Transcription
Wuhan once stood as the cradle of revolution. It was the city where the Qing dynasty fell and a spirit of hope stirred across a humiliated nation. In the war against Japan, it became a rallying point of defiance against certain annihilation.
Now all that breaks the silence are the jack boots of the Quom Tang and the Chinese Communist Party on both sides of the mighty Yangze River. Once China's commercial artery, the mines and patrol ships have made peaceful navigation all but impossible. Now the Yang Sea separates two irreconcilable visions for the Middle Kingdom.
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On August 27th, 1945, Chiang Kai-shek and Mount Sadong toasted to celebrate the surrender of Japan. Even with their mutual distrust, American mediation finally brought the two men together. The peace was a fiction. Both sides rearmed in secret, preparing for war, even as they smiled across the negotiating table.
Not long after, the talks in Chonqing and Nanching inevitably broke down. It quickly became clear that the communists were using their time far more effectively than the nationalists. The Quuoman Tang, mighty as it was on paper, was paralyzed in practice. The ruling party was thoroughly corrupt, incapable, and unlikable. Nationalist forces treated former collaborators from Wang Jing Wei's puppet regime with suspicion and brutality, pushing many straight into the open arms of the communists.
The greatest threat to nationalist governance undoubtedly came from Manuria. Before the Japanese left, General Albert Cody Wedomire, who acted as chief of staff for Chiang Kai-shek, petitioned the joint chiefs of staff to dispatch seven American divisions to oversee the Japanese surrender. Aside from providing the Quuoman Tang with considerable Japanese armaments, the United States was duly compensated as they obtained a front row seat to the USSR's occupation policy in Manuria. While the Soviets handed over their huge stockpiles of captured guns to the communists, Mao's ties to the Kremlin were growing more and more obvious. Despite all his efforts, the skilled diplomat Zu and Li couldn't shake the perception that CCP and Soviet ambitions in China were one and the same.
In Washington, fear was mounting as diplomacy continued to fail. With trust in Mao at an all-time low, President Harry S. Truman authorized magic to restructure the nationalist military machine in early 1946 under the command of psychological warfare specialist General Robert A. Mccclure. The worst issues of corruption in the nationalist armies were dealt with American assistance. A clearly defined operating procedure was established and Merritt assumed a much greater role. Competent generals like Lee Zongren began operating in more powerful positions and with a much better defined mandate.
Still, the Gumentang strategies and policies continued to undermine their own war effort. Against the better judgment of his American aids, Chiang Kaishek committed to an all-out assault against communist positions in northern China. In a sweeping offensive, the General Eimo hurled his armies into communist strongholds, which yielded few results. Over a 100 brigades stormed communist territories, but Mao's passive defense strategy formed an effective counter. The communist guerrillas would only fight when they were certain to win and gladly seated territory when it meant that the Guom Tang would stumble into it, dragging public support down with them.
Aside from symbolic victories like the capture of the former CCP headquarters in Yanan in 1947, the results were troubling. In a year, the People's Liberation Army had inflicted irreplaceable losses on the nationalist forces. Over a million troops were killed or defected to the Mauists, either through political opportunism or the extensive communist indoctrination programs. A break across the Yellow River provided Mao with a massive footing in the North China plane. In the areas under his control, Mao captured the hearts and minds of the Chinese peasantry. The communist program of immediate land reform swayed millions on his side. As the chairman put it, the people is the sea and the soldiers are the fish. Without water, the fish can never survive.
For the Quoman Tang, their military reforms simply weren't enough to sustain the war effort. Special envoy George Marshall had already attempted to pressure the party into reforming its corrupt, reactionary, and counterproductive elements by withholding further American aid. However, Chang resisted attempts to loosen his grips on power, depriving the nationalists of their muchneeded US aid, which in turn left the Quuoman Tang degraded and splintered as internal strife took hold.
In General Wedomire's eyes, a communist dominated China was on the horizon, and the immediate assistance of munitions, technical assistance, and tactical advice was instrumental in the survival of the nationalists. Thanks to Wedomire's report, the United States ramped up its assistance to the Quuoman. The report also urged the nationalists to appeal to the United Nations for immediate action to bring about a cessation of hostilities in Manuria.
Mao was also concerned that a UN enforced ceasefire could deny him control of the powerful northeastern regions. So he ordered General Lynn Bao's northeast field army onto the offensive. Although the nationalist troops inflicted heavy losses, the repeated blows of General Lynn proved too powerful. By the fifth communist offensive, the nationalist positions in Manuria had been cut off from the mainland. Only an aggressive breakout prevented the collapse of an entire government army.
