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249-403: After Panlong Campaign , the communist force under the command of Peng Dehuai in northwest China had scored three consecutive victories against its nationalist adversary, and had forced the nationalists in northwestern China to cease further offensives. Both sides took rest and the communists held a celebration at Ansai ( 安塞 ) region during this break. Zhou Enlai personally went to join

498-662: A heavy machine gun company and a communication platoon, and the battalion is one of the best unit among Ma clique 's forces that were experts in urban defense. The Heavy Weaponry Battalion of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was further assisted by the Gansu 2nd Security Regiment whose troops were all locals who were very familiar with local terrain. The nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division Ma Jiyuan ( 马继援 ) had so much confident in this urban defense garrison of 1,300 men that he deployed them in

747-650: A subarctic climate ( Dwc ) – with winter temperatures sometimes dropping to −40 °C (−40 °F). Most of the limited precipitation is delivered in the summer months: winters are so dry that snow cover is confined to very high altitudes and the snow line can be as high as 5,500 metres (18,040 ft) in the southwest. Gansu is divided into fourteen prefecture-level divisions : twelve prefecture-level cities and two autonomous prefectures : The fourteen Prefecture of Gansu are subdivided into 86 county-level divisions (17 districts , 5 county-level cities , 57 counties , and 7 autonomous counties ). Secretaries of

996-614: A base in Taihangshan , on the borders of Shanxi and Hebei , and directed guerrilla operations in both provinces. From Taihangshan, Peng commanded two thirds of the Eighth Route Army, approximately 100,000 soldiers. In July 1940, Peng was given overall command of the largest communist operation of the anti-Japanese war, the Hundred Regiments Offensive , when 200,000 regular troops from the Eighth Route Army participated in

1245-613: A base in Wutaishan but was called from duty to attend a Politburo meeting on December 13. At the meeting, Peng advocated a greater material commitment to the defense of Shanxi, but Mao disagreed and wanted the Red Army to reduce its commitment to fighting the Japanese. In 1938, after Mao's rival, Zhang Guotao , defected to the Kuomintang, Peng moved closer to Mao's position. In late 1938, Peng set up

1494-571: A bean curd shop. The income from the land and shop supported an extended family of eight people, including Peng, his three brothers, his parents, his grandmother, and a grand-uncle. Peng's grand-uncle had joined and fought for the Taiping rebellion and used to tell Peng about the old Taiping ideals: everyone should have enough food to eat, women should not bind their feet , and land should be redistributed equally. Peng later described his own class background as "lower-middle peasant." From 1905 to 1907, Peng

1743-503: A bronze statue of Mao in the Beijing Military Museum by saying, "Why take the trouble to put it up? What is put up now will be removed in the future." When greeted by a group of soldiers who shouted, "Long Live Chairman Mao!" (literally "10,000 years for Chairman Mao"), Peng addressed the soldiers by saying, "You shout '10,000 years for Chairman Mao!' – does he, then, live for 10,000 years? He will not even live for 100 years! This

1992-754: A collection of arms that included over a million pieces of artillery. Peng's forces were pushed back to the border of Inner Mongolia but finally managed to decisively defeat Hu's forces in August, in the Battle of Shajiadian (沙家店战役), which saved Mao and other members from the Central Committee from being taken prisoner. Peng eventually pushed Kuomintang forces out of Shaanxi in February 1948. Between 1947 and September 22, 1949, Peng's forces occupied Gansu, Ningxia, and Qinghai . His forces repeatedly defeated but could not destroy

2241-469: A communist scout was captured alive by the nationalist cavalry. The communists feared that their plan was to be compromised, and attempted to rescue the captured scout, but Luo Er Plateau was a place extremely difficult to take but very easy to defend due to its terrain, and the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was forced to abort their futile attempts and move to

2490-697: A conference in Beijing with Mao, Zhou, and Gao Gang on October 18, and they ordered the first wave of Chinese soldiers, in total more than 260,000 men, to cross into Korea on the night of October 19. On October 25, the PVA had its first confrontation with UN troops at Onjong and Unsan , and pushed the UN forces south of the Chongchon River by November 4 in the aftermath of First Phase Campaign. From November 24 to December 24, Peng directed 380,000 PVA troops to confront UN forces in

2739-551: A construction laborer for the construction of a dam near Dongting Lake . When the dam was completed in 1916, Peng assumed that he was no longer in danger of being arrested and returned home and joined the army of a local Kuomintang -aligned warlord, Tang Xiangming . At the time, the minimum age of enlistment in Hunan was 18. Peng was able to join in March 1916 at the age of 17 as a private second class soldier. This may be why his year of birth

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2988-440: A few guns. Transports are not protected. More and more soldiers are dying of starvation. Can't you overcome some of your difficulties?" The atmosphere became so tense that Zhou was forced to adjourn the conference. He later called a series of meetings, and it was agreed that the PVA would be divided into three groups to be dispatched to Korea in shifts, to accelerate the training of Chinese pilots, to provide more anti-aircraft guns to

3237-452: A large Yaodong with several troops waving white flags just outside the door. The 1st Company of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column believed the nationalists and the entire company went forward to accept the supposed surrender, but they were ambushed as two hundred cavalries suddenly charged out the large Yaodong and attacked the unsuspecting communist, and over thirty troops, including He Dadao ( 何大道 ),

3486-516: A large amount of ammunition. In 1933, the Chinese Communist Party shifted its focus from underground activities in the cities to building up its power in rural bases. In October 1933 Chiang Kai-shek took command of nearly 800,000 soldiers and led the fifth encirclement campaign against CCP forces, which numbered about 150,000 regulars and guerillas. The communist military leaders, including Peng and Zhu De, prepared largely static defenses,

3735-718: A magnitude of 7.6 killed 275 in 1932. The Muslim Conflict in Gansu (1927–1930) was a conflict against the Guominjun . While the Muslim General Ma Hongbin was acting chairman of the province, Muslim General Ma Buqing was in virtual control of Gansu in 1940. Liangzhou District in Wuwei was previously his headquarters in Gansu, where he controlled 15 million Muslims. Xinjiang came under Kuomintang (Nationalist) control after their soldiers entered via Gansu. Gansu's Tienshui

3984-571: A massive Communist effort to disrupt Japanese logistical networks across northern China. The Hundred Regiments Offensive was modestly successful, but political disputes within the Communist Party led to Peng being recalled to Yan'an , and he spent the rest of the war without an active command. After the Japanese surrendered , in 1945, Peng was given command of Communist forces in Northwest China. He

4233-470: A nationalist officer who was the youngest brother of Ma Zhongying was named as the mayor and the commander-in-chief of the urban defense. The campaign concluded with nationalist victory. On May 31, 1947, as Peng Dehuai learned the news of the defeat of the communist 2nd Column, he immediately changed his target of his next battle by telegraphing Mao Zedong on the same day with the local communist party boss Xi Zhongxun , claiming that: The 82nd Division of

4482-607: A population of 26 million, ranking 22nd in China . Its population is mostly Han , along with Hui , Dongxiang and Tibetan minorities. The most common language is Mandarin. Gansu is among the poorest administrative divisions in China, ranking last in GDP per capita as of 2019. The state of Qin originated in what is now southeastern Gansu, and later established the first imperial dynasty in Chinese history. The Northern Silk Road ran through

4731-614: A position of political leadership in the communist movement. In February 1932, Peng attacked but failed to dislodge elite NRA troops at Kanchow . Nonetheless, he continued to argue in favor of conventional operations over guerilla tactics during the August meeting of the Party's Military Commission, where he was named vice-chairman. During the fourth encirclement campaign involving 400,000 NRA soldiers, Peng successfully defeated an elite enemy division in Chiaohu and forayed into Fujian province, capturing

4980-509: A private train. Mao enjoyed the companionship of an ever-changing succession of enthusiastic young women, whom he met either at weekly dances in Zhongnanhai or on his journeys by train. Mao had a costly office suite built for him in Beijing, including a private, book-lined study (which, according to Mao's personal physician Li Zhisui , was never used). When Peng's wife suggested for the couple to spend more free time visiting Mao's quarters, Peng

5229-472: A result of frequent earthquakes, droughts and famines, the economic progress of Gansu was significantly slower than that of other provinces of China until recently. Based on the area's abundant mineral resources it has begun developing into a vital industrial center. An earthquake in Gansu at 8.6 on the Richter scale killed around 180,000 people mostly in the present-day area of Ningxia in 1920, and another with

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5478-416: A result, the remaining nationalist garrison was gravely overstretched and the nationalist northern flank was dangerously exposed. In order to boost local defense, the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to Pingliang in eastern Gansu in early 1947. To strengthen the defense of the triangular region bordered by regions of Western Peak (Xi Feng, 西峰 ), Ning (宁 ) County, and Zhenyuan ( 镇原 ),

5727-458: A strategy supported by the internationalists, the returned "students", and German advisor Otto Braun . Chiang was able to successfully encircle the soviet base areas and deal a number of defeats to the communists. Peng's own units shrank from 35,000 to around 20,000 men. CCP remnants decided to retreat from Jiangxi. On October 20, 1934, they broke out of NRA encirclement and began the Long March . Of

5976-627: A village in Nanxian , Peng noticed that the poor were being mistreated by a local landlord, and he encouraged them to establish an "association to help the poor." When the local villagers hesitated, Peng ordered his soldiers to arrest the landlord and execute him. Peng was reprimanded for his actions but not demoted or reassigned. After that incident, Peng began to consider seriously leaving the service of his provincial warlord army. In February 1922, after applying for extended unpaid leave, Peng and several other officers traveled to Guangdong to seek employment in

6225-471: A welfare state, and equal distribution of land. After Chiang split with Wang and re-ingratiated himself with the warlords, Peng and others felt that the CCP was the only major force that represented what they had been fighting for. More advanced communist doctrines and ideological considerations do not appear to have played a significant role. Following his defeat by He Jian, Peng and the remnant of his forces joined

6474-508: Is a personality cult!" When one of Peng's political commissars suggested that the Maoist hymn The East is Red should be widely taught throughout the PLA, Peng angrily rejected the suggestion, similarly by saying, "That is a personality cult! That is idealism!" Later in 1956, a group of soldiers visited Peng to request an audience with the chairman, but Peng rejected them by saying, "He is an old man, what

6723-541: Is believed to have originated, in part, from the area. Qin tombs and artifacts have been excavated from Fangmatan near Tianshui, including one 2200-year-old map of Guixian County . In imperial times, Gansu was an important strategic outpost and communications link for the Chinese empire, as the Hexi Corridor runs along the "neck" of the province. The Han dynasty extended the Great Wall across this corridor, building

6972-437: Is considered one of the most successful and highly respected generals in the history of the CCP . Peng was born on October 24, 1898, in the village of Shixiang, Xiangtan County, Hunan . His birth name was " Peng Dehua ". Peng's family lived in a thatched-straw hut and owned approximately 1.5 acres of irrigated land on which the family grew bamboo, sweet potatoes, tea, cotton, and various vegetables. His father also operated

7221-528: Is one of the Chinese provinces with smallest per capita area of arable land. Agricultural production includes cotton , linseed oil , maize , melons (such as the honeydew melon , known locally as the Bailan melon ), millet , and wheat . Gansu is known as a source for wild medicinal herbs which are used in Chinese medicine . However, pollution by heavy metals, such as cadmium in irrigation water, has resulted in

