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170-600: NRA victory [REDACTED]   Nationalist government [REDACTED] Beiyang government The Northern Expedition was a military campaign launched by the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Kuomintang (KMT) against the Beiyang government and other regional warlords in 1926. The purpose of the campaign was to reunify China , which had become fragmented in the aftermath of

340-508: A "costly operational disaster" for the northern warlords, whose armies had suffered heavy casualties, forcing them to retreat north across the Yangtze. Meanwhile, the strike continued until 24 March, when Bai ordered its end. The general disorder caused by the strike is said to have resulted in the deaths of 322 people, with 2,000 wounded, contributing to KMT feelings of unease with its wayward communist allies. With Shanghai under their control,

510-857: A Chinese man in Kobe, Japan in revenge for the Jinan incident and then he committed suicide. Deciding to avoid further confrontation with the Japanese, the NRA First Army continued its march north by going around Jinan to capture Dezhou on 13 May, while the NRA Second Army moved north along the Beijing–Hankou railway. Meanwhile, Yan Xishan's NRA Third Army proceeded toward Beijing from its base in Shanxi. The Second and Third armies met at Baoding on

680-567: A Japanese intervention in that region. Zhang, weary of KMT propaganda that linked him with the Japanese massacre at Jinan, responded that he would "not recognize Japan's interest in Manchuria", compromising his position. With his troops demoralised, the momentum of the NPA counter-offensive fizzled out by 25 May, and the Third Army was able to capture Zhangjiakou on that day, and Nankou Pass on

850-452: A boost to KMT forces. By 2 September, the NRA had nearly surrounded Wuchang. Whilst Wu and most of his army fled north to Henan province, his remaining troops in the walled city held out for over a month. His failure in the face of the NRA, however, left his hold on power and reputation broken. What remained of his army would disintegrate in the following months. With Wu Peifu's forces in retreat,

1020-587: A centre of leftist, Soviet-backed power within the KMT and constraining his authority. Communist-led trade unions staged near-constant demonstrations in Wuhan itself, and across the nominally KMT-controlled territories, establishing parallel structures of administration in areas liberated by the NRA. In the final success of the first phase of the expedition, the NRA went on to capture the Anhui provincial capital of Hefei and

1190-590: A consequence, a French concession was to exist alongside the International Settlement until World War II. The International Settlement began with the 138 acres of the British settlement, which was increased to 470 acres in 1848. The addition of the American area and a number of subsequent additions brought the total area to 5,584 acres. Including the 2,525 acres of French Concession, the total area

1360-709: A contender for the position of Sun's successor in the aftermath of his death. On 30 May 1925, Chinese students in Shanghai gathered at the International Settlement , and held demonstrations in opposition to foreign interference in China. Specifically, with the support of the KMT, they called for the boycott of foreign goods and an end to the Settlement, which was governed by the British and Americans. The Shanghai Municipal Police , largely operated by

1530-643: A four-pronged attack through Jiangsu, toward the warlord power base in Shandong. He Yingqin led the NRA First Army across the Yangtze at Zhenjiang , and moved to capture Haizhou . On 28 May, Li took Suzhou , while the Guominjun took Luoyang, forcing Zhang Zongchang to withdraw his forces to Shandong, and Zhang Xueliang to fall back north of the Yellow River . Following Xueliang's retreat, Feng Yuxiang moved east from Luoyang to Zhengzhou . Finally, on 2 June,

1700-603: A grand total of 515 divisions . However, many divisions were formed from two or more other divisions, and were not active at the same time. At the apex of the NRA was the National Military Council, also translated as Military Affairs Commission. Chaired by Chiang Kai-Shek, it directed the staffs and commands. It included from 1937 the Chief of the General Staff, General He Yingqin , the General Staff,

1870-561: A group of concessions that existed during late Imperial China and the Republic of China , which were governed and occupied by foreign powers, and are frequently associated with colonialism and imperialism . The concessions had extraterritoriality and were enclaves inside key cities that became treaty ports . All the concessions have been dissolved in the present day. The emergence of foreign concessions in Imperial China

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2040-552: A link-up. The war involved over 1,000,000 of which 300,000 became casualties. Chiang's forces proved themselves capable even when outnumbered routing the southern forces by July, however in the north Chiang's forces were defeated and he himself narrowly avoided capture in June only when the northern forces stopped due to the defeat of the southern forces did the north stabilise. Chiang began negotiations for peace with Zhang as an intermediary however Feng and Yan believing themselves to be on

2210-1082: A means for the KMT to unify China during the Warlord Era , the National Revolutionary Army fought major engagements in the Northern Expedition against the Chinese Beiyang Army warlords, in the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) against the Imperial Japanese Army and in the Chinese Civil War against the People's Liberation Army . During the Second Sino-Japanese War, the armed forces of

2380-475: A native of Zhejiang, was able to convince Xia to side with the KMT. Following his defection, Xia launched an attack on Sun-controlled Shanghai, but was almost immediately forced to withdraw back to Zhejiang; Sun had detected Xia's plans days earlier. Sun's forces subsequently marched on Zhejiang, crushing the rebellion by 23 October. Xia was executed, along with hundreds of his troops, while thousands of civilians were massacred at Xia's former headquarters. Alongside

2550-737: A new organisation. The Years below relate to the Minguo calendar which starts in 1911. Therefore, the 22nd year division is the 1933 division. The above template was only applied to divisions serving in Guangxi during the 5th encirclement campaign. A new Plan was devised in 1935 to raise 60 new divisions in 6 month batches with divisions to be raised from divisional districts tied to them, in an aim to enhance cohesion and communication as well as simplifying recruitment, officers however were to be recruited nationally and placed into these divisions to disrupt regional affiliations. The 24th Year New Type division

2720-594: A point of contention between Joseph Stalin and Leon Trotsky in the Soviet Union . Stalin encouraged the CCP to co-operate with the KMT on multiple occasions, as he believed the KMT was more capable of completing the Chinese revolution. Trotsky was against collaboration with the KMT, as he believed that it was opposed to the concept of proletarian revolution . The Comintern backed Stalin's decision to financially support

2890-715: A series of decisive victories against the Beiyang Army . As they approached Beijing , Zhang Zuolin , leader of the Manchuria -based Fengtian clique , was forced to flee, and was assassinated shortly thereafter by the Japanese. His son, Zhang Xueliang , took over as the leader of the Fengtian clique, and in December 1928, announced that Manchuria would accept the authority of the nationalist government in Nanjing. With

3060-534: A subculture inspired by other eras that China was under foreign domination. Secret societies controlled drug trade, gambling, and prostitution in Shanghai. Western outlaws also created organized crime groups, in one instance creating an "orientalist mini crime empire" in 1930s Shanghai. From the 1919 Karakhan Manifesto to 1927, diplomats of the Soviet Union would promise to revoke concessions in China, but

3230-479: A total of 19 established national concessions. In these concessions, the citizens of each foreign power were given the right to freely inhabit, trade, perform missionary evangelization, and travel. They developed their own sub-cultures, isolated and distinct from the intrinsic Chinese culture , and colonial administrations attempted to give their concessions "homeland" qualities. Churches, public houses , and various other western commercial institutions sprang up in

3400-502: The 1911 Revolution . The expedition was led by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek , and was divided into two phases. The first phase ended in a 1927 political split between two factions of the KMT: the right-leaning Nanjing faction , led by Chiang, and the left-leaning faction in Wuhan , led by Wang Jingwei . The split was partially motivated by Chiang's Shanghai Massacre of Communists within

3570-556: The 3rd , 6th , 9th , 14th , 36th , 87th , 88th , and the Training Division . Another German general, Alexander von Falkenhausen , came to China in 1934 to help reform the army. However, because of Nazi Germany's later cooperation with the Empire of Japan, he was later recalled in 1937. For a time, during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Communist forces fought as a nominal part of the National Revolutionary Army, forming

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3740-474: The Battle of Shanghai and Battle of Nanjing . The newly provided tanks, armoured cars, and trucks from the Soviet Union and Italy made it possible to create the only mechanized division in the army, the 200th Division . This Division eventually ceased to be a mechanized unit after the June 1938 reorganization of Divisions. The armoured and artillery Regiments were placed under direct command of 5th Corps and

