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Battle of South Guangxi

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Battle of South Guangxi
Part of the Second Sino-Japanese War
Date (1939-11-15) (1940-11-30)November 15, 1939 – November 30, 1940
(1 year, 2 weeks and 1 day)
Location
Southern part of Guangxi province in the Republic of China
Result Japanese withdrawal from Nanning after the successful invasion of French Indochina
Belligerents
China Empire of Japan Japan
Commanders and leaders
Republic of China (1912–1949) Bai Chongxi
Republic of China (1912–1949) Zhang Fakui		 Empire of Japan Rikichi Andō
Empire of Japan Seiichi Kuno
Strength
150,000
(initially only 2 understrength army groups, reinforced by 2 army groups, including 200th Division (only mechanised force in NRA))
CAF 100 aircraft		 100,000
(5th Division, 18th Division (elements), Guards Mixed Brigade, Taiwan Mixed Brigade)
100 aircraft
2 aircraft carriers
70 warships[citation needed]
Casualties and losses

From 15 November 1939 until 26 February 1940 :[1][a]
576 officers and 23,582 soldiers killed
932 officers and 29,630 soldiers wounded
203 officers and 9,366 soldiers missing

45 billion yuan worth of private & public property damage[citation needed]

Chinese Claim :[2]: 15-18 
Japanese Army :
23,349 killed or wounded
16 captured
Collaborationist Army : 4 officers and 9 soldiers captured

Japanese Claims :
Until January 1940 :[3]

  • 5th Division : 1,282 killed, 2,800 wounded.
  • Taiwan Mixed Brigade : 157 killed , 125 wounded.
  • 18th Division : 10 killed, 52 wounded.
  • Guards Mixed Brigade : 29 killed, 147 wounded.
In the battle of Binyang (January 27 to February 6, 1940) :[4] 295 killed, 1,307 wounded.
Guards Mixed Brigade in the Jiangnan Operation (March 1 to April 7, 1940) :[5] 21 killed, 44 wounded
11,147 civilians killed
2,161 civilians wounded[citation needed]
3,986 civilians missing[citation needed]
Total:
17,294 civilians
  1. ↑ Based on incomplete statistics. See #Chinese casualties

The Battle of South Guangxi (traditional Chinese: 桂南會戰; simplified Chinese: 桂南会战; pinyin: Guìnán Huìzhàn) was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War.

In November 1939, the Japanese landed on the coast of Guangxi and captured Nanning. In this battle, the Japanese successfully cut off Chongqing from the ocean, effectively severing foreign aid to China's war efforts by the sea, rendering Indochina, the Burma Road and The Hump the only ways to send aid to China.

The Chinese launched several major offensives that maximized Japanese casualties. A majority of the conflicts occurred in the fighting for Kunlun Pass. With the success of the Vietnam Expedition in September 1940, the Japanese were able to cut China off from Indochina. Now only the Burma Road and The Hump remained, ending the costly necessity of occupying Guangxi. By November 1940, Japanese forces had evacuated from Guangxi except from some coastal enclaves.

Order of battle

[edit]

On 3 February, Japan boasted they were winning the battle in Guangxi and that to Nanning's north they were going to trap 200,000 enemy troops.[6][7]

On 5 February China reported recapturing a county to Nanning's east by 50 miles, Yongshun (Wingshun) and claiming to have killed over 2,000 Japanese at Binyang (Pingyang).[8] In the short-term operation of the battle of Binyang from January 27 to February 6, 1940, the Japanese Army claimed 27,041 abandoned enemy corpses and 1,167 POWs while suffering 295 killed and 1,307 wounded.[4] During this time period, excluding units whose casualties were unknown such as the New 19th Division and 175th Division of the 46th Corps, 155th Division of the 64th Corps, 118th Division of the 99th Corps, the New 33rd Division, and the 66th Corps,[a] the Chinese Army reported suffering over 26,400 killed, wounded, or missing from the 2nd, 6th, and 36th Corps, the 156th Division of the 64th Corps, and the 92nd and 99th Divisions of the 99th Corps.[10]: 206 : 223 : 229 