7470-458: Is part of Shiyang River Basin . The landscape in Gansu is very mountainous in the south and flat in the north. The mountains in the south are part of the Qilian Mountains , while the far western Altyn-Tagh contains the province's highest point, at 5,830 metres (19,130 ft). A natural land passage known as Hexi Corridor , stretching some 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from Lanzhou to

7719-484: Is popular among the Han and nine ethnic groups of Gansu. The cuisine of Gansu is based on the staple crops grown there: wheat , barley , millet , beans , and sweet potatoes . Within China, Gansu is known for its lamian (pulled noodles), and Muslim restaurants which feature authentic Gansu cuisine. Religion in Gansu (2012) According to a 2012 survey around 12% of the population of Gansu belongs to organised religions,

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7968-588: Is so beautiful about him?" In preparation for the Eighth National Congress , held in September 1956, Peng attended a Politburo committee to redraft the new Party Constitution . At the meeting, Peng suggested for a section in the Constitution's preamble referring to Mao Zedong Thought to be removed. Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping , Peng Zhen , and most other senior CCP members present quickly agreed, and it

8217-498: Is sometimes given as 1897 not 1898. Peng received a monthly wage, a portion of which he would continuously send back to support his family. Within seven months, he was promoted to private first class. One of Peng's commanding officers was an idealistic Nationalist who had participated in the 1911 Xinhai Revolution and influenced Peng to sympathize with the Kuomintang's goals of social reform and national reunification. After another civil war broke out in 1917, Peng's regiment split from

8466-702: The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Gansu Committee : The Secretary of the CCP Gansu Committee is the highest-ranking office within Gansu Province. Governors of Gansu : The Governorship of Gansu is the second highest-ranking official within Gansu, behind the Secretary of the CPC Gansu Committee. The governor is responsible for all issues related to economics , personnel , political initiatives,

8715-599: The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), allying himself with Mao Zedong and Zhu De . Peng was one of the most senior generals who defended the Jiangxi Soviet from Chiang's attempts to capture it, and his successes were rivaled only by Lin Biao . Peng participated in the Long March , and supported Mao Zedong at the Zunyi Conference , which was critical to Mao's rise to power. During the 1937–1945 Second Sino-Japanese War , Peng

8964-706: The Comintern rose to prominence within the Party. Following the return of several military leaders who had been training in Moscow, Jiangxi Soviet's forces were re-organized along more professional lines as Peng had long advocated for. On November 7, Peng was named to the Central Military Commission and to the Central Executive Committee of the Jiangxi Soviet, the first time that he had been named to

9213-678: The Dixie Mission , briefing the Americans about the military situation in Japanese-occupied China. The Japanese surrendered on September 2, 1945, ending China's war with Japan and beginning the final stage of the Chinese Civil War . In October Peng took command of troops in northern China, occupied Inner Mongolia , and accepted the surrender of Japanese soldiers there. In March 1946, communist forces (1.1 million soldiers) were renamed

9462-476: The Great Leap Forward caused a nationwide famine, Peng became critical of Mao's leadership. The rivalry between Peng and Mao culminated in an open confrontation between the two at the 1959 Lushan Conference . Mao won this confrontation, labeled Peng as a leader of an "anti-Party clique", and purged Peng from all influential positions for the rest of his life. Peng lived in virtual obscurity until 1965, when

9711-487: The Hexi Corridor , which passes through Gansu, resulting in it being an important strategic outpost and communications link for the Chinese empire. The city of Jiayuguan , the second most populated city in Gansu, is known for its section of the Great Wall and the Jiayu Pass fortress complex. Gansu is a compound of the names of Ganzhou (now the main urban district and seat of Zhangye ) and Suzhou (an old name and

9960-561: The Jade Gate , is situated within the province. It is bound from north by the Gobi Desert and Qilian Mountains from the south. Gansu generally has a semi-arid to arid continental climate ( Köppen BSk or BWk ) with warm to hot summers and cold to very cold winters, although diurnal temperature ranges are often so large that maxima remain above 0 °C (32 °F) even in winter. However, due to extreme altitude, some areas of Gansu exhibit

10209-597: The Korean Armistice Agreement in 1953. Mao directed China's general strategy, and Zhou was appointed general commander and coordinating Peng's forces with the Soviet and North Korean governments and the rest of the Chinese government. Over the next week, Peng established a headquarters in Shenyang , and prepared his invasion strategy with his officers. After Zhou and Lin had negotiated Stalin's approval, Peng attended

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10458-644: The Ma clique in Qinghai was very tough and our force had concentrated in preparation for first annihilating the 81st Division of Ma clique in Ningxia , and then to strike the 82nd Division. Half a month later, the communist scored a victory in Huan (环) county against the nationalist 81st Division of Ma clique in Ningxia , but it was not until the Xifu Campaign in 1948 did Peng Dehuai

10707-545: The Northern Expedition , an effort to unify China by defeating the northern warlords. Tang's forces were incorporated into the NRA, and Peng was promoted to the rank of major. Peng himself did not become a formal member of the Kuomintang. He first heard of the CCP in 1925. Between July 1926 and March 1927, Peng campaigned in Hunan, participating in the capture of Changsha and Wuhan . Under General He Jian , Peng participated in

10956-761: The People's Republic of China was declared on October 1, 1949, Peng was appointed Chairman of the Northwest China Military and Administrative Commission and Commander-in-Chief and Political Commissar of Xinjiang, with Wang Zhen as his deputy. That appointment gave Peng responsibility over Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia, Qinghai, and Xinjiang, an area of over 5 million square kilometres (1.9 million square miles) but under 30 million people. Peng's forces continued their gradual occupation of Xinjiang, which they completed in September 1951. North Korea invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950. After receiving its endorsement from

11205-557: The Qijia culture took root in Gansu from 3100 BC to 2700 BC and 2400 BC to 1900 BC respectively. The Yuezhi originally lived in the very western part of Gansu until they were forced to emigrate by the Xiongnu around 177 BC. The State of Qin , known in China as the founding state of the Chinese empire , grew out from the southeastern part of Gansu, specifically the Tianshui area. The Qin name

11454-607: The Soviet Army — the only example of a modern communist force — as the model. Peng believed that the CCP's main role was to improve the welfare of the common people; this was contrary to Mao's political goals and contributed to their conflict in the late 1950s. Stalin once arbitrated in favor of Peng in a conflict with a Soviet diplomat by saying, "Trust him in everything; Peng is a long-tested, talented militarist ." After being recalled to China in April 1952, Peng succeeded Zhou in managing

11703-474: The Soviet Union was the only communist country then equipped with a fully modern, professional army, Peng attempted to reform China's military on the Soviet model over the next several years, making the army less political and more professional (contrary to the political goals of Mao). Peng resisted Mao's attempts to develop a personality cult throughout the 1950s; and, when Mao's economic policies associated with

11952-630: The State Council . Lin Biao was senior to Peng on the State Council. Soon after accepting those appointments, on October 1, 1954, Peng produced an ambitious plan for the modernization of the PLA on the model of the Soviet military. Peng had been an alternate member of the Central Committee since 1934, a full member since 1938, and a member of the Politburo since 1945, but it was not until he became

12201-573: The Tibetan and Loess plateaus and borders Mongolia 's Govi-Altai Province , Inner Mongolia and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south and Shaanxi to the east. The Yellow River passes through the southern part of the province. Part of Gansu's territory is located in the Gobi Desert . The Qilian mountains are located in the south of the Province. Gansu has

12450-719: The United Nations , the United States landed its first troops in Korea on September 15. On October 1, the first anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic, UN forces crossed the 38th parallel into North Korea. There was some disagreement within China's leadership about how to react to the American push to the Chinese border. Mao and Zhou wanted direct military intervention, but most other Chinese leaders believed that China should not enter

12699-402: The chief-of-staff of the 12th Regiment of the communist 4th Brigade and Wu Xidu ( 吴锡都 ), the deputy chief-of-staff of the 718th Regiment of the communist 359th Brigade were both killed in action as the communists inside the city attempted to breakout . The communists outside the city wall had completely run out any reserve by this time and could not stop the slaughter of their comrades inside

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12948-440: The environment and the foreign affairs of the province. The Governor is appointed by the Gansu Provincial People's Congress , which is the province's legislative body. Despite recent growth in Gansu and the booming economy in the rest of China, Gansu is still considered to be one of the poorest provinces in China. For several years, it has ranked as one of the provinces with lowest GDP per capita . Its nominal GDP for 2017

13197-491: The geographical centre of China, marked by the Center of the Country Monument at 35°50′40.9″N 103°27′7.5″E  /  35.844694°N 103.452083°E  / 35.844694; 103.452083  ( Geographical centre of China ) . Part of the Gobi Desert is located in Gansu, as well as small parts of the Badain Jaran Desert and the Tengger Desert . The Yellow River gets most of its water from Gansu, flowing straight through Lanzhou. The area around Wuwei

13446-408: The " People's Liberation Army " (PLA). Peng himself was placed in command of 175,000 soldiers, organized as the " Northwest Field Army ," most of which had been under the command of He Long during the war against Japan. He then became Peng's second-in-command. Peng's notable subordinates in the Northwest Field Army included Zhang Zongxun and Wang Zhen . Peng's forces were the most poorly armed of

13695-512: The 18,000 men under Peng's command when the March began, only about 3,000 remained when Peng's forces reached their eventual destination in Shaanxi on October 20, 1935. Due to their defeat in 1934, Peng began shifting toward the doctrine of guerilla warfare advocated by Mao. He supported Mao's rise to power during the January 1935 Zunyi Conference . Peng continued to consolidate the communists' base area after arriving in Shaanxi by campaigning in neighboring Shanxi and Gansu . In April 1937, Peng

13944-420: The 1950–1953 Korean War , and he served as the direct commander of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army for the first half of the war (though Mao and Zhou Enlai were technically more senior). Peng's experiences in the Korean War convinced him that the Chinese military had to become more professional, organized, and well-equipped in order to prepare itself for the conditions of modern technical warfare. Because

14193-453: The 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade. One reason why Han Youlu was also sent was because Li Wenbin ( 李文彬 ), his replacement after his promotion was selected by the Ma Buluan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade, but Li Wenbin, the new regimental commander of the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade, was not a Muslim and thus might have difficulties in commanding

14442-454: The 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column immediately organized their troops and directed machine gun and mortar crew to fire at the nationalists. Zhu Zhongxin ( 朱中新 ), the political commissar of the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was just getting up to urinate when the battle broke out, and he immediately woke up his troops and with

14691-435: The 400+ strong nationalist advance guards had already been lost, and the company commander Ma Guochen who led the nationalist advance guards lost both his legs due to enemy fire. The nationalists was forced to a temporary retreat and headed back to Qingyang. At Heshui, the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column spent a day and a night to attack the town without any success. The political commissar of

14940-405: The 7th Company and the 8th Company of the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column had successfully besieged the nationalist cavalries and seeing there was no way to escape, the nationalists deployed a fake surrender tactic by laying down their arms and raised their hands while kneeing down beside their horses after dismounted. Wu Baoliang ( 吴保良 ),

