Data Data One About the Nationalist Party's German-style Division (Part 1)

  Related information about some of the content involved in this book?

  A long time ago, while collecting materials, I came across a photo reflecting the Anti-Japanese War period. On it was a scene of soldiers wearing the famous German M-35 steel helmet fighting. This puzzled me for a very long time - how did they end up with German-style helmets? As time went on and my research into the Anti-Japanese War deepened, I finally found out that in the 1930s, China and Germany had a period of close military cooperation. Not only did Germany sell large quantities of weapons to China, but it also sent military advisers to help China build an elite force equipped with excellent equipment and rigorous training, commonly known as the "German-style division", "German-equipped division" or "German-armed division" (hereinafter referred to as the "German-style division"). This unit can be said to have been the most modernized in terms of equipment, training, organization, and tactics in China's near-modern history. In the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, it played a huge role like a central pillar. Unfortunately, information about this unit seems to have disappeared into the vast expanse of history, leaving behind only some rumors that may or may not be true.

  The author hopes to make a true and comprehensive introduction to the situation of German teachers, due to various reasons, the collection of relevant materials is quite difficult, so omissions and errors are inevitable, please correct me.

  Sino-German military cooperation

  As a powerful land army in Europe, Germany has always been a model for some relatively backward countries in military terms to learn from and emulate. For example, the army established during Japan's Meiji Restoration was almost entirely copied from Prussia's military ideology, system construction, and style. China began learning from Germany very early on, and the new army established in the late Qing dynasty had a deep imprint of German influence.

  In 1927, after the first KMT-CPC cooperation was completely broken, Chiang Kai-shek's National Government quickly expelled Soviet military advisers and began to seek military assistance from Germany. Germany, which had just been defeated in World War I, was only allowed to have an army of 100,000 people under the Treaty of Versailles, and a large number of professional soldiers were forced to leave the army. These soldiers, who knew nothing about fields other than military knowledge and technology, became sought-after masters by various countries (especially those with relatively backward military capabilities). However, the Treaty of Versailles explicitly prohibited German citizens from serving as military advisers in foreign armies, while Germany hoped they would go abroad to serve as military advisers, so that these retired personnel could use the opportunity to gain the latest military knowledge and technology, preventing a gap in military academic research. At the same time, there was a deeper intention to hope that these personnel could continue to serve in the German army after returning home. Therefore, Germany secretly encouraged and supported these personnel in going abroad to serve as military advisers.

  Chiang Kai-shek's National Government had already begun to contact Germany before the April 12 Incident in 1927, and Germany agreed in principle to send military advisers to China. The initial list of advisers proposed by China included famous figures such as von Mackensen and Ludendorff, but Germany considered these names too prominent and likely to be discovered, so they politely declined. The first batch of German military advisers to come to China were Colonel Max Bauer (although Max Bauer was not well-known, he had served in the German General Staff and was highly regarded by the Chief of the General Staff, Ludendorff), Lieutenant Stutzer, and Lieutenant Hommel, marking the beginning of Sino-German military cooperation.

  In 1933, Hitler won the German general election and became Chancellor of Germany. In the field of Sino-German military cooperation, Hitler's expulsion of Soviet advisers, deterioration of relations with the Soviet Union, launching of the April 12 Incident, and encirclement and suppression of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army led by [**] were in line with his firm stance. At the same time, China's rich natural resources (especially strategic resources such as tungsten and antimony) and vast industrial product market were also an important condition for Germany's resurgence. As a neighboring country of the Soviet Union, it could also serve as an effective containment force and political ally against the Soviet Union. After Hitler came to power, he abolished various restrictions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles, so the level and scale of German military advisers in China gradually increased, and the original private nature of the mission gradually turned into open official assistance.

  As a result of the Sino-German military cooperation, not only did both sides sign the "Five-Year Military Industrial Development Plan", but Germany also began to help China establish its military industry. Before the completion of China's military industrialization, Germany provided China with military equipment. Moreover, General Hans von Seeckt, the former Commander-in-Chief of the German Armed Forces and the fourth German military advisor to China (he was the most respected by Chiang Kai-shek among all the German military advisors, with the highest treatment and status, even able to issue orders on behalf of Chiang as a "delegate" to the Nationalist government departments), submitted a "Proposal for Army Reform" in assisting China's military modernization. He suggested that with limited resources, China should first establish a small but well-equipped and well-trained core demonstration force, and then complete the reorganization of 60 divisions nationwide in batches. He believed that having such 60 crack divisions would be sufficient for China to cope with various situations. This is the origin of the "60 division plan" of the 1930s.

  Reorganization plan?

  During the process of reorganization, different troops with different formations have different names, mainly including Reorganized Division, Adjusted Division, Reorganized Division, and Newly Formed Division.

  According to the plan of the "Army Reform Suggestion Book" by Sekett, 60 divisions nationwide were called reorganized divisions. In the second half of 1935, the first batch of 10 divisions began to be reorganized. At that time, the German equipment for these 10 divisions had not yet arrived in China, so they could only make some internal adjustments in terms of organization and armament, hence the name "adjusted divisions". Among these 10 divisions, there was only one exception, which was the Central Military Academy's Instructional Corps. This unit was organized entirely according to the then-current German Army infantry division organization, completely different from other division-level units.

  The concept of the Reorganized Division was first proposed. The so-called Reorganized Division was reorganized in batches according to the 1934 December Troop Reorganization Plan, and the divisions that had not been reorganized were reorganized as a standard four-regiment division based on the "Provisional Organization Table of the Army Division" promulgated by the Military Commission in June 1932. The division was composed of two brigades with four regiments, one cavalry company, one artillery regiment, one engineer battalion, one communication battalion, one logistics battalion, one medical team, and one special duty company.

  In 1936, the Military Commission made further plans for the reorganization of the army, establishing the principles of reducing large units and strengthening small units, especially those below the regimental level, as well as personnel and financial aspects. The troops reorganized according to this plan were called the Twenty-Fifth Year Adjustment Divisions (1936 was the 25th year of the Republic), with an initial plan to complete the reorganization of 20 divisions within the year.

  The reorganization began with the Zhongyuan and Northeastern armies. The 37 divisions of the Zhongyang system, totaling 186 regiments, were reorganized into four-regiment divisions, except for those units that were currently engaged in suppressing the Red Army. The cavalry, artillery, engineering, and other branches directly under the command of each army division were concentrated for retraining. It was planned to first reorganize 18 four-regiment divisions from the 135 regiments participating in the reorganization of the Zhongyang system, and then merge the remaining 63 regiments into 32 regiments, on this basis, eight new divisions would be formed, with each new division basically consisting of two reorganized regiments merged into one regiment.

  The Northeast Army planned to reorganize its 18 divisions and 54 brigades into 10 reorganized divisions (formed from the original 40 brigades) and 2 new divisions (formed from the original 8 brigades).

  The difference between the reorganized division and the new division is that the reorganized division still takes the original officers as the basis, while the new division completely breaks through the original personnel and mixes officers from different troops to thoroughly eliminate the phenomenon of internal factions in the army and establish a completely new national army.

  During the process of reorganization, Falkenhausen, who was then serving as the fifth German military advisor to China, made suggestions for the plan: each division should be organized and equipped according to the standard of the Zhōngyāng Military Academy's instructional troops; if it is temporarily not possible to establish an engineer regiment and a signal regiment, they can first establish an engineer battalion and a signal battalion; strengthen artillery construction, each division should have a artillery regiment with three battalions (mountain artillery, field artillery and 105mm howitzer artillery); in terms of light weapons, unify the weapon models and establish a repair depot within the division to be responsible for the maintenance and repair of weapons.

  By July 1937, when the war broke out, the reorganization plan had been carried out in two phases, totaling 20 divisions. The third phase of 10 divisions was underway. In fact, among the 20 divisions that had completed the reorganization, the degree to which they received German equipment and training from German advisors also varied. Only the following units actually received systematic training and guidance from German advisors: the 3rd Division, 6th Division, 9th Division, 14th Division, 36th Division, 87th Division, 88th Division, and the Training Brigade, as well as the Tax Police General Corps, which was not part of the regular army system.

