18GA katona Thompson M1928A géppisztollyal

 

2023-as év végi értékelő/ 2023 year-end assessment

 

Hosszasan filóztam rajta, hogy mit is írhatnék bele az évértékelőnkbe, azon túl, hogy egy rendkívül mozgalmas, sok fáradozással, ám de mégtöbb eredménnyel záruló évet tudhatunk magunk mögött. Olyannyira, hogy ha valaki nekem azt mondja 3 évvel ezelőtt, hogy ezt én megvalósítom, akkor valószínűleg hitetlenkedve a képébe röhögök az illetőnek. Nem mintha nem lettek volna terveim és a tettrekészség, de amennyi dolgot összehoztunk 2023-ban a munka és az életünk egyéb dolgai mellett, az még valahol nekünk is soknak tűnik. Kezdtünk Májusban a csepeli majálissal, aztán június elején a saját kisfilmünk forgatásába csaptunk bele. Emellé mentek a zsámbéki bázisnapok, összehoztuk a 3 napos rakétabázisos megjelenést két előadással karöltve, résztvettünk a bonyhádi falunapokon, eljutottunk szigetvárra, majd végül év végéig még összehoztuk a 10 fős nagyfotózást Szentkirályszabadján és zárásként egy 10 kilóméteres túrát beöltözve, minden felszereléssel magunkon, lepapírozva az illetékes hatóságoknál. A lehetőségeinkhez mérten sikerült több nagyobb cikket, és fotós anyagot is összeállítani az idénre becélzott témára is, amely a kínai kommunista alakulatokat volt hivatott bemutatni 1937-1945 között, habár ebből is van még a tarsolyban sok minden.

Természetesen jövőre is sok izgalmas dologgal készülünk nektek, a főbb irányvonalak megvannak, és talán nem árulok el vele új infót, de a 2024-es év a főként a koreai háború időszakát valamint ha időnk engedi, a polgárháborús szakaszt kezdi majd el bemutatni. Tovább bővítjük a zsámbéki rakétabázison található helyünket, továbbá kibővítjük egy mini múzeummá, minél több érdekes transzparenssel, amely majd az aktuális történelmi korba kalauzolja el a látogatókat Kína történelmén belül.

Köszönjük mindenkinek azt a rengeteg tudásbeli támogatást és érdeklődést, amellyel viseltettetek a csoportunkat illetően, a minket meghívó szervezőknek szintén! Jövőre találkozunk, addig is további kellemes ünnepeket, és vigyázzatok magatokra! Ja igen! Aki esetleg lemaradt volna róla, mostmár több, mint egy éve van Instagram oldalunk is, a fotók többsége oda szokott felkerülni. Az alábbi QR kódot szkenneljétek be a telefonotokon, és már ott is vagytok az oldalunkon!


ENG: I was thinking long and hard about what to include in our annual review, apart from the fact that it has been a very busy year, with a lot of hard work, but with even more results. So much so that if someone had told me 3 years ago that I would achieve this, I would probably have laughed with some disbelief in their face. It's not that I didn't have plans and the drive to do it, but the amount of things we've put together in 2023, alongside work and other things in our lives, still feels like a lot to us. We started in May with the Csepel Mayfair, and then at the beginning of June we started shooting our own short film. Then came the usual base days in Zsámbék city, we organised the 3-day rocket base appearance with two performances, we took part in the village festival in Bonyhád, we went to Szigetvár, and finally, at the end of the year, we organised a 10-person photo shooting and, as a final event, a 10-kilometre hike in our uniforms, with all our equipment on us, with the proper papers and the event signed at the local authorities. As far as we were able, we also managed to put together several major articles and photographic material for this year's theme, which was to cover the Chinese Communist corps between 1937-1945, although there is still a lot of that to come.

Of course, we've got lots of exciting things in our minds for the next year, the main lines are there, and I probably won't give away any new information, but 2024 will start to cover mainly the Korean War period and, if time allows, the Civil War period. We will continue to expand our base at the missile base in Zsámbék, and we will also expand it into a mini museum with as many interesting banners as possible, which will take visitors to the current historical period within China's history.

Thank you all for your support in knowledge and interest in our group! We'll see you next year, until then, have a great holiday and take care! Oh yes! In case you missed it, we've had an Instagram page for over a year now, and most of the photos are posted there. Just scan the QR code below on your phone and you're there!

Russel Spurr: Enter the Dragon

 

FM-24/29

 

A géppuska tárja 25 lőszer befogadására volt alkalmas és 450 lövés per perces tűzgyorsaságot tudhatott magáénak. 1920-tól a déli Jünnan tartománybeli hadurak mindkét kaliberből rendeltek bőséggel (az első a 7.5x54mm-es francia, míg utóbbi a már "alapnak" számító 7.92x57mm-es, vagyis a 8 miliméteres Mauser lőszer volt). A Jünnan tartománybeli hadúri hadseregeknél ez volt a hivatalosan rendszeresített géppuska, amellyel sikerrel vették fel a harcot a japán inváziós sereggel Kína délnyugati vidékein.

