civil war Flashcards
desertation of GMD soldiers stat
up to 70% annually
1947
the communists moved into manchuria.
whilst CKS shouldve moved his army to centralised areas to secure power, he concentrated 500,000 of his 3 million soldiers for this battle alone. he lost 470,000 soldiers
communication and supply lines were too thin and vulnerable to guerilla attacks
1948 - the battle of huai-huai
nov 1948
Mao’s attempt to destroy the KMT troops that wew north of the Yangtze River. if he defeated these forces, it would leave a clear path to the KMT’s power bases in Nanking and Shanghai
1949 -
Mao broke through the Yangtze river within 5 days.
500,000 troops were captured and killed.
the weather was perfectly miserable which left the KMT vulnerable to guerilla attacks
CKS suffered so badly he resigned as this was an overt display of CCP military strength
oct - declaration of the CCP
when does the civil war start
july 1946
when do the communists capture guangzhou
october 1949
who succeeds hurley
he leaves and Marshall takes over
when does the marshall mission end and fail
jan 1947
when do the communsits take manchuria
nov 1948 - they were initially on the defensive but this extra territory allows them to be on the offensive
manchuria is geographically suited for guerilla warfare
when do the communists capture beijing
jan 1949 to little resistance - they have worn down the GMD.
when do the ocmminsits capture nanjing
april 1949
when do the communists capture Guangzhou
october 1949 - such a string of failures prompts CKS to resign and flee to taiwan. and thus the PRC is declared
USA aid in the civil war amounted to
$3 billion and quantities of WW2 arms
when did USA aid stop
nov 1948
infrastuctural implications of war
-1/2 railways had been destroyed
-rivers blocked by sunken ships
-shortage of electrical power
-the USSR had stripped machinery when it had left
-industrial production in 1949 was 44% of the 1939 level, and food production was 30% below
-The war destroyed 55 percent of industry and mining, 72 percent of shipping, and 96 percent of railway lines.
-Inflation in GMD territory rose to an annual average of 230 percent.
battle of Xuzhou
jan 1949 - Mao made the decision to switch to a traditional counter-offensive instead of a guerrilla attack as he felt this was appropriate
was able to capture the railway which was a key point of GMD communications and supplies
Battle of Siping
march 1946 - near manchuria
Lin Biao led, he was trained effectively at Whampoa academy
-he skilfully adapted guerilla warfare to counter nationalist forces who significantly outnumbered them
3000/3000 nationalist troops
zunyi conference
1935 - mao announced the end of left close doorism which opened up the party to more recruits and support.
flexibility of the CCP
-48-9 used old wartime equipment such as japanese tanks, USSR mortars and Nationalist machine guns
-Mao abandoned Ya’nan in 1947 to avoid unecessary battle
-Lin Biao at the Battle of Siping in 46 successfuly adopted guerrilla warfare
-35 Zunyi conference ended left closed doorism = appeal to a broader range
GMD inflexibility
-against guerrilla attacks, stayed with traditional counter-defensives which was shown in Siping and 1947 Manchuria when CKS left the lines too thin
-he airlifted 500,000 troops and supplies to Manchurian cities despite American advice which used a large portion of his budget
-chose to keep the Young Marshall under house arrest for 50 years after the Xi’an incident instead of utilising his skills and contacts and military capabilities
GMD wasting time and resources
GMD took Ya’nan in 1947 despite the CCP already having left for manchuria, it was retaken in 1948.
-airlifted 500,000 troops and supplies to manchuria after the japanese left as a sign of pride or victory which took up a significant proportion of the military budget when soldiers and citizens were starving and dying
delegation of ccp v gmd
ccp: mao delegated to Zhu De, and Lin Biao at Siping
gmd: CKS held 28 positions within the party.
discipline + committment = unity + indoctrination
ccp: 6 main points of attention to ensure discipline, morality. indoctrination of 21 articles and Mao’s manifesto. rectification campaign in 41 also weeded out less committed members.
contrasted witht he corruption, violence and tyranny of the GMD who raped and pillaged the population AND had ass. chief of staff and head of war planning board as CCP agents
evidence that the civil war alienated the population under the GMD and widened the urban/rural divide
-after the shanghai bombings in 1932 after 180,000 died, CKS instructed his soldiers to fight to the death - however he refused to put an counter-offensive in rural areas in 1938, instead opting to flood the yellow river and kill 400,000 and offering no recovery or emergency aid = alienating the rural population which caused them to flee to the CCP
how many troops did the GMD have in the civil war
2.7 million
how many troops and equipment did the CCP have in the civil war
900,000, no airforce and 600 artillery pieces
strengths of the gmd in civil war
-internationally legitimate rulers of china
-$3 bil in aid from the usa
-2.7 mil soldiers and 39 divisions newly trained by USA
weaknesses od the GMD in civil war
-inflation
-corruption, generals kept dead soldiers on wages
-discontent among the population and peasants
-GMD soldiers malnourished and less committed
-troops raped and pillaged chinese population and were unruly = less public support and effectiveness
-over-dependence on foreign aid, so when the USA pulled out in 1948, they were helpless
-assistent chief of staff and head of GMD war planning board were CCP agents
military strength of CCP
although was 900,000 ->2.7 million gmd soliders
-Dixie Mission in june 44 reinforced
-Xuzhou was done in 65 days in 1949. conventional counter offensive