  By July 1937, the Central Army had reorganized and readjusted 35 divisions, reformed 24 divisions, while the Northeastern Army had adjusted 10 divisions. Five divisions were still in the process of being adjusted using this method. Additionally, 10 Guangdong divisions, 26 Sichuan divisions, and 9 independent brigades were also reformed. Among the Central Army's 30 divisions, most had received some German equipment, with some fully equipped with German gear and receiving systematic training from German advisors. The Central Army, having undergone this reorganization and emerging with a new appearance, could be considered the most modernized land force in China's modern history. At the beginning of the war, these reorganized divisions played a crucial role as the backbone of the Chinese forces, making significant contributions but also suffering heavy casualties. Many military historians believe that if the war had broken out one year later, more Central Army units would have received advanced German equipment and training in German tactics, which would have greatly improved China's prospects in the war.

  What about weapons and equipment?

  In terms of light weapons, the main infantry weapon of the German-style division was the domestically-made 7.92mm Zhōngzhèng or the standard Mauser rifle made in Germany in 1924, which is also the predecessor to the K98k. Of course, due to various reasons, there were also other types of rifles used in the German-style divisions, such as those made by Hanyang Arsenal.

  The light machine guns of the German-style division were mostly domestically-made imitations of the Czech ZB26, with a small number of Belgian and French light machine guns. However, the MG34 light machine gun, which was most famous in the German army during World War II, was not procured or equipped, nor was it produced in China. The number of light machine guns was basically able to meet the standard of one per squad.

  The heavy machine gun was mostly a copy of the 24 model water-cooled heavy machine gun, which was produced based on the complete manufacturing drawings of the Maxim heavy machine gun provided by the German Ordnance Department to China free of charge in 1934. The Type 24 Maxim heavy machine gun is slightly different from the 1908 heavy machine gun equipped by the German Army, and it should be said that it is a 1909 export model, using a 250-round canvas belt for feeding ammunition. In general, the equipment number of heavy machine guns was one heavy machine gun company in each infantry regiment, with three platoons and six guns. This configuration standard is only equivalent to half of the German Army's standard infantry regiment!

  The pistol equipment of the German instructor is naturally the famous Mauser C96, also known as the "box cannon", "fast and slow machine" or "twenty rounds". Its real name should be 7.63mm Mauser M1932 semi-automatic pistol, commonly referred to in Europe as the C96 hand cannon. This pistol was widely used and highly praised in China, and many soldiers were honored to have one! Of course, the Mauser pistols equipped by the German instructor are different from those made by Chinese arsenals, repair shops or even private gunsmiths, all of which are genuine imports from Germany.

  Artillery is an indispensable weapon for modernized troops. Unfortunately, due to technical and financial limitations, even the most modernized German-style divisions in China have a significant gap with modernized troops in this aspect. In German-style units, except for the Instructional Corps which has its own direct heavy artillery unit, other German-style divisions do not have division-level heavy artillery units. Taking the best-equipped 36th, 87th, and 88th Divisions as examples, they only have one division-level artillery battalion (originally planned to be a regiment with three battalions). In addition to the war defense cannon company and high-altitude cannon company, each with one unit. The artillery battalion is divided into three howitzer companies, each equipped with four German-made 75mm Krupp mountain guns (or 75mm Bofors mountain guns), for a total of 12 guns in the battalion. The war defense cannon company is equipped with four German-made 37mm Pak35 anti-tank guns, and the high-altitude cannon company is equipped with six 20mm high-altitude cannons (with multiple models, mainly including Swiss Oerlikon, Danish Madsen, and German Rheinmetall's Swiss subsidiary Solothurn). In addition to the division-level artillery battalion, each infantry regiment also has a mortar company and a small cannon company. The mortar company is equipped with six 20-year-style 82mm mortars that imitate the French 81mm Brandt mortar, while the small cannon company is equipped with six 20mm Solothurn machine guns.

  To make up for the deficiency of artillery firepower, German advisers suggested that a small number of advanced artillery be concentrated into dú?lì artillery brigades or regiments, unified use, and coordinated fire allocation to achieve the purpose of supporting combat. For this reason, some heavy artillery-equipped dú?lì artillery brigades or regiments were formed, such as the 2nd Artillery Brigade equipped with 75mm Swedish-made L/14 Bofors mountain guns, and the 6th Artillery Brigade equipped with 75mm German-made L/29 Krupp field guns. The best artillery performance belonged to the 10th Artillery Regiment equipped with 24 150mm German-made L/32 sFH 18 Rheiall heavy howitzers (purchased in 1934) and the 14th Artillery Regiment equipped with 24 150mm German-made L/30 sFH 18 Krupp heavy howitzers (purchased in 1936).

  Under the strong demand of General Falkenhausen, a wireless telegraph platoon was established within the divisional signal battalion of the German-style division, equipped with 15-watt wireless transmitters, and a wireless telegraph squad was set up in each infantry regiment headquarters, equipped with 5-watt wireless transmitters, forming a two-level wireless telegraph system at the division and regiment levels.

  Personal equipment

  The uniforms of the German-style instructors were divided into three types: in autumn, they wore a yellow-green camel hair overcoat as their regular attire; in summer, they wore grass-green cotton-padded jackets (which came in two varieties: long trousers and short trousers); and in winter, they wore cotton-padded clothing. Officers were equipped with woolen uniforms and woolen greatcoats made of a fabric known as "first-class wool" which had a diagonal twill weave, and the style of their military attire was basically the same as that of the Zhongshan suit.

  The military hat, also known as the military small hat, is said to have been improved from the European ski hat, and some say it evolved from the Turkish cylindrical hat. The overall shape of the hat is a regular cylinder suitable for Eastern people's head shapes, rather than the oval shape used in Europe. On the hat's brim, there is a foldable face mask that can be folded up and connected to the front with two copper buttons when not in use. When necessary, it can be lowered to cover the face and back of the neck, providing functions such as cold protection, windproofing, dust-proofing, and sound insulation. On the upper edge of the face mask, there is an embroidered national emblem with a diameter of 2.8 cm. During combat, the M-35 steel helmet was worn, which is also one of the most distinctive features of the German-style uniform. The steel helmet also has an embroidered national emblem. It is said that the M-35 steel helmets worn by Chinese troops were among the first batch produced in German factories. According to current data, as of 1936, China had imported a total of 315,000 M-35 steel helmets from Germany.

  Because the mobility of the German troops is mainly on foot, puttees can alleviate fatigue during long marches to a certain extent. Therefore, puttees have become an indispensable personal traditional equipment for German troops, and the German army is no exception. Soldiers were issued black rubber-soled cloth shoes, officers were issued leather shoes, and high-ranking officers were issued high-top leather boots.

  Each soldier's standard personal equipment included ammunition belts, water bottles, bread bags and gas masks. The ammunition belt was a canvas strip, different from the German army's leather ammunition pouches. It was usually one long ammunition belt that went over the shoulder, around the waist, and then around again, finally tied with a cloth strap, which could hold 20 bullet clips. There were also some who used two short ammunition belts or crossed them in an X shape on their chest, or forked them in a V shape under their shoulders, or had one on each shoulder and waist. Unfortunately, the German-style division did not issue personal equipment with the Y-shaped back strap that was characteristic of the German army during World War II. The water bottles were partly purchased from Germany and partly domestically produced, with an oval wooden plug cap and a shoulder strap. This differed slightly from the metal cap water bottle used by the German army, which was attached to the belt. The bread bag was square in shape and had a shoulder strap, also differing from the German army's waist-attached type. The gas mask was purchased from Germany, specifically the 1930 model, but some were domestically produced. However, unlike the German army, it was stored in a canvas bag rather than a cylindrical container. But many photographs show that the gas masks carried by soldiers of the German-style division were indeed stored in cylindrical containers. In fact, these were imitations of French gas mask cylindrical containers, and the difference between them lay in the fact that the German army's cylindrical containers had vertical reinforcing stripes, while the imitations of the French type had horizontal reinforcing stripes.

  Sequence alignment

  The German-style division has two main categories. One is the Zhongyang Military Academy's Instructional General Headquarters, which is a fully equipped and regularly trained elite force. In November 1937, it was expanded to three regiments with six battalions as an A-type division, with a total strength of over 30,000 men. Among them, three battalions (the 1st, 3rd, and 5th) were fully equipped in the German style, while the other three battalions (mostly new recruits) were still in training.