ENG: Carrying 25 rounds of ammunition and firing at a rate of 450 rpm. Back from the 1920s, the Yunnan warlords in Southern China purchased both the original version using 7.5 x 54 mm French cartridge and the 7.92 Mauser cartridge version. This gun was the main service light machine gun of the Yunnan warlords fighting against the Japanese invaders in South Western rural region of China.

The Korean War from Chinese perspective, Introduction

 

The Korean War from Chinese perspective

For a number of reasons, I have finally decided to leave the Civil War era for next year, and start covering the Korean War this year, so bear with me, we won't miss that either, but at the moment we don't have the book material or the equipment to cover that era accurately.

INTRODUCTION:

The bloody civil war that lasted from 1945 to 1949 was eventually won by the communists (thanks to the missteps of the nationalist leadership, but especially Chiang Kai-shek, and the poor morale, bad tactical decisions and corruption in the army). Liberation came with the promise of peace to the troubled Chinese people. In 1949, the majority of the population welcomed the People's Liberation Army with relief, albeit cautiously, hoping to rebuild their lives, families and businesses after more than a decade of warfare. Instead, in October 1950, Mao engaged his people in another bloody and protracted war: the Korean War.

Proclamation of the People's Republic of China, 1 October 1949.

In January 1950, the United States announced that Korea was no longer part of its Pacific defence perimeter, so the North Koreans, inspired by the unification of China, were not afraid to take advantage of this and, with Stalin's help (although he refused to send troops), began planning the invasion of the South, with no small amount of help. Soviet officers took over the planning of the invasion and the date for the attack was set for 25 June 1950. A steady flow of high quality material and, thanks to Soviet trainers, the North Korean troops proved to be extremely effective. In Mao, however, Kim Il-sung found a loyal supporter who was prepared to provide troops to support his unification plans.

The North Korean invasion

In 1950, the North Korean army crossed the 38th parallel and moved south. The North, armed with Soviet weapons and trained with military advisers, far outnumbered the South Korean army, their initial attacks were fierce and it seemed impossible to repel them.
The image credit belongs to: Hsu Chung-mao

While the Americans refused to support the South with armour, anti-tank weapons and artillery of more than 105mm calibre, the North had plenty of everything. Under the guise of a border skirmish, supported by a well-planned series of air and ground strikes, the invasion of the North Korean troops was launched. The South, with barely 100,000 poorly equipped troops, faced unpromising results and were almost completely destroyed within weeks. US President Henry Truman reacted with lightning speed, pushing a bill through the legislature on 27 June in less than a day to approve support for the South Koreans with US troops and materiel. Stalin, meanwhile, did not lift a finger to prevent US intervention, probably because he secretly hoped that Mao would be able to destroy a sizeable US force in the conflict.

Meanwhile, on 29 June, North Korean troops captured the southern capital Seoul, and Britain then mobilized its navy to support the South. Ironically, the US troops were confronted by the first North Korean troops on 4 July, who forced them to retreat at lightning speed. A small advance force of the 24th Infantry Division attacked the North Koreans without hesitation, but without any anti-tank weapons they simply didn't have a chance, so they were defeated on the fifth of July: the 540-strong US force suffered 180 casualties.

The actions of the Battle of Osan

On 1 October 1950, Stalin called Mao to "ask" him for a force of 5-6 divisions to help the North Koreans. He proposed that the troops to be deployed be given the name "volunteers", so that China would not formally take part in the conflict. Mao had already deployed troops to the Yalu River before, keeping them on constant standby. Mao spent the next few days trying to gain the support of his colleagues to take part in the conflict, but only Zhou Enlai (Premier of the People's Republic of China) offered cautious support. Commander Lin Biao, who had won the Manchurian campaign for Mao, was struggling with illness and was unable to carry out such a large task. Other leaders, such as Liu Shaoqi (President of the People's Republic of China), were strongly opposed to the conflict, fearing that in the event of Chinese intervention, the Americans might start bombing Chinese cities, possibly targeting important Manchurian industrial districts, or even not shy away from using the atomic bomb. General Nie Rongzhen later said that those who opposed involvement in the conflict were of the opinion that, after decades of warfare, it would be better not to get involved in another war until the issue could really be avoided.

Mao took a huge gamble, hoping that America would not extend the conflict to China, fearing that the Soviets might intervene on his side. He was firmly convinced that America would have neither the stomach nor the capacity for a protracted war in which it would stand no chance against the millions of Chinese troops he intended to deploy in this case. There was no question for a moment of involvement, since an American-backed enemy Korea on the Chinese border would have been a distinct threat.

The Chinese Volunteer Army, standing on the banks of the Yalu River, preparing to cross the river to join the Korean War in late 1950.
The image credit belongs to: Hsu Chung-mao

From 7 October, events accelerated as the US forces crossed the 38th parallel and pushed back the North Koreans at a rapid pace, and on 19-20 October Pyongyang, the North's capital, fell. At that time, 200,000 Chinese volunteer soldiers (hereafter referred to as PVA or People's Volunteer Army) crossed the Yalu River and poured into North Korea to take the fight on the US troops....

The PVA is crossing the Yalu river