Despite the successful retreat of the nationalists out of Manuria, the communists were nonetheless on the offensive. Now with control over the northeast and much of the Shandong Peninsula, generals Lee Zongren and Ba Chongi urged Chang to retreat south and defend Bangu and the Huai River. Bay, who led the nationalist defense, faced two communist field armies supported by hundreds of thousands of farmers. Day and night, a vicious struggle engulfed the region. Communist guerrillas harassed nationalist troops, but improvements in organization and US aid resulted in more disciplined units who were able to hold their own. Assisting them was the nationalist air force, who flew countless sorties to support the defense.
But there was no stopping the offensive. A great human wave from General Cheni's third field army tore a gap in the nationalist lines, encircling the main forces of the seventh army east of Shuha. Fortunately for the nationalists, reinforcements from the southeast managed to break the siege in 11 days of vicious fighting. However, both armies were severely weakened and Shujo was nearly surrounded. Realizing the futility of holding on to the central plains under these numbers, Bai ordered a fall back toward the Hawaii River and not long after toward the nationalist capital Nanjing.
The defeat at Huih High shattered morale within nationalist ranks. As Beijing and its surrounding provinces soon fell, the war's attritional toll left soldiers exhausted and commanders scrambling for answers. Secretly, Chang prepared to make Taiwan a final fortified redout against the communists. But outwardly, he was determined to hold at the Yang Sea. After all, thanks to the timely intervention of Bai Chongi, the nationalists emerged battered but alive.
While the nationalists prepared to hold the South of the Yangze, the tight relationship between the Soviet Union and the Chinese Communists was cracking at the seams. Stalin became increasingly worried about American assistance as well as the communists failure to deliver a final crippling blow. As a result, he repeatedly urged Mao not to cross the Yangze River. Furiously, Mao rejected the ideas of his benefactor. The chairman was not willing to turn China into a northern and southern dynasty.
Eager to press his advantage, Mao and his communist forces set out to cross the Great Yangze River over the night of April 21st, 1949. But the nationalists were prepared. With their superior navy, air force, and over 700,000 men, Lee Sangren had turned the southern bank into a fortress that was virtually impervious to frontal assaults. The crossing turned into a bloodbath even as the first communist units boarded their junks, coming under fire from the Jong-y fortress and the Chinese Navy.
As the People's Liberation Army's casualties rapidly piled up, the battle escalated into a major international crisis. Four British warships found themselves under bombardment by communist artillery, insisting that they had the right of passage across the river. This event would later be known as the Amethyst incident, which caused the United Kingdom, France, and the United States to threaten direct intervention against the CCP. Stalin, in an attempt to dissuade these nations from actually sending troops to China, put the Soviet military in the Far East in full combat readiness. It was a stalemate. Ma's forces could not cross into southern China. While the Americans and Soviets appeared to be mere inches from allout war, true conflict was only avoided by the agreement between the American and Soviet ambassadors to China.
In Nanjing, they agreed that the fighting in China would cease along the Yangze River. The Communists were to control the northern part of the river, while the nationalists were to control the southern part. In return, the United States would recognize the Soviet Union's special privileges in Manuria. Unable to challenge the political will of their mutual benefactors, Mao and Chang reluctantly accepted.
Tensions between the Republic in the south and the People's Republic in the north remained skyhigh. Although a nominal peace prevailed, the Chinese people found themselves torn between the excesses of both their governments. In the north, Mao's relentless land reform movement and campaign to suppress counterrevolutionaries led to the deaths and arrests of millions, while Chang's white terror had similar effects. Authoritarianism on both sides triggered widespread uprisings as communist agitators took to the streets of Shanghai and Guanghou. While in the People's Republic, the CCP had to deal with a vicious Islamic insurgency under the leadership of Ma Buffet.
[Music]
The war situation has developed, not necessarily to Japan's advantage. As Radio Tokyo broadcast Japan's readiness to surrender on August 10th, 1945, both Chiang Kaishek and Mount Song knew that a race for influence had begun. Only 11 days later, before any formal surrender ceremony had even taken place, communist guerrillas launched bold offensives, attempting to seize control of Shanghai, Wuhan, and Tanin.
Joseph Stalin had sternly warned the chairman against launching an intervention too early. The CCP had nowhere near the forces of the Quuoman Tang, and taking the blame for initiating a civil war was a political luxury Mao could simply not afford. But the chairman was undeterred. In his mind, Stalin's misplaced conservatism prevented the CCP from making a true revolution.