  The basic composition is as follows:

  One artillery battalion, one cavalry battalion, one engineer battalion, one signal battalion, one military police battalion, one special duties battalion and one transport battalion.

  The division has 3 regiments, and each regiment has 2 battalions.

  Taking the 1st Battalion as an example:

  One artillery battalion directly under the division, one anti-tank gun battalion, one communication battalion and one transportation battalion.

  Controls 3 infantry battalions

  The infantry battalion has 3 infantry companies (9 light machine guns), 1 heavy machine gun company (6 heavy machine guns), and 1 mortar platoon (2 82mm mortars).

  Another class of German-style divisions were the so-called "new-type" zhōng?yāng armies, represented by the 36th, 87th and 88th Divisions, with a basic organization as follows:

  (1) Directly affiliated troops:

  1 artillery battalion: ?

  Three mountain artillery batteries (twelve 75mm mountain guns)

  1 anti-aircraft artillery battery (4 x 37mm anti-aircraft guns)

  1 × quadruple 20 mm anti-aircraft autocannon mount

  1 engineer battalion

  A signal battalion (2 wired communication companies, 1 wireless communication platoon)

  One logistics battalion

  A special agent battalion?

  A medical team (usually a division hospital)

  (2) Controlled 2 infantry brigades:

  Controls 2 infantry regiments:

  Directly subordinate troops: ?

  One mortar company (six 82mm mortars)

  1 x 6-barrel 20mm anti-aircraft gun mount

  A communication link

  A special agent regiment?

  Controls 3 infantry battalions:

  Infantry Regiment Directly Subordinate Units:

  One company of machine guns (6 heavy machine guns, 2 82mm mortars)

  The division oversees 3 infantry regiments:

  Commanding 3 infantry platoons: ?

  Deploy 3 platoons (each with 3 light machine guns and 30 rifles).

  (3) The division controlled two supplementary regiments: equipped with old-style equipment discarded when German-style equipment was adopted.

  The total strength of the entire army is approximately 14,000 people.

  Attachment: ?

  Commander of the Instructional Corps: (established in January 1931, initially organized as a regiment-level unit consisting of two infantry battalions and one artillery company, engineer company, cavalry company, mortar company, special duty company, and signal company each, personnel mainly drawn from the 2nd Division of the Instructional Army, primarily used for testing German-style infantry division organization and equipment. Expanded to division level in June 1933 after Gui Yongqing took command)

  Commander-in-Chief: Gui Yongqing, Chief of Staff: Qiu Qingquan. (June 1933)

  The 1st Brigade was commanded by Zhou Zhenqiang, with Chief of Staff Ma Liangui. It controlled the 1st Regiment under Qin Shiquan and the 2nd Regiment under Xie Chengrui.

  The 2nd Brigade was commanded by Hu Qiru, with Liao Yaoliang as chief of staff, and consisted of the 3rd Regiment under Li Xikai and the 6th Regiment under Liu Zishu.

  The 3rd Cavalry Brigade, comprising the 4th Regiment of Ulanen and the 5th Regiment of Dragoons.

  Commanders of the 36th Division: (formed in September 1933 by supplementing regiments from the 87th and 88th Divisions, completed reorganization in December 1936, awarded Army flag in January 1937)

  Division Commander Song Xiqian, Deputy Division Commander Zhong Bin, Chief of Staff Xiang Xianjun.

  The 106th Division Chen Ruihe, under the jurisdiction of the 212th Regiment Gu Baoyu, the 213th Regiment Li Zhipeng;

  The 108th Division was commanded by Yang Guangyu, comprising the 215th Regiment under Liu Ying and the 216th Regiment under Hu Jiaji.

  Commanders of the 87th Division: (Reorganized from the original National Revolutionary Army's 1st Division in December 1931, completed reorganization in December 1936, and awarded a military flag in January 1937)

  Division Commander Wang Jingjiu, Deputy Division Commander Qian Lenti, Chief of Staff Xia Sheng.

  The 259th Brigade of Shen Fa's Army, under the command of Liu Mantian's 517th Regiment and Luo Zhedong's 518th Regiment.

  The 261st Brigade Liu Anqi, under the jurisdiction of the 521st Regiment Chen Yiding and the 522nd Regiment Yi Anhua.

  The 88th Division's commanders: (Reorganized from the original National Revolutionary Army's 2nd Division in December 1931, completed reorganization in December 1936, awarded military flag in October 1936)

  Division Commander Sun Yuanliang, Deputy Division Commander Feng Shengfa, Chief of Staff Chen Surnong;

  The 262nd Brigade is commanded by Peng Hongying, and consists of the 523rd Regiment under Wu Qijian and the 524th Regiment under Han Xianyuan.

  The 264th Brigade was stationed in Huangmei Xing, under the jurisdiction of the 527th Regiment led by Liao Qiling and the 528th Regiment led by Zhu Chi.

  Outstanding talent in the army

  Even in the troops that received guidance and training from German advisers, the degree of participation of German advisers also varied. Some divisions had only one German adviser! Among all the troops, the four troops that received the most guidance from German advisers, with the most complete equipment and the most sufficient training, were the Teaching General Team, the 36th Division, the 87th Division, and the 88th Division.

  The Instruction Corps, also known as the Zhongyang Military Academy's Instruction Corps, is a demonstration unit that belongs to the Zhongyang Military Academy. The predecessor of the Zhongyang Military Academy was the famous Whampoa Military Academy, and the earliest predecessor of the Instruction Corps can be traced back to the Whampoa Student Army, which was renowned for its heroic deeds during the Eastern Expedition and Northern Expedition in the Great Revolution era. As the starting point of Chiang Kai-shek's career, he had always shown great favoritism towards the Whampoa Military Academy. The most advanced equipment, tactics training, and troop organization were often experimented with at the Zhongyang Military Academy first. The academy has continued to uphold its tradition since its founding, maintaining a brigade-level infantry instruction unit with considerable combat power and several battalion-level special forces instruction units.

  In May 1930, the Central Military Academy officially formed a teaching division with two brigades and six regiments, known as the 2nd Division. This was the heyday of the early Central Military Academy's teaching troops. The 2nd Division had almost all of the Central Military Academy's new cutting-edge weapons under its command, including two artillery battalions, which were also the Central Military Academy's two teaching artillery battalions, as well as a cavalry company, an engineer company, a logistics company, a student battalion, and a tank squadron. It was a formidable force, second only to Feng Yuxiang's 1st Division in terms of combat power within the entire Central Army. The 4th Division, which later gained fame on the battlefield during the War of Resistance against Japan, was formed based on the 2nd Division.

  In January 1931, under the plan of German advisor, the Central Military Academy officially began to organize the Instructional General Headquarters. Initially, it was composed of two infantry regiments and artillery companies, engineer companies, cavalry companies, mortar companies, special duty companies, and communication companies. The officers and soldiers were mainly drawn from the original 2nd Division's Artillery Regiment, Special Duty Battalion, Engineer Company, Cavalry Company, and the Academy's Guard Troops. This regimental instructional unit was primarily engaged in experimental organization of German-style infantry regiments and research on the application of new German weapons, as a trial unit for the comprehensive construction of German-style divisions. The commander of the General Headquarters was Major General Tang Guangci, who came from the Northwestern Army, graduated from the famous Baoding Military Academy, and was chosen because he was a graduate of the military academy, excelled in troop training, and had been serving at the Central Military Academy since the Northern Expedition. Deputy Commander Zhu Zonghai, formerly the chief of staff of the 2nd Division's Instructional Headquarters, originally an artillery instructor at the Central Military Academy, was responsible for the headquarters' staff affairs. The two infantry regiments under it were mainly used for organizational experimentation. The artillery company was equipped with German-style 75mm Krupp mountain guns, primarily exploring the practical application of German equipment. The engineer company was equipped with new German-style engineer equipment, and the cavalry company replaced its rifles with machine guns and installed motorcycles.