On 15 February China reported they were advancing on Nanning and only 15 miles away from the north of the city and were forcing the Japanese to retreat south.[11]

On 16 February Chinese reported it was 14 miles north.[12][13]

China reported retaking Lingshan on 29 March.[14]

On October 30, 1940, the Chinese Army recaptured Nanning and claimed victory. In fact, according to General Zhang Fakui, the overall commander of the Fourth War Zone in the battle of Southern Guangxi after the battle of Binyang, while they had fought in a number of battles against the enemy during the occupation of Nanning, the Japanese Army withdrew from the city voluntarily after their invasion of Vietnam. For propaganda purposes, the Chinese Army reported victory every time the enemy withdrew. The Kuomintang was well aware that those were false victories. It was later discovered that the Japanese forces stationed in Nanning were less than a tenth the size of their opponent, but was able to hold their own due to excellent defensive fortifications and communications equipment.[15]

Chinese casualties

[edit]

The "History of the Anti-Japanese War" recorded the losses of the Chinese Army as 24,158 killed, 30,562 wounded, and 9,569 missing. However, it was noted in the statistical table of casualties that the casualties of the New 33rd Division, Longzhou Teaching Corps (two regiments strong), the four independent regiments under the command of Cai Tingkai, and the headquarters of the 31st Corps in the whole campaign, the 175th Division before the fall of Kunlun Pass, the 46th Corps (excluding the 170th division) and 64th Corps (excluding the 156th division) in the battle of Binyang, and 6,416 additional unspecified killed, wounded, or missing from the 5th Corps were not included in the above statistics.[1] The 66th and 99th Corps were recorded as suffering 4,343 killed, 5,092 wounded, and 909 missing from the whole campaign. However, according to the same source, the two corps (excluding the 118th Division and 160th Division) suffered 5,079 killed, over 6,200 wounded, and over 560 missing in the battle of Kunlun Pass alone.[16] The two corps then went on to participate in the battle of Binyang.[10]: 189-209  The "History of the Anti-Japanese War" recorded the losses of the 2nd Corps as 1,862 killed, 1,497 wounded, and 558 missing. Zhang Fakui reported on February 23 that based on 2nd Corps commander Li Yannian's report, the units directly under the 2nd Corps' headquarters suffered 885 killed, 102 wounded, and 103 missing, the 49th Division suffered 84 officers and 4,520 soldiers casualties, the 76th Division suffered 3,095 killed, 790 wounded, and 756 missing, and the 9th Division suffered 185 killed, 236 wounded, and 673 missing.[17]

According to divisional commander Wang Yan, the 118th Division under the 99th Corps suffered 1,048 killed and 1,304 wounded in the battle of Southern Guangxi.[18] The 5th Corps suffered 32 officers and approximately 1,300 soldiers casualties from January 12 to February 10 which were not included in the statistics of casualties recorded by the "History of the Anti-Japanese War".[19] In the battles of Liutang and Qitang from February 23 to February 25, 1940, the New 33rd Division suffered more than 3,000 casualties.[20]

In the Lingshan breakout in March 1940, the 46th Corps suffered 297 killed or wounded and 931 missing.[21] The 64th Corps also suffered heavy casualties at Lingshan, with the 155th Division losing approximately half of its troops and the 156th Division losing approximately one-third of its troops.[22] A later report recorded the losses of the 155th Division at 13 officers killed and 10 officers wounded with 237 rifles lost and no reported soldiers casualties. The 156th Division suffered 3 officers and 316 soldiers killed, 5 officers and 52 soldiers wounded, and 3 officers and 32 soldiers missing with 7 rifles lost.[23] The Southern Route 1st Guerilla Command also suffered heavy casualties in the battle of Lingshan in mid-March 1940.[2]: 35-36  The 131st Division of the 31st Corps was surrounded between Suilu and Sile from late March to early April 1940 and suffered considerable casualties. By then, its strength had been reduced to one-third.[2]: 30 