15189-438: The CCP. In 1970, Peng was formally tried and sentenced to life imprisonment, and he died in prison in 1974. After Mao died in 1976, Peng's old ally, Deng Xiaoping, emerged as China's paramount leader . Deng led an effort to formally rehabilitate people who he believed to have been unjustly persecuted during the Cultural Revolution, and Peng was one of the first leaders to be posthumously rehabilitated, in 1978. In modern China, Peng

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15438-405: The Fifth Phase Campaign. Up to 40% of all Chinese forces in Korea were rendered combat ineffective between November 25 and December 24, 1950, and about 12 Chinese divisions were lost in from April 22 to June 10, 1951. All in all, over a million Chinese soldiers became casualties during the course of the war. Peng justified the PVA's high casualty rate by his almost religious belief in communism and

15687-417: The Guangdong warlord allied with the Kuomintang. Nonetheless, Peng reorganized his battalion along pro-Kuomintang political lines in 1925. In late 1925, Chiang Kai-shek established the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) and led the Kuomintang to take control of Guangdong. Tang then realigned himself with Chiang in 1926. After Wu Peifu drove Tang out of Changsha, Chiang ordered the NRA to relieve Tang and began

15936-410: The Independent 4th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was also sent to join the assault on the town. The 717th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column attack the town from northwest, while the 718th Regiment of the 359th Brigade and the 12th Regiment of the Independent 4th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column attacked the town from the east, and the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of

16185-408: The Independent Brigade of the communist 2nd Column had already infiltrated into regions south of Qingyang, and unaware of the enemy strength, the nationalists did not want to risk being ambushed on the way, so they decided to concentrate their forces by going to Qingyang after leaving Red City. As a result, when the nationalist reinforcement finally begun their march toward Heshui, it was already late in

16434-420: The Instructional Brigade and the Independent 4th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column were tasked to ambush the reinforcement. As the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade reached the Wormwood Grass Shop (Hao Cao Pu, 蒿草铺 ) area of Luo Er Plateau (Luo Er Yuan, 罗儿塬 ) region 10 km from Heshui, the communist scouts ahead were ambushed by the local nationalist cavalry on patrol. In a brief but fierce battle,

16683-412: The Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column had defeated the 1st Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade in the morning and thus was eager to score another victory. Cui Yongchen ( 崔永臣 ), the commander of the 7th Company of the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column ordered to have the advance guard of the nationalist cavalry machined, and

16932-437: The Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column who had beaten back the first nationalist reinforcement attempt and both communist brigades set up a defense at Vesper Col (Tai Bai Ao, 太白坳 ) region in order to check the advance of the nationalist reinforcement for a second time. On May 30, 1947, Hu Zongnan sent an airplane from Xi'an at noon to check if the nationalists were still fighting in Heshui. After confirming that

17181-404: The Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, Guan Shengzhi ( 关盛志 ) took a pistol from his bodyguard and shouted:”Counterattack! Nobody is allowed to retreat!” while firing pistols in both hands, charging the enemy, followed by his comrades. In the meantime, the deputy political commissar of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Shi ( 王湜 ), ordered

17430-490: The Japanese. Mao was not able to force his position, and the communists co-operated with the Kuomintang and fought the Japanese. When the Japanese invaded Shanxi, the Red Army (renamed the Eighth Route Army ) assisted the Kuomintang warlord, Yan Xishan , in resisting the Japanese, and Peng traveled to the provincial capital, Taiyuan , with Zhou Enlai to co-ordinate tactics. After the Japanese advanced towards Taiyuan on September 13, 1937, Peng directed overall operations from

17679-534: The Kuomintang from which it occasionally staged guerrilla raids as far as Shanghai. That operation led the United States to form a defense agreement with Taiwan , which effectively prevented the communists from completely defeating the Kuomintang. Gansu Gansu is a province in Northwestern China . Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou , in the southeastern part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative district by area at 453,700 square kilometres (175,200 sq mi), Gansu lies between

17928-531: The Muslim troops who were subordinates of Han Youlu, the former regimental commander. The nationalist reinforcement of the central front under the direct command of the deputy commander of the Reorganized 82nd Division, Lieutenant General Ma Quanyi ( 马全义 ) left the town of Western Peak (Xi Feng, 西峰 ), then passed the Relay Station Horse Pass (Yi Ma Guan, 驿马关 ), and three hours after the 1st Regiment of

18177-499: The Nanking side. Peng became a full colonel after the reorganization. In 1927, Peng was approached several times by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members, including some of his old friends. The communists' persistent push for land redistribution resonated with his childhood experience of poverty. Peng was also disappointed by the left-right split within the Kuomintang and the in-fighting among Chiang Kai-shek's own forces. In October, Peng

18426-621: The PRC), and arrived on October 4. Peng listened to both sides of the debate and on October 5 decided to support Mao. Peng's support for Mao's position changed the atmosphere of the meeting, and most other leaders changed their positions to support a direct Chinese intervention in the Korean War. On October 5, Peng was named the Commander and the Commissar of the People's Volunteer Army and held both titles until

18675-459: The PVA" were won "under the correct leadership of the CCP and of Comrade Mao Zedong." Peng authorized the text after he had removed "and of Comrade Mao Zedong." In 1956, an anonymous Chinese citizen wrote a letter to Peng to condemn the practices of hanging portraits of Mao in public places and singing songs in praise of Mao. Peng sent this letter to Huang Kecheng , his chief of staff, to be widely distributed. Peng successfully opposed efforts to place

18924-470: The PVA's logistical problems with members of various government agencies involved in the war effort. After the government representatives emphasized their inability to meet the demands of the war, Peng, in an angry outburst, shouted, "You have this and that problem.... You should go to the front and see with your own eyes what food and clothing the soldiers have! Not to speak of the casualties! For what are they giving their lives? We have no aircraft. We have only

19173-742: The Qingshui treaty, concluded in 823 between the Tibetan Empire and the Tang dynasty, China lost much of western Gansu province for a significant period. After the fall of the Uyghur Khaganate , a Buddhist Yugur (Uyghur) state called the Ganzhou Uyghur Kingdom was established by migrating Uyghurs from the khaganate in part of Gansu that lasted from 848 to 1036   AD. Along the Silk Road , Gansu

19422-489: The Red Army, but Mao, who had recently been promoted to the position, attacked Peng and Lin for challenging him and successfully retained his position. In October 1935, following the last major battle between the Kuomintang and the Red Army, Mao wrote and dedicated a poem to Peng. (The poem was not published until 1947.) In 1936, the American journalist Edgar Snow stayed for several days at Peng's compound in Yuwang while Peng

19671-409: The Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade (without its Heavy Weaponry Battalion and its 1st Regiment ) of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to Qingyang. The 1st Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to Red City (Chi Cheng, 赤城 ), southeast of Qingyang. The Heavy Weaponry Battalion of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of

19920-509: The Second Phase Campaign, and he successfully recovered the area north of the 38th parallel. However, on his watch, Mao's son Anying was killed in an air raid. Despite his personal reservations, Peng then began an ambitious campaign to take the area south of the 38th parallel to fulfill Mao's political objectives for the war. About 230,000 Chinese soldiers crossed into South Korean territory on December 31 and captured Seoul as part of

20169-537: The Third Phase Campaign but were forced to evacuate it with heavy losses on March 14, 1951, as the UN forces counterattacked during the course of Fourth Phase Campaign. Peng launched a final Fifth Phase Campaign from April 22 to June 10 to retake Seoul with 548,000 Chinese troops, but it failed, and the Korean War came to a standstill just north the 38th parallel. In the evaluation of US Army's official Korean War historian Roy Edgar Appleman, Peng's performances in

20418-466: The Vesper Col region in the east, south, and north, he ordered Li Wenbin ( 李文彬 ), the regimental commander of the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade to take charge of the nationalist force in the south, and Han Youlu ( 韩有禄 ), the deputy commander in charge of the nationalist reinforcement to take charge of the nationalist force in the north to check the enemy's attack. However,

20667-633: The Yumen pass in August 2006. The Xixia or Western Xia dynasty controlled much of Gansu as well as Ningxia . The province was also the origin of the Dungan Revolt of 1862–77. Among the Qing forces were Muslim generals, including Ma Zhan'ao and Ma Anliang , who helped the Qing crush the rebel Muslims. The revolt had spread into Gansu from neighbouring Qinghai. There was another Dungan revolt from 1895 to 1896 . As

20916-617: The air cover available to Hu. Peng was forced to abandon Yan'an in late March but resisted Hu's forces long enough for Mao and other senior party leaders to evacuate safely. Mao wanted Peng to provoke a decisive confrontation with Hu immediately, but Peng dissuaded him. By April, Mao agreed that Peng's objective was to "keep the enemy on the run... tire him out completely, reduce his food supplies, and then look for an opportunity to destroy him." On May 4 Peng's forces attacked an isolated supply depot in northeastern Shaanxi, arrested its commander, and captured food reserves, 40,000 army uniforms, and

21165-750: The area after the Shanghai massacre of 1927 . Peng kept his unit passive and began organizing local party branches with other secret members of the CCP within his own troops. His forces then executed the county magistrate and landlords, formed a local soviet , and incorporated themselves within the Chinese Red Army . Following a prolonged defeat at the hands of He Jian, who still served the KMT, Peng retreated to Jinggangshan to join Mao Zedong and Zhu De . Political scientist Jürgen Domes wrote that like many other young men at

21414-420: The area, which became the Jiangxi Soviet . Peng remained behind to guard Jinggangshan with a force of 800 soldiers but withdrew after an attack by a Hunanese Kuomintang force of 25,000 soldiers. He was criticized by Mao for retreating. Peng returned to the area with a force of 1,000 men later that year after the Kuomintang withdrew. He then successfully organized two large raids into southern Hunan, first during

21663-544: The armies of several Hunan-based warlord armies, raising himself from the rank of private second class to major. In 1926, Peng's forces joined the Kuomintang , and Peng was first introduced to communism. Peng participated in the Northern Expedition , and supported Wang Jingwei 's attempt to form a left-leaning Kuomintang government based in Wuhan . After Wang was defeated, Peng briefly rejoined Chiang Kai-shek 's forces before joining

21912-524: The army of the Kuomintang. Peng's impression of the Kuomintang in 1922 was not favorable, and he left Guangzhou with the intention of settling back in Hunan as a farmer. Peng returned to his home village by sea via Shanghai , the farthest that he had ever been from his home village, and farmed with his father for three months on land that his father had bought with money sent home by Peng, but Peng did not find that occupation to be satisfying. After one of Peng's old comrades had suggested that Peng apply to

22161-551: The assault by the enemy main force would come so soon, and thus initially believed it was just the enemy guerillas grouped together for a counterattack, instead of the main force of the regular communist army. The defenders of Heshui, nonetheless, was well armed to take care themselves: the Heavy Weaponry Battalion of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division at Heshui included an infantry support gun company, an anti-tank gun company,

22410-400: The attackers, inflicting heavy casualties on the attackers. The political commissar of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Enmao ( 王恩茂 ) wrote in his diary later to record the blunders committed by the attacking communists which resulted in failure and the first was the uncompromising doctrine strictly followed: once the proved to be ineffective, nobody thought about changing the tactic, instead,