  In March 1932, Zhu Zonghai was promoted to Commander-in-Chief, and in September of the same year, Zhang Lühe, a senior instructor from the 6th class of Baoding Military Academy, took over as Commander-in-Chief. During this period, the Instructional Corps was only an experimental unit for demonstration purposes. It wasn't until June 1933, when Gui Yongqing took over as Commander-in-Chief, that the situation improved dramatically. The Instructional Corps became a field combat unit, with Deputy Commanders Zhou Zhenqiang and Zhang Kunsun, both of whom were classmates of Gui Yongqing from the first class of Huangpu Military Academy. Under the command of the Headquarters, there were the Staff Department (headed by Wen Zucong), the Adjutant Department (headed by Zhang Bingdong), and the Logistics Department (headed by Wang Hanying). The unit was expanded into the 1st Regiment, which consisted of three infantry battalions, a directly affiliated artillery company, and a communication company. Zhou Zhenqiang concurrently served as the regiment commander. The Corps directly controlled the Military Service Battalion, Special Duty Company, Cavalry Company, Engineer Company, Communication Soldier Company, Officer Education Team, Health Team, Military Music Platoon, and Automobile Platoon. After expansion, the Corps was relocated to Nanjing Xiaolingwei (now the site of Nanjing University of Science and Technology), located at the southern foot of Zhongshan Mountain. The National Government ordered the relocation of six natural villages, enclosing a large area of land to build the Instructional Corps' main base.

  January 25, 1935, the Central Army Officer School's Instruction Corps held a flag-giving ceremony, Chiang Kai-shek attended in person and delivered a speech to all officers and soldiers. Marking the Central Army School's Instruction Corps becoming an official combat unit.

  In 1936, the Guidance General Headquarters was reorganized and expanded into a division-level unit with three regiments, and a chief of staff position was added, which was held by Fu Zhao-en. The headquarters had jurisdiction over the 1st Regiment (Zhou Zhenqiang), the 2nd Regiment (Hu Qiru), and the 3rd Regiment (Zhang Kunsheng). Directly under the headquarters were the Soldiers' Camp, Artillery Battalion, Cavalry Battalion, Engineer Company, Signal Company, Special Duty Company, High-Angle Battery, Motorized Squadron, Medical Team, Officer Education General Headquarters, Military Band, and Ordnance Depot. The unit was listed as one of the first batch of troops to undergo comprehensive training in 1935.

  In September 1937, the Training Brigade participated in the Battle of Shanghai. In November of the same year, it was expanded into a Type A division with three brigades and six regiments under the order of the Military Affairs Commission. Among the six regiments, three (1st, 3rd, and 5th) had fully adopted German equipment and organization. The Training Brigade suffered heavy casualties during the Battle of Nanjing, and after retreating to Hankou, it was reorganized with Dai Shixia's 46th Division to form a new 46th Division with three brigades and six regiments.

  Iron Guard Imperial Army

  The 36th Division, 87th Division and 88th Division are a series of brother units. In the Central Plains Army, they were not part of Hu Zongnan's First Army system, nor Tang Enbo's Thirteenth Army system, but rather came from Chiang Kai-shek's jǐngwei troops, standard direct lineage within the direct lineage.

  After the founding of the Whampoa Military Academy in 1924, a guard battalion was formed to be responsible for the safety and escort of Chiang Kai-shek. Later, the guard battalion expanded into a special task regiment, during the Northern Expedition period, it further expanded on the basis of the special task regiment into the National Revolutionary Army General Command Guard Brigade, as the escort unit of Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek.

  In 1927, the capital of the Republic was fixed in Nanjing, and the Jingwei Corps was upgraded again to become the Capital Garrison Brigade (with as many as six regiments under its jurisdiction). As Chiang Kai-shek's status rose, his bodyguards also completed a four-level leap from the Imperial Guard Regiment, Special Service Battalion, Jingwei Corps to the Capital Garrison Brigade. After that, the organization of the Jingwei Corps underwent several changes. In December 1930, the Capital Garrison Brigade merged with the First Teaching Division (division commander Feng Yuxiang, this division was considered one of the strongest combat forces in the Central Army) to form the Jingwei Division. The original Capital Garrison Brigade's 1st, 2nd and 5th regiments were reorganized into the 2nd Traveling Division of the Jingwei Corps, the original First Teaching Division's 1st, 2nd and 3rd regiments were reorganized into the 1st Traveling Division of the Jingwei Corps, the original Capital Garrison Brigade's 3rd and 4th regiments were reorganized into the 1st and 2nd Special Service Regiments of the Jingwei Division, and the original Capital Garrison Brigade's 6th regiment was disbanded, with personnel incorporated into various units. At this time, the Jingwei Corps had two traveling divisions with six regiments under its jurisdiction, as well as two special service regiments, an artillery regiment, and some other specialized troops directly under the division, with a total strength almost equivalent to that of two ordinary divisions! The division commander was Feng Yuxiang, and the deputy division commander was Yu Jishi.

  In March 1931, during the reorganization of the army, this large-scale jǐngwei division was divided into two divisions with two brigades and four regiments, numbered as jǐngwei Division 1 and jǐngwei Division 2.

  In December 1931, Chiang Kai-shek announced his retirement under internal and external pressure. His bodyguard troops naturally lost the honorific title of "Bodyguard Division", with the 1st and 2nd Bodyguard Divisions being renamed the 87th and 88th Divisions respectively.

  The commander of the 87th Division was Zhang Zhizhong, deputy commander Wang Jingjiu, and chief of staff Xu Peigen.

  The commander of the 88th Division was Yu Jiti, deputy commander Li Yannian, and chief of staff Xuan Tiwu.

  The 36th Division, however, had a very deep origin with the two divisions mentioned above. In September 1933, it was organized on the basis of four regiments from the supplementary brigades of the 87th and 88th Divisions. The divisional commander was Song Xilian, deputy commander was Zhong Bin, and chief of staff was Xiang Xianru.

  It can be seen that the predecessors of these three divisions were all Chiang Kai-shek's jǐng guards, and they have always been directly controlled by Chiang Kai-shek. They are stationed in key areas around Beijing, and are the most trusted troops of Chiang Kai-shek, just like the imperial guard in ancient times. Therefore, it is only natural that these three divisions were among the first to receive German equipment and training.

  These three divisions received German advisory training, dating back to 1927 when the Zhongyuan Military Academy was established. The first German advisor, Max Bauer, had already provided systematic guidance and training to two of the academy's divisions. When the 1st Division and the Reserve Division were merged into the Guard Division, the German advisors followed the 1st Division to the Guard Division.

  According to the opinions of German advisers, these three divisions and the teaching group were all demonstration units for new-style reorganization, and should not be lightly sent into battle. However, during the January 28 Incident, the Fujian Incident, and the Fifth Encirclement Campaign against the Central Soviet Area, all three divisions participated and bore heavy responsibilities. As a result, they suffered strong dissatisfaction from German advisers. At that time, the head of the advisory group, Georg Wetzell, strongly protested to Chiang Kai-shek and had disputes and conflicts with him. The position of these three divisions in the minds of German advisers can also be seen from this.

  Participate in the January 28 Shanghai War of Resistance

  January 28, 1932, the January 28 Incident broke out, and the Nineteenth Route Army stationed in Shanghai rose up to resist. The next day, the National Government's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on the January 28 Incident, stating that "in order to exercise China's sovereignty rights, we have no choice but to take our own measures, and will continue to strongly resist the armed attacks." On January 30, Chiang Kai-shek presided over an emergency meeting in Nanjing, deciding to relocate the capital to Luoyang, reorganize the Military Affairs Commission, and order the Nineteenth Route Army to defend Shanghai with all its might, while the German-style 87th and 88th Divisions were responsible for defending Nanjing. On February 1, further adjustments were made to the deployment of troops in the Beijing-Shanghai area, with the 61st Division handing over the defense of Jiangyin to the 87th Division and heading to Shanghai's Dachang; the main force of the 88th Division assembled in Suzhou as a reserve for the Nineteenth Route Army, while another regiment was sent to reinforce the defenses of Jiangyin.

  In mid-February, the 24th Mixed Brigade and the 9th Division of the Japanese army arrived in Shanghai one after another. Given the increasing number of Japanese troops in Shanghai, the 19th Route Army was outnumbered and outgunned, and its commander, Zhang Zhizhong, voluntarily asked Chiang Kai-shek for reinforcements. Chiang approved his request.

