Battle for Changsha (1942)
| date | December 24, 1941 - January 15, 1942 |
|---|---|
| place | Changsha in the southern Chinese province of Hunan |
| output | Chinese victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 300,000 soldiers | 120,000+ soldiers, air force, navy |
1937–1939
Marco Polo Bridge - Beijing-Tianjin - Chahar - Shanghai ( Sihang warehouse ) - Beijing-Hankou railway - Tianjin-Pukou railway - Taiyuan ( Pingxingguan , Xinkou ) - Nanjing - Xuzhou ( Tai'erzhuang ) - Henan - Lanfeng - Amoy - Wuhan ( Wanjialing ) - Canton - Hainan - Nanchang - ( Xiushui) - Chongqing - Suixian-Zaoyang - ( Shantou ) - Changsha (1939) - South Guangxi - ( Kunlun Pass ) - Winter Offensive - ( Wuyuan )
1940–1942
Zaoyang-Yichang - Hundred Regiments - Central Hubei - South Henan - West Hebei - Shanggao - Shanxi - Changsha (1941) - Changsha (1942) - Yunnan-Burma Road - Zhejiang-Jiangxi - Sichuan
1943–1945
West Hubei - North Burma and West Yunnan - Changde - Ichi-gō - Henan - Changsha (1944) - Guilin – Liuzhou - West Henan and North Hubei - West Hunan - Guangxi (1945) - Manchukuo (1945)
The Battle of Changsha , which lasted from December 24, 1941 to January 15, 1942, was the third Japanese attempt to take the city of Changsha in the central southern Chinese province of Hunan during the Second Sino-Japanese War .
overview
The Third Battle of Changsha was the Japanese Army's first major offensive in China after the United States entered the Pacific War through the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor . It was carried out by around 120,000 soldiers, divided into four divisions . The National Revolutionary Army of the Kuomintang under General Xue Yue stood against it with 300,000 men. They managed to encircle the Japanese , so they had to withdraw and the capture of Changsha failed.
Course of the battle
On December 27th, the 3rd, 6th and 40th Japanese Divisions rallied at Yueyang and advanced in three columns across the Xinqiang River. Then they tried to cross the Miluo River to reach Changsha again. In return, the Chinese formed a deep indentation around the city and used snipers on the Luoyang River . Halfway between the Miluo and Changsha, the Japanese ranks encountered strong Chinese resistance. The eastern units were forced to take a detour even further east, while the other two columns of march moved closer together than originally planned. On their advance south, the Japanese were able to successfully fight three Chinese divisions, but not destroy them, as they retreated to the eastern mountains.
Changsha has been completely evacuated. Only the Chinese army and about 160 civilians who wanted to help the defenders remained in the city. On December 31, the Japanese stormed the southeastern defensive positions, but were unsuccessful. After that, they tried the south and east sides of the city while the north was under heavy artillery fire . The Japanese managed to break through the first line of defense, but the second, near the city center, offered fierce resistance.
On January 1st, the Chinese launched a surprising counterattack with heavy weapons, resulting in many victims among the Japanese. Around the same time, the remaining Chinese units stormed back from the mountains into the city to cut off the Japanese supply routes. They received help from local guerrilla fighters . The Japanese lines collapsed on January 4th. Three Japanese divisions were trapped and requested assistance from the 9th Independent Mixed Brigade stationed in Yueyang. On January 9th, they attempted a relief attack , but were thrown back by the Chinese in heavy fighting without being able to free the trapped units. The Japanese tried to escape through the Luoyang River shortly afterwards, not knowing that the Chinese snipers were still lurking there. The river crossing was only possible with high losses. The Japanese reached Xinqiang on January 15th and thus escaped the cauldron.