22659-400: The attacking nationalists, the ammunition ran out. The communist defenders were forced into close quarter battles with the attacking nationalists and both Ma Huiyuan, the commander of the heavy weaponry company of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column and Li Fengming ( 李风鸣 ), the commander of the 8th Company of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of

22908-481: The battle of Fengtai, in which Kuomintang forces decisively defeated the warlord Wu Peifu . In 1927, Wang Jingwei attempted to establish a left-leaning Kuomintang government in Wuhan, causing a split with the center/right-leaning government in Nanking. Tang Shengzhi aligned himself with the Wuhan government, and Peng was promoted to lieutenant-colonel. However, Tang's forces were defeated by Chiang. During their retreat in 1928, He Jian, under whom Peng served, defected to

23157-582: The campaign to Hu Zongnan and Ma Bufang , and the experience gained in this campaign would help the nationalists to defeat their communist enemy once again in Xifu Campaign in 1948. [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 Peng Dehuai Peng Dehuai (October 24, 1898 – November 29, 1974)

23406-446: The campaign was lost and Wang Zhen himself was responsible, claiming that the forces of Ma clique in Qinghai was very capable, and they acted swiftly and bravely in battles, and this was not an exaggeration to make any excuses. The communist 359th Brigade along suffered over 800 fatalities and had exhausted most of the ammunition, and thus had to retreat to a different region for several days to regroup and re-supply. On June 1, 1947,

23655-411: The campaign, Ma Jiyuan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division selected his uncle, Ma Bufang 's brother-in-law, Lieutenant General Ma Quanyi, the deputy commander of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division to be in charge of all of the nationalist reinforcement forces, and his assistant was the divisional staff officer Han Youlu ( 韩有禄 ), who was the original regimental commander of

23904-424: The celebration on Mao Zedong 's behalf and suggested that Peng's force should take the opportunity to take a much-needed break while the nationalists were resting, but Peng Dehuai disagreed because Ansai region was a very poor region lacked any resources and thus could not support his large army numbered over twenty thousands. Instead, Peng Dehuai suggested that his force should strike toward eastern Gansu while

24153-472: The charging enemy force discovered that there were no gaps they could utilize after reaching the city wall. Taking the advantage, the defenders mobilized everyone including cooks and medics to launch an all-out counterattack, again inflicting heavy casualties on the trapped enemy at the foot of the city wall, especially the 718th Regiment of the 359th Brigade and the 12th Regiment of the Independent 4th Brigade of

24402-424: The cities of Yuezhou and Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, with 17,000 soldiers and the support of another 10,000 guerillas. Changsha was defended by He Jian, Peng's former superior. Peng was initially victorious and occupied the city on July 30 following a hasty retreat by He. The anticipated nationwide revolution did not occur, however, and on August 5 He Jian counterattacked with a force of 35,000 men. Peng

24651-445: The city and their reinforcement and decided to personally lead the counterattack on the nationalist reinforcement. However, as soon as he stepped out of the shelter, he was struck in the arm by a heavy machine gun bullet fired by the defenders on the city wall, severing the artery and knocked him out cold. As a result, not only the planned counterattack did not materialize, the attackers also lost their command and resulted in chaos. With

24900-521: The city, Guo Peng, the commander of the communist 359th Brigade who was in charge of taking the city, hastily ordered the last communist reserve, the 3rd Battalion of the 717th Regiment of the communist 359th Brigade to stop the nationalist reinforcement, but before the communist 3rd battalion had reached its designated position, the nationalist cavalry reinforcing the city met the battalion head on while in march. The nationalist cavalry immediately launched an attack on its communist enemy and attempted to charge

25149-415: The city. The commander-in-chief of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Zhen , personally directed the 718th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column to attack the southern gate of the city. The communist 718th Regiment had assaulted the southern gate several times without any success on May 29, 1947, and although the last attack in the morning on May 30, 1947, was successful in eliminating all of

25398-409: The city. At the same time, the communist 2nd Column learned that the nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade had left Banqiao and approached Heshui fast, and thus was forced to abandon its effort to take the town. The 12th Regiment of the communist Independent 4th Brigade held the position at Southern Temple Yuan (Nan Si Yuan, 南寺塬 ) to the south of Heshui while the 718th Regiment of the 359th Brigade held

25647-421: The cliff in two places. As the nationalist shelling had stopped, the troopers of the 1st Company and the 2nd Company of the 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade charged into the enemy and started a fierce close quarter combat. In the meantime, the nationalist cavalry immediately charged the enemy position from different side in support of their comrades-in-arm. The communists could not stop

25896-411: The command of Ma Fushou, the staff officer sent from the headquarters of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division to help Ma Buluan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade, the 1st Company and the 2nd Company of the 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade crawled to the bottom of the cliff under the cover of smoke from artillery shelling and then climbed up

26145-441: The commander of a newly formed Red 3rd Army. In July 1930, Li Lisan , who had gained de facto leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, saw the worldwide economic depression as a window of opportunity and issued a general order for communist units around China to "conquer one provincial capital" as a signal of a nationwide uprising and "revolutionary storm." Mao and Zhu were skeptical, but Peng prepared for and launched attacks on

26394-446: The commander of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column deployed the 3rd Battalion of the regiment to the south of the road, while the 2nd Battalion was deployed atop Northern Plateau (Bei Yuan, 北塬 ) in the north, while the 1st Battalion acted as reserve. With the exception of a single platoon on guard, the rest of the exhausted communists camped in the open and went to sleep. At 5:00 AM on May 30, 1947,

26643-443: The commander of the nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade ordered his soaked troops to stop and camp at Banqiao, 10 km away from Heshui. Despite the sound of guns could be heard, the cautious nationalists were careful not to proceed any further and avoided possible night fighting, a favorite tactic of the enemy. On May 30, 1947, the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade went to reinforce Heshui again from Qingyang. Ma Buluan,

26892-513: The commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade found a local resident as a guide, eventually reached the first line of the communist defense to the north of Heshui via Willow Ditch area of Northern Plateau region. The enemy position was manned by the 13th Regiment of the communist Independent 4th Brigade, and advanced guard of the nationalist reinforcement, the 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade had already sent out its 1st Company and 2nd Company on foot toward

27141-408: The commander-in-chief of the communist 2nd Column still wanted to take the city. Three regiments of the communist 359th Brigade and the 12th Regiment of the communist 4th Independent Brigade attacked the city for three times, but all failed due to heavy rain. The communist 718th Regiment planned to join the fight by 8:00 PM on the same day, but this was also delayed due to heavy rain. The headquarters of

27390-436: The communist 2nd Column informed its Instructional Brigade and Independent 4th Brigade that the 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade had approached Heshui (合水), and the two communist brigades launched a huge assault on the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade that lasted well into the night, but fierce battle had worn out both sides. Han Youlu ( 韩有禄 ), the nationalist deputy commander in charge of

27639-424: The communist 2nd Column to command. The 8th Company of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was at the most forward position and its commander, Li Fengming ( 李风鸣 ) was severely wounded an hour ago in battle, and Zhang Shengke ( 张升科 ), the political commissar of the company had to take over, and held a political conference to boost morale. During the next nationalist cavalry charge,

27888-417: The communist 2nd Column to rest of ten days and to use the time to find the mistakes that caused the defeat. Wang Zhen admitted that since he had joined the communist revolution, he fought several hundred battles and there were both victories and defeats, but none of them as bad as in this campaign. Peng Dehuai concluded in late October, 1947 on a conference included commanders of battalion level and above that

28137-413: The communist 2nd Column vexedly told his brigade commander: These bastards were so slick that one shot from them took two of us out!. The 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was also fooled by the fake surrender tactic adopted by another group of nationalists. Over two hundred cavalries from the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade had hidden in

28386-411: The communist 2nd Column was kept as reserve. However, the attacking communists were prevented from approaching the city wall, and it was not until the morning when the attacking enemy discovered why: the city wall extended toward a plateau to the northwest of the town, and defenders atop of the city wall on this plateau had perfect firing positions that could effectively block any attackers' advance toward

28635-407: The communist 2nd Column were wounded, but the nationalist attack was beaten back once again, and the position was still firmly in the communist hands. After the retreat, the nationalists of the central front regrouped and launched another round of attack, still targeting the enemy position held by the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column while the nationalist forces on

28884-407: The communist 2nd Column, Wang Enmao ( 王恩茂 ) reached the positions held by the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column in person in order to discuss the next move with Guo Peng ( 郭鹏 ), the commander of the communist 359th Brigade in the morning of May 30, 1947. One suggestion was to take concentrate all available force to take the town first and then attack the hill to the north, but this suggestion

29133-406: The communist 2nd Column, had to go to the front line to direct the combat himself. By the evening, the battle mainly continued at the southern sections of the city wall and enemy artillery heavily shelled the nationalist positions in the night. By midnight, the attacking enemy had blown away all of the obstacles outside, but failed to blow up the gate and a section of city wall as they had hoped, and

29382-439: The communist 2nd Column. After more than two hours of fierce fighting, the defenders had successfully beaten back the enemy once again. The defenders suffered heavily in the counterattack, with the commander of the nationalist Gansu 2nd Security Regiment, Li Hongxuan ( 李鸿轩 ), badly wounded in the battle. The attackers would later learn after the campaign that the same extension of the urban defense that prevented them from taking

29631-529: The communist attack was simply too ferocious and the nationalist cavalries were forced into a disorganized retreat. Lieutenant General Ma Quanyi personally led the Garrison Squadron to launch a counterattack, but he was shot in the leg, and was hurriedly carried away by his bodyguards, and thus was forced out of action for the rest of the campaign. At the Southern Plateau are of the Vesper Col region,

29880-656: The communist base in Yan'an in late 1941. After being recalled to Yan'an, Peng was subjected to a political indoctrination campaign in which he was criticized as an "empiricist" for his good relations with the Comintern and survived professionally only through an unconditional conversion to Mao's leadership. Mao ordered Peng to be criticized for 40 days for the "failings" of the Hundred Regiments Campaign (even though Mao had supported it and later praised its successes). Peng

30129-432: The communist defenders were initially successful in inflicting heavy casualties on the attacking nationalists under the command of the political commissar of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, Guan Shengzhi ( 关盛志 ). In the ensuing battle, when the political commissar was observing the enemy movements via binoculars, he was positively identified by the nationalist snipers and consequently

30378-471: The communist guerrillas at Jinggangshan. One of his first operations was to save Mao, who was attached to a unit that faced encirclement from Kuomintang forces. Jinggangshan was very poor and cold during the winter. It was ideal for retreat but not as a base for the growing communist forces. Zhu and Mao decided to attack into the adjacent area around Ruijin , Jiangxi , an agricultural city defended by weak warlord units. In January 1929, they successfully occupied

30627-403: The communist headquarters. After heavy casualties, the communist 3rd battalion was finally able to stop the nationalist cavalry charge. Although the 3rd Battalion of the 717th Regiment of the communist 359th Brigade managed to stop the nationalist cavalry charge to the communist headquarters, it was incapable of stopping the nationalist reinforcement from reaching the city wall. The defenders opened