3910-676: The Chinese Army in India called X Force, and Chinese Expeditionary Force in Yunnan, called Y Force . The US government repeatedly threatened to cut off aid to China during World War 2 unless they handed over total command of all Chinese military forces to the US. After considerable stalling, the arrangement only fell through due to a particularly insulting letter from the Americans to Chiang. By

4080-403: The Chinese Civil War the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) was known to have used penal battalions from 1945 to 1949. A unit made up of deserters and those accused of cowardice, the penal battalion was giving such tasks as scouting ahead of the main forces to check for ambushes, crossing rivers and torrents to see whether they were fordable, and walking across unmapped minefields. The military

4250-668: The Chinese Communist Party were nominally incorporated into the National Revolutionary Army (while retaining separate commands), but broke away to form the People's Liberation Army shortly after the end of the war. With the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of China in 1947 and the formal end of the KMT party-state, the National Revolutionary Army was renamed the Republic of China Armed Forces , with

4420-684: The Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army units, but this co-operation later fell apart. Women were also part of the army's corps during the war. In 1937 Soong Mei-ling encouraged women to support the Second Sino-Japanese War effort, by forming battalions, such as the Guangxi Women's Battalion . Troops in India and Burma during World War II included the Chinese Expeditionary Force (Burma) ,

4590-512: The Generalissimo. However, Chinese industry was incapable of producing the artillery or infantry guns in large quantities needed for the 60 division plan and German imports were not forthcoming. Mortars were introduced as substitutes for the infantry guns and later as a substitute for artillery. Horses were also lacking as the new division required many of them and Chinese divisions often used mules oxen or even buffalos as substitutes for

4760-565: The Nanjing Incident . British and American naval forces were sent to evacuate their respective citizens, resulting in a naval bombardment that left the city burning and at least forty people dead. He's forces arrived on 25 March, and on the next day, Cheng and He were finally able to put an end to the violence. Chiang Kai-shek's faction accused Lin Boqu of planning the unrest, viewing it as an attempt to turn international opinion against

4930-651: The North China Plain . While the Second Army besieged that city, the Third Army went north toward Zhangjiakou , gateway to Beijing. On 17 May, however, the forces of Zhang Zuolin launched a 200,000-man counter-offensive, forcing the First Army back and the Second Army 48 kilometres (30 mi) south of Baoding. As fighting grew closer to Beijing, the Japanese sent a communique to both the NRA and Zhang, warning that any fighting in Manchuria would result in

5100-566: The Republic of China and co-founder of the KMT, was supportive of Sino-Soviet co-operation , which had involved forming the First United Front with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The military arm of the KMT was the National Revolutionary Army (NRA). Chiang Kai-shek , who had emerged as Sun's protégé as early as 1922, was appointed commandant of the Whampoa Military Academy in 1924, and quickly emerged as

5270-469: The Taiping Rebellion in the 19th century. In an address to his generals at the same conference, Chiang proclaimed: "The importance of this fight is not only in that it will decide the fate of the warlords. But, whether or not the Chinese nation and race can restore their freedom and independence hangs in the balance. In other words, it is a struggle between the nation and the warlords, between

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5440-525: The Xinhai Revolution and the Warlord Era of the Republic of China, "Dare to Die Corps" ( traditional Chinese : 敢死隊 ; simplified Chinese : 敢死队 ; pinyin : gǎnsǐduì ) were frequently used by Chinese armies. China deployed these suicide units against the Japanese during the Second Sino-Japanese War . "Dare to Die" troops were used by warlords in their armies to conduct suicide attacks . "Dare to Die" corps continued to be used in

5610-518: The anti-communist Nazi Party and the anti-communist KMT were soon engaged in close cooperation . With Germany training Chinese troops and expanding Chinese infrastructure, while China opened its markets and natural resources to Germany. Max Bauer was the first adviser to China. In 1934, Gen. Hans von Seeckt , acting as adviser to Chiang, proposed an "80 Division Plan" for reforming the entire Chinese army into 80 divisions of highly trained, well-equipped troops organised along German lines. The plan

5780-591: The attack on Pearl Harbor , afterwards they invaded and occupied the Shanghai International Settlement and Hong Kong . Shanghai's status as a safe haven ended, as Jews who sought refuge in the city from 1933 to 1941, were forced into the Shanghai Ghetto in 1943, most survived the war due to the deeply established community with Chinese residents before 1941. In 1943 Italy surrendered its treaty rights in cooperation with

5950-641: The mainland period of the Republic of China. The Asia and Pacific theatre of the First World War would be another major incident changing the ownership of concessions in China with Japanese expansion. Concessions were partially curtailed in the Washington Naval Treaty and the Nine Power Treaty attempting to reaffirm the sovereignty of China. Many foreigners arrived in the cities aiming primarily to get rich. During

6120-533: The " Shanghai massacre ". In the south, Nationalist supporters were massacred by the hands of Communists in retaliation; both events effectively ended the alliance between the nationalists and the Communists and the First United Front. Though, the ensuing White Terror devastated the Communists, and only 10,000 out of 60,000 party members survived. The purge was condemned by Wang Jingwei, now leader of

6290-428: The "National Pacification Army" (NPA) on 1 December. Zhang Zuolin took the position of commander-in-chief, with Zhang Zongchang and Sun Chuanfang as deputy commanders. This alliance was hugely unpopular with locals in the regions under Sun's control, with Zhang Zhongchang's northern troops viewed as invaders. The Zhejiang autonomy movement continued, and a meeting of influential provincial figures, nominally loyal to Sun,

6460-654: The 200th Division became a motorized Infantry Division within the same Corps. This Corps fought battles in Guangxi in 1939–1940 and in the Battle of Yunnan-Burma Road in 1942 reducing the armoured units due to losses and mechanical breakdown of the vehicles. On paper China had 3.8 million men under arms in 1941. They were organized into 246 "front-line" divisions, with another 70 divisions assigned to rear areas. Perhaps as many as forty Chinese divisions had been equipped with European-manufactured weapons and trained by foreign, particularly German and Soviet, advisers. The rest of

6630-587: The Army's officers passed through the Whampoa Military Academy , and the first commandant, Chiang Kai-shek , became commander-in-chief of the Army in 1925 before launching the successful Northern Expedition. Other prominent commanders included Du Yuming and Chen Cheng . The end of the Northern Expedition in 1928 is often taken as the date when China's Warlord era ended, though smaller-scale warlord activity continued for years afterwards. In 1927, after

6800-807: The Beijing area over the next few days. Zhang Zongchang subordinate Xu Yuanquan subsequently surrendered Tianjin to the NRA First Collective Army on 11 June. Zhang Xueliang succeeded Zhang Zuolin as leader of the Fengtian clique, and decided to end the war and to co-operate with the nationalists. The Shandong–Zhili Army led by Zhang Zongchang and Chu Yupu refused to surrender, and despite the defeats it had suffered still numbered about 60,000–70,000 soldiers, as well as at least three armoured trains manned by White Russian mercenaries under General Konstantin Nechaev . As Zhang Xueliang had sided with

6970-559: The British, opened fire on the crowd of demonstrators. This incident sparked outrage throughout China, culminating in the Canton–Hong Kong strike , which began on 18 June, and proved a fertile recruiting ground for the CCP. Concerns about the rising power of the leftist faction, and the effect of the strike on the Guangzhou government's ability to raise funds, which was largely dependent on foreign trade, led to increasing tensions within

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7140-607: The Chinese Eastern Railway in 1929 . At the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), the standing army in the Japanese concessions would be used against the Chinese forces. However the inland concession of Chongqing was abandoned by the Japanese as they began the invasion. World War II would spell the end for the concessions in Tianjin, as well as extraterritoriality as a whole. While Japanese forces avoided attacking foreign concessions prior to

7310-571: The Chinese government of 23 national concessions to eight nations in 10 Chinese ports. In addition to the 23 formally established concessions, Great Britain, Japan, and the United States were granted rights to concessions in several treaty ports but these rights were never exercised. On the eve of World War II, four Powers still possessed concessions: Great Britain (two, at Canton and Tientsin); Japan (three, at Hangchow, Hankow, and Tientsin); France (four, at Canton, Hankow, Shanghai, and Tientsin); and Italy (one, at Tientsin). For his part, Kurt Bloch listed

