The Situation in China
I
—The Haichow and Han River Campaigns—
Bureau of Information, War Department
FOLLOWING defeat in the battle for Hsuchow in May, 1938, certain Chinese troops found their way into northern Kiangsu Province where they gradually rallied and reorganized themselves. Their numerical strength totalled about six divisions under Generals Han Te-chin and Kiao Cheng-liu in addition to some 20,000 militiamen. With General Yu Hsueh-chung as commander-in-chief, they set up their headquarters at Haichow, the eastern terminus of the Lung-Hai Railway with the intention of disturbing peace and order in southern Shantung and northern Kiangsu Provinces and of cutting communications between the Provisional Government at Peking and the New Government at Nanking.
Since early in February, the Japanese expeditionary forces in North China had been conducting a clean-up campaign against the remnants of Chinese troops and guerillas in central Hopeh Province between the Peking-Hankow and Tientsin-Pukow Railway lines. On February 10th, Japanese troops concentrated on Kihsien, west of Tehsien on the Tientsin-Pukow Railway, and Nankung, where the Chinese forces had established bases, and succeeded in defeating and dispersing them. By stationing troops at various key points, the Japanese forces are now tracking down the Chinese soldiers who have fled in all directions.
Closely following this clean-up campaign, these forces launched a converging movement on Haichow, starting on February 25th.
A concerted drive on this town was made over five different routes, north, south, west, southwest and southeast. The Yamamoto detachment on February 25th started from Linyi in southeastern Shantung Province and advanced in three columns. The Nakajima detachment drove eastward along the Lung-Hai Railway from Sinanchen, after routing Chinese troops, about one division strong, under the direct control of General Yu Hsueh-chung on the way.
Still another detachment on the same day left Sutsien on the Grand Canal to join the converging movement to cut off the retreat of the enemy. It routed the enemy near Shuyang on the Shu River.
[Map: Map Showing February-March Progress of the Haichow Operations. Note as printed: "Chinese in the field include 5 divisions and 20,000 constabulary men."]
The Hirano unit on February 26th made a surprise landing at Antungwei in southern Shantung Province and pushed south on Haichow, pressing back enemy forces far superior in numerical strength. While the Ikushima detachment, in cooperation with the Navy, succeeded in effecting a landing at the mouth of the Kwan River, southeast of Haichow, on March 1st. This unit, after reducing semi-permanent defence-works nearby, completed the Japanese net around Haichow, pushing on the town from the south over overland and water routes. It also detailed squads of troops to the west to cut off the retreat of the enemy. The naval force at Lienyunchiang, the terminal port of the railway also closely cooperated in the converging movement on Haichow. The town fell into Japanese hands on March 4th.
Along the Han River
The Chinese troops under General Li Tsung-jen which were defeated in the battle for Hankow retreated to the Han River and effected a reorganization in the area east of the river.
On February 23rd, the Japanese forces which had been restoring order in the Wuhan area started a campaign against the Chinese in the region east of the Han River, advancing from the first patrol line which connected Tean, Yingcheng and Tsaoshih.
The Yamada detachment, in the southern sector, started from Tsaoshih on February 23rd and by the same evening occupied Yokowchen (Yokiakow) on the northern bank of the Han River, routing some 400 Chinese regulars between Tienmen and Yokowchen. The Sakuma and Kato mobile units also left Tsaochih that day and reached Paimiaotse on February 24th. Two days later both detachments advanced to the basin of the river, after engaging three divisions of the enemy which had taken up positions along a line extending north and south from Yenmenkow.
On March 2nd, the Japanese occupied Kuikowchen on the eastern bank of the river, from which they swung north and pressed hard on Anlu (Chunghsiang) also on the river in central Hupeh Province, where General Chang Tzu-chung, second in command of the Chinese troops in the so-called 5th war-zone had set up headquarters.
The Nambu detachment made its start on February 25th from Yingcheng. The Chinese forces of approximately two divisions, which had established strong positions of the Soviet type west of Kingshan and near Kwonkiaochen, were attacked. Under cover of darkness, the Nambu unit succeeded in outflanking the enemy. Effective combined attacks by the Japanese artillery and infantry
resulted in the dislodging of the Chinese on March 6th from their strongly built positions.
The Kondo and Kitajima detachments left Tean and Yingcheng on February 23rd. By the following day they had broken through the enemy positions at Luhotien and Tsungkiachen. A steady drive gave them Luhotsui on February 26th. After encountering two divisions of the enemy in the mountainous area west of Lufangtsui, the units advanced to Changshoutien on March 5th and cut off the retreat of Chinese troops to the north from Anlu.
In the Han River campaign, the Chinese left 1,750 dead and 85 prisoners during the period from February 23rd to March 6th. The Japanese suffered 41 killed.
Anlu is a strategically important town on the river, forming a junction of highways leading to Hiangyang in the north from Hankow and to Ichang in the west, also from Hankow. The successful conclusion of the Han River campaign now enables the westward expansion of the Japanese patrol lines in the region north of the Yangtze River.
II
—Activities of the Imperial Naval Forces—
Publicity Bureau, Navy Department
Since the latter part of January, the Japanese naval forces in China have directed efforts to the maintenance of peace and order in those areas under their control. In North China, landing parties have engaged in reducing the remnants of Chinese troops and guerillas, in spite of weather unfavourable for such campaigns. In Central and South China, the naval force is interrupting traffic against Chinese vessels along the coast. Naval units successfully covered the military detachments that effected a surprise landing on Hainan Island, while landing parties were active in various ports of the island.
In mid-February, the activities of the naval forces extended from the Gulf of Pechihli where ice floes were in evidence to the Tongking Gulf, on which a tropical sun was blazing.