30876-414: The communist positions, it was notice by the defenders on the city wall, who immediately opened up on the communists in attempt to help the nationalist cavalry outside the city wall. The two communist companies were incapable of stopping the nationalist reinforcement when attacked from both the front and back, and not only they lost their positions, most of the troops were killed as well. To the northwest of

31125-461: The communists as their area of control, so that the communists were legally allowed to station its 358th Brigade of the Eighth Route Army under the command of Wang Hongqian ( 王宏坤 ) in the region and turn it into a communist base. The communist 358th Brigade headquartered at Qingyang ( 庆阳 ) while the communist 770th Regiment under the command of Zhang Caiqian ( 张才千 ) was stationed at Heshui It

31374-498: The communists from engaging the nationalist reinforcement in another front: the nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade was also ordered by Ma Jiyuan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division to reinforce the besieged Heshui. The nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade moved out from its base in Ning County at noon on May 30, 1947, and by the evening, heavy rain prevented it from going any further and Tan Chengxiang ( 谭呈祥 ),

31623-476: The communists know how wrong they were. On May 21, 1947, the communists started their push toward eastern Gansu in three fronts from Ansai region under the personal command of Peng Dehuai : the communist 1st Column was at the right, and the Newly Organized 4th Brigade was at the central, while the 2nd Column under the command of Wang Zhen was at the left. The town of Heshui ( 合水 ) in the nationalist hands

31872-403: The communists still planned to take the city by the morning. However, this was not to be and things had turned for the worse for the communist attackers. The 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade suddenly appeared in the northern suburb of Heshui, which was totally unexpected by the communists attacking the city. Guo Peng, the commander of the communist 359th Brigade who

32121-467: The communists troops were exhausted and had not had the time needed to rest and regroup. In contrast, the nationalists celebrated the victory in grand scale. After learning the news of the successful beating back the enemy's attack, Ma Bufang ordered the Guo Xueli ( 郭学礼 ), the provincial interior minister to organize a large delegation that included the members of Qinghai provincial dance studio to visit

32370-430: The company commander of the 8th Company of the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column ordered the communists to cease fire and approached the kneeing nationalists to accept the surrender, while Luo Shaowei ( 罗少伟 ) and Xiong Guangyan ( 熊光焰 ), the commander and the deputy commander of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column also approached

32619-406: The company commander were killed and the rest of the communist company was scattered. Taking advantage of the successful surprise attack, the nationalist cavalries continued to charge the communist positions which were dangerously undermanned as a result of loss the 1st Company of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column. The political commissar of the 2nd Regiment of

32868-400: The cover of darkness and rain, the communists had withdrawn, and the cautious nationalists did not pursuit for fearing enemy ambush. In contrast to the combatant in the fierce battle, the nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade at Banqiao to the west of the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized Cavalry 8th Brigade was able to finally rest comfortably for a night and enjoyed their breakfast in

33117-584: The day-to-day affairs of the Central Military Commission in July 1952. In the spring of 1954, Peng was confirmed as the vice-chairman of the commission (Mao was its chairman) and became effectively the most senior military leader in China. On September 24, 1954, the First National People's Congress confirmed Peng's position and appointed him Defense Minister and one of the ten vice-ministers of

33366-422: The defenders into northern section of the city. Wang Zhen , the commander of communist 2nd Column telephoned the political commissar of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Enmao ( 王恩茂 ) who was at the headquarters of the communist 359th Brigade in the northwestern suburb of the city to return to the headquarters of the communist 2nd Column located in the eastern suburb of the city and told the political commissar that

33615-408: The defenders, however, was that the only radio in the town was destroyed in the battle so the besieged town lost contact with other nationalist units. After retreating to Qingyang, the nationalists regrouped, and planned for another attempt to reinforce the besieged town of Heshui. Ma Buluan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade, had a new plan for the next move and his plan

33864-402: The deputy commander of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column behind him, severely wounding both of them. Several hours later, after Luo Shaowei was carried away for medical treatment, he met Luo Yuanfa ( 罗元发 ), the commander of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, and the communist commander of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of

34113-409: The east and south just outside the city wall, and Eastern Pass (Dong Guan, 东关 ) of the town fell into the 718th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column by the afternoon. After preparation, the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column launched its assault on the northwestern extension of the nationalist defense, but the defenders would not let them succeed: while

34362-447: The end of World War II , the nationalist 2nd Cavalry Division returned to Qinghai , along with nationalist 8th Cavalry Division returning from Xuzhou . The nationalist 2nd Cavalry Division was subsequently reorganized as 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade, and in May 1947, the unit was selected to reinforce the besieged town of Heshui. The nationalist commander of

34611-489: The enemy in chaos and reinforcement pouring in from the north gate, the defenders' morale was instantly boosted and a large scale counterattack was immediately launched. The communist force consisted of a battalion of the 12th Regiment of the communist Independent 4th Brigade and the 718th Regiment of the communist 359th Brigade inside the city was annihilated by the renewed counterattack by the defenders. The highest ranked commanders for both communists units, Wu Huamin ( 吴化民 ),

34860-407: The enemy was busy attacking, the defenders sent out a large force via tunnels to counterattack the attacking enemy from behind, and inflicted heavy casualties on the communist attackers, which was forced to halt their attack. The stubborn and successful nationalist defense of the town of Heshui was completed unexpected by the enemy, who was hoping for an easy victory, and Wang Zhen , the commander of

35109-416: The enemy. The advance guard of the nationalist reinforcement led by the company commander Ma Guochen ( 马国臣 ) climbed to the top of Southern Plateau (Nan Yuan, 南塬 ), while the rest of the nationalists climbed to the top of Northern Plateau. At the dawn, the nationalist main force atop Northern Plateau had beaten back the attack by the 3rd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, and

35358-517: The evening. In order to save time, the nationalists took a route in a valley 15 km to the east of Qingyang without sending out scouts ahead. Around the same time the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade left Qingyang to reinforce Heshui on May 29, 1947, the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column reached Cypress Plateau, the chokepoint of the traffic to Heshui. The exhausted communists did not even bother to build any temporary fortifications. Luo Shaowei ( 罗少伟 ),

35607-412: The exposed town of Heshui, and history would later prove that he was right and his men would not disappoint him. Defenders: nationalist order of battle Attackers: communist order of battle The detachments of communist 2nd Column under the command of Wang Zhen crossed Meridian Ridge and approached the town of Heshui. The 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was assigned to take the town while

35856-407: The first stages of the 1957 Hundred Flowers Campaign but then supported Mao's efforts to arrest and persecute Chinese citizens who had criticized the CCP later that year. During the late 1950s, Peng developed a personal dislike for Mao's efforts to promote his own image in Chinese popular culture as a perfect hero singularly responsible for the communist victories of his time. In 1955 to 1956, Peng

36105-440: The flanks of the enemy position under the cover of the dense foliage of the wheat field that had not been harvested yet. Ma Buluan the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade discovered that there was a portion of enemy position on top of a stretch of cliff of 4 meters to 5 meters tall, and decided to hide an assault team under the cliff to launch a surprise attack under the cover of heavy artillery shelling. Under

36354-571: The forces of Hu Zongnan and Ma Bufang , which retreated into Sichuan and were airlifted to Taiwan when the Kuomintang lost the Civil War in December 1949. In October Peng's forces, led directly by Wang Zhen, invaded Xinjiang. Most of Xinjiang's defenders surrendered peacefully and were incorporated as a new unit in Peng's army, but some ethnic guerrilla bands resisted Chinese control for several years. After

36603-556: The front lines, to purchase more military equipment and ammunition from the Soviet Union, to provide the army with more food and clothing, and to transfer the responsibility of logistics to the central government. Peng also became a zealous supporter of the Three-anti Campaign because of his belief that corruption and waste were the main causes of the PVA's hardship. Truce talks began on July 10, 1951, but proceeded slowly. Peng

36852-420: The headquarters of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division at the town of Western Peak, claiming that the battle had already been raged on. By the evening of May 28, 1947, Ma Shengzhi radioed for help again, claiming that large enemy force was approaching the town of Heshui. The enemy attackers were headed by Guo Peng ( 郭鹏 ), the commander of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column. The 12th Regiment of

37101-399: The heavy weaponry company of the regiment to concentrate its fire on the attacking nationalist cavalry. Under the command of Ma Huiyuan ( 马会元 ), the commander of the heavy weaponry company of the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, the communist defenders managed to inflict heavy casualties on the attacking nationalist cavalries but before completely stopping

37350-460: The help of 2nd Company of the 2nd Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division. The 2nd Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade and other units of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division including the field hospital, the engineering battalion, the communication battalion, the transportation company, the garrison group and others were deployed to Western Peak and Xiaojing ( 萧金 ) regions. After

37599-430: The help of Zhang Shunguo ( 张顺国 ), the battalion commander, led their battalion to reinforce their comrades. The sudden contact with the enemy was equally unexpected by and surprising the nationalists when they were moving fast in the valley. Ma Buluan ( 马步銮 ), the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade immediately ordered his troops to take the high ground on both sides to avoid being pinned down by

37848-443: The industrial sector contributed the most to Gansu's economy. The most important industries are petrochemicals, non-ferrous metallurgy , machinery and electronics. The province is also an important base for wind and solar power. As a result of environmental protection policies, the industry sector is not growing. The manufacturing sector has been shrinking for several years and has low investment numbers. According to some sources,

38097-453: The ineffective tactic was continued. Once reaching the enemy, no temporary fortifications were built and personnel were exposed under direct fire. During the assault, nobody crawled, thus providing defenders with excellent target in the standing up position, and nobody had hit the dirty when the defenders had thrown hand grenades among the attackers. The communist artillery shelling was disorganized and could not coordinate with infantry. There

38346-557: The insurgency was suppressed in early 1931. Peng scored a series of victories defending against the Kuomintang-aligned National Revolutionary Army (NRA) during the first three encirclement campaigns from December 1930 to May 1931. The outcome bolstered the positions of Zhu and Peng, who conducted conventional mobile operations in contrast with Mao's doctrine of guerilla warfare. After Li Lisan fell from power, "internationalists" who were more aligned with

38595-484: The largest groups being Buddhists with 8.2%, followed by Muslims with 3.4%, Protestants with 0.4% and Catholics with 0.1%. Around 88% of the population may be either irreligious or involved in Chinese folk religion , Buddhism, Confucianism , Taoism, and folk religious sects . Muslim restaurants are common, and feature typical Chinese dishes, but without any pork products, and instead an emphasis on lamb and mutton . Gansu has many works of Buddhist art, including

38844-466: The leader of the PLA and moved permanently to Beijing in November 1953 that he could attend regular political meetings and became active in domestic politics. Peng had been loyal to Mao's leadership since the 1935 Zunyi Conference and continued to support Mao for several years after he had moved to Beijing. Peng, like Lin Biao, was implicated in passively supporting Gao Gang's effort to replace Liu Shaoqi as

39093-475: The local Hunan Military Academy to seek employment as a formally-trained professional officer, Peng accepted. Peng successfully gained admission in August 1922 and used the personal name "Dehuai" for the first time. In August 1923, after nine months of training, Peng graduated from the academy and rejoined his old regiment with the rank of captain. He was promoted to acting battalion commander in April 1924. In 1924, Tang's army aligned with northern warlords against