7480-615: The Chinese military. The Kuomintang used one to put down an insurrection in Canton. Many women joined them in addition to men to achieve martyrdom against China's opponents. A "dare to die corps" was effectively used against Japanese units at the Battle of Taierzhuang . They used swords. Suicide bombing was also used against the Japanese. A Chinese soldier detonated a grenade vest and killed 20 Japanese soldiers at Sihang Warehouse . Chinese troops strapped explosives like grenade packs or dynamite to their bodies and threw themselves under Japanese tanks to blow them up. This tactic

7650-444: The Chinese. However, even though this 1937 reorganisation maintained division strength at slightly under 11,000 men, less than 4,000 (the frontline personnel) were issued small arms such as rifles. In 1938 a further reform was brought about by He Yingqin at the behest of Chiang Kai-shek. He's report called for an integrated numbering and designation of units from the regimental level up and a standardised financial and supply system and

7820-421: The Daotai Lin’gui agreed in 1849 that a French settlement be established on a strip of land between the Chinese city and the British settlement. The American consul George Seward was dissatisfied with the fact that the British and the French had obtained the best plots of land in the area, and after lengthy deliberations, the Americans established their own settlement in Hongkew northeast of Shanghai , although it

7990-401: The Fengtian clique had offered its support to Wu, he refused their aid, fearing that the northern warlords would undermine his position if he allowed their troops into his territory. At a military conference held in Changsha on 11–12 August, the KMT decided to launch a direct assault on Wu's stronghold of Wuchang , bypassing Sun's Nanchang . In this manner, they would follow the route taken by

8160-509: The Fengtian clique. Having switched from a defensive to offensive posture, KMT forces quickly advanced from their base in Guangdong into Wu-controlled Hunan province, capturing Changsha on 11 July. At the time, most of Wu Peifu's forces were preoccupied with fighting at Nankou Pass , near Beijing, against the Guominjun , a breakaway Zhili faction sympathetic to the KMT. Sun Chuanfang, who the KMT had avoided antagonising, did not intervene as KMT troops advanced further into Wu's territory. Whilst

8330-407: The Guangxi clique controlled two: the Wuhan and Beiping; under Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi , respectively. Li Jishen , who was related to the Guangxi clique, loosely controlled the Guangzhou council; and a sixth council in Shenyang was under Zhang Xueliang . Chiang was faced with two options one was to immediately centralise the other to gradually do so, in the spirit of the expedition itself which

8500-401: The Guangxi clique to ally to face Chiang as Chiang had taken revenue sources from Yan. The anti-Chiang coalition had forces totalling 700,000 against Chiang's 300,000. Their plan was to seize Shandong and contain Chiang south of the Long-hai railway and the Beijing-wuhan railway then they would advance along the railway lines seizing Xuzhou and Wuhan whilst southern forces did the same to force

8670-428: The Japanese, in order to try to prevent their further intervention in Shandong. By 1 April, Feng's NRA Second Collective Army ( Guominjun ) and Yan's NRA Third Collective Army had started to fight the NPA on the Henan–Shandong border and along the Beijing– Suiyuan railway. The resumption of the Northern Expedition was officially launched by Chiang Kai-shek on 7 April. With the NPA line softened by Feng and Yan's attacks,

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8840-413: The KMT government in Guangzhou. The forces of Wu Peifu occupied northern Hunan , Hubei , and Henan provinces. The coalition of Sun Chuanfang was in control of Fujian , Zhejiang , Jiangsu , Anhui , and Jiangxi provinces. The most powerful coalition, led by Zhang Zuolin , then head of the Beiyang government and the Fengtian clique , was in control of Manchuria , Shandong , and Zhili . To face

9010-589: The KMT push. By 28 August, the KMT, led by Li Zongren and his Guangxi NRA Seventh Army, had taken Xianning , about 75 kilometres (47 mi) south of Wuchang. Wu Peifu, who had returned south to mount a defence of Wuchang, gathered his forces at Heshengqiao Bridge. On 29 August, he launched a counterattack against KMT forces to the south, compromising his defensive line, and by noon the next day, his forces were in general retreat toward Wuchang. In this short period of time, Wu lost 8,000 troops. At least 5,000 of these were taken prisoner, along with their rifles, providing

9180-466: The KMT was held in Nanjing from 8–14 August. At this meeting, also attended by non-KMT members Feng and Yan Xishan, the primary topic of discussion was that of centralisation. Chiang desired to take the power that had been executed through various provincial entities and concentrate it in the central government, in an effort to curtail the provincialist tendencies of the warlord era. Minister of Finance T. V. Soong called for all revenues to be centralised in

9350-441: The KMT, and they exerted significant influence over its left-wing faction. Mikhail Borodin , the official liaison between the KMT and the Soviet government in Moscow, had spent years cultivating this alliance, while covertly encouraging CCP expansion. This Soviet-backed leftist wing of the KMT came to dominate the nationalist government in Wuhan, which increasingly directed its ire at NRA commander-in-chief Chiang Kai-shek. On 1 April,

9520-468: The KMT, which marked the end of the First United Front . In an effort to mend this schism, Chiang Kai-shek stepped down as the commander of the NRA in August 1927, and went into exile in Japan. The second phase of the Expedition began in January 1928, when Chiang resumed command. By April 1928, the nationalist forces had advanced to the Yellow River . With the assistance of allied warlords, including Yan Xishan and Feng Yuxiang , nationalist forces secured

9690-481: The KMT. Lin, a member of both the CCP and the KMT, had been serving as political commissar of the Sixth Army, part of Cheng Qian's forces. Whoever was responsible, the Nanjing Incident represented the culmination of tensions within the First United Front. The nationalist government had moved from Guangzhou to the new city of Wuhan , which was formed from a merger of Wuchang and two other nearby cities. The Wuhan administration gradually drifted away from Chiang, becoming

9860-957: The KMT. Stalin, who in his China strategy prohibited the arming of workers and peasants, and encouraged co-operation with the bourgeoisie , was considered vulnerable in the aftermath of the failure of the first United Front. This failure crystallised his move away from international revolution and toward " Socialism in One Country ". Stalin would never again trust the Chinese Communist Party, which he would later refer to as " margarine communists" who deviated from Marxist orthodoxy in their drive for peasant-based ( land reform ), rather than worker-based, revolution. [REDACTED] Communist Party / [REDACTED] Soviet Republic ( [REDACTED] Red Army ) → Liberated Area ( [REDACTED] 8th Route Army , New Fourth Army , etc. → [REDACTED] People's Liberation Army ) → [REDACTED]   People's Republic of China National Revolutionary Army Originally organized with Soviet aid as

10030-407: The KMT. This struggle for supremacy broke into armed conflict in the Central Plains War of 1929–30. Although Chiang was ultimately victorious in that war, which ensured his status as the singular leader of all China, regionalism and warlordism would continue, weakening the country and laying the groundwork for the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War . The Northern Expedition became

10200-660: The NPA away from the railway briefly, but thousands more of Sun's troops, including White Russian mercenary units, crossed the river the next day and retook the station, cutting off contact between Nanjing and Shanghai. The reeling NRA sent missives to all factions within the revolutionary movement, calling for unity in the face of Sun's advancing troops. Accordingly, in an attempt to put pressure on Sun, Feng Yuxiang and his Guominjun launched an attack into Shandong on 28 August, while Wuhan sent its troops north, trying to flank Sun, and He Yingqin approached from Shanghai. With its forces encircled, and unable to continue to move troops across

10370-399: The NRA First Collective Army rushed into Shandong along the Tianjin–Pukou railway , capturing Tengzhou by 16 April. Meanwhile, Feng's forces advanced into Shandong from the west, capturing Jiaxiang on the 15th. Sun Chuanfang decided to attempt a two-pronged counter-offensive against the NRA First and Second armies, managing to push the First back to the Longhai railway . His attack against

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10540-399: The NRA Second Collective Army advanced northeast to Jinan along the southern bank of the Yellow River, the First Collective Army diverged east from the Tianjin–Pukou railway at Tai'an , crossing the Taishan mountains to attack Jinan from the west via the Qingdao–Jinan railway . This strategy was successful, and by 29 April, the NRA had nearly encircled Jinan. The beleaguered NPA retreated to

10710-447: The NRA captured the vital railway junction of Xuzhou . With both the Longhai and Beijing–Hankou railways under NRA or Guominjun control, Feng came into direct contact with the Wuhan and Nanjing factional governments, who both sought his aid. He met with Wang Jingwei and Tang Shengzhi at Zhengzhou on 10–11 June, then travelled to Xuzhou to meet with Chiang Kai-shek on 19 June. On the next day, Feng announced that he would align with

