One of our objectives for this year 2023 is to start to describe in more detail the communist formations that participated in the period 1937-1945 and 1945-1949. The very fragile peace and planned cooperation between the nationalist and communist factions was far from being as successful and smooth as it might at first appear. From 1938 onwards, two major factions can be distinguished within the communist army groups:
1. In the North and in Yan'an, the 8th Route Army, which after 2 months was merged into the Nationalist Army, then called 18GA, the 18th Group Army. Although formally under the command of the NRA, in practice Chiang Kai-shek and the military leadership had little or no influence on their movements (so the 18GA was still under the command of the Chinese Communist Party!)
2. South of the Yangtze River, the New Fourth Army, also under the command of the NRA, was mainly engaged in guerrilla warfare.
8TH ROUTE ARMY:
The Eighth Army Group (simplified Chinese: 八路军; traditional Chinese: 八路軍; pinyin: Bālù-Jūn), officially known as the 18th Army Group of the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China, was an army group under the command of the Communist Party of China.
The Eighth Army Group was formed from the Chinese Red Army on 22 September 1937, when Chinese communists and Chinese nationalists formed the Second United Front against Japan at the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Along with the New Fourth Army, the Eighth Army Group formed the backbone of the communist formations during the war and was under the command of Communist Party leader Mao Zedong and General Zhu De. Although officially called the 18th Army Group by the Nationalists, the unit was referred to as the Eighth Army Group by the Chinese Communists and the Japanese army. The soldiers of the Eighth Army Group wore the uniform of the Nationalists and used the flag of the Republic of China and fought mainly guerrilla warfare against the Japanese, the collaborationist forces and other Nationalist units later in the war. They did have one division-level victory, however, at the Battle of Pingxingguan, where under Lin Biao (it's worth noting his name, as he would later be a great strategist with his troops in the field) they virtually crushed the Japanese forces arrayed against them. This victory then gave a major boost to their propaganda and recruitment efforts. The unit was renamed the People's Liberation Army in 1947, after the end of the Second World War, when the Chinese Communists and Nationalists were already in the midst of the second phase of the Chinese Civil War.
The Eighth Army Group consisted of three divisions (the 115th, commanded by Lin Biao, the 120th, under He Long, and the 129th, under Liu Bocheng). During the Second World War, the Eighth Army Group operated mainly in northern China, infiltrating behind Japanese lines, where they took advantage of the countryside to establish guerrilla bases, supported by local peasant militias.
The Communist Party liaison offices in Nationalist-controlled cities such as Chongqing, Guilin and Dihua (Ürümqi) were called Eighth Army Group Offices. Ethnic Koreans also fought in the Eighth Army Group and later joined the Korean People's Army.
NEW 4TH ARMY:
The Eighth Army Group was formed from the Chinese Red Army on 22 September 1937, when Chinese communists and Chinese nationalists formed the Second United Front against Japan at the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Along with the New Fourth Army, the Eighth Army Group formed the backbone of the communist formations during the war and was under the command of Communist Party leader Mao Zedong and General Zhu De. Although officially called the 18th Army Group by the Nationalists, the unit was referred to as the Eighth Army Group by the Chinese Communists and the Japanese army. The soldiers of the Eighth Army Group wore the uniform of the Nationalists and used the flag of the Republic of China and fought mainly guerrilla warfare against the Japanese, the collaborationist forces and other Nationalist units later in the war. They did have one division-level victory, however, at the Battle of Pingxingguan, where under Lin Biao (it's worth noting his name, as he would later be a great strategist with his troops in the field) they virtually crushed the Japanese forces arrayed against them. This victory then gave a major boost to their propaganda and recruitment efforts. The unit was renamed the People's Liberation Army in 1947, after the end of the Second World War, when the Chinese Communists and Nationalists were already in the midst of the second phase of the Chinese Civil War.