39342-537: The local nationalist force under the command Hu Zongnan was resting, so that the communists could replenish themselves in the newly conquered area in eastern Gansu . When Peng's suggestion was finally telegraphed to Mao Zedong on May 14, 1947, Mao replied in the same day and agreed. Peng Dehuai also hoped that taking eastern Gansu would force the Ma clique to redeploy its forces and thus provide an opportunity for another communist victory, as he and Xi Zhongxun had told Mao in their telegraph on May 28. Little did

39591-512: The locally sourced petrol from the Yumen Laojunmiao oil wells beginning in the summer of 1939, producing 250,000 tons of crude oil in those war years. Lanzhou and Lhasa were designated to be recipients of a new railway. The Kuomintang Islamic insurgency in China (1950–1958) was a prolongation of the Chinese Civil War in several provinces including Gansu. Gansu has an area of 454,000 square kilometres (175,000 sq mi), and

39840-518: The main reason of the communist defeat was underestimating the enemy, claiming that branching out in three fronts to attack Ma clique in both Qinghai and Ningxia was a blunder. In his work titled "Combat Evaluations in Shaanxi for the Past Nine Months", Peng Dehuai further admitted that launching another new campaign just thirteen days after the end of Panlong Campaign was also a blunder in that

40089-482: The mine went bankrupt and the owners fled, which cheated Peng out of half his annual wages. Peng returned home in 1912 and took a number of odd jobs. In 1913, Hunan suffered another drought and famine, and Peng participated in a public demonstration that escalated into the seizure of a grain merchant's storehouse and the redistribution of grain among the peasants. Village police issued a warrant for Peng's arrest, and he fled to northern Hunan, where he worked for two years as

40338-409: The modern seat of Jiuquan ), formerly the two most important Chinese settlements in the Hexi Corridor . Gansu is abbreviated as 甘 ( Gān ) or 陇 ( Lǒng ), and was also known as Longxi ( 陇西 ; 'west of Long') or Longyou ( 陇右 ; 'right of Long') prior to early Western Han dynasty , in reference to Mount Liupan between eastern Gansu and western Shaanxi . Until 1987, Gansu

40587-540: The morning of May 31, 1947. At 10:00 AM, under the brigade commander Tan Chengxiang ( 谭呈祥 ), the entire brigade begun their move toward Heshui, and on its way, they were joined by the Garrison Group of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division and then continued prudently to reinforce the Heshui. In the morning of May 31, 1947, the rain was not as heavy as the previous day and the communist 359th Brigade resumed its assault on

40836-423: The mountain ridge after passing Banqiao. By 6:00 PM, the nationalist reinforcement had reached the Vesper Col region, which was guarded by the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column. At the evening, the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column at the Southern Plateau on the left flank made contact with the advancing nationalist cavalry. The 1st Regiment of

41085-532: The names of two prefectures ( 州 ) in the Sui and Tang dynasty : Gan (around Zhangye ) and Su (around Jiuquan ). Its eastern part forms part of one of the cradles of ancient Chinese civilisation. In prehistoric times, Gansu was host to Neolithic cultures. The Dadiwan culture , from where archaeologically significant artifacts have been excavated, flourished in the eastern end of Gansu from about 6000   BC to about 3000   BC. The Majiayao culture and part of

41334-514: The nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division and the Garrison Group of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division. The 2nd Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was originally organized as the 2nd Cavalry Division during the Second Sino-Japanese War to be sent to central China to fight the Japanese invaders, but they were sent in Shaanxi by Hu Zongnan to blockade communist base. After

41583-453: The nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division had pushed toward eastern Gansu , the nationalists had successfully driven the local communist guerillas into the mountains of Meridian Ridge (Zi Wu Ling, 子午岭 ) in four weeks by taking advantage of their cavalry and the adaptation of their own guerrilla tactic against communist guerillas. Although the nationalists were expecting the enemy would attack in great numbers eventually, they had not anticipated

41832-400: The nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to the town of Early Victory (Zao Sheng, 早胜 ), and the 3rd Regiment of the Reorganized 100th Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to the town of Zhenyuan. Qinghai 1st Security Cavalry Regiment was deployed to Jingchuan ( 泾川 ), while Qinghai 2nd Security Cavalry Regiment was tasked to defend Pingliang with

42081-421: The nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was tasked to defend Heshui with the help of the Gansu 2nd Security Regiment. The Independent 5th Cavalry Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to Zhengning ( 正宁 ). The 1st Regiment of the Reorganized 100th Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to Ning County, and the 2nd Regiment of the Reorganized 100th Brigade of

42330-445: The nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade alone suffered more than three hundred casualties, including many company level and platoon level commanders. Both the commander and the deputy commander of the anti-tank gun company were severely wounded by the enemy shelling, losing their legs. The regimental commander of the nationalist Gansu 2nd Security Regiment, Li Hongxuan ( 李鸿轩 ), was also wounded. The most serious setback for

42579-482: The nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade under the command of the brigade commander Ma Buluan left Qingyang for the second time, the nationalist reinforcement of the central front also reached town. After a brief stop, the nationalist reinforcement of the central front continued its push toward Heshui by taking the road from Qingyang to Ning County. In order to avoid mistakes made by Ma Buluan, Lieutenant General Ma Quanyi ( 马全义 ) ordered his troops to proceed along

42828-443: The nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade was originally the nationalist 1st Cavalry Division which was later renamed as the 8th Cavalry Division during the Second Sino-Japanese War , and it was stationed in eastern Henan , fighting countless battles with the Japanese invaders who grew to respect the nationalist cavalry unit, calling it "Ma's Islamic Division". After World War II , the unit returned to Qinghai from Xuzhou and

43077-459: The nationalist advance guards atop Southern Plateau originally appeared to be also successful in beating back the attack of the Garrison Platoon of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column. However, the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column reached in time and helped their comrades to counterattack, surrounding

43326-463: The nationalist advance guards in three sides. The nationalist main force atop Northern Plateau could not provide fire support to their comrades-in-arms because the two sides were engaged in close quarter combats, and Lieutenant Colonel Suo Shijun ( 索世俊 ) lead a team of three dozen men charged the enemy, successfully disrupted the enemy's counterattack and thus allowed the besieged nationalist advance guards to escape. However, by this time, one third of

43575-458: The nationalist assault and were forced into retreat after abandoning their positions. The nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade chased the retreating enemy all the way until the nightfall, and then Ma Buluan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade ordered his exhausted troops to stop and camp, despite the fierce battle was still raging on at Heshui. The communists attacking Heshui did not take any break and Wang Zhen ,

43824-472: The nationalist cavalry behind consequently retreated. As the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column at the Northern Plateau heard the gun shots and immediately move joined the battle, blocking the passage of the nationalists. As the prudent Lieutenant General Ma Quanyi who was in command of the nationalist reinforcement discovered that there were enemy in three directions of

44073-405: The nationalist reinforcement approached the communist camp, and made contact with the communist platoon on guard. Once hearing the gunshots, the communists immediately jumped to their feet and 3rd Battalion of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was the first one to act. Zhang Peiran ( 张沛然 ), and Qiu Deshan ( 邱德山 ), the commander and the political commissar of

44322-464: The nationalists found trails that lead to Heshui from Qingyang via the Willow Ditch (Liu Gou, 柳沟 ) area of Northern Plateau region. The 1st Company and the 2nd Company of the 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade were the advanced guards. In the meantime, the enemy also made new deployment: the Independent 4th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column was ordered to immediately join

44571-409: The nationalists with regimental staff officers to observe the acceptance of the supposed surrender. However, as the communist soldiers approached, the kneeing nationalists suddenly picked up their weapons and opened up on the unsuspecting communists, and as the communists were mauled down, the nationalists quickly jumped up their horses and taking the advantage they inflicted on the enemy, charged out of

44820-448: The newly re-organized army but were responsible for the area around the communist capital, Yan'an. In March 1947, Kuomintang General Hu Zongnan , invaded the area with 260,000 soldiers. Hu's forces were among the best-trained and most well-supplied Nationalist units, but one of Zhou Enlai's spies was able to provide Peng with information about Hu's strategic plans, his forces' troop distributions, strength, and positions, and details about

45069-445: The next several months to brief Mao and Zhou about the heavy casualties suffered by Chinese troops and the increasing difficulty of keeping the front lines supplied with basic necessities. By the winter of 1951–1952, Peng became convinced that the war would be protracted and that neither side would be able for achieve victory in the foreseeable future. On February 24, 1952, the Central Military Commission , presided over by Zhou, discussed

45318-414: The northern edge of the town. After an entire day of preparation, the communists renewed their assault on the town in the evening with the 717th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column as the main attacker, assisted by a detachment of the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column. However, heavy rain had helped the defenders to beaten back numerous assaults launched by

45567-422: The northern gate and the heavy machine gun company of the heavy weaponry battalion of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Brigade charged out of the city wall from their defensive positions and successfully linked up with over three hundred cavalries, the advance guard of the nationalist reinforcement. Guo Peng, the commander of the communist 359th Brigade was anxious to cut the link between the nationalist defenders of

45816-402: The obstacles, the attackers' attempt to blow up the gate itself was not successful. On their renewed attack on May 31, 1947, the communist attackers learned from past experience and assaulted the southern gate of the city in two places simultaneously: one team climbed the ladder to the top of the city wall in the rain to distract the defenders while the other team attempted to blow up the gate on

46065-415: The operation and were supported by 200,000 irregular communist guerrillas. From August 20 to October 5, 1940, communist forces destroyed large numbers of bridges, tunnels, and railroad tracks in Japanese-occupied China and inflicted relatively heavy Japanese casualties. From October 6 to December 5, the Japanese counterattacked, and the communists mostly repelled the counterattack successfully. Peng's operation

46314-411: The other two fronts moved toward the flanks of the target respectively held by the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column and the Independent 4th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column. The situation was critical and the political commissar of the communist Instructional Brigade, Yao Zhengxi ( 饶正锡 ) personally went to the front to the 2nd Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of

46563-410: The overall reinforcement operation took control of the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade because Li Wenbin ( 李文彬 ), the regimental commander of the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade was absent, accurately deduced that something happened at Heshui, and the enemy would withdraw. Surely enough, by next morning, the nationalists discovered that under

46812-482: The party and his belief that the ends of the conflict justified the means. Some accounts even claimed that Peng invented the human wave tactic under the name "short attack" to exploit his manpower advantage. On November 19, 1951, Zhou called a conference in Shenyang to discuss improvements to China's logistical network, but they did little to resolve China's supply problems directly. Peng visited Beijing several times over

47061-461: The planned destination. The attackers therefore lost the element of surprise. At 4:00 AM on May 28, 1947, the 717th Regiment of the 359th Brigade made contact with nationalist garrison of Heshui to the northwest of the town, and all nationalists outside the town soon retreated behind the city wall. The commander of the Heavy Weaponry Battalion of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division, Ma Shengzhi ( 马生智 ), radioed

47310-441: The plea of their comrades-in-arms for reinforcement, the forces of the Ma clique in Qinghai not only would reinforce their comrades-in-arms for sure, but they would reinforce their comrades-in-arms multiple times. The communists had gravely underestimated their nationalist opponents in this campaign. The political commissar in his diary concluded that under no circumstance should the enemy be underestimated. The second realization