10880-508: The NRA directed itself toward Sun Chuanfang-controlled Jiangxi province, namely the city of Jiujiang and the provincial capital, Nanchang. Whilst Sun had been offered a non-aggression pact by the Guangzhou government, he was not willing to subordinate his administration to KMT rule. Consequently, whilst the siege in Wuchang was still ongoing, Chiang Kai-shek launched an attack across the Jiangxi border on 4 September. By 19 September, both Jiujiang and Nanchang had come under KMT control, hastened by

11050-535: The NRA had bolstered its ranks to 700,000. Sun Chuanfang retreated to Nanjing in the aftermath of these setbacks. The Fengtian clique responded to Sun's plea for help by reinforcing Jiangsu and Anhui provinces, while increasing the number of troops in Henan in support of Wu Peifu. Two major Fengtian formations, the Shandong Army of Zhang Zongchang and the Zhili Army of Chu Yupu , crossed the Yangtze River in February 1927 to help Sun defend Nanjing and Shanghai. Following their victory in Zhejiang, Chiang Kai-shek ordered

11220-408: The NRA is as follows: (Note that a unit is not necessarily subordinate to one immediately above it; several army regiments can be found under an army group, for example.) The commander-in-chief of the NRA from 1925 to 1947 was Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. Military Affairs Commission The NRA used multiple divisional organisations as different threats emerged as well as other factors necessitated

11390-469: The NRA on 1 January 1928. With the frigid winter of northern China prohibiting any further advance, Chiang used the months following his reappointment to consolidate his control and restore the integrity of the Nanjing administration. On 18 February, Chiang was granted the title "Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Expeditionary Forces", whilst He Yingqin was made NRA chief-of-staff. The NRA was reorganised into four "collective armies". The First Collective Army

11560-449: The NRA on 5 June 1926. Chiang would accept this post in a ceremony on 9 July, which marked the formal start of the Northern Expedition, although military clashes had already been ongoing. The initial strategy for the KMT's northern advance against the Zhili warlords, which was largely devised by Soviet advisors Mikhail Borodin and Vasily Blyukher , was to focus on defeating Wu Peifu and appeasing Sun Chuanfang, while ignoring Zhang Zuolin of

11730-431: The NRA turned its attention to Nanjing. He Yingqin advanced from the south-east, whilst Cheng Qian came from the south-west. Zhang Zongchang ordered his Shandong Army to withdraw from Nanjing on 23 March, leaving the city undefended. Cheng arrived the next day, entering the city with no resistance. Almost immediately after arrival of the NRA, mass anti-foreigner riots broke out in the city, in an event that came to be known as

11900-421: The NRA, and so in October, it moved to quash his rebellion. Tang was defeated in early November, and left for exile in Japan shortly afterwards. With Tang dealt with, the push north resumed, reaching Bengbu by 9 November. Continuing their advance, the NRA and Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun moved toward Xuzhou . The NPA attempted a counter-offensive on 12 December, led by armoured trains , but was quickly forced back by

12070-424: The NRA, but failed to convince his 10,000 soldiers at Qingdao to do likewise. At Wuhan, Tang Shengzhi began to mobilise his troops for an attack on the Nanjing government. Aware of this threat, Chiang recalled troops from the Shandong border in an effort to block Tang. In turn, the NPA launched an attack on Chiang in early July, reclaiming much of the territory they had lost. By 24 July, the NPA had retaken Xuzhou. In

12240-674: The Nanjing faction and purge communists from the areas under his control, crippling the Wuhan government's plan to push north, upon which Tang returned to Wuhan with his troops. Whilst Chiang intended to push into Shandong, he was thwarted by the arrival of the Japanese Kwantung Army during the course of June, who were ostensibly deployed to protect Japanese citizens in Qingdao . Around this time, Wu Peifu retreated with his remaining forces into Sichuan, where he announced his retirement. On 5 July, NPA general Chen Yi-yen defected to

12410-418: The Nanjing government, adding 100,000 troops to NRA ranks and increasing the pressure on Zhang Zuolin. In the subsequent fighting, neither the Shanxi nor Fengtian forces managed to gain the upper hand. Yan's troops successfully withstood a massive siege at Zhuozhou , but went on to suffer a heavy defeat at Baoding on 15 October. The threat from Tang's forces, however, prejudiced any further northward advance by

12580-675: The Nanjing–Shanghai area under constant threat of attack from the NPA, a series of independent offensives was launched by NRA and NRA-aligned forces in May 1927. Feng Yuxiang and his Guominjun moved first, leaving their base in Shaanxi to march on Luoyang , in Henan. On 10 May, the NRA First and Sixth armies crossed the Yangtze into Anhui, and on 16 May, Li Zongren, based in western Anhui, led

12750-551: The National Revolutionary Army, trained in China (not by Westerners) and led by Ma Clique Muslim generals, frightened the European observers with their appearance and fighting skills in battle. Europeans like Sven Hedin and Georg Vasel were in awe of the appearance Chinese Muslim NRA divisions made and their ferocious combat abilities. They were trained in harsh, brutal conditions. The 36th Division (National Revolutionary Army) , trained entirely in China without any European help,

12920-423: The Northern Expedition's advance halted, Chiang wired the government in Guangzhou, demanding an end to the still ongoing Canton–Hong Kong strike, which continued to hamper his supply chain. Negotiations with the British began on 23 September, with the strike finally called off on 10 October. This eased access to supplies for the NRA, and freed up manpower, in the form of the strikers, for the continued push north. On

13090-447: The Northern Expedition, Zhang Zuolin eventually assembled the " National Pacification Army " ( Chinese : 安國軍 ; pinyin : Ānguójūn ; Wade–Giles : Ankuochün ; NPA), an alliance of the warlords of northern China. Amidst heavy fighting along the border between KMT-held territory and that of the recently allied forces of the Fengtian and Zhili cliques, the nationalist government appointed Chiang Kai-shek commander-in-chief of

13260-524: The Northern Expedition, the National Revolutionary Army was bloated and required downsizing and demobilisation: Chiang himself stating that soldiers are like water, capable of both carrying the state, and sinking it. This was reflected in the enormous troop figures with 1,502,000 men under arms, of which only 224,000 came under Chiang's direct control; these, however, were the official figures as Chiang stated later he possessed over 500,000 and Feng Yuxiang who officially possessed 269,000 in reality had 600,000 thus

13430-646: The Qing dynasty, in the years following the conflict. It also led the foreign powers to station barracks and troops in the existing concessions, especially Tianjin, and increased the immigration of entire families to the concessions. Wars that changed the ownership of existing concessions between the foreign powers included the Triple Intervention (1895) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905). The foreign concessions continued to exist during

13600-532: The Russian prisoners by piercing their noses with rope and marching them in public through the streets in Shandong in 1928, described as "stout rope pierced through their noses". Zhang Xueliang officially declared his allegiance to the nationalist government in Nanjing on 29   December 1928, marking the formal end of the Northern Expedition, and the reunification of China . Following the capture of Beijing, Chiang and his administration moved quickly to reorganise

13770-651: The Salween offensive each division was allotted 36 bazookas though actual numbers ran below requirements and rockets were in short supply. en route The Chinese army due to sustained combat was grossly under-strength and whilst Chiang promised over 110,000 additional reinforcements. Further reinforcements after this were not forthcoming due to ongoing combat. Nonetheless, Y-Force grew to over 300,000 men with rifles, mortars and machine guns in abundance. Concessions in China Foreign concessions in China were

13940-540: The Second Army failed, and by the 21st, the combined NRA had forced him to withdraw from Jining to the provincial capital Jinan . According to an American account of Sun's retreat, the "great majority of the troops in this retreat literally walked the soles off their shoes, and this, combined with the scarcity of food and total lack of shelter left the vast horde without any idea of further resistance". The Japanese, meanwhile, having heard of Sun's defeat, began to move Kwantung Army troops by train from Qingdao to Jinan. While