The Eighth Army Group consisted of three divisions (the 115th, commanded by Lin Biao, the 120th, under He Long, and the 129th, under Liu Bocheng). During the Second World War, the Eighth Army Group operated mainly in northern China, infiltrating behind Japanese lines, where they took advantage of the countryside to establish guerrilla bases, supported by local peasant militias.
The Communist Party liaison offices in Nationalist-controlled cities such as Chongqing, Guilin and Dihua (Ürümqi) were called Eighth Army Group Offices. Ethnic Koreans also fought in the Eighth Army Group and later joined the Korean People's Army.
NEW 4TH ARMY:
The New Fourth Army (simplified Chinese: 新四军; traditional Chinese: 新四軍; pinyin: Xīn Sì Jūn) was a unit of the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China, established in 1937. The members of the New Fourth Army also wore their patches on their left arm, with the inscription "N4A" on the front and the unit and name of the soldier on the back.
After the Xi'an Incident, the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek and the Chinese Communist Party under Mao Zedong formed a United Front against Japan, which already controlled Manchuria and had pushed deep into northern China. The Marco Polo Bridge incident in July 1937 marked the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945).
In October 1937, it was announced that the Red Army soldiers who had been active in the eight provinces of southern China - those who had not gone on the Long March (for a variety of reasons, including the fact that the remaining communist groups intended to fight the nationalists by guerrilla warfare) - would be incorporated into the New Fourth Army. The New Fourth Army was formed in Hankou on 25 December 1937. It moved to Nanchang on 6 January 1938, when the detachments began their march to the battlefield. Initially, the New Fourth Army consisted of four detachments and a deployment battalion, with a total strength of about 10,000. The army later moved to Anhui province. Ye Ting was the army commander and Xiang Ying was the deputy army commander.
In theory they formed a united front against Japan, but in practice there was considerable friction between the Nationalist and Communist forces, which escalated in the autumn of 1940, culminating in the Anhui Incident of January 1941 (also called the New Fourth Army Incident), when a full-scale battle took place between the New Fourth Army and NRA forces, until this point most of the friction between the two sides had been small skirmishes. The army was completely reorganised after the incident and remained in active combat until the end of the war.
8TH ROUTE ARMY/ NEW 4TH ARMY UNIFORM:
After the Xi'an Incident, the Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek and the Chinese Communist Party under Mao Zedong formed a United Front against Japan, which already controlled Manchuria and had pushed deep into northern China. The Marco Polo Bridge incident in July 1937 marked the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945).
In October 1937, it was announced that the Red Army soldiers who had been active in the eight provinces of southern China - those who had not gone on the Long March (for a variety of reasons, including the fact that the remaining communist groups intended to fight the nationalists by guerrilla warfare) - would be incorporated into the New Fourth Army. The New Fourth Army was formed in Hankou on 25 December 1937. It moved to Nanchang on 6 January 1938, when the detachments began their march to the battlefield. Initially, the New Fourth Army consisted of four detachments and a deployment battalion, with a total strength of about 10,000. The army later moved to Anhui province. Ye Ting was the army commander and Xiang Ying was the deputy army commander.
In theory they formed a united front against Japan, but in practice there was considerable friction between the Nationalist and Communist forces, which escalated in the autumn of 1940, culminating in the Anhui Incident of January 1941 (also called the New Fourth Army Incident), when a full-scale battle took place between the New Fourth Army and NRA forces, until this point most of the friction between the two sides had been small skirmishes. The army was completely reorganised after the incident and remained in active combat until the end of the war.
