, and watch the current situation, but the front line was too long, and the command of Jiang and Fu's troops was not unified.
Therefore, the Central Military Commission decided to immediately launch the Pingjin Campaign, and ordered the Northeast Field Army to immediately enter the customs, and Lin Biao, Luo Ronghuan, and Nie Rongzhen formed the General Front Committee.
- The course of the campaign
Stage 1: (November 29 - December 21, 1948)
Divide and encircle Fu Zuoyi's clique and cut off its way of fleeing south and retreating west
Stage II: (December 22, 1948 – January 15, 1949)
Knock off both ends and isolate the middle
Phase 3: (January 16-31)
Peaceful liberation of Peiping
- summary:
With Fu Zuoyi choosing the path of peace on January 21, 1949, the Battle of Pingjin entered a phase of total victory, and the People's Liberation Army annihilated and reorganized a total of 521,000 Kuomintang troops and irregular troops at the cost of only 39,000 casualties.
Soon, the Suiyuan issue was resolved peacefully; on April 24, Taiyuan was liberated. Since then, the northeast, north China, the central plains, and east China have been connected.
- Fan Wai 1:
Neither Chiang Kai-shek nor Fu Zuoyi expected that the Northeast Field Army would enter the customs secretly after only resting for more than 20 days, and at that time, it was judged that Dongye would enter the customs as soon as 3 months later, that is, in the spring of 1949, and the result was tragic.
- Extra 2:
"A soldier who yields without a fight, and a good man who is good." The People's Liberation Army conquered Tianjin in only 29 hours, putting great pressure on Fu Zuoyi and forcing Fu Zuoyi to unify and peacefully reorganize.
- Extra 3:
Through the review of the three major battles, we will find that the Kuomintang army collapsed like dominoes, and the ability of famous generals in the War of Resistance Against Japan was not bad, but it was completely out of play during the War of Liberation. There are many reasons, but the main ones are just a few points:
First, the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China delegated power and only provided strategic direction, and the decision on specific campaigns was still in the command of the field army; while the kuomintang old Chiang Kai-shek often parachuted in instructions, sent telegrams to division commanders, and even regimental commanders, and so on.
Second, the People's Liberation Army has made concerted efforts to seek common ground while reserving differences for the sake of the common lofty ideal, and has cooperated seamlessly; in particular, Huaihai and Pingjin, all of which have been fought in concert by multiple field armies and achieved brilliant results; on the other hand, there are many local warlords of the Kuomintang faction, the Guangdong clan, the Guizhou clan, and so on, and even the Central Army is divided into the Huangpu department and the civilian department.
Third, the people's aspirations, the Northeast Field Army, which had 100,000 or so people when it entered the pass, rapidly developed into a million male soldiers, wherever they went, the masses of the people were there, and all the people had the help of the masses of the people, typical of which was the Huaihai Campaign; and then look at the Kuomintang, at the crucial moment, it was still full of private pockets, and everyone put themselves in the first place, how could they not be defeated.