14110-537: The Seventh Army toward Hefei. Concurrently, the Wuhan government launched its own campaign in Henan province led by Tang Shengzhi , who was appointed to serve as the Wuhan army's commander-in-chief. Aided by the defection of remnants of Wu Peifu's forces, Tang advanced to fight the forces of the "Young Marshal" Zhang Xueliang , Zhang Zuolin's son and political heir, pushing them back to a river at Yancheng . By 20 May, Li had captured Bengbu, whilst Chiang unleashed

14280-408: The Soviet Union, and attempted to balance the need for Soviet and CCP assistance in the fight against the warlords with his concerns about growing communist influence within the KMT. In the aftermath of the coup, Chiang negotiated a compromise whereby hardline members of the rightist faction, such as Wu Tiecheng , were removed from their posts in compensation for the purged leftists. By doing so, Chiang

14450-542: The Soviets secretly kept tsarist concessions such as the Chinese Eastern Railway , as well as consulates , barracks, and Orthodox churches. This led Chiang Kai-Shek —who pushed foreign powers such as Britain to return some of their concessions from 1925 to 1927—to turn against his former Soviet ally in 1927, seizing Soviet legations . The Soviets would later fight an armed conflict to keep control over

14620-757: The US, reported that many US military officers saw US monopoly on Far Eastern trade as a rightful reward for fighting the Pacific war, a sentiment echoed by US elected officials. After the drafting and implementation of the Constitution of the Republic of China in 1947, the National Revolutionary Army was transformed into the ground service branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces – the Republic of China Army (ROCA). The NRA throughout its lifespan recruited approximately 4,300,000 regulars, in 370 Standard Divisions (正式師), 46 New Divisions (新編師), 12 Cavalry Divisions (騎兵師), eight New Cavalry Divisions (新編騎兵師), 66 Temporary Divisions (暫編師), and 13 Reserve Divisions (預備師), for

14790-560: The United Front. Amidst this backdrop, Chiang, who had been vying for the position of KMT leader, began to consolidate power in preparation for an expedition against the northern warlords. On 20 March 1926, he launched a bloodless purge of hardline communists who were opposed to the proposed expedition from the Guangzhou administration and its military, known as the Canton Coup . At the same time, Chiang made conciliatory moves toward

14960-563: The War Ministry, the military regions, air and naval forces, air defence and garrison commanders, and support services Around 14 Million were conscripted from 1937 to 1945. Also, New Divisions were created to replace Standard Divisions lost early in the war and were issued the old division's number. Therefore, the number of divisions in active service at any given time is much smaller than this. The average NRA division had 5,000–6,000 troops; an average army division had 10,000–15,000 troops,

15130-414: The Wuhan government was dissolved, with a new joint government established in Nanjing, under the leadership of Guangxi clique generals. Wang Jingwei refused to join the new government, as did Tang Shengzi, who became an independent warlord in his own right, controlling Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, and parts of Anhui. On the other hand, Shanxi warlord Yan Xishan, theretofore independent, aligned his province with

15300-564: The Wuhan government, advised by Borodin, issued edicts stripping Chiang of his authority in foreign affairs, financial matters, and communications, and ordered that he leave his command post in Shanghai and go to the front. These orders had no effect, as Wuhan had almost no military authority. The government intended to send a small force to Nanjing with the aim of "disarming" Chiang, but put that plan on hold following Wang Jingwei 's return from exile in Europe. Wang, who had travelled back to China at

15470-407: The Wuhan government, formalising the split between the KMT leftists based in Wuhan and the KMT rightists, who subsequently established their own government in Nanjing. The precariousness of the NRA position in Nanjing was clear: at ceremonies held to commemorate the city's elevation to capital of China, warlord Zhang Zongchang's artillery bombarded the city's waterfront from across the Yangtze. With

15640-423: The Yangtze. In return for his co-operation, Wang Jingwei demanded that Chiang resign from his post of commander-in-chief, and relinquish all political titles. Accordingly, Chiang resigned from his post on 12 August, though this did not immediately reunify the Wuhan and Nanjing factions. As the two sides attempted to reconcile their political differences, Sun Chuanfang's forces continued to bombard Nanjing from across

15810-545: The Yangtze. Sensing the NRA's continual disarray, Sun moved to try and recapture Shanghai, contrary to the wishes of NPA leader Zhang Zuolin. On 25 August, NPA landing parties were dispatched to cross the Yangtze at Longtan, near Nanjing. In the early morning of 26 August, thousands of Sun's troops crossed the river, rallying at the Longtan station of the Shanghai–Nanjing railway. Li Zongren's NRA Seventh Army managed to drive

15980-494: The Zhejiang border, with the NPA protecting his rear, and charged into Zhejiang, retaking most of the province. By 10 January, the majority of the Zhejiang rebel forces had retreated to Quzhou . To relieve the besieged rebels, He Yingqin pushed his Fujian-based forces into Zhejiang, halting Sun's advance. The rebel and KMT forces merged under the command of Bai Chongxi , who launched a counteroffensive on 20 January. By 29 January,

16150-689: The Zhejiang rebellion, the NRA had continued their offensive in Jiangxi. Adding to the pressure on Sun, the Shantou -based NRA First Army, led by He Yingqin , marched across the Guangdong border, and began a new offensive into Fujian province. NRA troops were welcomed by many locals, including the Hakka , who resented foreign control, and gradually began to infiltrate the Fujian countryside. He's forces moved up

16320-512: The aid of the Fengtian armies prevented Sun Chuanfang's army from collapsing completely, and they eventually managed to regroup and strengthen their forces for the next phase of the conflict. Launching a counteroffensive on 3 April, the NPA had been able to force the NRA back more than 161 kilometres (100 mi) to the Yangtze by 11 April. As part of the First United Front, many members of the Chinese Communist Party had joined

16490-465: The allegiances of Wang Jingwei, who had been based in Guangzhou after the end of the Wuhan government. Wang left for exile in France on 17 December, paving the way for Chiang's return as commander-in-chief. With the military success of Chiang's Whampoa troops, the various KMT factions agreed to recognise the legitimacy of Chiang's leadership. Consequently, Chiang was officially invited to resume command of

16660-459: The appointment of loyal commanders. A new division table was also organised: the 27th Year (1938) division, which created the field army as a fixed unit, abolished divisional artillery (often a paper force due to the chronic shortage of field artillery) and coordinated artillery support at the army level; although the division remained at roughly 11,000 men strong this template was not followed with few divisions being re-organised on this pattern due to

16830-459: The area around Tianjin. Zhang Xueliang continued to control Manchuria as a quasi-independent state, and local warlords in Sichuan , Yunnan , and Guizhou remained as they were before the Northern Expedition. Defeated warlord Zhang Zongchang would return to his former territory of Shandong in 1929, where he launched a rebellion against his former subordinate Liu Zhennian , who had defected to

17000-402: The area, Meng Chao-yueh , decided on 17 February to abandon Hangzhou and flee with his 20,000 troops by train to Jiangsu province. By 23 February, Zhejiang was under complete KMT control. In six months, the nationalists had expanded their control to seven provinces, inhabited by a population of about 170 million people. Aided by the defection of numerous warlords and their armies, by this point,

17170-547: The bulk of its forces forming the Republic of China Army , which retreated to the island of Taiwan in 1949. The NRA was founded by the KMT in 1925 as the military force destined to unite China in the Northern Expedition . Organized with the help of the Comintern and guided under the doctrine of the Three Principles of the People , the distinction among party, state and army was often blurred. A large number of

17340-417: The coast, pushing toward the provincial capital, Fuzhou . By the end of October, Sun's forces were again in retreat across Jiangxi and Fujian. In early November, KMT troops moved to capture the Yangtze ports of Jiujiang and Hukou , and by 9 November, retook control of Nanchang. Sun's forces abandoned substantial materiel as they retreated, bolstering the poorly-armed NRA, which suffered 20,000 casualties in

17510-409: The combined NRA and Guominjun forces, which took Xuzhou on 16 December. The NPA retreated once more to Shandong. Meanwhile, in Guangzhou, a communist uprising broke out on 11 December. The violent rebellion was quickly put down, and on 13 December, Chiang Kai-shek called for the ending of all remaining relations with the Soviet Union. The Nanjing government agreed, and also aired its suspicions over

17680-777: The concessions also maintained their own military garrison and a standing army. Military and police forces of the Chinese government were sometimes present. Some police forces allowed Chinese, others did not. There were economic inequalities between the concessions and surrounding areas outside. European powers had citizens employed inside of the Chinese Maritime Customs Service. Despite the service being sovereign to China, Europeans often influenced taxes levied and tariffs imposed upon foreign concessions—often to their own benefit. Foreign entities also benefited from imposing their own local taxes inside of their nation's respected concession. Several wars would lead to