The Naval Air Force
Naval air units resumed activities along all fronts late in January. Major attention was devoted to South China, although reconnoitring and bombing operations in North and Central China were conducted and protection from the air was given to the mine-sweeping operations on the Yangtze and Pearl Rivers, to the campaigns against remnants of Chinese troops and to the various landings of Japanese troops in widely scattered localities.
In South China, several naval air units on January 21st and 22nd visited various points in Kwangtung Province, including Swatow, Chaochow, Yeungkong, Tinpak and Tunghing and attacked troop trains, military craft and caravans of motor-lorries. Some naval planes flew over Suwen, a town at the southern extremity of Luichow (Leichow) Peninsula in Kwangtung Province and bombed the municipal offices there.
On January 23rd, the military barracks at Yamhsien on the Tongking Gulf were attacked, while suspicious junks off Santsao
Island were attacked and wrecked. On January 24th, Kweihsien in southern Kwangsi Province was raided and several military junks and depots of railway materials were effectively bombed.
On January 25th and 26th, the Tan River in Kwangtung Province was visited and two freighters loaded with munitions were bombed and blown up at points above Sunwui. A naval air squadron which visited the West River bombed and sunk a Chinese survey-vessel of the Chingyun type near Lukpo.
On January 27th and 28th, Sunwui and the West River were again raided and military craft were attacked.
On January 29th and 30th, several naval planes, defying unfavourable weather conditions again visited Yamhsien on the Tongking Gulf and bombed the local military establishments, after silencing the machine-gun nests there. Nanning in southern Kwangsi Province was also reached and the steel bridge under construction to the west of the town was bombed, while 30 motor-lorries on the road were bombed and destroyed, together with several junks loaded with building materials. A naval air unit which flew over Yeungkong in southwestern Kwangtung Province destroyed six military godowns. On January 31st an unidentified plane was observed over Weichow Island in the Tongking Gulf, some 30 miles due south of Pakhoi, by Japanese warships, which fired on and repelled it.
On February 2nd, a Japanese naval air unit, while reconnoitring the West River and Tinpak in southwestern Kwangtung Province bombed military craft, munition factories and godowns.
Kweiyang, capital of Kweichow Province, was raided on February 4th and the provincial government offices and military establishments there were bombed.
Ishan in Kwangsi Province was attacked on February 5th, where the airfield and military godowns were bombed and destroyed. Military godowns, munition factories and military craft were destroyed near Sunwui and Shiuhing.
Kweihsien in southern Kwangsi Province was visited on February 6th and yards for railway building materials, godowns and junks were bombed and destroyed.
On February 7th, Yamchow and Pakhoi on the Tongking Gulf were reached ; troop concentrations and military craft were attacked. On February 8th, the attack on southern Kwangtung Province was resumed and Pakhoi on the Tongking Gulf was again raided. The fort, military barracks, godowns, trenches and military craft were effectively bombed.
The Chinese troops in Kwangchowwan were ascertained to have
set up strong positions. At dawn, February 10th, a Japanese naval force left an undisclosed base to escort Japanese military forces and cover them in their landing operations on Hainan Island. After successfully escorting the military detachments and silencing the enemy forts at Siuying, Hoihow and Kiungchow, this naval force effectively covered the Japanese troops in landing at the northern part of Hainan Island.
In Central China, a Japanese naval air unit carried out a surprise raid on Nanyang in southwestern Honan Province on January 21st and obliterated the divisional headquarters of Chinese troops. Airfields, military godowns and other military establishments were also effectively bombed. A conflagration broke out in the hangars. The Japanese were not challenged by a single Chinese plane during their operations.
On January 25th and 26th, Chenglingchi, Yochow and Maanshan in northeastern Hunan Province were visited and military junks and godowns were bombed.
Japanese naval air squadrons participated in the clean-up campaign against the remnants of Chinese troops at Maanshan on January 30th. The following day the Chekan Railway was reached and steel bridges, military goods waggons, godowns and railway station establishments at key points were bombed.
A naval air squadron which raided the Chekan Railway attacked Hwangchitze southeast of Nanchang and bombed the station buildings there on February 2nd.
On February 4th, another naval air unit visited Wanhsien in Szechuan Province and bombed the military barracks and munition factories which were destroyed in an ensuing fire. The following day, the Chekan Railway was again raided. The Japanese were subjected to fierce anti-aircraft fire at Yuanchow and Yaokiachen, but they succeeded in destroying military barracks and railway station buildings at Yaokiachen and Fengling and also overturning goods trains at Yuanchow and Yaokiachen. Tangyang in Hupeh Province was raided on February 6th and the military barracks there were effectively bombed. A naval air unit which visited the Chekan Railway successfully disrupted the railway at Changshuchen and Tungsiang and bombed several troop trains.
In North China, several Japanese ship planes on January 23rd reconnoitred the neighbourhood of Tsingtao. The next day Lienyunchiang, the terminus port of the Lung-Hai Railway, and the Sheyang River in Kiangsu Province were reconnoitred from the air. On January 27th and 28th, the fort at Tengchow at the northern extremity of Shantung Peninsula was bombed, while three
steamers engaged in smuggling on the Sheyang River were also made targets of attack. On February 5th, a naval air squadron made reconnaissance flights over the mouth of the Kwan River, Wentang, the eastern extremity of Shantung Peninsula and Laichow in the northwestern part of the peninsula.
Simultaneously, the naval air force has been cooperating with the Japanese mine-sweepers in the latter's difficult operations on the Yangtze and Pearl Rivers and in the creeks flowing into them. as well as with the naval landing forces in cleaning up the remnants of Chinese troops and guerillas on both banks of those rivers.