<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="3" > Four Field Generals Series 7: Fierce General Hu Qicai</h1>
Author: Mast
In the Battle of Xinkailing, Hu Qicai's fierceness in fighting was remembered by Lin Biao. Nearly two years later, in the key Tashan blockade battle of the Liaoshen Campaign, Lin Biao personally ordered the generals to make Hu Qicai sit in the forefront and hold Tashan to the forefront. This article will talk about Hu Qicai and Tower Hill.
Hu Qicai won the battle, but was demoted:
On October 11, 1948, a day after the battle of Tashan Blockade, the 4th Column, which was responsible for garrisoning the core position of Tashan, received a telegram from Lin Biao: "In order to strengthen the command of the Twelfth Division, Comrade Hu Qicai was ordered to take command of the Twelfth Division." At the critical moment of the Liaoshen Campaign, Lin Biao personally ordered the generals, pushed Hu Qicai to a key position, and sat in the front command of Tashan. At this time, Hu Qicai's position was deputy commander of the 4th Column.
Hu Qicai
Some people may wonder: Hu Qicai was already the commander of the 4th Column at the time of the Xinkailing Campaign from the end of October to the beginning of November 1946, so how did he become the deputy commander of the 4th Column by the time of the Liaoshen Campaign two years later?
There's a reason for that. In early December 1946, shortly after the Battle of Xinkailing, Hu Qicai regained his old wounds and left the army for medical treatment in Dalian, returning to the army in April 1947. After the summer offensive in 1947, he went to Harbin for recuperation due to his wounds and illness, and did not return to the army until May 1948, when he was assigned back to the 4th Column as deputy commander. It is said that Hu Qicai had sought Chen Yun for this matter, but at that time it was already a period of large-scale military training before the Great Decisive Battle in the Northeast, and the commanders of all columns had been equipped, and the only way to return to the front-line troops was to arrange deputy posts. Hu Qicai didn't say much. Fortunately, the commander of the 4th Column at this time was his old superior Wu Kehua. When the 4th Column was established on February 1946, Wu Kehua was the commander, and Hu Qi was the deputy commander.
Why did Lin Biao break the rules and personally order the general? This is because in the Liaoshen Campaign, Tashan was too important. The key to the Liaoshen campaign was in Jinzhou, and the chairman said in a telegram to Lin Biao that "the key is to strive to conquer Jinzhou within a week." But the key to whether Jinzhou can be conquered lies in whether tashan can be defended. Both sides have taken a fancy to this point: Chiang Kai-shek's army has increased its troops from North China and other places, formed the EastWard Advance Corps, and prepared to reinforce Jinzhou through Tashan; our army has defended Tashan with 4 columns, 11 columns, and 2 independent divisions. One side is imperative, and the other side is sworn to the death defense.
In order to capture Tashan, Principal Jiang invited the officers to dinner:
The enemy's eastward advance corps was concentrated on Huludao. Tashan is located between Huludao and Jinzhou, less than 30 kilometers from Jinzhou. Tashan is bordered by mountains to the west and sea to the east, and the width between mountains and seas is about 10 kilometers, and the Bac Ninh Railway and Yu (Shanhaiguan) Jin Highway pass through here. If our army holds Tashan, the enemy's eastward advancing corps will not be able to reinforce Jinzhou; and if the enemy army breaks through the Tashan defense line, it will reach Jinzhou in half a day, and our attacking jin troops will be attacked inside and outside.
Therefore, both sides attach great importance to Tashan. How serious is it?
On the side of Chiang Kai-shek's army: 9 divisions were drawn from North China (only 6 divisions actually arrived) to reinforce Huludao, plus 2 divisions of the 54th Army stationed at Huludao to form the Eastern Advance Corps to reinforce Jinzhou. On October 6, before the start of the war, President Jiang personally went to Huludao to supervise the battle, coordinate the coordinated operations of the army, navy, and air force, and on the same day summoned officers at and above the battalion level to give a lecture: "We have concentrated the superior units of US armament and equipment this time, and we have a large number of air force assistance and naval coordination, all ammunition and grain can be shipped by sea and air supplies, you are at ease in the front, and I am responsible for the rear." The victory or defeat of this war is related to the survival of the northeast, and the commanders must personally come to the front... Unable to capture Tower Hill, military law engaged. ”
After the lecture, Principal Jiang took a group photo with officers at and above the battalion level, and invited officers at and above the division level to dinner in the evening to encourage the troops to bravely attack Tashan. This is also a groundbreaking thing for President Jiang. Casually speaking: On October 16, Principal Jiang rushed to Huludao again to supervise the battle. However, at this time, Jinzhou had been conquered by our army, and the Tashan position was still standing still. In the previous 6 days of bloody fighting, the officers and men of Chiang Kai-shek's army were frightened and were unwilling to fight again. Principal Jiang was very angry and scolded Que Hanqian, commander of the 54th Army: "Where are you Huangpusheng, you are a locust!" ”
Our army position in the Battle of Tashan Blockade
On the part of our army: In terms of troop deployment, it was originally planned to defend Tashan with 11 columns and other units, and after learning that Chiang Kai-shek's army had increased its troops to Huludao, on October 3, it strengthened the 4 columns, one of the five tigers of the Northeast, to the Tashan defense line to form a superiority in troops; in terms of combat methods, Lin Biao repeatedly called the 4 columns before the battle: Because the distance between Jinhu and Jinhu was very short, our army absolutely could not adopt the method of movement defense, but must adopt offensive defense, fight hard and fight hard, and never retreat; in terms of operational determination, Lin Biao asked Su Jing, chief of the General Staff of the East, to tell the leaders of the 4th Column that "jinzhou cannot be taken." Lin Biao also sent a telegram to Hu Qicai to take command of the 4th Column 12th Division, which was defending the core position of Tashan, and sent Su Jing to take the radio to the 4th Column Headquarters as a "supervisor", and asked the 12th Division to report on the battle situation 4 times a day. After doing so much, Lin Biao was still not at ease, and left a backhand: put the 1st column of the General Reserve Team in Takahashi and behind the 4th column position to ensure that it could be on top at any time.