Explosions rocked China's eastern seabboard. The defenders, men formerly loyal to Wang Jingi's puppet regime, mounted fierce resistance as Chiang Kaishek rushed his troops across the former territory of the reorganized government. Although Mao scored some minor victories, like in the Baoying region, setbacks in larger urban centers were more significant. The communists were unable to break the belleaguered defenders before the woman Tang with considerable American logistical aid reinforced their positions.
By September 9th, Japanese General Yatsutsugo Okamu, formerly surrendered to Chang's deputy in the auditorium of the Central Military Academy in Nanjing. At this stage, two things were undeniable. A full-scale resumption of the Chinese Civil War had begun, and the communists were to blame.
For President Truman, the chaos of 1945 demanded clarity. He dispatched a mission led by George Marshall to determine how to achieve a unified, democratic China. Marshall initially believed a ceasefire and a restored united front could accomplish this. But with the August offensives already ruining any chance of peace and reconciliation, Key concluded a united China with the Communists was unrealistic.
Many Americans feared direct US intervention would provoke Soviet involvement. Nonetheless, to aid the nationalists, Truman ramped up support for the Quuoman Tang. Military aid and advisers permeated the Quuoman Tangs government and command structure. While Marshall reluctantly became Chiang Kaishek's adviser, at his insistence, the Quuoman Tang slowly implemented fiscal, political, and anti-corruption reforms. The relationship between the two men was nevertheless troubled. Marshall saw Chang as a stubborn autocrat. While Chang was hardly ready to allow Marshall to set his strategy, the General Eimo was still traumatized by his fierce rivalry with the American commander in China, Burma, and India. Joseph Stillwell, who Marshall had strongly supported.
Marshall's tenure as Chang's main adviser didn't last long. When he was promoted to serve as Secretary of State in January of 1947, Albert Wedomire replaced him as Chang's personal adviser. The two men had a far better relationship. Wedomire's deep anti-communist convictions as well as his successes against Japan in the Second World War earned him a much greater sense of trust by the General Eimo.
With Wedomire's help, Chang went further. The April 1947 government reorganization purged many of the most corrupt and reactionary elements in Nanjing. By November, a new constitutional government was formed, guided by American advisers and investments. The economy slowly but surely began to recover. All across nationalist held China, inflation decreased and the reconstruction of communications, mines, and industries provided much needed economic revenue as schools, newspapers, and public welfare activities reopened. Chang publicly initiated the first careful steps toward land reform.
While Cuomo Tang reforms progressed slowly, military reorganization under US guidance paid off. In March 1947, Yanan fell to nationalist forces. The situation in Manuria remained perilous. Eager to seize the initiative, nationalists launched a powerful attack between Qendai and Jingho in May 1947. Though communists resisted fiercely, they temporarily abandoned the area to nationalist armies under Bai Chongi. Despite Mao's land reform popularity and propaganda, communists lacked support to resist concentrated nationalist assaults. Their popularity was hampered by Quuom Tangs reforms and lingering blame for plunging China into chaos in 1945.
Though far from defeated in Manuria, the communists were rapidly losing momentum in a war where defeat engenders defeat. There had been few major victories and the KMT's agenda undermined the CCP's platform. Eager to reclaim momentum, the PLA seized the offensive in fall 1947 using tanks and artillery largely supplied by the Soviets, Ma's forces severed the critical railway west of Shenyang and isolated major nationalist garrisons. With some of their best forces cut off, the nationalist government had to choose. Order a breakout or resort to an airlift. Both were risky, but the government chose the latter, even when the airlift relied almost entirely on American forces to resupply nationalist strongholds.
The sieges of Chang Chun, Jingo, and Shenyang saw some of the bloodiest combat of the Civil War. Fierce house-to-house fighting reminded many nationalist veterans of the brutal defense for Shanghai 10 years prior. Communist artillery thundered overhead while Quuomman tank planes flew sorty after sorty to assist defenses and guarantee supplies. The situation was precarious since the winter freeze only added to the miserable conditions on both sides. Mao did not get the victory he desperately needed.
With the tactical momentum in Manuria stalling, the communists decided on a gambit. Mao shifted focus to the southwest. Communist forces steadily gained ground near the Shandong Peninsula and surrounding provinces. If they could overwhelm nationalist defenses, it would consolidate control north of the Yangze, cut off Beijing, and make continued air support to Manurion cities impossible.
In March 1948, communist forces struck with full force, launching wave after wave against nationalist strongholds across the northern plains. The continued defense of the three besieged cities offered enormous propaganda boosts for the nationalists, invigorating their morale. So when waves of guerilla fighters barreled down on defenders near the Hai River and Beijing, the men were motivated to stand firm. Mao's forces battered nationalist positions around the Shujo, but Chang's men would not budge. Again, Huan Tang air superiority proved crucial. In one incident, a flanking maneuver by General Chen Yi was narrowly spotted by aerial reconnaissance, enabling the nationalist second army to deliver a crushing counterattack. An entire communist army, 170,000 strong, was annihilated, and Chen Yi was killed.
