650:
sped up toward
Ganquan. At 2:00 PM on October 1, 1935, the nationalist reinforcement walked directly into the ambush the communists had set up for them. The 241st Regiment of the communist 81st Division launched a head-on surprise attack, while the cavalry regiment of the communist 78th Division struck from behind, cutting off the nationalists' escaping route. Meanwhile, the communist 75th Division and the communist 78th Division attacked simultaneously from both flanks. The unsuspecting nationalist reinforcement was cut off and isolated in two separate regions: in the Lesser Labor Mountain Hamlet (Xiaolaoshan Cun, 小劳山村) to the southwest of the Greater Labor Mountain, and the region of Elm Valley. After five hours of fierce fighting, the trapped 110th Division of the nationalist 67th Army was annihilated, suffering over a thousand fatalities, with every officer of brigade level and above killed, including the divisional commander He Lizhong (何立中). The other thirty-seven hundred nationalist troops were captured alive by the enemy, along with over three thousand rifles, over a hundred eighty machine guns and twelve artillery pieces, and over three hundred military horses.
599:
posture, stationed them outside the communist base without make any daring moves to attack the enemy. Chiang Kai-shek, the nationalist commander-in-chief who was thousands miles away was powerless to do anything about the situation for the time being, since he had to take up the command despite being far away from the battlefield, due to the fact none of the warlords allied with him trusted each other and would take orders from each other, letting along cooperating and helping each other. A stalemate was reached and lasted nearly a month, providing ample time for the communists to rest and regroup. By mid-September, 1935, the 25th Army of the
Chinese Red Army reached the communist base, joining their comrades to further boost their strength. The Chinese Red Army was reorganized as the 15th Legion, consisted of the 25th, 26th, and 27th armies, totaling more than seven thousands regulars.
904:
633:. The communists realized that the nationalists had overstretched themselves in the rugged terrain and decided to send a portion of their force to besiege the town of Ganquan, in order to lure the nationalists to the rescue. Once the nationalist reinforcement was out of the protection of the city walls and their fortifications to save their communication lines, it would be ambushed by the communist main force waiting in the regions of the Greater Labor Mountain (Dalaoshan, 大劳山) and the Lesser Labor Mountain (Xiaolaoshan, 小劳山). On September 21, 1935, communist 15th Legion marched from Eternal Plot (Yongping, 永坪) region of
663:, and nationalist forces in the north, east and west stopped their advance completely and dug in at the border of the communist base, while nationalist force in the south adopted a gradual push northward, in an attempt to tighten the stranglehold on the enemy by eventually squeezing the enemy into annihilation. As the nationalists took a defensive posture once again, the communists decided to strikeout and break the blockade. On October 20, 1935, the vanguard of the 107th Division of the nationalist 67th Army gradually advanced to the region of Elm Grove Bridge (Yulinqiao, 榆林桥) to the south of
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communist base. They would rather preserve their troops to protect their own turfs instead of sacrificing them for Chiang, so one by one, they withdrew their forces back to their own territory and the 3rd encirclement campaign against
Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet resulted in nationalist failure, and the communist base would survive and became the base from where the communists eventually succeeded in taking over entire China one and half a decade later.
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886:
485:. Chiang believed that launching another round of attack on the numerically and technically inferior enemy would prevent them from regrouping and rest, and when the enemy was still weak from last campaign, it would be easier to defeat because the communists had no other troops to rotate, while the nationalists could deploy their own fresh troops to overwhelm the enemy, resulting in final victory.
667:, but before the nationalists could consolidate their gain and fortify their position, they were suddenly attacked by the enemy at the dawn of October 25, 1935. By the afternoon, everything was over, the nationalists suffered several hundred fatalities and over eighteen hundred were captured alive by the enemy, including
649:
toward
Ganquan, attempted to rescue the besieged town, exactly as the communists had predicted. When the nationalist reinforcement reached the region of Forty-Mile Motel (Sishilipu, 四十里铺), one regiment was left behind to secure the rear and the rest of the 110th Division of the nationalist 67th Army
598:
The very first battle resulting in a nationalist defeat had serious undermined the nationalist morale, and the actions of nationalist forces of Shanxi and
Suiyuan had provided other warlords an excuse to follow: by claiming taking a much more prudent approach, all nationalist forces took a defensive
674:
The last defeat on
October 25, 1935 proved to be the last draw for the nationalists, and marked the end of the campaign. Witnessing the disastrous defeat of their comrades-in-arms, other nationalist warlords no longer wanted to continue the carry on the fight and exhausting their troops against the
644:
On
September 28, 1935, with the help of local communist guerrillas and militias, the 243rd Regiment of the communist 81st Division besieged the town of Ganquan, the capital of Ganquan County. At the dawn of September 29, 1935, the communist main force was deployed in the designated regions for the
603:
became the commander-in-chief of the legion, while Liu Zhidan (刘志丹) became the deputy commander-in-chief, while Cheng Zihua (程子华) became its political commissar. This newly formed 15th Legion of the
Chinese Red Army was supported by the local communist guerrillas and militia that also totaled more
590:
on August 21, 1935, and never attempt to engage the enemy again for the rest of the campaign, and the communists' eastern front was thus secured. The first and the only nationalist force that dared to venture into the communist base at the early stage of the campaign was driven out of the communist
497:
The nationalist strategy was to attack the communist base from three sides. At the southern front, nationalist troops would push northward slowly but steadily, while nationalist forces in the eastern and western fronts would strike simultaneously, squeezing the enemy to its eventual eradication.