  On February 14, He Yingqin, the Minister of Military Administration of the National Government, ordered the formation of the 5th Army, which would be composed of the 87th and 88th Divisions stationed in the Nanjing-Shanghai and Nanjing-Hangzhou areas. Zhang Zhizhong, commander of the 87th Division, was appointed as the commander of the 5th Army, with unified command over the 87th and 88th Divisions, the Central Military Academy's Instructional Corps (then led by Tang Guangchi), and the Independent Artillery Regiment's 1st Battalion Mountain Gun Regiment. These troops were ordered to proceed to Shanghai and join the 19th Route Army.

  At that time, the 5th Army was composed of the 87th Division, the 88th Division, and the Instructional Corps, all of which were German-trained units and the elite forces within the Central Military system! The fact that such a large number of elite troops were deployed to Shanghai reflects the determination of the National Government to resist Japan.

  The 261st Brigade of the 87th Division, led by Brigade Commander Song Xini, set out from Nanjing first and took over the defense line from Hujiazhai in the north of Shanghai's Wusongkou to Caojia Bridge on the west side on the 14th. The 259th Brigade of the 87th Division, led by Brigade Commander Sun Yuanliang (father of Taiwanese movie star Qin Han), arrived at Nanxiang on the 15th. At the same time, the 88th Division also moved from the Shanghai-Hangzhou line to gather near Nanxiang and wait for orders.

  On February 16, Zhang Zhizhong led the headquarters of the 5th Army from Nanjing's Andemen Gate to board a train and depart. They arrived in Nanshiang on the same day and began deploying troops to take over the defense of the 19th Route Army. The 5th Army was deployed along the line from Jiangwan North Terminal via Miao Village, Wujiang River, and Wusong West Terminal, with one unit stationed at the Lion Forest Artillery Fort, Nanbei Zhandao, Chuansha Port, Liuhe Port, *** Port, and Qiyu Port to guard the riverbank. The 88th Division defended from Jiangwan North Terminal via Miao Village, Zhouxiang, to the south bank of Wujiang River, while the 87th Division was responsible for defending Hujiatang along the north bank of Wujiang River via Caojia Bridge to Wusong West Terminal. One unit of the Instructional General Corps guarded the riverbank near Lion Forest Artillery Fort, Nanbei Zhandao, Chuansha Port, Liuhe Port, *** Port, and Qiyu Port. The deployment was completed on February 18. Zhang Zhizhong also served as commander of the Left Wing Army (Cai Tingkai, commander of the 19th Route Army, served as commander of the Right Wing Army), and the headquarters of the 5th Army advanced from Nanshiang to Liuhe Town.

  The 24th Mixed Brigade of the Japanese Army launched a fierce attack on Miaoxing from 7:30 am on February 20, with the support of heavy artillery and aircraft. The 88th Division, which was defending Miaoxing, put up a stubborn resistance, inflicting heavy casualties on the Japanese army, but the position remained unchanged. After nightfall, the Japanese continued to attack, and the fighting became even more intense, with gunfire ringing out all night long. Although the defensive fortifications of the 88th Division were largely destroyed by the Japanese artillery bombardment, the officers and men hid in the damaged trenches, remaining calm and motionless until the Japanese infantry approached, at which point they launched a fierce counterattack with grenades and rifles, followed by hand-to-hand combat. The bloody battle raged on for two days and nights, but each time the Japanese attacked, they were forced to retreat due to heavy casualties.

  On the morning of the 22nd, the Japanese army took advantage of the thick fog to launch a surprise attack on the eastern part of Miaohang Town, breaking through the defensive line of the 3rd Battalion of the 527th Regiment of the 264th Brigade of the 88th Division. The battalion commander, Chen Zhenxin, led his troops in a counterattack, but was unable to repel the Japanese army due to their intense artillery fire. Chen Zhenxin died on the battlefield.

  The deputy division commander of the 88th Division, Li Yannian, personally directed the 264th Brigade to immediately commit all reserve forces to block the gap, and the battle situation became extremely fierce. The commander of the engineer battalion of the 88th Division, Tang Dun, was killed in action, and the brigade commanders, Qian Lunti and Huang Meixing, were both wounded.

  Despite this, the Japanese army continued to push forward, and the entire defensive line of the 5th Army was severely threatened. The army commander, Zhang Zhongzhong, personally led the reserve forces, including the main force of the Training Brigade (minus one battalion), to reinforce Miaohang Town. He also ordered the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division, led by Sun Yuanliang, to provide reinforcements.

  The 261st Brigade of the 87th Division, led by Song Xihui, was ordered to cross the river at Jijiabridge and attack the enemy's flank. The 88th Division also dispatched troops to launch a counterattack against the Japanese army's breakthrough area.

  On the right wing, the 19th Route Army received news of the critical situation in Miaohang Town and launched a counterattack along the entire line from Jiangwan to Yunmaohe at around 9:00. The deputy commander of the 61st Division, Zhang Yan, led the 4th and 5th Regiments in an attack from the northwest of Zhuyuan Village.

  As a result, the Training Brigade and the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division formed a three-pronged attack on the Japanese army that had broken through the defensive line. After intense fighting, the Japanese army was forced to retreat, leaving behind only a small number of troops who continued to resist in the area around Jinjia Village and Daxiao Ma Jia Village.

  The remaining Japanese forces were not completely cleared until 8:30 pm on the same day. The battle at Miaohang Town that day was one of the most brutal since the outbreak of the January 28 Incident, with the 88th Division alone suffering heavy casualties, including wounded brigade and battalion commanders, over 20 company and platoon commanders, and more than 2,000 soldiers.

  The international press unanimously regarded this as the most glorious achievement of the Chinese army in the Battle of Shanghai. On the 26th, Chiang Kai-shek sent a telegram to commend: "Since the battle at Miaohang Town on the 22nd, our military's reputation has increased tenfold internationally. The opinions of various countries are unanimous in praising our military's bravery and invincibility, while the Japanese army's reputation has plummeted. I hope you will encourage your officers and men to continue fighting bravely!"

  Starting from the 25th, the Japanese army changed its tactics and concentrated the main force of the 9th Division to launch a fierce attack on the position of the 87th Division's Ma Jiazhai. By 8:00 on the 26th, after 100 minutes of artillery preparation, the Japanese army launched a general offensive against Ma Jiazhai. At this time, the defensive fortifications of the 87th Division had been completely destroyed, and the defenders suffered heavy casualties, so the position was lost at 11:00. The 19th Route Army immediately assembled the 61st and 78th Divisions to reinforce and launched a powerful counterattack, driving out the Japanese army that had just entered the position.

  On February 29, the second batch of reinforcements from the Japanese army's 11th Division arrived in Shanghai. After the arrival of the reinforcements, the Japanese army launched an attack on the entire Songhu front line on March 1, with a part of the 11th Division landing at Liuhe Seven Forks behind the Chinese army's lines at 6:00 am. Despite the fact that the Chinese command had previously instructed to pay close attention to the Liuhe area and deploy at least three regiments of troops there, the front-line units had suffered heavy casualties in the intense battles and were unable to cope with the situation due to insufficient troop deployment. At this time, there was only one battalion from the Instructional Corps and one company from the Feng Yuyong Righteous Army on the Liuhe front line, which stretched for tens of miles. After landing, the Japanese army captured several towns including Fuchiao and Liuhe, and launched a fierce attack on the strategic point of Jiangjin. The defending troops, consisting of one company from the Instructional Corps, fought to the death with heavy casualties. Zhang Zhizhong urgently dispatched two regiments from the 261st Brigade to reinforce the area, attempting to defeat the Japanese army before they could establish a foothold, while also reporting to Chiang Kai-shek to request reinforcements.

  After receiving the reinforcement order, the 261st Brigade immediately set out from Gu's residence automobile station at around 9:00 with the 521st and 522nd Regiments to reinforce the Lianjiang River. However, only 11 vehicles were mobilized, and each could only transport one battalion. Song Xilian, the brigade commander, had no choice but to lead the vanguard unit, the 1st Battalion of the 521st Regiment, by car, arriving at Lianjiang River at noon. He then ordered the 1st Battalion's commander, Tang De, to quickly advance towards Zanjingying with his troops and occupy it as soon as possible to cover the deployment of subsequent units. As soon as the 1st Battalion approached the south gate of Zanjingying, they were attacked by the Japanese army that had already occupied Zanjingying. The vanguard units of both sides immediately clashed, and due to the extremely close distance, the forward troops engaged in intense hand-to-hand combat with bayonets.

