In the previous article, the author talked to you about a series of stories about the various armies of the People's Liberation Army, such as the 21st Army, the 47th Army, the 43rd Army, the 20th Army, and so on. Today, we talk about the 19th Army. Unlike the various armies described earlier, the 19th Army went through a process of dismantling, rebuilding, and re-abolishing. Until 1985, the 19th Army was stationed in Zhangye City and the surrounding areas in Gansu Province. In 1985, the 19th Army was abolished. So, before that, why was the 19th Army stationed in Zhangye for a long time? Today, we talk about this.
First, let's talk about the history of the 19th Army. By the end of the Liberation War, the PLA's four major field armies and north China field troops had a total of 55 columns under their jurisdiction. After entering 1949, in the process of regularization, 55 columns plus other units were reorganized into 67 corps. A question arises, why are there 67 corps in the PLA,000 all the way from the 1st Army to the 70th Army? Because among the various military numbers, 3 of them are not used.
As a result, a total of 67 armies and the number of the platoons reached the 70th Army. The predecessor of the 19th Army was the troops of the Southern Shaanxi Military Region, and the troops of the Southern Shaanxi Military Region consisted of several parts (the main force was the 12th Brigade, the 17th Division, etc.). In May 1949, in the process of regularization of the PLA troops, the 19th Army was formed in the south of Shaanxi Province. General Liu Jinxuan served as the first commander, and in terms of sequence, the 19th Army was successively subordinate to the Management of the First Field Army and the Second Field Army. After the formation of the 19th Army, under the leadership of General Liu Jinxuan, it successively participated in the Battle of Southern Shaanxi and the Battle of Hanzhong.
Along the way, it has conquered Xunyang, Ankang, Langao, Hanyin, Ziyang, Shiquan, Chenggu, Hanzhong and other places, which can be called a breakthrough. After the end of the large-scale war, in view of the problem of bandits in northern Sichuan, the 19th Army was transferred to the northwest region and participated in the battle to eliminate bandits in northern Sichuan. In the previous article, the author once talked to you about the story of eliminating bandits in northern Sichuan, and then he will talk to you again when he has time. In the early 1950s, China entered the stage of post-war reconstruction, resumption of production and economic development.
In this environment, some troops began to be withdrawn. In July 1952, the 19th Army was abolished. The 55th Division under the jurisdiction of the 19th Army was under the direct management of the Northwest Military Region. The 57th Division under its jurisdiction was reorganized into the 1st Petroleum Engineering Division of the People's Liberation Army. Speaking of military regions, we must talk about the changes in our military regions. Because after understanding the changes in each military region, the movement of each army will be more intuitive. In the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China, China established the Northeast Military Region, the North China Military Region, the East China Military Region, the Central and Southern Military Region, the Southwest Military Region, and the Northwest Military Region.
Judging from the jurisdiction of the six military districts, it basically corresponds to the six local bureaus at that time. For example, the Northwest Bureau, the Northeast Bureau, and so on, the jurisdiction is basically overlapping. In the mid-1950s, the various units of the People's Liberation Army entered the work of regularization construction. In such a big environment, the division of the original 6 military regions is not appropriate in all aspects. Thus, in 1955, the 6 major military districts were abolished. In the same year, 12 military districts were established. In view of the actual needs, in 1956, the Fuzhou Military Region was established.
Up to this time, the divisions of China's 13 military regions were formed, namely: Shenyang Military Region, Beijing Military Region, Jinan Military Region, Nanjing Military Region, Guangzhou Military Region, Wuhan Military Region, Chengdu Military Region, Kunming Military Region, Lanzhou Military Region, Xinjiang Military Region, Inner Mongolia Military Region, Tibet Military Region, and Fuzhou Military Region. The jurisdiction of each military district is not large, with roughly two or three provinces. For example, the Lanzhou Military Region administered Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi and other places. The Xinjiang Military Region administers Xinjiang.
Among the 13 military regions, the tasks and target directions of each military region are different, and the number of troops stationed in each military region is naturally very different. From the early 1950s to the early 1960s, the task of northeast and southeast directions in China was very heavy. Therefore, a considerable number of main forces were stationed in both the Shenyang Military Region and the Nanjing Military Region. For example, the Shenyang Military Region has stationed the main forces of the 16th Army, the 23rd Army, the 38th Army, the 39th Army, the 40th Army, the 46th Army, the 50th Army, and the 64th Army.
Among them, the 38th Army, the 39th Army and several other armies belong to the ace fist unit in the whole army, and their combat effectiveness is very strong. The situation in the Nanjing Military Region is similar, with a series of main forces stationed in the 12th Army, 20th Army, 27th Army, 60th Army, and so on. Among them, the 12th Army, the 27th Army and other units belong to the fist units of the whole army. In contrast, the number of troops deployed by the Xinjiang Military Region and the Lanzhou Military Region is not large.