488:
However, the nationalist effort was seriously hampered by the fact that all troops deployed were warlord troops, and all of them were wary of each other, as well as Chiang himself. Every warlord was worried that others (including Chiang) would sacrifice his troops to save their own. As a result,
561:
On August 20, 1935, the first shot of the third encirclement campaign against
Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet was fired when both sides made contact. Communist troops consisted of soldiers from the 26th Army, 27th Army of the Chinese Red Army and guerrillas totaling five regiments, launched their surprise
612:
Realizing the enemy was getting larger and stronger, thus more difficult to eradicate, nationalist forces switched to an offensive mode. While nationalists in the north, east and west still took a defensive posture to prevent enemy from escaping, nationalist force consisted of
658:
After suffering the huge defeat with nearly a division completely annihilated, the nationalists were forced to change their battle plan by adopting the once successfully blockade strategy used against the main communist base in
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Communist high command had correctly deduced the lack of trust among warlords, and the resulting lack of cooperation. They decided to first annihilate the nationalist force in the east (consisting of troops of
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warlords), and then to strike the nationalist 67th Army of the
Northeast China in the south. Once this main force of the nationalist forces was defeated, the warlords would retreat.
621:, while sending out one of the battalion of its 619th Regiment to guard Goat's Spring (Yangquan, 羊泉). The 110th Division and the 129th Division of the 67th Army were deployed from
671:'s favorite, Gao Fuyuan (高福源), one of the most capable regimental commanders of the nationalist crack unit, the 119th Regiment of the 107th Division of the nationalist 67th Army.
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of the communist 27th Army Wu Huanfa (吴焕发, 1907–1935) was killed in the battle, the communist with the highest ranking killed in the entire campaign.
617:'s 67th Army from northeastern China in the south begun their attack toward the enemy's heartland. The 107th Division of the 67th Army advanced to
578:
warlords. After suffering several hundred fatalities and over eighteen hundred being captured alive by the enemy within a single day of fighting,
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there was not much coordination and cooperation between nationalists themselves, and this weakness was exploited by the Communists to the maximum.
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Nationalist force at the northern front would take a defensive position, fighting a blocking action to prevent the enemy from escape.
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upcoming ambush. In the morning of October 1, 1935, the 110th Division of the nationalist 67th Army marched from
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along the highway, with the exception of the 685th Regiment of the 129th Division, which was stationed at
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637:, and two days later, they reached Wang Family's Plot (Wangjiaping, 王家坪), a region to the northwest of
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to launch the third encirclement campaign against Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet aimed to eradicate the local
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fought a month later as part of this third counter-encirclement campaign at Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet.
433:
attacks from August 1935 to October 25, 1935. Some Chinese communist historians also consider the
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Nationalists: 100,000+ troops in 5 armies totaling 15 divisions, with the main attack force as:
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Communists: 7,000+ troops and 7,000+ guerrillas and militias, Red Army regulars included:
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base and knocked out of action for good. Despite suffering very minor casualties, the
1326:
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attack at the eastern front in the regions of Mu Family's Plain (Mujiayuan, 慕家塬) of
717:
Memoirs of a Chinese Marshal: The Autobiographical Notes of Peng Dehuai (1898-1974)
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715:
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1101:
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151:
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743:"3. Red Army Health Services in Jiangxi and on the Long March, 1927–1936"
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23:
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570:, against the unsuspecting nationalist troops consisted of troops of
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than seven thousands, and both sides were ready for the next stage.
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successfully defended their soviet republic in the border region of
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27:
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warlords withdrew their troops back to the eastern bank of the
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once again immediately mobilized more than 100,000 troops of
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second encirclement campaign against the Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet
363:
third encirclement campaign against the Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet
21:
790:
381:in the local region. It was responded by the
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1126:Wartime perception of the Chinese Communists
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775:
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720:. Foreign Languages Press. p. 406.
401:), also called by the communists as the
22:Third encirclement campaign against the
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695:History of the People's Liberation Army
268:Resumption of hostilities (1945–1949)
7:
407:at Shaanxi–Gansu Revolutionary Base
1338:Campaigns of the Chinese Civil War
50:August 20, 1935 – October 25, 1935
14:
373:that was intended to destroy the
1266:ROC Government retreat to Taiwan
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685:Outline of the Chinese Civil War
233:Outline of the Chinese Civil War
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1255:Yangtze River Crossing campaign
256:Japanese invasion of Manchuria
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1295:Kuomintang Islamic insurgency
1270:PRC incorporation of Xinjiang
862:Constitutional ROC Government
747:Saving Lives in Wartime China
377:Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet and its
340:Kuomintang Islamic insurgency
1284:Wanshan Archipelago Campaign
1020:Chinese Communist Revolution
741:Watt, John R. (2014-01-01).