With Cheny's defeat, the Quuoman Tang launched a full-scale counteroffensive. The communist lines were in disarray as they failed to find a clear response. With support from Huang Wei's 12th Army from the west, nationalist forces swept through the plane, seizing vast territories across Hanan and Shandong. With nationalists arriving in force to support Beijing and Tanzhin's defense, Mao realized the procarity of his position, retreated behind the Great Wall east of the capital, hoping to turn the momentum there.
The nationalists advanced far faster than expected. Communist commanders had predicted it would take weeks for Chang's forces to reach the Great Wall. Instead, they arrived in just 20 days. The nationalists advanced steadily along the inner Gulf of the Bohigh Sea, retaking all the strong points along the Tianin Shenyang railroads that the Communists had taken the year prior. Without adequate time to prepare a united defense, communist forces were pushed back time and time again by the relentless firepower of the Quoman tanks newly invigorated army.
Simultaneously, a large nationalist force reinforced by the garrison in Beijing veered northwest in an attempt to seize the logistics hub of Changdu. Although the harsh mountainous terrain favored the red defenders, concentrated aerial bombardment softened defenses enough for nationalist troops to penetrate southwest of the city. Communist forces scrambled to contain the breach. But the military superiority of US-trained and supplied Gumentang units was too powerful to overcome. Entire divisions switched alignments to the nationalists, jeopardizing any attempt by the PLA to restore front lines at the Great Wall.
The southern thrusts of the nationalists advanced far less rapidly. Entrenched communists made the nationalists pay in blood for every stretch of ground gain. But Chang, adamant that a decisive victory was within reach, ordered his armies to continue. With the communists failing to rest control of Shenyang, Mao had unlimited reinforcement options. Here was an opportunity to encircle and destroy the communists.
In July 1948, the nationalist armies engaged the PLA in a crucial battle at Shanghai Pass, where the Great Wall of China meets the sea. The communists were entrenched and numerous. As a result of the General Isimo's impatience, nationalist armies suffered staggering casualties attempting to break through. Repeated aerial attacks and naval bombardments sought to dislodge the communists, but every time a concentrated rush forced the nationalists back. Overwhelming the communists here was impossible.
While Chang locked communist armies at the pass, the seventh army under Huang Deau broke through the lines near Ling Guan and rushed for Soong near the shore. As the banner of the White Sun was raised at the local railway station, the communists found themselves encircled. With nowhere to go, nationalist armies closed in on the pass from both sides. Encircled and overwhelmed. Over half a million communist troops were captured. Hundreds of thousands defected to the nationalists while generals like Lino and Deng Xiaoing were captured. Mao's defeat was complete.
Soon after the white sun banner adorned the top of the Tanaman gate. Below thousands of people gathered to witness the general make a speech. With his high-ranking military advisers and generals next to him, Chiang Kaishek declared the end of the civil war and victory of the armed forces of the Republic of China. The military parade of the anti-communist armies made clear to all who watched that the woman Tang against all odds asserted itself as the ruling force in the Middle Kingdom. Congratulatory telegrams came in soon after with President Truman's message being especially delighted in tone.
With their crushing defeat at Shanghai Pass, the military machine of the Chinese Communist Party was shattered. In a steady series of campaigns reminiscent of the encirclement campaigns in the 1930s, Chang's forces eliminated lingering communist cells in southern China, Shandong, and Manuria. Those communists lucky enough to avoid encirclement, including Mao Sedong and Joe Enli, retreated into Mongolia under the protection of Joseph Stalin. They continued to rile the people against nationalist rule and raid the manurion frontier.
Although the 1947 constitutional convention had curbed the most excessive aspects of Quuomanang rule, the grip of the white sun on the republic's politics was as tight as ever. Opposition parties were unheard of as Chang repeatedly banned emerging movements with the accusation of subversion. Additionally, the general Isimo set his sights on reinccorporating former Shing Jang and Taibet, which he annexed in 1949 and 1950, respectively.
By the mid 1960s, China once again sought its place in the world. While firmly anti-communist, it resisted full integration into the Western block. Instead, the Republic of China pursued a place in the world as a great power free from imperialist influences. Relations with the United States remained amiable on the surface, while ties with the United Kingdom, France, and Portugal were tense. None were as strained, however, as the outright hostile relationship with the Soviet Union. And when a series of border clashes erupted in the mid 1960s, the balance in power of Asia once again stood on a knife's edge.
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