  By around 3 pm, the commander of the 521st Regiment, Liu Anqi, led the 2nd Battalion to arrive at Xunhe. Japanese planes bombed the train station at Xunhe, destroying all cars and nearby civilian houses, forcing subsequent troops to advance on foot. The reinforcement speed was greatly affected. At this time, the battle near Zhangjingying was becoming more intense, with over 20 Japanese planes flying low and bombing the position densely, causing bombs to fall like rain, while Japanese warships in the Xunhe waters also fired their cannons to assist. Around 4 pm, the main force of the Japanese army circled around the left flank of the 521st Regiment, while a battalion of the Right-wing Teaching Corps had been almost completely wiped out. In this way, the 1st Battalion of the 521st Regiment, which was fighting hard at Zhangjingying, was surrounded by enemies on three sides - front, left and right - plus being bombarded by Japanese air and sea firepower, suffering more than half casualties. However, all officers and soldiers fought bravely, even charging into the town of Zhangjingying several times with a broken army and engaging in close combat with the Japanese, but ultimately failed to succeed due to the intense Japanese firepower and the great disparity in troop numbers.

  At 6 pm, the 3rd Battalion of the 521st Regiment finally arrived. Song Xilian, the regimental commander, ordered the 1st Battalion to hold its current position and block the enemy's advance, while the 2nd and 3rd Battalions quickly deployed along the south bank of the Liuhe River, waiting for the arrival of the 522nd Regiment before launching a night counterattack. Until 11 pm, the 522nd Regiment had not yet arrived due to the long distance and the fact that they were marching on foot. Our army, with only one battalion, resisted the enemy's multiple attacks at Zanjingying from noon till late at night, preventing them from advancing an inch! In this battle, our soldiers fought bravely, viewing death as a return home, and making the enemy, with its entire division, stop in its tracks at Zanjingying without being able to cross the Liuhe River. The lone battalion of the Instructional Corps fought to the death, while the 521st Regiment provided hasty reinforcements, all with the determination to die in order to relieve the danger of the entire front line being surrounded. At the same time, our army's various units were under pressure from the enemy's superior forces on multiple fronts, and our officers and soldiers fought bravely, suffering heavy casualties. At 3 pm, the position of the 78th Division was breached by the Japanese army, exposing the right flank of the 5th Army, and the reserve troops had already been depleted, with no way to fill in the gaps in the front line. However, all units supported each other until nightfall before retreating to the Yanghuanqiao, Shuiche, Tanjiazhai, and Mengjiajiao lines.

  In view of the critical situation on the Bian River front and the lack of reinforcements, General Jiang Guangnai was forced to order a general retreat along the entire front at 9 pm that evening due to this irreparable gap in the rear.

  Just as the troops were withdrawing, the German-style division also made a name for itself: under the command of Chiang Guangnai, the 5th Army occupied the positions at Hujiayuan and Yangjiaxing with one unit, while the main force withdrew to the Jiading and Taicang line at 11 o'clock in the afternoon, using Jiading City and Taicang City as strongholds, and sending out a unit to patrol the Luodian and Liuheshan areas.

  At 9:30 pm, Zhang Zhizhong issued the order for the left-wing army to change its position. The 88th Division was ordered to retreat from Majiazhuang to Jiading City, the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division retreated from Tangqiao to Lou Town, and the 261st Brigade and the Instructional General Headquarters retreated from Liuh River to Taicang. The 1st Regiment of the dú?lì Brigade retreated to Pengjiang Town, while the 2nd Regiment assembled at Qianmen Tang. The 156th Brigade of the 78th Division also assembled in Jiading. After receiving the order, all troops retreated on schedule along different routes and arrived at their designated locations one after another. The headquarters of the 5th Army and its directly affiliated units also arrived at Qianmen Tang Town.

  Just as various departments were ordered to move to the new position of Jiading and Taicang, the 517th Regiment of the 259th Brigade of the 87th Division fought one of the most brutal battles in the Shanghai-Wusong area during the January 28 Incident, near Gelong Town, Lou Tang and Zhu Jiaqiao.

  On the night of March 3, around 1 o'clock, the 517th Regiment arrived at Lou Tang and camped nearby. This place is only fifteen miles away from Liuhe River. The whole regiment had been through many battles and was exhausted, with their clothes still wet. Suddenly, over a thousand enemy soldiers came rushing from Liuhe River. The three forward sentry companies of the 517th Regiment stationed in Lou Tang Town, Zhu Jia Bridge, and Si Zhu Bridge fought back fiercely. After the battle started, the enemy's forces grew stronger, and their artillery began to bombard our positions. These three forward sentry companies were responsible for a defense line over three kilometers wide, and they had already lost more than one-third of their men, making them very weak. The three forward sentry positions were heavily surrounded, but each unit fought to the death and refused to retreat, pinning down the enemy near Lou Tang. The fierce battle lasted until 8 o'clock on March 3, when the main force of the enemy, about four thousand people, arrived and launched a full-scale attack on the 517th Regiment's positions, attempting to encircle our right flank. At this time, we were rushing to build fortifications and respond to the attack, but our forces were outnumbered, and the enemy broke through our front line and rushed to the north bank of Zhu Jia Bridge, just in front of the regimental headquarters. The entire regiment's defense line was on the verge of collapse. Just at this critical moment, the 3rd Company of the 1st Battalion fought bravely and killed the enemy who had broken into our positions, forcing them to retreat.

  At around 10:00, the commander of the 259th Brigade, Sun Yuanliang, rushed to the command post of the 517th Regiment to direct the battle and ordered his troops to put up a strong resistance. Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhongzhong immediately ordered the 1st Battalion of the dú?lì Brigade stationed in Pengzhou Town to quickly reinforce, while ordering the 261st Brigade in Taicang to move forward to cover the left flank of the 259th Brigade, and also ordered the 88th Division in Jiading to firmly defend Jiading City, shielding the right flank of the 259th Brigade.

  At this time, the Japanese army on the Lou Tang line had increased to 70,000-80,000 people, with wave after wave of attacks, while the 517th Regiment fought alone, with ammunition almost exhausted. After noon, each position was successively breached by the Japanese army, which occupied nearby villages beyond Lou Tang Town and advanced into He Jia Village. Sun Yuanliang, commander of the brigade directing operations in Ge Long Town, at 15:00, personally wrote a letter ordering someone to urgently deliver it to Zhang Zhizhong, military commander: The 517th Regiment is currently surrounded by the Japanese army, and the regimental commander is missing. I plan to die in office in Ge Long Town. Qian Men Tang will be in danger, please ask the military commander to quickly relocate.

  After receiving the report, Zhang Zhizhong immediately called Sun Yuanliang and told him that the 1st Regiment of the 2nd Division would arrive soon. The 517th Regiment held on until nightfall before retreating to Gelong Town and occupying positions along the riverbank. At 4:00 PM, the reinforcements from the 2nd Division's 1st Regiment finally arrived at Gelong and quickly took control of the last line of defense, sending reinforcements to the front lines. By this time, the 517th Regiment had reached its final moment, and the left flank of Zhujiabridge was also breached by the enemy. Zhang Shixi, the regimental commander, led his troops in a desperate charge towards Jiangjiacun, fighting under the enemy's machine gun fire. Our soldiers fell one after another, but they kept advancing without retreating, their battle cries shaking the fields, and their momentum unstoppable. The enemy was unable to withstand this suicidal charge and retreated, thus lifting the siege of Louwang Town. The remnants of the 517th Regiment fought their way to Wai Gang, where they joined forces with the 88th Division, before being redeployed to a new location via Kunshan.

  The Lou Tang campaign, the Japanese army concentrated its main force to break through the area between Jiading and Taicang, directly attacking the railway, cutting off [**] retreat route. If it weren't for the 517th Regiment's brave fight to the death, once the Japanese army approached Gelong, fell into Qianmen, and attacked the railway, the retreat routes of the 5th Army and the 19th Route Army would have been completely cut off, and the consequences would have been unimaginable.