17850-431: The concessions that were established later had a more definitive treaty basis and their development as well as the extension of their boundaries has been regularized by agreements with the Chinese government. An inventory of all the concessions along with a survey of their status done by W. C. Johnstone in 1937 shows that, aside from the two international settlements at Shanghai and Kulangsu (Amoy), there had been grants by

18020-529: The concessions. In the case of Japan, its own traditions and language naturally flourished. Some of these concessions eventually had a more advanced architecture of each originating culture than most cities back in the countries of the origin of the foreign powers. Over time, and without formal permission, Britain, France, Japan and the United States established their own postal systems within their concession and trade areas. Following Chinese complaints over

18190-469: The constant campaigning of the Central Army and the refusal of the warlords to adopt the new organisation. Nonetheless, the division still proved too large and they were reformed into triangular divisions (a division with a divisional HQ and 3 infantry regiments rather than the previous square division with 2 brigades each with 2 regiments); this 1938 organisation remained the most common formation until

18360-533: The creation of colonial concessions taken from Qing China. These included the First Opium War (1839–1842), Second Opium War (1856–1860), Sino-French War (1884–1885), First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895), and Russian invasion of Manchuria (1900). The Eight Nation Alliance 's suppression of the Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901) would lead to participants being rewarded with concessions taken from

18530-417: The defection of Lai Shih-huang , one of Sun's generals. Despite these successes, the NRA offensive was forced into retreat as Sun arrived from Nanjing with reinforcements on 21 September. Sun retook most of the territory he had lost, brutally reasserting his authority by killing hundreds of students, teachers, and suspected members of the KMT, whose severed heads he displayed on spikes in public places. With

18700-571: The defection of Sun's forces there. The remnants of Sun's forces, supported by the Shandong Army, were forced to withdraw to Shanghai proper in the face of Bai's army. He's forces quickly severed the railway link with Shanghai, while Sun was confronted with the defection of his navy, and a communist general strike in Shanghai. Intense fighting took place at Songjiang , just outside the city, but on 22 March, Bai's forces marched into Shanghai victorious. The Fengtian support operation had proven to be

18870-464: The dissolution of the First United Front between the Nationalists and the Communists, the ruling KMT purged its leftist members and largely eliminated Soviet influence from its ranks. Chiang Kai-shek then turned to Germany , historically a great military power, for the reorganization and modernization of the National Revolutionary Army. The Weimar Republic sent advisers to China, but because of

19040-453: The end of the war although it was modified with 16 divisions receiving Anti-tank companies and 20 receiving anti-aircraft companies. Artillery remained in a chronic shortage only partially remedied by the production of 82mm mortars, but these mortars were far from universal even by the end of the war. Further changes were made in the 1942 re-organisation with the 1938 division losing all of its non-combat formations. These formations were moved to

19210-503: The end of the war, US influence over the political, economic, and military affairs of China were greater than any foreign power in the last century, with American personnel appointed in every field, such as the Chief of Staff of the Chinese military, management of the Chinese War Production Board and Board of Transport, trainers of the secret police, and Chiang's personal advisor. Sir George Sansom, British envoy to

19380-673: The equivalent of a Japanese division. Not even the German-trained divisions were on par in terms of manpower with a German or Japanese division, having only 10,000 men. The United States Army's campaign brochure on the China Defensive campaign of 1942–45 said: The NRA only had small number of armoured vehicles and mechanised troops. At the beginning of the war in 1937 the armour were organized in three Armoured Battalions, equipped with tanks and armoured cars from various countries. After these battalions were mostly destroyed in

19550-467: The existence of numerous jurisdictions, criminals could commit a crime in one jurisdiction and then easily escape to another. This became a major problem during the Republican period, with the rise of the post–Imperial Warlord era and the collapse of central authority in the 1920s and the 1930s. Crime often flourished, especially organized crime by different warlord groups. Some efforts were made by

19720-480: The face of mounting losses inflicted by the warlords, the Wuhan and Nanjing factions began reconciliation talks. The Wuhan government purged communists from its ranks and expelled Soviet advisors, facilitating a rapprochement between the two factions, but also sparking the communist Nanchang uprising , which weakened its authority. In the meantime, however, the NPA counter-offensive continued, reaching Bengbu on 9 August, and forcing Chiang to withdraw his troops south of

19890-458: The fall of Burma. This plan was adopted concurrently with Y-Force which was the Chinese army in Burma. The divisions of Y-Force were similar to the 1942 divisions’ organisation. With the addition of extra staff especially in communications as well as an anti-tank rifle squad with 2 anti-tank rifles, radios were issued as were bren guns with the number of mortars raised form 36 to 54 to accommodate

20060-417: The field army level, and with the universal adoption of the triangular division formation the 1942 division had a strength of 6,794 officers and enlisted 60% of the strength of the 1938 division. This gave a total of 8,251 men per division it is important to note the complete absence of any Anti-air, Anti-tank or artillery at a divisional level a sign of the dire state of equipment shortage in China. During

20230-565: The final piece of China under KMT control, the Northern Expedition concluded successfully and China was reunified, heralding the start of the Nanjing decade . In the 1920s, the Beiyang government based in Beijing was internationally recognised as the legitimate Chinese government. Much of the country, however, was not under its control, being ruled by a patchwork of warlords . The Kuomintang (KMT), based in Guangzhou (Canton), aspired to be

20400-575: The final push on Nanchang alone. Concurrently, Sun himself had left for Tianjin with the aim of seeking aid from the powerful Fengtian clique. Shandong warlord Zhang Zongchang and Manchurian warlord Zhang Zuolin offered assistance, agreeing that it was necessary to contain the NRA, though they demanded payment in return for their help. As the NRA offensive carved its way through Fujian, 60,000 troops from Shandong arrived in Sun-controlled Anhui province on 24 November. These were organised into

20570-464: The first phase of the Chinese Civil War in the 1920s, the concessions saw a sharp increase in immigration both from surrounding Chinese territory, and from the West and Japan. The population of Chinese residents eventually surpassed foreigners inside the concessions. With international travelers, culture took on an eclectic character of many influences—including both language and architecture. This effect

20740-415: The foreign powers to have the different police forces cooperate and work together, but not with significant success. The image of gangsters and Triad societies connected with the major cities and concessions of the period is often due to extraterritoriality within the cities. Underdeveloped economies under a foreign government led many laborers without opportunities to be recruited by triads, who developed

20910-724: The foreigners out as much as possible and the first British consul, Captain George Balfour , could not even find a house for the consulate upon his arrival in 1843. The British finally decided to locate themselves in the northern suburbs of the walled Chinese city and they asked the Daotai , Gong Muiju, to designate an area for their establishment there. This dovetailed with the Daotai's intentions, since following two violent incidents between local Chinese and foreigners, he had endeavored to limit contacts between Chinese and foreigners. This

21080-473: The government for peacetime. In July, he and the leaders of the four collective armies met at Beijing to discuss the demobilisation and disarmament of the roughly 2.2 million troops that had come to be part of the NRA. Chiang desired to reduce the size of the army by half, so as to free up government monies for domestic development. The lack of unity in the new administration quickly became apparent, and on 14 July, Feng Yuxiang left Beijing. A general meeting of

21250-624: The governor of Hunan who switched sides and joined Chiang, the Guangxi forces invaded Hunan, however Chiang bribed elements of the army in Wuhan to defect and within 2 months the Guangxi clique was routed, in March the party expelled Bai Chongxi, Li Jishen and Li Zongren and promoted their juniors who sided with Chiang in order to sow dissent within the clique, they later re-grouped and attempted to retake Hunan and Guangdong but were repelled in both provinces. Also in May Feng Yuxiang entered

21420-498: The lack of heavy artillery. The demands of the Chinese Military Affairs Commission to add additional support staff and divisional artillery were all rejected by the Americans and the idea of a centralised Y-force with the 30 divisions being grouped together was never realised. General Chen Cheng commanded the largest contingent of 15 divisions, Long Yun commanded 5 and 9 under Chiang himself. Prior to