47559-508: The poisoning of many acres of agricultural land. The extent and nature of the heavy metal pollution is considered a state secret. The industrial sector in Gansu was developed after completion of the Longhai railway in 1953 and blueprinted in the first five-year plan of China . It was a major recipient of China's investment in industrial capacity during the Third Front campaign. Until 2014,

47808-530: The political commissar of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Enmao wrote in his diary that the 22nd Regiment of the 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was ill-equipped in comparison to other nationalist units and lacked heavy weaponry. However, these nationalist troops were extremely tough and very combat capable. Once their unit was defeated, they could still fight on individually and launch counterattacks, and refused to lay down their arms. Unlike other nationalist units which often ignored

48057-464: The position at Elang Mountain (E Lang Shan, 二郎山 ) to cover the communist to the northwest of Heshui. After the complete withdrawal, the nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade reached the region in the afternoon, and finding no enemy, the 2nd Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 100th Brigade took over the defense of the city while the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade withdrew to Western Peak region to regroup and re-supply. Ma Zhongfu ( 马仲福 ),

48306-433: The position of the communist 2nd Regiment was in danger of being overrun, and thus personally led several companies to reinforce their comrades by charging the left flank of the attacking nationalist cavalries. The charge was successful and nationalists were unable to launch anymore attacks but the communists were equal worn out. By the evening, a heavy rain provided the a badly needed break for both sides, and it also prevented

48555-900: The province is also a center of China's nuclear industry. As stipulated in the country's 12th Five Year Plan, the local government of Gansu hopes to grow the province's GDP by 10% annually by focusing investments on five pillar industries: renewable energy, coal, chemicals, nonferrous metals, pharmaceuticals and services. A large part of Gansu's economy is based on mining and the extraction of minerals , especially rare earth elements . The province has significant deposits of antimony , chromium , coal , cobalt , copper , fluorite , gypsum , iridium , iron , lead , limestone , mercury , mirabilite , nickel , crude oil , platinum , troilite , tungsten , and zinc among others. The oil fields at Yumen and Changqing are considered significant. Gansu has China's largest nickel deposits accounting for over 90% of China's total nickel reserves. Since 2014,

48804-710: The reformers Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping supported Peng's limited return to government, developing military industries in Southwest China. In 1966, following the advent of the Cultural Revolution , Peng was arrested by Red Guards . From 1966 to 1970, radical factions within the CCP, led by Lin Biao and Mao's wife, Jiang Qing , singled out Peng for national persecution, and Peng was publicly humiliated in numerous large-scale struggle sessions and subjected to physical and psychological torture in organized efforts to force Peng to confess his "crimes" against Mao Zedong and

49053-429: The rest of its army and joined the forces of Tang Shengzhi , who was aligned with Tan Yankai and Sun Yat-sen against those aligned with the northern warlord Wu Peifu . Peng received training in formal tactics from an officer in his brigade and education in written classical Chinese . In July 1918, Peng was captured on a reconnaissance mission behind enemy lines, but he was released after two weeks. In April 1919, Peng

49302-485: The rest of the province is rapidly losing population. Most of the inhabitants of Gansu speak dialects of Northern Mandarin Chinese . On the border areas of Gansu one might encounter Tu , Tibetan , Mongolian , Uyghur and the Kazakh language . Most of the minorities also speak Chinese. A unique variety of Chinese folk music popularly identified with the local peoples of Gansu include the "Hua'er" (flowery melodies) , and

49551-409: The same time. The tactic worked and the communists were finally able to breach the city wall after an hour of fierce battle. The 718th Regiment of the communist 359th Brigade and a battalion of the 12th Regiment of the communist Independent 4th Brigade charged into the city via the gap. After two hours of fierce fighting and suffering heavy casualties, the communist attackers were finally able to force

49800-506: The second most powerful person in China in 1953 but then opposed Gao in 1954 once Mao had made his own opposition clear. Mao did not take any action against Peng or Lin, but Peng's involvement alienated Peng from Liu and Liu's supporters. In 1955, Peng supported Mao's efforts to collectivize agriculture. Along with Liu Shaoqi, Zhu De, Lin Biao , Lin Boqu , and Luo Ronghuan , Peng opposed Mao's attempt to liberalize China's culture and politics in

50049-617: The service sector is the largest economic sector of Gansu. Tourism is a sector that is becoming of increased importance. The following economic and technological zones are situated in Gansu: Gansu province is home to a little more than 25 million people. As of 2020, 47.7% of the population was rural, but much relocation in recent years has reduced this. Gansu is 89.4% Han and also has Hui , Tibetan , Dongxiang , Tu , Uyghurs , Yugur , Bonan , Mongolian , Salar and Kazakh minorities. Gansu province's community of Chinese Hui Muslims

50298-424: The siege in chaos, successfully escaped. As soon as the nationalists had opened up on the approaching communists, Luo Shaowei, the commander of the 1st Regiment of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column immediately ordered his staff officers behind him to take cover, but he was struck by a bullet fired by the nationalist, and the bullet penetrated his body, continued on, striking Xiong Guangyan ( 熊光焰 ),

50547-543: The strategic Yumenguan (Jade Gate Pass, near Dunhuang ) and Yangguan fort towns along it. Remains of the wall and the towns can be found there. The Ming dynasty built the Jiayuguan outpost in Gansu. To the west of Yumenguan and the Qilian Mountains , at the northwestern end of the province, the Yuezhi , Wusun , and other nomadic tribes dwelt ( Shiji 123), occasionally figuring in regional imperial Chinese geopolitics . By

50796-654: The successes and the failures of the war. PVA casualties during the first 12 months of the Korean War, from October 1950 to October 1951, were heavy. Soviet material support was slight, and because the only available means to transport supplies into Korea for the first year of the war was a force of 700,000 labourers, all available supplies were light and limited. The UN forces also had complete air superiority. The logistic constraints later caused 45,000 Chinese soldiers to freeze to death between November 27 and December 12, 1950, because of inadequate winter clothing. China's insufficient artillery, armor, and air support meant that Peng

51045-441: The summer of 1929 and later in the spring of 1930, increasing the amount of supplies and the number recruits for his force. Between those two raids, a compromise was reached within the broader communist forces at large. Professional military discipline and strategy should prevail over Mao's mobile guerilla tactics, while political indoctrination efforts by CCP commissars, such as Mao, would be strengthened. In April 1930, Peng became

51294-437: The time, Peng's social consciousness was awakened by their experience of impoverishment and sharpened by the disappointment they felt with the Kuomintang (KMT) for not completely following through with its revolution after the Qing dynasty was overthrown . Communist-leaning cadres of the Kuomintang were some of the most ardent advocates of the KMT party platform, which had called for national sovereignty, eradication of warlordism,

51543-775: The title of "Hero of the Korean Democratic People's Republic." Peng also received a hero's welcome in Tiananmen Square on August 11. Chinese troops remained in North Korea until 1958. The Korean War affected Peng's vision for the development of the PLA over the next decade. The heavy losses in the war's first year indicated unpreparedness for modern conventional warfare; the PLA needed modern professional standards, equipment, and tactics. Military training needed to take priority over political indoctrination, and commissars should be subordinate to military commanders. He regarded

51792-406: The town had also prevented Li Zicheng from doing so three hundred years before for three times, and it was only after the extension was neutralized, that Li Zicheng and his peasantry army were able to finally succeed in taking the town of Heshui. On May 29, 1947, the news of the enemy besieging the town of Heshui had finally struck the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division guarding

52041-429: The town of Western Peak, Ma Jiyuan, who realized this was not a concentration of enemy guerillas attempting to harassing the local garrison, so he ordered the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade at Qingyang to reinforce the besieged town, under the leadership of its brigade commander Ma Buluan ( 马步銮 ), with the 1st Regiment of the nationalist Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade as the advance guard. The 1st Regiment of

52290-437: The town was still firmly in the nationalist hands, the sole airplane dropped the few bombs on the enemy positions outside the city wall, though all of them had missed their targets because the pilot was forced to pull up to the high altitude in order to avoid enemy ground fire. The nationalist reinforcement was sent in three fronts, and the main force of 2,000 consisted of the 2nd Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of

52539-426: The town. The defenders had deployed not only mortar and anti-tank guns , but several heavy machine guns as well. After futile attacks that lasted for an entire day and night, the attackers finally realized that this extension must be taken but with the current strength they had, they were simply unable to achieve this impossible task, and Guo Peng, the commander of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column, who

52788-400: The troops participated in the campaign. The delegation visited cities and towns included Western Peak, Qingyang, and Heshui to hold numerous celebrations, and the nationalist central government also issued medals and other rewards to the nationalist troops excelled in the campaign. Ma Jiyuan, the nationalist commander in this campaign also made special trips to Lanzhou and Xining to report on

53037-445: The unified command structure of the NRA. At the August 20, 1937 Luochuan Conference ( 洛川会议 ), Mao believed that the united front should be used as a feint by giving token resistance to the Japanese but saving the strength of the Red Army for the eventual confrontation with the Kuomintang. However, Peng, along with most other senior military and political leaders, disagreed and believed that the Red Army should genuinely focus on fighting

53286-539: The vast majority of its land is more than 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) above sea level . It lies between the Tibetan Plateau and the Loess Plateau , bordering Mongolia ( Govi-Altai Province ) to the northwest, Inner Mongolia and Ningxia to the north, Shaanxi to the east, Sichuan to the south, and Xinjiang to the west. The Yellow River passes through the southern part of the province. The province contains

53535-466: The war unless it was directly attacked. Lin Biao was Mao's first choice to lead the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (PVA) into Korea, but Lin refused, citing his bad health. Mao then sought the support of Peng, who had not yet taken a strong position, to lead the PVA. Peng flew to Beijing from Xi'an (where he was still administering northwest China and directing the incorporation of Xinjiang into

53784-440: The war were unremarkable in terms of military talents despite his aggressiveness and leadership skills. During the Cultural Revolution , Red Guards claimed that Peng's successful campaigns, from October to December 1950, were fought under Mao's direction but that his unsuccessful campaigns, from January to May 1951, were organized by Peng against Mao's instructions. Modern scholars reject that interpretation and credit Peng with both

54033-468: Was a Chinese general and politician who was the Minister of National Defense from 1954 to 1959. Peng was born into a poor peasant family, and received several years of primary education before his family's poverty forced him to suspend his education at the age of ten, and to work for several years as a manual laborer. When he was sixteen, Peng became a professional soldier. Over the next ten years Peng served in

54282-450: Was a general lack of knowledge of taking cover in favorable terrain and thus the defenders had easy time of targeting and aiming. The communist casualty was so high that even an experienced veteran like the political commissar of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Enmao who had been in many fierce battles and campaigns was shocked. Behind the city wall, the defenders considered that they had suffered equally bad. The Heavy Weaponry Battalion of

54531-553: Was able to fulfill his wish of engaging the nationalist 82nd Division of the Ma clique in Qinghai , but once again, the communist was defeated. Also on May 31, 1947, the political commissar of the communist 2nd Column, Wang Enmao ( 王恩茂 ) wrote in his diary admitting that the defeat with extreme heavy casualties, which caused the delay of the Eastern Gansu Campaign planned by the communists. On June 1, 1947, Wang Zhen telegraphed Peng Dehuai and Xi Zhongxun to report that