Japanese forces advanced from the Yong-Long highway in early June, engaging with elements of the 135th and 188th Divisions of the 31st Corps. In this action, the 135th Division lost two-thirds of two of its battalions and the 188th Division suffered more than 200 casualties.[24][25] From June 17 to July 4, 1940, excluding the regiment of the 135th Division garrisoned at Shangsi, the 131st and 135th Divisions of the 31st Corps suffered 116 killed, 116 wounded, and 268 missing in the Longzhou Operation.[26] The 403rd Regiment of the 135th Division defending Shangsi bore the brunt of the attack during the Longzhou Operation and lost two-thirds of its troops.[2]: 30  In the Fourth War Zone's offensive at Guangxi in October 1940, the Chinese Army suffered over a thousand casualties.[27][28][29]

See also

[edit]

Sources

[edit]
  • Hsu Long-hsuen, Chang Ming-kai (1972). History of The Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945). Translated by Wen Ha-hsiung (2nd ed.). Taipei, Taiwan Republic of China: Chung Wu Publishing. pp. 311–318, 325–327, map 18.
  • Perry–Castañeda Library Map Collection, China 1:250,000, Series L500, U.S. Army Map Service, 1954- . Topographic Maps of China during the Second World War.
    • These two maps cover the area where most of the fighting went on in the Guangxi campaign:
    • Lai-Pin nf49-1, has the Kunlun Pass just above where the road from Nanning enters the map:
    • Nanning nf49-5

Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ According to divisional commander Wang Yan, the 118th Division lost 400 soldiers killed, wounded, or missing during the battle of Binyang.[9]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 History and Political Compilation Department (1966). 抗日戰史: 桂南會戰(一) [History of the Anti-Japanese War: Battle of South Guangxi (part 1)]. Ministry of National Defense (Republic of China). pp. 20–21.
  2. 1 2 3 4 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 第四戰區桂南戰史旅行暨戰地調查紀事第六冊：附錄, 典藏號: 008-010701-00044-013
  3. ↑ "戦時月報（後方関係）送付の件（４）". 陸支密大日記　第１４号　３／４　昭和１５年, ID: C04122012300, p. 35. Japan Center for Historical Records. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  4. 1 2 戦史叢書第090巻: 支那事変陸軍作戦（3）昭和十六年十二月まで [Senshi Sōsho Volume 90: Army Operations in China Incident (part 3) Until December 1941]. Asagumo Shimbunsha. 1975. p. 87.
  5. ↑ "附表第２　人馬戦死傷一覧表". 江南作戦戦闘詳報　自昭和１５年３月１日至昭和１５年４月７日, ID: C13031870600. Japan Center for Historical Records. Retrieved 04 October 2026.
  6. ↑ AP (3–4 February 1940). "50,000 Chinese Routed At Wuyuan, Japs Report". Reading Eagle. Hong Kong. p. 5.
  7. ↑ AP (3 February 1940). "Japan Claims New Victories: Nippon Reports Clash With Chinese in Provinces". The Deseret News. Hong Kong. p. 1.
  8. ↑ AP (5 February 1940). "Japanese Chase 'Ghost' of Foe". The Evening Independent. Hong Kong. p. 2.
  9. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 王嚴電蔣中正（續前電）該師九個步兵連生還土兵約二百名並遵命加強陣地移駐陣地等戰報, 典藏號: 002-090200-00066-151
  10. 1 2 History and Political Compilation Department (1966). 抗日戰史: 桂南會戰(三) [History of the Anti-Japanese War: Battle of South Guangxi (part 3)]. Ministry of National Defense (Republic of China).
  11. ↑ AP (16 Feb 1940). "Japanese Grip on China Wanes". The Spokesman-Review. Chungking. p. 2.
  12. ↑ AP (16 Feb 1940). "Jap Invasion Spends Force In China". St. Petersburg Times. Shanghai. p. 1.
  13. ↑ Lee, Clark (16 Feb 1940). "Japan's Drive 'Wearing Out' Against China". Schenectady Gazette. Shanghai. p. 8.
  14. ↑ "The Fighting in China : Activity in Inner Mongolia". The Glasgow Herald. Chungking. 29 March 1940. p. 9.
  15. ↑ Zhang Fakui, Xia Lianyin (2012). 張發奎口述自傳:中華民國第四任陸軍總司令回憶錄 [Zhang Fakui’s Oral Autobiography: Memoirs of the Fourth Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the Republic of China]. Political Philosophy and Culture of the Asia-Pacific. p. 429.
  16. ↑ History and Political Compilation Department (1981). 抗日戰史: 桂南會戰 (二) [History of the Anti-Japanese War: Battle of South Guangxi (Part 2)]. Ministry of National Defense (Republic of China). p. 161.
  17. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 王張發奎電蔣中正據李延年電稱本軍及四十九師七十六師第九師等部在桂南戰役兵員傷亡情形, 典藏號: 002-090200-00062-314
  18. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 王嚴電蔣中正該師由桂回衡陽現駐東洋渡並呈現有人員與缺額及桂南作戰傷亡數目請賜撥員以從速整補, 典藏號: 002-090200-00062-307
  19. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張發奎電蔣中正據杜聿明電稱該軍一月下旬至二月上旬兵員傷亡及彈藥耗損情形並請核賜補充, 典藏號: 002-090200-00062-312
  20. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張發奎電蔣中正據杜聿明電稱張世希師與日軍在六七塘等地作戰經過及金憲章師以主力固守崑崙關守備高田並掩護張師轉進等情報, 典藏號: 002-090200-00066-141
  21. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張發奎電蔣中正據何宣電稱四十六軍三月份作戰靈山突圍人馬傷亡械彈損耗及現有待補各數目, 典藏號: 002-090200-00063-113
  22. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張白崇禧電蔣中正日軍進犯靈山鄧龍光部一五五師一五六師損傷近半而四十六軍及各獨立團損失情形尚未據報, 典藏號: 002-090200-00062-322
  23. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張發奎電蔣中正據鄧龍光報稱該集團六十四軍邕江南岸之役人員械彈傷亡損耗數目, 典藏號: 002-090200-00063-108
  24. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 韋雲淞電蔣中正徐永昌據一三五師出擊隊電稱日軍分三路由平江攻希四嶺渠透嶺其主力沿邕龍公路攻班魚山等情, 典藏號: 002-090200-00065-203
  25. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張發奎電蔣中正據韋雲淞電稱日軍向馱蘆對岸及馱目渠舊擾我左江北岸我一八八師並不時以機槍隔河猛射等情, 典藏號: 002-090200-00065-202
  26. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 韋雲淞電蔣中正何應欽該軍四月十七日至五月四日於龍州附近作戰人馬傷亡械彈損耗數目, 典藏號: 002-090200-00066-311
  27. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 張發奎電蔣中正據報龍津敵分由北標及伏隆方面向我反攻我迎戰暨傷亡情形等戰況, 典藏號: 002-090200-00063-261
  28. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 第四戰區桂南戰史旅行暨戰地調查紀事第三冊：第三篇賓陽戰役後敵軍撤退我軍追擊間各戰役之研究第十五章四塘附近之襲擊, 典藏號: 008-010701-00041-003
  29. ↑ 國史館檔案史料文物查詢系統, 第四戰區桂南戰史旅行暨戰地調查紀事第三冊：第三篇賓陽戰役後敵軍撤退我軍追擊間各戰役之研究第十六章高峰隘附近之襲擊, 典藏號: 008-010701-00041-004

Bibliography

  • Cheung, Raymond. OSPREY AIRCRAFT OF THE ACES 126: Aces of the Republic of China Air Force. Oxford: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, 2015. ISBN 978-1-4728-0561-4.
  • Xú, Lùméi. Fallen: A Decryption of 682 Air Force Heroes of The War of Resistance-WWII and Their Martyrdom. 东城区, 北京， 中国: 团结出版社, 2016. ISBN 978-7-5126-4433-5.

23°48′20″N 108°59′02″E / 23.8055°N 108.9840°E / 23.8055; 108.9840

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