142:Liu Zhidan 刘志丹 (Early stage)
1348:Military history of Shaanxi
880:Republic of China on Taiwan
848:National Revolutionary Army
816:Principal belligerents and
690:National Revolutionary Army
566:, and Dingxianyan (定仙墕) of
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1092:Fujian People's Government
958:People's Republic of China
749:. Brill. pp. 73–114.
1353:Military history of Gansu
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755:10.1163/9789004256460_005
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943:People's Liberation Army
369:launched by the Chinese
1082:Chinese Soviet Republic
1058:Autumn Harvest Uprising
391:at Shaanxi–Gansu Soviet
246:Autumn Harvest Uprising
240:First Phase (1927–1937)
1305:Project National Glory
1280:Hainan Island campaign
1159:Double Tenth Agreement
1155:Chongqing Negotiations
1072:Encirclement campaigns
429:provinces against the
417:), in which the local
371:Nationalist Government
251:Encirclement campaigns
118:Commanders and leaders
16:1935 military campaign
1169:Jiaochangkou Incident
714:Peng, Dehuai (1984).
405:encirclement campaign
389:encirclement campaign
367:encirclement campaign
350:Cross-strait conflict
171:Casualties and losses
1122:Second United Front
1042:Nanjing–Wuhan split
990:Sun–Joffe Manifesto
839:National Government
593:political commissar
435:Zhiluozhen Campaign
1062:Guangzhou Uprising
1000:First United Front
345:China–Burma border
1333:Conflicts in 1935
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1206:Yu Zisan Incident
1173:Peiping rape case
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1054:Nanchang uprising
1050:Little Long March
1038:Shanghai massacre
828:Nationalist Party
806:Chinese Civil War
764:978-90-04-25646-0
727:978-0-8351-1052-5
445:After the failed
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219:Chinese Civil War
216:Campaigns of the
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100:Nationalist China
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37:Chinese Civil War
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1238:Pingjin campaign
1234:Huaihai campaign
1183:Marshall Mission
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1034:Shanghai Commune
1030:Nanking incident
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619:Luochuan County
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514:Order of battle
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915:Liberated Area
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1343:1935 in China
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415:陕甘革命根据地第三次反围剿
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38:
33:
29:
25:
20:
1259:
1248:
1217:
1194:
1046:715 Incident
883:
746:
736:
716:
709:
673:
657:
643:
611:
608:Second stage
597:
588:Yellow River
568:Suide County
564:Wubao County
560:
541:15th Legion
536:
517:
500:
496:
487:
444:
402:
386:
362:
360:
276:
231:
87:Belligerents
35:Part of the
1010:Canton Coup
654:Third stage
557:First stage
431:Nationalist
1327:Categories
1193:Operation
1102:Long March
701:References
601:Xu Haidong
522:67th Army
493:Strategies
483:communists
399:陕甘苏区第三次反围剿
383:Communists
275:Operation
261:Long March
152:Xu Haidong
1301:1961–1972
1291:1950–1958
1230:1948–1949
1195:Beleaguer
1189:1945–1949
1179:1945–1947
1118:1937–1946
1098:1934–1936
1088:1933–1934
1078:1931–1934
1068:1930–1934
1016:1927–1949
975:Post-1945
818:campaigns
550:27th Army
547:26th Army
544:25th Army
375:communist
329:Aftermath
318:Guningtou
277:Beleaguer
76:Communist
1262:Incident
1260:Amethyst
1251:Incident
1220:incident
971:Pre-1945
908:Red Army
679:See also
455:warlords
335:Xinjiang
308:Shanghai
288:Liaoshen
163:100,000+
158:Strength
55:Location
1218:Kiangya
661:Jiangxi
584:Suiyuan
576:Suiyuan
508:Suiyuan
475:Ningxia
471:Suiyuan
463:Shaanxi
441:Prelude
423:Shaanxi
411:Chinese
395:Chinese
365:was an
323:Wanshan
298:Pingjin
293:Huaihai
78:victory
66:, China
60:Shaanxi
24:Shaanxi
955:
761:
724:
647:Yan'an
627:Yan'an
580:Shanxi
572:Shanxi
504:Shanxi
477:, and
467:Shanxi
413::
397::
313:Hainan
176:9,000+
166:14,000
72:Result
30:Soviet
479:Gansu
427:Gansu
64:Gansu
28:Gansu
1276:1950
1244:1949
1212:1948
1202:1947
1165:1946
1151:1945
1133:1944
1108:1936
1026:1927
1006:1926
996:1924
986:1923
932:etc.
759:ISBN
722:ISBN
582:and
574:and
506:and
425:and
361:The
62:and
47:Date
1216:SS
751:doi
625:to
457:of
1329::
945:)
930:,
926:,
910:)
892:/
868:)
850:)
830:/
757:.
745:.
473:,
469:,
465:,
461:,
385:'
1128:)
1124:(
947:→
935:→
917:(
912:→
901:(
870:→
864:(
852:→
841:(
798:e
791:t
784:v
767:.
753::
730:.
409:(
393:(
208:e
201:t
194:v
179:?
26:–
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