  In this battle, the commander of the 1st Battalion of the 517th Regiment, Zhu Yaohang, was hit by seven bullets and died heroically for his country. There were also many other officers who died in action, including two company commanders and six platoon leaders, with nearly a thousand soldiers wounded or killed.

  On the afternoon of March 3, just as the 517 Regiment was engaged in a fierce battle at Lou Tang, the 5th Army received another order from Chiang Kai-shek to retreat to the line of Lu Jiaqiao, Shi Pai, and Bai Ma Xincheng. The 5th Army retreated as ordered, with the 88th Division withdrawing to Changshu, the 261st Brigade of the 87th Division withdrawing to Bai Ma Xincheng, the 259th Brigade withdrawing to Shi Pai, and the army headquarters advancing to Dong Tangcun. The 2nd Regiment of the Independent Brigade and the Instructional Corps also withdrew to Dong Tangcun. By March 5, all units had arrived at their designated locations, where they reorganized their troops and built fortifications in preparation for another battle.

  On May 5, the Shanghai Ceasefire Agreement was signed, and the Battle of Shanghai ended. On May 7, the National Government ordered the 88th Division to garrison Wuhan, the 87th Division to garrison Changshu, and later adjusted to Nanjing.

  The 5th Army in the Songhu Anti-Japanese War, 83 officers were killed, 242 wounded, and 26 missing; 1533 soldiers were killed, 2897 wounded, and 599 missing. The total number of casualties was 1616 killed, 3139 wounded, and 625 missing, with a total casualty count of 5380! - German advisor [**] is heartbroken about this!

  Fujian Incident and the Red Army

  In September 1933, the newly formed 36th Division was ordered to move to Fuzhou, Jiangxi as a reserve unit of the Northern Route Army to participate in the Fifth Encirclement Campaign against the Red Army. On November 11, when the Red Seventh Corps launched an attack on Huba, they were ambushed by Nationalist forces from Jinxi County, Langji and Huba near Bajiaoting. The Red Third Corps rushed to reinforce, and the 36th Division was also ordered to provide reinforcements, engaging in fierce combat with the Red Third Corps southeast of Bajiaoting. After suffering heavy casualties, the Red Third Corps was forced to withdraw from the battlefield.

  Just after the end of the war with the Red Army, in November 1933, Li Jishen and Cai Tingkai organized the "People's Government" in Fujian, issued an anti-Chiang declaration, and sent people to contact the Red Army to negotiate a ceasefire and cooperation, known as the Fujian Incident.

  Chiang Kai-shek analyzed the situation and decided to immediately dispatch his elite troops into Fujian, to suppress the "People's Government of Fujian" and its armed forces, the 19th Route Army.

  The 87th and 88th Divisions of the German-style division, from Nanjing and Hangzhou areas via Zhejiang-Gansu Railway to Quzhou, formed the Fourth Route Army, under the unified command of Zhang Zhizhong, attacking southward from northern Fujian. The 36th Division was assigned to the Fifth Route Army commanded by Hu Zongnan, assembling in Shaowu and Shunchang areas in western Fujian.

  The 36th Division marched through the northwest of Fujian Province, in the rugged mountains and narrow paths, for twenty consecutive days, arriving at Shaowu on January 10, 1934. After a two-day rest, they advanced towards Yanping via Yangkou.

  Yanping City is located in the upper reaches of the Min River, where the Jianxi, Futun Creek, and Sha Creek rivers converge. The river surface is deep and fast-flowing, with many hidden reefs and shoals. Yanping City is surrounded by three rivers on its east, south, and north sides, while its west side is bounded by high mountains and steep cliffs, with the Nine Peaks Mountain being particularly treacherous. Moreover, Liu He-ding's 56th Division had been operating in this area for many years and had built a large number of solid fortifications on the western mountain ranges. The combination of natural barriers and solid fortifications made Yanping City an easy place to defend but difficult to attack. Therefore, Chiang Kai-shek only required the 36th Division to launch a surprise attack to tie down enemy forces, waiting for the main force's frontal assault to take effect before jointly annihilating the enemy in Yanping. The commander of the 36th Division, Song Xi-quan, personally led his regimental and battalion commanders to conduct a detailed reconnaissance of the terrain and enemy positions on Nine Peaks Mountain. They discovered that between the fourth and fifth peaks of Nine Peaks Mountain, the trees were dense, and the fortifications were not solid, so they decided to launch a feint attack with the 211th Regiment against the eighth and ninth peaks while using the most veteran troops of the entire division, the 215th Regiment, to secretly move to the foot of Nine Peaks Mountain at night.

  On January 20, the 36th Division concentrated its artillery fire to heavily bombard the highlands northwest of Yanping. The 211st Regiment launched an attack under air cover and captured several supporting points of the enemy's position. In the afternoon, the 211st Regiment attacked the eighth and ninth peaks with two battalions, deceiving the defending troops into thinking that the entire 36th Division was launching a full-scale attack, and thus withdrew troops from the right flank to reinforce. Just as the battle for the eighth and ninth peaks was intense, the 215th Regiment suddenly launched an attack on the weak points of the enemy's defense, encountering only weak resistance, and occupied the fourth and fifth peaks in less than ten minutes. This victory completely shook the defenders' resolve, and their organized resistance along the Jiufengshan line quickly collapsed. Once Jiufengshan was lost, the defending troops at Yanping knew that their screen had been pierced and it would be difficult to hold on, so they contacted the Central Army to surrender on the next day. Chiang Kai-shek wrote a commendation order in his own handwriting after learning of the 36th Division's achievements, which was airdropped to the division by plane, and commended the entire army that night.

  The 36th Division advanced towards Gutian, a key town in northern Fujian, after recovering Yanping and merged with the Fourth Route Army led by Zhang Zhizhong. The three elite divisions of the Central Army converged on the front line in Fujian. Zhang Zhizhong saw that the city defense of Gutian was strong, so he sent someone to enter the city to persuade them to surrender. The garrison saw no hope of reinforcements and the enemy's strength increasing, while the loss of Yanping had a significant impact on the defenders. Therefore, they agreed to surrender, and the Central Army took Gutian without bloodshed. Almost simultaneously, Shuikou, another key town in northern Fujian, was also occupied by the Central Army, opening up the gates of Fuzhou. The Central Army gathered in southern Fujian was also advancing towards Xianyou. The Fujian people's government and the 19th Route Army were surrounded on all sides by the Central Army. Its leaders, Li Jishen, Chen Mingxu, Jiang Guangnai, Huang Qixiang, Chen Youren, and others, fled to Hong Kong by sea in a state of panic as the army approached. Only Cai Tingkai led the main force of the 19th Route Army to retreat towards Quanzhou. The 36th Division had a fierce battle with the rear guard of the 19th Route Army during the pursuit, and the commander of the 216th Regiment, Wang Zuolin, was killed in action. The commander of the 36th Division, Song Xilian, learned through interrogating prisoners that they were facing the 49th Division of the 19th Route Army, whose commander Zhang Yan was the deputy commander of the 61st Division during the January 28 Incident and had fought side by side with him. He wrote a letter to persuade Zhang to surrender. Zhang immediately replied, attaching a coded telegram to Yang Yongtai, the secretary-general of Chiang Kai-shek's Nanchang headquarters, revealing that he had been in contact with the Central Army all along.

  After the Central Plains War troops occupied Fuzhou, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Jiang Dingwen as the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Route Army, in charge of all troops in Fujian. The 87th Division took on the garrison task for Fuzhou and the eastern Fujian region, while the 88th Division returned to Nanjing.