21590-479: The launch of an offensive on those two cities. The Hangzhou-based eastern NRA, led by Bai Chongxi and He Yingqin, launched a two-pronged attack in mid-March. Bai's forces advanced toward Shanghai, whilst He's forces moved toward Changzhou , with the goal of severing Sun's lifeline, the Shanghai–Nanjing railway . Meanwhile, Cheng Qian 's central NRA advanced toward Nanjing through Anhui province, its path opened by

21760-558: The leaders of many of the warlord and provincial armies joined with the KMT and were appointed as officers and generals, their troops joined the NRA. These armies were renamed as NRA divisions. The entire Ma Clique armies were absorbed into the NRA. When the Muslim Ma Clique General Ma Qi joined the KMT, the Ninghai Army was renamed the National Revolutionary Army 26th Division. The unit organisation of

21930-489: The loss of postal revenue and the lack of customs inspections, all of them were abolished at the end of 1922. The Shanghai International Settlement became a major place of refuge for European immigrants, notably from Slavic and Baltic regions, and American travelers and displaced persons. Each concession also had its own police force and different legal jurisdictions with their own separate laws. Thus, an activity might be legal in one concession but illegal in another. Many of

22100-550: The many horses. 10 divisions were organised in 1935 on the new model but equipment was lacking. A further 20 were reorganised by the Marco Polo Bridge Incident but equipment was again lacking meaning these divisions were not to be the modern equivalent of Western style or Japanese divisions. For a total of 10,012 men and 3,219 horses with the field artillery regiment. With the Mountain artillery regiment

22270-418: The national treasury. In the end, though, it was recognised that real centralisation could only occur if the various commanders, the former warlords, relinquished their financial and military power to the national government. While these principles were nominally agreed to by the KMT membership, their exercise in practice was far from assured. The new peacetime Nanjing government was launched on 10 October 1928,

22440-421: The nationalists during the Northern Expedition. While the rebellion was put down swiftly, it demonstrated the Nanjing government's shaky hold on China's vast territory. As Chiang attempted to cut back the military and centralise the power of the nationalist government in Nanjing, the regional warlords, with their military forces largely intact, began to renounce their allegiance to Chiang and form an alliance against

22610-770: The nationalists, Zhang Zongchang declared war on the Fengtian clique. Supported by Japan, the Shandong–Zhili Army moved from its base at Tangshan on 2 August, crossed the Luan River , and invaded Manchuria. After six days of fighting, however, the defiant warlord army was trapped by KMT and Zhang Xueliang-aligned forces; many of Zhang Zongchang's troops (including the White Russian mercenaries) defected or deserted, and those who refused to surrender were killed. Chinese Nationalist forces captured an armoured train of Russian mercenaries serving Zhang Zongchang and brutalized

22780-456: The next morning, conflict broke out between the Chinese and Japanese troops, starting what came to be called the " Jinan incident ". What began as a minor armed altercation escalated on 8 May into a full-scale Japanese attack on the city. During the course of the incident, the Japanese killed KMT foreign affairs commissioner Cai Gongshi , several diplomats, and about five thousand Chinese civilians. In May 1928, 11 or 7 Japanese were shot to death by

22950-552: The next. With pressure growing on his vital railway links, Zhang gradually began to withdraw his troops from the North China Plain on 30 May. In the face of the NRA onslaught, and under pressure from the Japanese, Zhang decided to evacuate to Manchuria by train, leaving with his staff on 3 June. Early the next morning, a bomb planted by the Japanese Kwantung Army exploded under the train, killing Zhang in

23120-560: The north bank of the Yellow River, amidst looting and outbreaks of violence. At this point, there were already 3,000 Japanese troops in Jinan, guarding the 2,000 Japanese civilians in the city. On the next day, NRA troops entered Jinan. Chiang Kai-shek arrived on 2 May, and attempted to negotiate a Japanese withdrawal from Jinan, issuing safety guarantees for Japanese civilians to local Kwantung Army commander Hikosuke Fukuda . Fukuda agreed, and his troops prepared to leave that night. Early

23290-408: The offensive had reached Lanxi and Jinhua , where a fierce battle resulted in a catastrophic defeat for Sun's forces. Following this victory, the NRA launched a pincer attack on the provincial capital Hangzhou . Many of Sun's northern troops, demoralised by defeat, broke ranks and streamed north, looting the towns and villages they passed along the way. With his forces in disarray, Sun's commander in

23460-485: The other hand, was already preparing for a purge of communists in Shanghai. Chiang was able to utilize his connections with a secret society of Shanghai known as the Green Gang , and organize its members to kill all labor union members and Communists within the city. Between 12 and 14   April, hundreds of communists in Shanghai were arrested and killed on the orders of Chiang in a disturbance that came to be called

23630-492: The party of national liberation. Since the conclusion of the Constitutional Protection Movement in 1922, the KMT had been bolstering its ranks to prepare for an expedition against the northern warlords in Beijing, with the goal of reunifying China. This preparation involved improving both the political and military strength of the KMT. Before his death in March 1925, Sun Yat-sen , the founder of

23800-477: The reduction of the army to 65 divisions and gathered political support to begin actively reducing troops counts and centralising the army as well as abolishing the branch councils, this threatened the regional leaders and Li Zongren noted that it was intentionally designed to force the regional leaders into action so Chiang could eliminate them. The Guangxi clique rebelled in February 1929 when it fired Lu Diping

23970-641: The restrictions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles they could not serve in military capacities. Chiang initially requested famous generals such as Ludendorff and von Mackensen as advisers; the Weimar Republic government turned him down, however, fearing that they were too famous, would invite the ire of the Allies and that it would result in the loss of national prestige for such renowned figures to work, essentially, as mercenaries . Immediately following

24140-619: The revolution and the anti-revolutionaries, between the Three People's Principles and imperialism. All are to be decided now in this time of battle … so as to restore independence and freedom to our Chinese race". With the capture of the Yangtze port of Yuezhou on 22 August, Hunan came under complete KMT control, paving the way for an advance to Wuchang along the route of the Beijing–Guangzhou railway . As Wu Peifu's forces retreated northward, they breached several Yangtze dikes, slowing

24310-487: The river, the NPA was forced to abandon Longtan railway station on 30 August. In a desperate attempt at resistance, Sun rallied his 40,000 remaining troops and launched a counter-offensive on 31 August, only to be crushed in a hard-fought battle that left more than 10,000 of those troops dead. While Sun was able to escape to Shandong, his surviving troops were forced to surrender to the NRA. With victory in hand, reconciliation talks restarted on 7 September, and on 15 September,

24480-464: The same day, Wu Peifu's remaining forces at Wuchang surrendered, completing the NRA's conquest of Hubei province. As bloody fighting continued in Jiangxi, the civil governor of Zhejiang province, Xia Chao , one of Sun's subordinates, defected to the KMT government in Guangzhou. Zhejiang inhabitants had become increasingly dissatisfied with the rule of Sun, who was foreign to the province, and on 16 October, Xia declared its independence. Chiang Kai-shek,

24650-470: The seventeenth anniversary of the start of the Xinhai Revolution , with Chiang at its head. The country, however, remained de facto divided into five realms controlled by military leaders. The Nanjing faction controlled the area around Nanjing and Shanghai, while the Guangxi clique controlled Hubei, Hunan, and Guangxi. Feng Yuxiang's Guominjun continued to control Shaanxi, Henan, and parts of Shantung and Zhili, while Yan Xishan controlled Shanxi, Beijing, and

24820-496: The smaller city of Bengbu . NRA forces that had already been operating north of the Yangtze continued into northern Jiangsu province. Their advance, however, was hampered by the administrative chaos that followed the Nanjing Incident. Tensions between the leftists in Wuhan and rightists in Nanjing would come to a head, bringing the Northern Expedition to a halt. Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the Shanghai–Nanjing offensive,

24990-555: The so-called " Huanggutun incident ". His remaining forces, even further demoralised, crumpled under the pressure of the NRA advance. Sun Chuanfang unleashed the final blow to the NPA when he withdrew his troops from the defensive line and fled to Japanese-controlled Dairen on 4 June. On 6 June, the NRA Third Collective Army marched into Beijing, ending the Beiyang government. The other NRA armies would arrive in

25160-491: The total is 10,632 men and 3,237 horses However, as the war progressed and masses of equipment was lost the 60 division plan was abandoned as were larger divisions in general as the Military Affairs Commission switched to a smaller more mobile division suited to the reality of the situation. This was after an initial reorganisation in 1937 which incorporated the type 89 grenade launcher which impressed