8TH ROUTE ARMY/ NEW 4TH ARMY UNIFORM:
TV series and pictures on the internet in general (many of them incorrectly coloured!) like to portray communist units as always wearing blue, bluish grey or greyish uniforms, when the picture is much more nuanced than that. After the reorganization, the Eighth Army Group and the New Fourth Army wore the same uniforms as the Nationalist units, and the blue-on-blue white sun cap badge was no exception (although after the Anhui incident in 1941, quite a few N4A soldiers tore the badge off their caps and refused to wear it any longer). By the end of 1939/beginning of 1940, the KMT government had completely stopped supplying supplies to the communist units, so these groups could only rely on sewing shops in their own areas or on supplies of military uniforms offered by the civilian population and sewn locally. Unfortunately, there were more problems with dyeing, as not all places had access to all the materials used for dyeing. The dyeing of military uniforms was always done locally, with grey dye being extracted from plant ash, yellow dye from tree seeds and cyan dye from poplar bark, depending on the actual conditions in each region.
For this reason, the colours of the Eighth Army Group uniforms were different by regions: the colour in Shandong, Hebei and Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei areas was usually yellowish green, but faded to yellowish grey or off-white after long periods of wear; grey, but faded to grass green, and often two colours on one garment or not at all matching the colour of the cap worn by the soldier. From the colour of the clothing, it was also obvious that the 'secret' was that everyone knew to which base area a particular soldier belonged in Eighth Army Group or the New Fourth Army.
Throughout the war against the Japanese, the Eighth Army Group and the New Fourth Army did not have a unified colorization. They could only rely on each unit to find a way to select the appropriate method according to the natural conditions of each location and local conditions. According to Liu Yunqiu, director of the textile factory of the 359th Brigade of the 120th Division, 359th Brigade, Eighth Army Group, "At this time, we were no longer satisfied with plain white cloth, but also wanted to produce colourful cloth. There was no dye material, so we made grey cloth, dyed with vegetable ash. We boiled the roots of the 'Heigan' tree in Nanniwan and Jinpenwan and dyed them together with khaki-yellow cloth. This is how the first batch of coloured fabric was finally made."
Throughout the war against the Japanese, the Eighth Army Group and the New Fourth Army did not have a unified colorization. They could only rely on each unit to find a way to select the appropriate method according to the natural conditions of each location and local conditions. According to Liu Yunqiu, director of the textile factory of the 359th Brigade of the 120th Division, 359th Brigade, Eighth Army Group, "At this time, we were no longer satisfied with plain white cloth, but also wanted to produce colourful cloth. There was no dye material, so we made grey cloth, dyed with vegetable ash. We boiled the roots of the 'Heigan' tree in Nanniwan and Jinpenwan and dyed them together with khaki-yellow cloth. This is how the first batch of coloured fabric was finally made."
After 1940, the economic blockade imposed by the nationalists made it difficult to transport foreign materials to the base area, and there was a serious shortage of dyes for making military uniforms. The 129th Division of the Eighth Army Group had to mobilize the masses in their current area to help find local dyes to replace them. The 2nd Taihang Division was the first to use phellodendron cypress roots to dye yellow cloth, which caught the attention of the leaders, so they tried to promote and use it. Later, some troops used yellow celery and pagoda seeds as dyes, which were also very successful. However, cork and yellow celery were not widely grown and transport was difficult, while pagoda seed was locally abundant and its pigmenting properties were sufficiently strong. That was why, after the spring of 1943, rubber gellan was used to paint the grey uniforms and pagoda seed the grass-green ones. Although the colours dyed with local dyes were not uniform and faded easily, these dyes were at least made from local materials and their production costs were very low, which helped considerably to overcome the difficulties caused by dyeing.
The uniform colors shown here are only displayed as an example,
each army used each color!
As a general rule, both army groups preferred winter uniforms in shades of blue or bluish-grey, as the rocky terrain was well concealed at this time of year, but not so in summer, so in warmer periods they tended to wear uniforms in sand/khaki and greenish tones for better concealment.
ATTENTION!: There was virtually no standardization directive for military uniforms in the communist forces until 1949, so the only thing that distinguished them from the NRA nationalist soldiers was the arm patch.