  While the remnants of the 19th Route Army were surrounded in Quanzhou, Cai Tingkai saw that all was lost and left his troops. The Central Army sent planes to scatter leaflets over Quanzhou every day, stating the location of the Central Army and explaining that the 19th Route Army was completely surrounded, advising them to send a representative to negotiate surrender. At the same time, the Central Army sent the chief of staff of the 83rd Division, Fu Zhaoxin, to persuade the 19th Route Army to surrender (Fu was from Guangdong and was familiar with some high-ranking officers of the 19th Route Army). Under both military and political pressure, and with the support of Mao Weizhao and Zhang Yan, who had been in contact with the Central Army for a long time, the remnants of the 19th Route Army finally accepted the conditions proposed by the Central Army. Each army was reorganized into a division, with all division and regiment commanders replaced by new appointments from the Central Army. The original commanders of the 19th Route Army were either sent abroad or sent to study at the Military Academy or advanced education classes according to their wishes. After the agreement was signed, the remnants of the 19th Route Army left Quanzhou for Xianyou and Putian to reorganize. Because the anti-Chiang sentiment in the 19th Route Army was very strong, Chiang Kai-shek feared that something unexpected might happen, so he secretly ordered his own troops, the 36th Division, to take sudden action to confiscate the weapons of the remnants of the 19th Route Army. Later, these troops were sent to Henan and other places for retraining, with all officers above the rank of battalion commander replaced by graduates of the Central Army Military Academy. These divisions gradually became part of the Central Army. The 19th Route Army, which had fought bravely in the January 28 Incident, thus ceased to exist. And the German-style division, which had once fought side by side with them on the front line against Japan, became the vanguard of the suppression of the Fujian Rebellion, turning from sworn brothers into enemies facing each other, a truly lamentable situation.

  The 36th Division also took part in a major historical event during this period: the execution by firing squad of Qu Qiubai.

  Qu Qiubai, born in 1899, was a native of Changzhou, Jiangsu Province. His original name was Mao Dun, and his pen name was Xiong Bo, later changed to Qiubai. In 1920, he visited the Soviet Union, and in 1922, he joined the Chinese Communist Party. In early 1924, he was appointed by Chen Duxiu to participate in the work of establishing a revolutionary united front with the Kuomintang led by Sun Yat-sen, and attended the First National Congress of the Kuomintang, where he was elected as an alternate member of the Central Committee. He was re-elected as a member of the Central Committee at the Third to Fifth National Congresses. In August 1927, he presided over the Emergency Conference of the Central Committee (also known as the August 7 Conference), and was elected as the Secretary of the Provisional Political Bureau of the Central Committee. In July 1928, at the Sixth National Congress, he was re-elected as a member of the Central Committee and a member of the Political Bureau. He then attended the Sixth Congress of the Communist International, where he was elected as an Executive Committee member and a Presidium member, and served as the head of the Chinese delegation to the Communist International. In 1930, he returned to China, and in September of the same year, he presided over the Third Plenum of the Sixth Central Committee, which put an end to Li Lisan's "Left" adventurist errors. At the Fourth Plenum of the Sixth Central Committee in January 1931, he was subjected to ruthless attacks by Wang Ming and others, and was relieved of his leadership positions. In 1933, he went to the Soviet Area, where he served as an Executive Committee member of the All-China Federation of Labor, and as a People's Education Commissioner.

  In October 1934, the main force of the Red Army began the Long March. Qu Qiubai, who was seriously ill, could not follow the army on the Long March and was left in Ruijin.

  In early 1935, the situation in the Soviet area became more critical, and Qu Qiubai's illness worsened. The Central Committee decided to send him to Shanghai for medical treatment via Hong Kong. On February 11th, Qu Qiubai, He Shuheng, Deng Zihui, Xiang Ying's wife Zhang Liang, and others set out from Ruijin Jiubao, arriving at Tangwu, the location of the Fujian Provincial Committee. They were joined by Zhou Yuelin, the wife of Liang Botai, the People's Commissar for Justice and Acting People's Commissar for Internal Affairs of the Chinese Soviet Government. The Fujian Provincial Committee specially selected over 200 people to form an escort team to protect them along the way.

  On February 24, near Xiaoji Village in Shuikou Town, Rutian District, Changting County, Fujian Province, the escort team was discovered by local landlord armed forces and immediately reported to the Second Battalion of the Fourteenth Security Regiment of Fujian Province stationed locally. The second battalion immediately launched an attack on the escort team, and during the battle, the escort team was defeated, He Shuheng sacrificed, Deng Zihui led a few people to break through the siege, and Qu Qiubai, Zhang Liang, Zhou Yuelin and others who were not convenient for action were captured by the landlord armed forces "Yongyong Team" members Fan Jinzhu and Lai Zhongshun. Qu Qiubai falsely claimed that his name was Lin Qixiang, a doctor in the Red Army. Zhang Liang confessed to being Zhou Lianyu, who was kidnapped by the Red Army, and Zhou Yuelin confessed to being Huang Xiuying, a nurse of the Red Army. The commander of the Fourteenth Security Regiment, Zhong Shaoke, learned that the captured "Lin Qixiang" and others had carried Hong Kong dollars and gold, and most of the escort personnel were carrying pistols, so he suspected that Lin Qixiang might be an important person, and tortured Qu Qiubai overnight, but got nothing.

  On February 26, Qu Qiubai was taken to Shanghang and imprisoned in the county jail, his true identity remained unknown. It wasn't until April 10 that the 8th Division captured Wan Yongcheng's wife, the secretary of the Fujian Provincial Committee, that it was discovered Qu Qiubai had been captured in the area of Zuojiang. The commander of the 8th Division, Tao Shiyue, immediately wired Jiang Dingwen, the director of the Nationalist government's office in Fujian. Jiang Dingwen then ordered the 36th Division stationed in Changting and the Second Pacification District to thoroughly re-examine the prisoners. On April 25, the 14th Security Regiment, based on the order from the 36th Division, sent Lin Qixiang to the division headquarters in Changting and rearrested Zhang Liang and Zhou Yuelin, sending them to the headquarters of the Second Pacification District in Longyan. Zhang Liang and Zhou Yuelin then confessed that "Lin Qixiang is Qu Qiubai!" (Zhang and Zhou later publicly issued a "statement of repentance" and were each sentenced to 10 years imprisonment on September 20, 1935, but were released early on October 2, 1937.)

  On May 9, Qu Qiubai was escorted to Changting and detained at the headquarters of the 36th Division in Changting Middle School. The chief of staff of the 36th Division, Xian Yuqi, the head of the military law department Wu Songtao, and the head of the political training department Jiang Xianqi interrogated Qu Qiubai. Under the identification of the traitor Zheng Dapeng (who had worked in the Soviet District Education People's Committee), Qu Qiubai admitted his identity.

  Under the instruction of their superior Song Xiwen, all officers and soldiers of the 36th Division addressed Qu Qiubai as "Mr. Qu" and gave him preferential treatment in his daily life. On June 2nd, Chiang Kai-shek ordered Jiang Dingwen from Wuhan to execute Qu Qiubai immediately by shooting and verify with a photo. Due to the persuasion work of Wang Ao and Chen Jianzhong, who were still trying to persuade Qu to surrender, the execution was delayed. After Wang and Chen failed to persuade Qu to surrender, Jiang Dingwen and Li Mianfen sent urgent telegrams on June 15th, 16th, and 17th, urging the 36th Division to execute the death sentence quickly.

  On June 18, at 8:00 in the morning, the commander of the 36th Division's special operations company presented Qu Qiubai with a death warrant. Qu Qiubai wrote his final poem:

  "The setting sun shines erratically among the mountains,

  The sound of leaves falling into the cold spring is endless.

  I have endured ten years of hardship and struggle,

  My heart holds half a verse, empty of worldly attachments."

  At the same time, he calmly said: "Life has small rests and big rests. From now on, I will take a big rest." At 9:20, Qu Qiubai walked out of his cell accompanied by Jiang Xianqi, the head of the political training department of the 36th Division. He walked about 2,000 meters to a grassy area outside the west gate of Changting, near the Snake King Temple and the Youji Hospital. Along the way, Qu Qiubai held a cigarette in his hand, looked around calmly, and walked slowly, occasionally singing "The Internationale" in Russian and shouting slogans such as "Long live China!", "Long live the victory of the Chinese Revolution!", and "Long live [**]!". After arriving at the execution ground, Qu Qiubai sat cross-legged on the grass, smiled and nodded at the executioner, saying: "This place is very good!" He died by firing squad, calmly accepting his fate, at the age of 36.

  At noon on the same day, Song Xilun sent a telegram to Li Mianzhen: "Qiu Aibai has been executed by firing squad at 10 am this morning. Except for sending photos of the bandit and handling the process separately, I respectfully report first. Duty Song Xilun knocks." In the afternoon, Qiu Aibai's remains were buried in Panlonggang, Luohanling. ——Song Xilun expressed deep remorse for this event in his later years' recollections.

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