Battle of Xuzhou

The Battle of Xuzhou was a military campaign between the Empire of Japan and the Republic of China forces in early 1938 during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It lasted for more than three months, with both sides taking heavy casualties and claiming victories. It resulted in an eventual victory for the Japanese, but they failed to destroy the Chinese army, who managed to retreat and regroup to fight later at Wuhan.

The battle of Xuzhou was primarily fought over control over the regional railway lines and junctions. The majority of the campaign took place in regions and cities north, east and south of Xuzhou, and was characterized by seesaw battles and bloody stalemates. It ended when the Japanese initiated a massive pincer movement aimed at encircling the Chinese forces. However, the Chinese managed to evade the Japanese maneuvers and break out of the encirclement, regrouping later to fight at Wuhan. The campaign also served as a morale boost for the Chinese army and population, who approached the following defense of Wuhan with renewed confidence and determination.

The end of the campaign saw the Chinese breach the dikes on the Yellow River, flooding a large amount of land to prevent the Japanese from advancing, resulting in massive casualties and property damage.

Background

In 1937 the Japanese North China Area Army had chased Song Zheyuan's 29th Army to the south along the Jinpu Railway (see Tianjin–Pukou Railway Operation) after his defeat in the Battle of Lugou Bridge.

Following the Japanese victory in the Battle of Nanjing, the North China Area Army aimed to advance southward and establish a connection with the Eleventh Army between Beijing and Nanjing. The two armies were to march along the northern and southern ends of the JinPu railway, meet up in Xuzhou, and from there coordinate a pincer movement into the Chinese strongholds in the Central Yangtze valley, taking Jiujiang first and then Wuhan.

The Chinese leadership recognized the strategic importance of defending Xuzhou, as it was both the midpoint of the JinPu line and the intersection with the Longhai line (China's main cross-country rail that ran from Lanzhou to Lianyungang), which if seized, would give the Japanese mobility over north–south travel in central China. In the end of January, Chiang summoned a military conference in Wuchang in which he declared the defense of Xuzhou to be the top strategic priority. Chinese preparations saw an initial core of 80,000 troops swell to 300,000, who were positioned along the JinPu and Longhai rail lines to draw in and overextend the Japanese attacks.

Most mechanized and air forces in eastern China were wiped out in the Battle of Shanghai, which concluded in late November 1937. Although new equipment was purchased, it had yet to be shipped. Han Fuqu, the chairman of the Shandong province, rejected orders from Chiang Kai-shek and kept retreating to preserve his force. After Qingdao was occupied in January 1938, Han's policy was denounced and he was executed on 24 January. In March 1938 Japanese forces occupied the north of Shandong, including the capital city Jinan. The defense line along the Yellow River was torn apart. Due to pressure from Japanese forces, 64 Chinese divisions gathered around Xuzhou in Jiangsu, the headquarters of 5th Military Region of the National Revolutionary Army.

Course of the Xuzhou Campaign

First phase (Early February - Late March)

The battle of Xuzhou began in early February when Japanese armored units with strong air support attacked the Chinese divisions protecting the JinPu railway, about 100 miles north and south of Xuzhou. On February 9, the Japanese seized the city of Bengbu, granting them control of areas north of the Huai River 400 km northeast of Wuhan. From February 5 until February 20, the 51st corps of the Northeastern Army and Zhang Zizhong's 59th corps of the Northwestern Army fought the Japanese 13th division at the eastern bank of the Huai River. At the same time, the 7th and 31st corps of the Guangxi Army attacked the division's flank at Dingyuan County to assist in the consolidating of positions along the Huai River.

In mid-February, the 3rd army group of the Shandong Army and the 22nd army group of the Sichuan Army simultaneously launched an offensive at the northern section of the Jinpu line, intending to recapture Wenshang, Jining, and Liangxiadian (兩下店). They were resisted tenaciously by the Japanese 10th division and after a week of fighting the division counterattacked the Shandong Army until it occupied Jiaxiang County on February 25.

The Chinese stood their ground along the eastern end of the Longhai railway near the port of Lianyungang. At Yixian and Haiyuan, both sides frequently fought to the death: neither side could drive the other back in a bloody stalemate.

thumb|Japanese soldiers preparing for an amphibious attack

The Japanese were stopped again at Linyi by entrenched Chinese forces under the command of Generals Pang Bingxun and Zhang Zizhong. What followed was a three-week battle, where the Chinese defenders managed to fight the Japanese to a halt despite heavy losses.

Second phase (Late March - Early April)

Despite the fierce resistance of the Chinese army, the Japanese forces were coming close to linking their forces together in Xuzhou by late March. To counter this, the Chinese committed to confronting the Japanese in the traditional stone-walled city of Taierzhuang.

Battle of Taierzhuang

thumb|Chinese soldiers fighting house to house in Taierzhuang

Taierzhuang was strategically significant, as it lay along the Grand Canal and was an intersection between the Jinpu and Longhai lines. In a telegram on April 1, Chiang Kai-Shek ordered to his generals that "the enemy at Taerzhuang must be destroyed." The cramped conditions of the urban fighting also enabled the Chinese to overcome Japanese advantages in armor and artillery, enabling them to fight on equal terms. The Chinese also managed to resupply their own troops and sever the Japanese supply lines from the rear, bleeding the Japanese dry of ammunition, supplies and reinforcements.

Following their defeat at Taierzhuang, the Japanese assembled some 400,000 troops in the Xuzhou area, intent on encircling the Chinese forces in Xuzhou. The North China Area Army had four divisions and two infantry brigades drawn from the Kwantung Army, while the Central China Expeditionary Army had three divisions and the 1st and 2nd Tank Battalions with motorized support units. The 5th Tank Battalion was used to support the 3rd Infantry Division advancing north along the railway to Xuzhou.

thumb|Japanese artillery hitting a part of the Longhai railway

The fighting in the west, east and north of Xuzhou was bloody, with heavy casualties on both sides. On April 18, the Japanese army advanced southward towards Pizhou. Tang Enbo's 20th army corps along with the 2nd, 22nd, 46th, and 59th corps resisted fiercely, resulting in a stalemate by the end of April. The 60th corps of the Yunnan Army fought against the Japanese 10th division at Yuwang Mountain (禹王山) for close to a month, resisting multiple attacks. By the time it handed over its position to the Guizhou 140th division and withdrew on May 15, the corps had lost more than half of its troops. and Hefei followed soon after on the 14th. In addition, a fortuitous sandstorm and fog on May 18 covered the tracks of the retreating Chinese soldiers. On the same day, Xiao County fell, and the defending 139th division was nearly wiped out. The withdrawal was completed by May 21, and the Chinese were able to preserve the majority of their forces.

Aftermath

The fall of Xuzhou marked a blow to Chiang's attempt to hold central China and his ability to transport troops through the region. However, the resistance of the Chinese forces, especially the victory of Taierzhuang, had built up the morale of the Chinese population.

Both sides had suffered massive casualties as a result of the campaign. In the battle of Taierzhuang alone, both sides lost at least 20,000 men each in a two-week period. The city of Taierzhuang had also been almost completely destroyed by the brutal urban fighting it had experienced. The strategic value of the floods, and whether they were necessary in the first place, are still a matter of controversy amongst historians.