8TH ROUTE ARMY/18GA ARM PATCH:
Contrary to the film depictions, in reality there were several different patches used by the Eighth Army Group: some were assigned by the government and others were made by the soldiers themselves, in many places even the lettering was completely different from the others. The local troops of the Eighth Army Group were selected from the militias of each base area by means of squadrons, district companies and county brigades. They usually wore '18GA' patch (in 1943 many soldiers of the Eighth Army Group switched to this patch) or no patch at all.
The first type of 8RA patch was 8.5x6.5cm, white background with blue printing and "Eight Route" in the middle. The later arm patches already had the inscription "Eight Roads", but this was placed inside an oval shape in the middle. This was used in 1938, with the inscription "Worn in the 27th year of the Republic of China" underneath and the seal of the current unit on the back. The version worn in 1939 now measured 8.6cm x 5.8cm, with the imprint on a two-layer piece of cloth, the usual white background, blue print, with the inscription "Eight Road" in the centre, and "Worn in the 28th year of the Republic of China" below. And on the back was the inscription "Be dutiful, disciplined and committed to finish the revolution". In later years, the year of wear was no longer written on the patches, only the blank part of the Gregorian calendar "year 194?". From 1942-43, the part at the bottom of the patch was reversed from the original right-to-left script for communist army groups.
ATTENTION!: There was virtually no standardization directive for military uniforms in the communist forces until 1949, so the only thing that distinguished them from the NRA nationalist soldiers was the arm patch.
8TH ROUTE ARMY/18GA ARM PATCH:
Contrary to the film depictions, in reality there were several different patches used by the Eighth Army Group: some were assigned by the government and others were made by the soldiers themselves, in many places even the lettering was completely different from the others. The local troops of the Eighth Army Group were selected from the militias of each base area by means of squadrons, district companies and county brigades. They usually wore '18GA' patch (in 1943 many soldiers of the Eighth Army Group switched to this patch) or no patch at all.
The first type of 8RA patch was 8.5x6.5cm, white background with blue printing and "Eight Route" in the middle. The later arm patches already had the inscription "Eight Roads", but this was placed inside an oval shape in the middle. This was used in 1938, with the inscription "Worn in the 27th year of the Republic of China" underneath and the seal of the current unit on the back. The version worn in 1939 now measured 8.6cm x 5.8cm, with the imprint on a two-layer piece of cloth, the usual white background, blue print, with the inscription "Eight Road" in the centre, and "Worn in the 28th year of the Republic of China" below. And on the back was the inscription "Be dutiful, disciplined and committed to finish the revolution". In later years, the year of wear was no longer written on the patches, only the blank part of the Gregorian calendar "year 194?". From 1942-43, the part at the bottom of the patch was reversed from the original right-to-left script for communist army groups.
On September 11, 1937, the Nationalist government's military commission changed the name of the "Eighth Army Group" to "Eighteenth Army Group" in accordance with the Nationalist military order, with Commander Zhu De and Deputy Commander-in-Chief Peng Dehuai. On 14 September, Zhu De and Peng Dehuai issued a circular to change "Eighth Army Group" to "Eighteenth Army Group". After that, patches with Chinese numbers "Eighteenth Army Group" were produced. The size and pattern are basically the same as those worn by the Eighth Army Group in 1938. Name, number and other columns that were found on the back of the patch. During the middle and late period of the anti-Japanese war, many units of the Eighth Army Group wore the uniform logo of the then National Revolutionary Army, and Arabic numerals and symbols were used on the arm patches to indicate "Eighteenth Army Group", or "18GA" (GA stands for Army Group). There is also a simple "18GA" armband, without a blue background and oval white border, with only the inscription "18GA" and the corresponding year. The order of the writing looked like this, with Chinese numerals usually written on the right and Arabic numerals on the left.