54780-453: Was about 767.7 billion yuan (US$ 113.70 billion) and per capita of 29,326 RMB (US$ 4,343). The province also has a large difference in wealth between regions and urban versus rural areas. The poorest areas are Dingxi, Longnan, Gannan and Linxia. According to analysts, the local economy failed to gather momentum while other provinces did manage to increase their economic growth. Due to poor natural conditions such as aridness, Gansu

55029-471: Was an economically important province, as well as a cultural transmission path. Temples and Buddhist grottoes such as those at Mogao Caves ('Caves of the Thousand Buddhas') and Maijishan Caves contain artistically and historically revealing murals . An early form of paper inscribed with Chinese characters and dating to about 8   BC was discovered at the site of a Western Han garrison near

55278-517: Was approached by Duan Dechang , a CCP representative, but Peng could not make up his mind at the time. He met with Duan again later that month, however, and began studying basic communist theory. Albeit secretly, Peng became a member of the CCP no later than April 1928. After his superior officer He Jian defected to Chiang's forces, Peng was stationed in the mountainous Pingjiang County , northwest of Changsha, in May 1928. His orders were to eliminate local groups of communist guerrillas who had fled to

55527-460: Was bolstered by Hui Muslims resettled from Shaanxi province during the Dungan Revolt . Gansu is also a historical home, along with Shaanxi , of the dialect of the Dungans , who migrated to Central Asia . The southwestern corner of Gansu is home to a large ethnic Tibetan population. Modern Gansu is dominated by Lanzhou city and Linxia Hui prefectures, their growth hides the stark fact that much of

55776-407: Was campaigning in Ningxia . Snow had long conversations with him and wrote two whole chapters about Peng in his book Red Star Over China . He wrote more about Peng than any other individual, except for Mao. After the 1937 Marco Polo Bridge Incident , China and Japan went to war. When the Kuomintang and communists declared a united front to fight the Japanese, Peng was confirmed as a general in

56025-478: Was enrolled in a traditional Confucian primary school. In 1908, Peng attended a modern primary school but at the age of ten was forced to withdraw from this school because of his family's deteriorating financial situation. In 1905 to 1906, there was a severe drought in Hunan. Peng's mother died in 1905, and Peng's six-month-old brother died of hunger. Peng's father was forced to sell most of his family possessions for food and to pawn most of his family's land. When Peng

56274-448: Was forced to rely heavily on human wave tactics until the summer of 1951. Stealthy fireteams attacked in column against weak points in enemy defenses in the hope that surprise, attrition , and perseverance would break the enemy lines. Participants even drank large quantities of Kaoliang wine to improve their courage. Some of the worst Chinese battle losses occurred during the Second and

56523-499: Was forced to withdraw. On September 1, Peng attempted to capture Changsha again but suffered heavy casualties. Mao and Zhu had been reluctant to fully support Peng during his campaign. Nonetheless, Zhu was willing to explore other vectors of attack with Peng. Mao, however, believed that they should continue to consolidate their base areas instead. Under the influence of Li Lisan, some CCP members in Jiangxi rose up to oppose Mao's strategy, but

56772-446: Was in charge of taking the city immediately ordered a company from the 717th Regiment and another from the 718th Regiment to check the advance of the nationalist reinforcement, but it was already too late. There were no suitable positions for the two communist companies and the best position hastily selected was within the range of defenders' heavy machine gun setup on the city wall. Once the nationalist reinforcement started its charge on

57021-419: Was in the southwestern suburb of the town directing the battle, and he had no choice but to deploy the reserve, the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column ahead of schedule to attack the extension. By the noon of May 29, 1947, the 718th Regiment of the 359th Brigade and the 12th Regiment of the Independent 4th Brigade of the communist 2nd Column were able to take nationalist strongholds in

57270-420: Was involved in a large number of efforts to moderate Mao's popular image by developing it into a personal campaign. Peng's preference for modesty and simplicity led Peng to oppose Mao's efforts to develop his personality cult. In 1955, a draft copy of a book, The Military History of the PVA , was submitted to Peng so that he could edit and authorize it. The preface of the book stated that "the military victories of

57519-476: Was named vice commander-in-chief of all Chinese communist forces, outranked only by Zhu De, who was named commander-in-chief. Peng's promotion was supported by Lin Biao, who had been actively supporting Peng for promotions to senior leadership as early as May 1934. In early 1935, Lin responded to widespread discontent within the Red Army over Mao's evasive tactics, which it perceived as unnecessarily exhausting, by publicly proposing for Peng to take overall command of

57768-418: Was not allowed to reply and was forced to make a self-criticism. Privately, Peng resented Mao's criticism of him, and in 1959 once told Mao: "At Yan'an, you fucked my mother for forty days." From 1942 to 1945, Peng's role in the war was mostly political, and he supported Mao very closely. In June 1944, Peng was part of a team that held conferences with American military personnel who visited Yan'an as part of

58017-485: Was one of the strongest supporters of pursuing a ceasefire with the Kuomintang in order to concentrate China's collective resources on resisting the Japanese Empire . Peng was the senior commander in the combined Kuomintang–Communist efforts to resist the Japanese occupation of Shanxi in 1937; and, by 1938, was in command of two-thirds of the Eighth Route Army . In 1940, Peng conducted the Hundred Regiments Offensive ,

58266-423: Was only after World War II were the nationalists finally able to retake the region from the communists and the communists had hoped that they would be able to take the region again from the nationalists. After the 48th Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 17th Division was annihilated by the enemy in the Battle of Xihuachi , the nationalists lacked sufficient troops to fill the new gaps in their defense. As

58515-473: Was promoted to master sergeant and acting platoon commander. Tang Shengzhi's forces drove enemy troops out of Hunan in July 1920 and captured the provincial capital of Changsha . Peng participated in a failed mutiny over pay but was ultimately pardoned along with other rebels, because there was a shortage of soldiers at the time. In August 1921, Peng was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant and became acting company commander several weeks later. Stationed in

58764-520: Was recalled to China in April 1952 for a head tumor, and Chen Geng and Deng Hua later assumed Peng's responsibilities in the PVA. On July 27, 1953, Peng personally signed the armistice agreement in Panmunjom . At a mass rally in Pyongyang on July 31, Kim Il Sung awarded Peng his second North Korean "National Flag" Order of Merit, First Class (the first had been awarded to Peng in 1951) and awarded Peng

59013-539: Was reluctant and stated that Mao's surroundings were "too luxuriously furnished" for him to tolerate. Throughout the 1950s, Peng continued to refer to the Chairman as "Old Mao," an egalitarian title that was used among senior CCP leaders in the 1930s and 1940s. Peng staged his first offensive after becoming Defense Minister in January 1955 by attacking and occupying a chain of islands, part of Zhejiang , which were still held by

59262-604: Was removed from the final version of the 1956 Party Constitution. At the Congress, Peng was reappointed to the Politburo and as a full member of the Central Committee. Peng resented Mao's personal lifestyle, which Peng considered decadent and luxurious. By the late 1950s, Mao had developed a lifestyle that was out of touch with Peng's preference for modesty and simplicity. Mao enjoyed a private pool in Zhongnanhai and had many villas around China built for him, which he would travel to on

59511-517: Was rendered in the postal romanization and Wade-Giles as Kansu , which gradually replaced by pinyin starting in 1958. The spelling of the province is also spelled in Mandarin Phonetic Symbols II (1986) and Tongyong Pinyin (2002) adopted by Taiwan , who would later adopt Hanyu Pinyin in 2009. Gansu's name is a compound name first used during the Song dynasty . It is a combination of

59760-432: Was selected as the primary target due to the following reasons: the region was originally an area of active communist guerrilla activities before World War II and at the end of Long March , it was the place where Mao Zedong 's force met with local Chinese Red Army commanded by Xie Zichang ( 谢子长 ) and Liu Zhidan ( 刘志丹 ). During World War II , the region was granted by the nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek to

60009-493: Was shot in the right arm. However, the communists were able to quickly send the political commissar back for medical treatment and replace him with a new commander, because the Luo Yuanfa ( 罗元发 ), the commander of the Instructional Brigade of the communist 2nd Column had just reached the defenders in time to take over. Wei Zhiming ( 魏志明 ), the political commissar of the 1st Regiment of the communist Instructional Brigade noticed that

60258-455: Was subsequently reorganized as the 1st Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division. When the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to eastern Gansu during the Chinese Civil War , the 1st Regiment of the Reorganized 8th Cavalry Brigade of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division was deployed to the town of Red City (Chi Cheng, 赤城 ) 15 km southeast of Qingyang. However, units of

60507-498: Was successful in disrupting Japanese communication lines and logistics networks, which were not fully restored until 1942, but the communists suffered heavy losses, In communist sources, the Japanese casualties have two figures, one of which is 20,645 and the other 12,645. Foreign sources give figures of 20,900. In early 1941, the Japanese began a large-scale effort to drive Peng from his base in Taihangshan, and Peng relocated closer to

60756-414: Was supported by Ma Jiyuan, the commander of the nationalist Reorganized 82nd Division. Ma Buluan was very happy that his new plan was approved and immediately ordered his troops to set out again at noon on May 30, 1947, after reaching Qingyang two hours ago, and this time the nationalists were better prepared: Tan Shilin ( 谭世麟 ), the local security chief of Qingyang and other locals went along as guides, and

61005-447: Was that the main enemy's position must be taken for the battle to conclude, otherwise, the defenders could launch counterattacks and driven the attackers from the city. The third point was there must be reserves. The fourth was the effectiveness of the artillery bombardment, but one could not solely depend on artillery bombardment, and the fifth point was the need to be always prepared for the enemy's counterattacks. Peng Dehuai instructed

61254-530: Was the most senior commander responsible for defending the Communist leadership in Shaanxi from Kuomintang forces, saving Mao from being captured at least once. Peng eventually defeated the Kuomintang in Northwest China, captured huge amounts of military supplies, and actively incorporated the huge area, including Xinjiang , into the People's Republic of China. Peng was one of the few senior military leaders who supported Mao's suggestions to involve China directly in

61503-568: Was the site of a Japanese-Chinese warplane fight. Gansu was vulnerable to Soviet penetration via Xinjiang. Gansu was a passageway for Soviet war supplies for the Republic of China during the Second Sino-Japanese War . Lanzhou was a destination point via a road coming from Dihua (Ürümqi). The Gonxingdun Aerodrome was one of several air bases where the Chinese Air Force operated in defense of Gansu. Gansu provided wartime China with most of

61752-461: Was turned down by Guo Peng, the commander of the communist 359th Brigade, because if the strategic position of Northern Hill was not taken, the communists would be driven out of the town even if the town had been taken. The dispute reached Wang Zhen , the commander of the communist 2nd Column and he telephoned back that he agreed with Guo Peng, giving his permission to attack the Northern Hill to at

62001-501: Was withdrawn from school in 1908, he and his brothers were sent to beg for food in their village. From 1908 to 1910, Peng took work on looking after a pair of water buffaloes. When Peng's grand-uncle died in 1911, Peng left home and worked at a coalmine in Xiangtan , where he pushed carts of coal for a wage of nine yuan a month. In 1912, shortly after the founding of the Republic of China ,

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