Because from the perspective of the actual defensive tasks in the 1950s and 1960s, the objectives and tasks faced by the Lanzhou Military Region and the Xinjiang Military Region were relatively light. After 1962, although the target task in the direction of South Asia was significantly increased. However, the direction of South Asia is jointly responded to by several military regions, including the Xinjiang Military Region, the Chengdu Military Region, and the Tibet Military Region. Moreover, the strength in the direction of South Asia is not strong, and the combat effectiveness makes people "stunned". Therefore, until the mid-1960s, the number of troops in the Lanzhou Military Region and the Xinjiang Military Region was still relatively limited.
In terms of actual tasks at that time, the Lanzhou Military Region was responsible for ensuring the logistics supply, equipment transportation, and replenishment of soldiers in the Xinjiang Military Region. After the 19th Army was abolished, the 57th Division was reorganized into the 1st Petroleum Engineering Division, which was known as the "Petroleum Division". After the reorganization and training, the footprints of the officers and men of the petroleum division have spread all over the great wall in and outside the great river, making contributions to the development and expansion of PetroChina and Petrochemical. As for the 55th Division, after the 19th Army was abolished, it was successively under the direct management of the Northwest Military Region and the Lanzhou Military Region.
In the late 1960s, the situation changed significantly. The defensive pressure in the north of our country has increased significantly. The northern target has successively deployed more than 50 tank divisions and mechanized infantry divisions, known as "millions of soldiers." "The surprise capability and overall strength of each unit are very strong, and the pressure on the military regions in the north is obviously very great from the northeast to the northwest of our country. Under such a general environment, some of the elite forces of some military regions in the south of our country have been transferred to the north one after another. Among them, the number of troops in the Lanzhou Military Region is obviously small.
Therefore, from the late 1960s to the early 1970s, the 21st Army of the Beijing Military Region and the 47th Army of the Guangzhou Military Region were successively transferred to Shaanxi Province and began to be subordinate to the management of the Lanzhou Military Region. In October 1969, according to the actual needs of the time, the Lanzhou Military Region reorganized the 19th Division on the basis of the 55th Division and after joining other units. Therefore, in the 1970s, the Lanzhou Military Region had 3 corps under its jurisdiction. Among them, the 19th Army was stationed in Zhangye City and the surrounding areas of Gansu Province, and guarded the throat area.
The geographical location of Gansu Province is very important, and it has been a place where soldiers and families must fight since ancient times. After controlling all parts of Gansu, Jin was able to control the entire northwest and retreat was able to defend the entire Guanzhong land. The place names of Gansu Province are very interesting, such as Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan, etc., which all appeared during the Han Dynasty and symbolized the great military power of the Han Dynasty. In that year, the Han Dynasty and the Xiongnu staged a hundred-year war, and finally controlled Gansu and other northwestern regions. Since ancient times, Zhangye City has been an important town and throat road in the northwest region, and has the reputation of "Jin Zhangye and Yinwuwei".
Zhangye originated from the meaning of "Zhang guo arm tuo, to pass through the western region", Zhangye city is located in the central part of Gansu Province, lanxin railway from Zhangye city through. The 19th Army was stationed in Zhangye City and the surrounding areas, and if the actual task required, it could quickly move east and west. After entering the 1980s, with the continuous changes in the international situation, in view of the actual needs at that time. In 1985, our country made the decision to disarm 1 million, and at the same time, it carried out a comprehensive readjustment of the original 11 military regions.
During this period, four military regions, including the Wuhan Military Region, the Fuzhou Military Region, and the Kunming Military Region, were abolished. It has to be said that after entering the mid-1980s, the pressure on the northern target has been greatly reduced. At that time, the northern targets had begun to take care of themselves. In such a general environment, some military regions and armies have been abolished and merged. The Urumqi Military Region was abolished, demoted to the rank of deputy military region, and merged into the Lanzhou Military Region (in 1979, the Xinjiang Military Region was renamed urumqi military region).
Why 11 military districts? Because in the late 1960s, the Inner Mongolia Military Region and the Tibet Military Region had been abolished and demoted to the level of deputy military region. At the same time, 11 of the 35 corps at the time were abolished. In total, 31 units at or above the military level were abolished, and 4,054 units at the division and regimental levels were abolished. In this round of disarmament, the 19th Army was again abolished, and the subordinate units were integrated into the 21st Army and the 47th Army. From its reconstruction in 1969 until its second abolition in 1985, the 19th Army was stationed in Zhangye and the surrounding areas of Gansu Province.
After that, the Lanzhou Military Region began to take into account the objectives and tasks of Central Asia, South Asia, and the North at the same time. After entering the 1990s, with the further changes in the external environment, the target tasks in the direction of north and Central Asia were further reduced. At the same time, the target task of South Asia has gradually become the top priority. Of course, the author and everyone talk about history only. After all, after the 90s, the changes and adjustments of various units have been great, which is not history.
Here, salute to all the veterans. There are many more stories about the various armies of our country, and the author will slowly talk to you in future articles.