25330-636: The true figure would likely reach 2,000,000. During the Northern expedition the KMT formed also formed branch political councils: in theory, subordinate political organs that were under the Central Political councils in Nanjing; in reality these were autonomous political bodies with their own military forces. Feng Yuxiang controlled the Kaifeng council; Yan Xishan the Taiyuan council; whilst

25500-735: The units were under strength and generally untrained. Overall, the Nationalist Army impressed most Western military observers as more reminiscent of a 19th- than a 20th-century army. Late in the Burma Campaign the NRA Army there had an armoured battalion equipped with Sherman tanks. Despite the poor reviews given by European observers to the European-trained Divisions, the Muslim Divisions of

25670-401: The urging of members of the government, was greeted in Shanghai by Chiang, who offered a power-sharing deal. Wang said that he would consider the deal, and boarded a ship for Wuhan on 7 April. He arrived on the 10th, where he was eagerly greeted by the Wuhan leadership. Having heard from Wang about Chiang's offer, the government decided to turn its limited forces toward Beijing instead. Chiang, on

25840-514: The verge of victory refused. Chiang had utilised the lull in action to gather strength and begin counteroffensives along the railways north aided by the closure of fighting in Bengbu by September Chiang was again closing in on Luoyang and this along with bribes spurred Zhang Xueliang to side with Chiang ending the war. When Adolf Hitler became Germany's chancellor in 1933 and disavowed the Treaty,

26010-485: The war he was too expelled from the party, once again Chiang bribed his enemy's allies and subordinates Han Fuju and Shi Yousan. Feng's armies were defeated and he fled to Shanxi and announced his retirement from politics, by July Chiang's forces had occupied Luoyang. Having defeated two of his largest enemies Chiang pushed further for demobilisation and announced it would be done by March 1930. This move spurred Feng, Yan and

26180-428: The way, sometimes less than 50 percent reaching camp alive. Then recruit camp was no better, with hospitals resembling Nazi concentration camps like Buchenwald. The rank insignia of commissioned officers . The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel . T.V. Soong at the behest of Chiang negotiated US sponsorship of 30 Chinese divisions which were to be designated assault divisions due to

26350-433: Was able to prove his usefulness to the CCP and their Soviet sponsor, Joseph Stalin . Soviet aid to the KMT government would continue, as would co-operation with the CCP. A fragile coalition between KMT rightists, centrists led by Chiang, KMT leftists, and the CCP managed to hold together, laying the groundwork for the Northern Expedition. In 1926, there were three major coalitions of warlords across China that were hostile to

26520-530: Was almost the equivalent of western style divisions with the notable difference being the absence of radios in the Chinese division. Planning began in December 1934 and in January 1935 a classified meeting of over 80 of the highest NRA officers was called with a timetable published: This new army being significantly better armed and trained than the warlord armies would give Chiang a large advantage over his domestic opponents as well as being personally answerable to

26690-528: Was an indirect offshoot of the 19th century unequal treaties following China's defeat against Great Britain in the Opium Wars. The 1842 Treaty of Nanjing between China and Great Britain stated that "British Subjects, with their families and establishments, shall be allowed to reside, for the purpose of carrying on their mercantile pursuits, without molestation or restraint at the cities and towns of Canton, Amoy, Foochow-fu, Ningpo and Shanghai", but nothing

26860-562: Was composed of Chinese Muslims and fought and severely mauled an invading Soviet Russian army during the Soviet Invasion of Xinjiang . The division was lacking in technology and manpower, but badly damaged the superior Russian force. The Muslim divisions of the army controlled by Muslim Gen. Ma Hongkui were reported by Western observers to be tough and disciplined. Despite having diabetes Ma Hongkui personally drilled with his troops and engaged in sword fencing during training. When

27030-424: Was eventually to reach 12.66 square miles. Additional foreign concessions were set up in other treaty ports especially following the 1858 and 1860 Anglo-Chinese treaties, and from the mid-1890s to 1902, following the Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901). While the settlements at Shanghai had been set up in cooperation with the local authorities and with the tacit, but not explicit, consent of the central Chinese government,

27200-587: Was exemplified in the Shanghai International Settlement and the multi-concessions in Tianjin. Writings from the time period indicate that both the Prussians and Russians were seen as acting culturally British. The wealthy built opulent buildings with multiple European and Chinese inspirations. Some Chinese entrepreneurs became very wealthy and hired foreign designers and architects. In major cities like Shanghai and Tianjin, due to

27370-532: Was formalized in 1845 with the delimitation of a segregated area north of Yangjingbang, a creek that ran north of the Chinese city. Later that year Gong Muiju and Balfour concluded an agreement called the Land Regulations ( Shanghai zudi zhangcheng ), which set forth the institutional basis for the British settlement. Following the British example, Charles de Montigny , the French consul at Shanghai, and

27540-560: Was formed through bloody and inhumane conscription campaigns. These are described by Rudolph Rummel as: This was a deadly affair in which men were kidnapped for the army, rounded up indiscriminately by press-gangs or army units among those on the roads or in the towns and villages, or otherwise gathered together. Many men, some the very young and old, were killed resisting or trying to escape. Once collected, they would be roped or chained together and marched, with little food or water, long distances to camp. They often died or were killed along

27710-456: Was held in Shanghai on 8 December. In Fujian, many of Sun's troops had already defected to the NRA, and on 9 December, He Yingqin's army entered Fuzhou unopposed. On 11 December, Zhejiang commander Zhou Fengqi announced his defection to the NRA. This started a cascade of defections, leading to Zhejiang's secession from Sun's "United Provinces", after which it was given autonomous status by the Guangzhou government. In response, Sun rallied his army on

27880-562: Was made up largely of the original NRA forces from Guangzhou, now based in the Nanjing–Shanghai area. The Second Collective Army consisted of Feng's Guominjun , the Third of Yan's Shanxi forces, and the Fourth of Li Zongren's Guangxi clique army. By this point, the NRA was made up of one million soldiers, most of them part of ex-warlord armies. Preparing for a resumption of the expedition in March, Chiang ordered his foreign ministry to negotiate with

28050-456: Was never fully realised, as the eternally bickering warlords could not agree upon which divisions were to be merged and disbanded. Furthermore, since embezzlement and fraud were commonplace, especially in understrength divisions (the state of most of the divisions), reforming the military structure would threaten divisional commanders' "take". Therefore, by July 1937 only eight infantry divisions had completed reorganization and training. These were

28220-405: Was not clearly stated in the English-language version of the treaty. The Qing rulers, by wishing to confine the "barbarians" to an officially designated special zone, hoped to resurrect the old Canton system , that is, a system that strictly confined foreigners to a segregated zone that also was off-limit to Chinese subjects. At Shanghai, there was initially an attempt by imperial officials to keep

28390-425: Was not to be delineated until 1863. In September of the same year, the British and American settlements were amalgamated into a single Foreign Settlement. A Municipal Council, officially known as "The Council for the Foreign Community of Shanghai", was established. Local French representatives had agreed to amalgamate the French settlement with the other two but this was not accepted by the French Government and, as

28560-517: Was said, including in the supplementary treaty of the following year, about separate residential areas for foreigners in those ports, let alone their right to govern themselves. However, the imperial commissioner who had negotiated the supplementary treaty reported to the Qing emperor that by signing the treaty he had successfully arranged that in the treaty ports "the boundaries of an area should be designated which foreigners are not allowed to exceed" ( yiding jiezhi, buxu yuyue ), an intent however that

28730-432: Was to eradicate warlordism and regionalism Chiang chose to immediately centralise the branch councils under the guise of demobilisation systematically reducing the regional troop strength whilst centralising them and building up his own strength. This was done in July 1928 with financial conferences calling for demobilisation and military commanders and political officials echoing the call for demobilisation. Chiang called for

28900-421: Was used during the Battle of Shanghai , where a Chinese suicide bomber stopped a Japanese tank column by exploding himself beneath the lead tank, and at the Battle of Taierzhuang where dynamite and grenades were strapped on by Chinese troops who rushed at Japanese tanks and blew themselves up. In one incident at Taierzhuang, Chinese suicide bombers obliterated four Japanese tanks with grenade bundles. During

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