Fulfilling his promise, the general was buried at Tashan after his death:
Why didn't Lin Biao rest assured? In addition to the importance of Tower Hill, Tower Mountain is not in danger. The name of Tower Hill is Mountain, but it is actually just a small mountain bag with a height of 59 meters behind Tower Hill Village. This is also the commanding heights of the entire defensive line. There is no danger to defend, and it must be defended. What to do? The only way to do that is to fight hard. Therefore, Lin Biao took a fancy to Hu Qicai.
After receiving the telegram from General Lin Biao, Hu Qicai rushed to the 12th Division on the same day and first "fiercely" with his own people. The divisional command post was located on the hillside behind the village of Tashan and could overlook the entire battlefield. Hu Qicai said to the personnel of the 12th Division: "Comrades all know my temper, I will not leave when I come here today, whether we are dead or alive, we must hold our positions together, whether we are dead or alive!" ”
Prior to this, he had gone deep into the front-line positions to understand the construction of fortifications. The village of Tashan was the core of the entire defensive line, defended by the 1st Battalion of the 34th Regiment of the 12th Division. Hu Qicai thought that the newly repaired fortifications on the position were not strong enough, so the artillery fired a cannon at the fortifications with 60 mortars, and the fortifications collapsed. He said: This time the enemy is a three-dimensional attack on the ground, in the air, and at sea, and even 60 shells cannot withstand it. The troops were required to pay close attention to the repair of fortifications, and the officers and men of the 4th Column conscientiously carried out this order.
After the battle, the 4th Column voluntarily withdrew from the Tower Hill position on 26 October. On 28 July, Lin Weili, commander of the enemy's 62nd Army, organized officers above the squad level to "visit" the position. Afterwards, Lin Weili issued a strong sigh: "The entire Tashan defense line is dotted with fortresses, the obstacles are deep, and the traffic trenches are coherent, forming a solid position like an iron wall of copper walls. Many officers of Chiang Kai-shek's army saw these crisscrossing positions and said: We cannot attack such a fortress; if we still make it, they will not be able to attack it. It can be seen from this that our army has built a complete and solid fortification, which is an important factor in the victory of the Tashan blockade battle.
The Chiang kai-shek army began to attack on October 10, and the Tashan blockade battle began. The battle that day was commanded by Que Hanqian, commander of the 54th Army, who first bombarded with 6 aircraft and launched a fierce attack on the Tashan position with ground and naval artillery fire. In the first round of shelling, the cruiser Chongqing, under the supervision of Gui Yongqing, commander of the Kuomintang Navy, almost all of the stored shells were destroyed by the six 152 mm main guns on board. It can be seen that in order to capture Tashan, The Jiang army also spared no expense, and it can also be seen that the battle was fierce.
During the battle, Hu Qicai remained at the command post of the 12th Division, arranging troops according to the situation on the battlefield, arranging defenses, organizing counterattacks, and supervising troops to use the gap between battles to strengthen fortifications, etc. Day and night. During the 6-day battle, Hu Qicai's spirit has been in a high state of tension. As soon as the battle was over, I felt a terrible stomachache. Sent to the hospital for a test: acute appendicitis. The doctor said that it was almost perforated, and it would be dangerous to send it later. It is doubtful: did you really not feel unwell during the war, or did you keep putting up with it? Hu Qicai was also "cruel" enough to himself.
The Battle of Tashan was fought extremely fiercely, with more than 3,700 casualties of our army, of which more than 700 were sacrificed. The 34th Regiment of the 12th Division defending Tashan Village fought fiercely for 2 days, resulting in more than 500 casualties, and was awarded the "Tashan Hero Regiment" after the war. Hu Qicai was at the command post, and every day he saw the remains of the martyrs carried down from the position, and he made a vow at that time that he would be buried with the martyrs of Tashan after his death. On July 4, 1997, Hu Qicai died and his remains were buried in Tashan, fulfilling the promise of "dead or alive we are together".
【Deeply cultivate the history of war, carry forward positive energy, welcome to submit, private messages will be restored】