In addition to the above-mentioned "Eighth Army Group" and "Eighteenth Army Group" arm patches, the units of the Eighth Army Group also issued different arm patches. These arm patches are generally similar in style to the Eighth Army Group arm patches, with blue lettering on a blue background and an oval white border. Examples include the arm bands of the "115th Division, Eighteenth Army Group" and the "120th Division, Eighth Army Group".
In December 1938, the "Shandong Military Column of the Eighth Army Group" was formed on the basis of the Shandong People's Anti-Japanese Armed Insurrection Force. They made and wore arm patches with the inscription "Mountain Column". On November 20, 1939, the Fan Zixia Division of the Kuomintang Army accepted the Communist Party leadership and renamed the "Eighth Army Group Pinghan "Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Column" (hereinafter referred to as "Pinghan Column") after making and wearing "Pingzong" arm patches. On 7 June 1940, the Pinghan Column was reorganized into the new Eighth Army Group Tenth Brigade, and then only began to wear the uniform "Eighth Army Group" arm patch. The CCP-controlled Shanxi New Army's "Assassin/Dead Squad" Division also wore the "Death Squad" arm patch. These armbands are the same shape as the earlier armbands of the Eighth Army Group.
After the victory in the war against the Japanese, the designation of the Eighth Army Group was not immediately dropped, and the armor they used remained in the system. The northeastern troops of the Eighth Army Group were renamed the Northeastern People's Autonomous Army in January 1946, and soon afterwards renamed the Northeastern Democratic Coalition Army. After 1946, the name Eighth Army Group was officially dropped and the Eighth Army Group armbands were no longer worn.
In December 1938, the "Shandong Military Column of the Eighth Army Group" was formed on the basis of the Shandong People's Anti-Japanese Armed Insurrection Force. They made and wore arm patches with the inscription "Mountain Column". On November 20, 1939, the Fan Zixia Division of the Kuomintang Army accepted the Communist Party leadership and renamed the "Eighth Army Group Pinghan "Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Column" (hereinafter referred to as "Pinghan Column") after making and wearing "Pingzong" arm patches. On 7 June 1940, the Pinghan Column was reorganized into the new Eighth Army Group Tenth Brigade, and then only began to wear the uniform "Eighth Army Group" arm patch. The CCP-controlled Shanxi New Army's "Assassin/Dead Squad" Division also wore the "Death Squad" arm patch. These armbands are the same shape as the earlier armbands of the Eighth Army Group.
After the victory in the war against the Japanese, the designation of the Eighth Army Group was not immediately dropped, and the armor they used remained in the system. The northeastern troops of the Eighth Army Group were renamed the Northeastern People's Autonomous Army in January 1946, and soon afterwards renamed the Northeastern Democratic Coalition Army. After 1946, the name Eighth Army Group was officially dropped and the Eighth Army Group armbands were no longer worn.
NEW FOURTH ARMY ARM PATCH:
The patches of the New 4th Army also ranged widely, with a variety of patterns or inscriptions. Shortly after the New Fourth Army (N4A or New Fourth Army) was established in October 1937, Commander Ye Ting and Deputy Army Commander Xiang Ying ordered the design of the N4A patches. The first version showed a soldier with a bamboo hat, a rifle in his hand, and the inscription "Resist the enemy".
The patches of the New 4th Army also ranged widely, with a variety of patterns or inscriptions. Shortly after the New Fourth Army (N4A or New Fourth Army) was established in October 1937, Commander Ye Ting and Deputy Army Commander Xiang Ying ordered the design of the N4A patches. The first version showed a soldier with a bamboo hat, a rifle in his hand, and the inscription "Resist the enemy".
After a while, the amount of arm mounts made was not enough, so Commander Ye Ting issued an order to make another type. These had the outlines of marching soldiers and the inscription N4A in English letters.
A new version was also made in 1940, also showing a soldier with the words "Down with Japanese Imperialism!" at the top, "Resist the Enemy" at the bottom left, and the year 1940 at the top right.
In 1941, after the Anhui incident, the management redesigned the patches with the inscriptions N4A and 1941, and all in black, to commemorate the fallen who lost their lives in that incident. Shortly afterwards, the blue versions were released, featuring only the letters N4A in a pleasant blue colour on a white background. It was an eye-catching sight and was very popular with both officers and common soldiers. Before long, this version became the most popular N4A patch.
There was also a version that used the basic pattern of the Nationalist Forces patches, with the inscription N4A in Chinese. These were used not only in the early days but until the end of the war against Japan.
At the end of the war, the Nationalists and the Communists, in accordance with their negotiations in Chongqing, effectively merged the CCP army groups into the Nationalist (government-controlled) army. At this time, the English-lettered versions were discontinued and the Chinese-lettered ones were used. This lasted until 1947, when the New Fourth Army and the 8th Route Army were merged into the People's Liberation Army.
The 1945 and 1946 versions
ATTENTION!: the communist units used not only the rank structure of the nationalist units but also the structure of the units and the command until the above-mentioned 1947 absorption! This transformation was not completed until the end of 1948, and in 1949 the PLA won the second phase of the Chinese Civil War and finally decided who would control the country, but that is a subject for another article.
8TH ROUTE ARMY/18GA AND NEW 4TH ARMY NAMETAGS:
8TH ROUTE ARMY/18GA AND NEW 4TH ARMY NAMETAGS:
8th Route Army officer patch
8th Route Army Private Superior patch
N4A Warrant Officer patch
It may be surprising, perhaps mainly because of the low standards of Chinese war "dramas", but both communist army groups wore the same name patches used by the Nationalists, so anyone who displays the above army groups can safely put on a patch of their rank and army type. As supply and production has not only had problems with clothing, it is acceptable here and for clothing displayed by nationalist forces to put nothing at all on the clothing you wear (neither rank insignia nor name or arm patches).
METAL BADGES:
There were also various metal badges, but these were almost exclusively issued to personnel serving at the main bases or other small groups. The badges were 3.2 or 3.4mm in diameter.
METAL BADGES:
There were also various metal badges, but these were almost exclusively issued to personnel serving at the main bases or other small groups. The badges were 3.2 or 3.4mm in diameter.
LEGGINGS:
It significantly reduced the degree of leg fatigue during long marches, because this artificial pressure relief operation avoided venous blood backflow as well as calf swelling, thus greatly reducing the load on the soldier's leg. At the same time, it prevented bumps, scrapes and injuries during the march over hills and ridges, especially for Chinese soldiers engaged in guerrilla warfare. The sharp edges and corners of rocks, vegetation and thorns all cause injuries to the feet and legs of soldiers, and with the use of leg guards, these injuries were effectively avoided. It also functioned as a temporary medical dressing, in the event of injury the untied gaiters could be used to temporarily dress the wound and fix broken bones, which was often vital due to the disastrous medical care (and the significant lack of it) during the war.
COLLAR TABS:
They were existed in red colors on the collars of the uniforms, and like the patches, either soldiers had them or they didn't. In the 3 years I've been involved in researching the Republic of China period, I've only seen them on the 8th Route Army/18GA, not at all on the New 4th Army. Of course, that doesn't rule out the possibility, but I tend to believe what I have photographic evidence of as a fixed fact.
COLLAR TABS:
They were existed in red colors on the collars of the uniforms, and like the patches, either soldiers had them or they didn't. In the 3 years I've been involved in researching the Republic of China period, I've only seen them on the 8th Route Army/18GA, not at all on the New 4th Army. Of course, that doesn't rule out the possibility, but I tend to believe what I have photographic evidence of as a fixed fact.
And at the end of this article, please welcome the work of our friend from England (JDV Colours), a colourised image that does an excellent job of illustrating the colours of the different uniforms, all in a single image of soldiers of the 18th Group Army in Yan'an in 1944.
Nincsenek megjegyzések:
Megjegyzés küldése