Battle of Nanpeng Archipelago
Encyclopedia
Battle of Nanpēng Archipelago was a battle fought between the Chinese
nationalists
and the communists over the islands of Nanpēng Archipelago
(南澎列島, Nanpeng Liedao) off the Cantonese coast during the Chinese Civil War
and resulted in communist victory. The Nanpēng Archipelago is a small island chain in Nan'ao County
off the coast of Shantou
, and is named after the largest island, Nanpēng island (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛), the home of fishing community of more than 400 people. The archipelago
was deemed not important for most part of the Chinese Civil War
and the nationalist
therefore did not deploy any troops on any of the island, and when Guangdong
fell into the communist hands, the archipelago also fell. The communists believed the same thing the nationalists
had believed and did not deploy any troops to the archipelago either after the nationalist
withdraw, but small patrol teams of 2 to 3 were regularly sent to many of the islands.
launched their insurgent strikes against the communists, the nationalist
strategists believed that archipelago may serve as a steppingstone to launch assaults against mainland and decided to take the archipelago. On September 20, 1952, over 150 nationalist
strike force members riding in four large speedboats launched a surprise attack on the main island, the Nanpēng island (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛). The token communist force patrolling the island was consisted of only three members: a deputy naval infantry platoon commander with last name Zhang (张), who was the patrol team leader, a sailor named Qiu An (邱安), and a militiaman named Lin Xiaofa (林小发). After a futile resistance, all three were killed by the overwhelming enemy force.
have the opportunity to set up a forward base at their doorstep and immediately began to plan a counterattack. However, due to the urgent defense needs from other parts of the vast coastal regions, the job of retaking the archipelago was given to the ground force, and a strengthened battalion
of the communist 41st Army
was assigned the mission. However, it was soon discovered that the unit was illprepared for an amphibious landing and as a result, the schedule had to be pushed back to first allow more than 20 days of training to be completed.
rode in junks
and departed on October 19, 1952 at 5:00 pm. At 10:00 pm, the communist force landed successfully on Nanpēng island (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛) and after two hours of fierce battle, the nationalist
resistance on the island ceased and the survivors attempted to hide. The mop up operation and skirmishes on other islands completely stopped the next day at 4:00 am, with the archipelago firmly back in the hands of the communists. The communists managed to kill 79 enemy troops on the main island of Nanpēng (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛), including the nationalist
commander, major general
Huang Songsheng (黄颂声), and his deputy commander, also a major general
. 37 nationalist
troops were captured alive on the main island of Nanpēng (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛), and the highest ranking nationalist
prisoner of war
was the director of the political directorate, Major Gao Xueqian (高学谦). Another 27 nationalist
troops were killed and more than a dozen captured alive from other islands and islets of the archipelago. The communists suffered 86 fatalities and more than 300 wounded, almost all soldiers in the battalion reported as casualties.
defeat proved that it was impractical to set up forward base at the enemy’s doorstep while the base is far away from the nationalist
strongholds, because it was impossible to reinforce the distant base in time during combats. The communists, on the other hand, had paid a heavy price in its attempt to retake the archipelago because they have gravely underestimated the enemy and although the mission was a success, it was a very costly victory, resulting in almost every task force member becoming a casualty. The communist only had numerical superiority but infantry armed only with rifle
s, light machine gun
s and hand grenades had a very difficult time in exterminating the numerically inferior enemy that was much better armed with superior weaponry.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
nationalists
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
and the communists over the islands of Nanpēng Archipelago
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
(南澎列島, Nanpeng Liedao) off the Cantonese coast during the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
and resulted in communist victory. The Nanpēng Archipelago is a small island chain in Nan'ao County
Nan'ao County
Nan'ao County is a county in Shantou, Guangdong, China.Geographically, the main part of the county is the island of Nan’ao, which lies 2 – 5 miles off the coast of Guangdong...
off the coast of Shantou
Shantou
Shantou , historically known as Swatow or Suátao, is a prefecture-level city on the eastern coast of Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, with a total population of 5,391,028 as of 2010 and an administrative area of...
, and is named after the largest island, Nanpēng island (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛), the home of fishing community of more than 400 people. The archipelago
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
was deemed not important for most part of the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
and the nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
therefore did not deploy any troops on any of the island, and when Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
fell into the communist hands, the archipelago also fell. The communists believed the same thing the nationalists
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
had believed and did not deploy any troops to the archipelago either after the nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
withdraw, but small patrol teams of 2 to 3 were regularly sent to many of the islands.
First stage
As the nationalistsKuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
launched their insurgent strikes against the communists, the nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
strategists believed that archipelago may serve as a steppingstone to launch assaults against mainland and decided to take the archipelago. On September 20, 1952, over 150 nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
strike force members riding in four large speedboats launched a surprise attack on the main island, the Nanpēng island (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛). The token communist force patrolling the island was consisted of only three members: a deputy naval infantry platoon commander with last name Zhang (张), who was the patrol team leader, a sailor named Qiu An (邱安), and a militiaman named Lin Xiaofa (林小发). After a futile resistance, all three were killed by the overwhelming enemy force.
Second stage
The communists would not let the nationalistsKuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
have the opportunity to set up a forward base at their doorstep and immediately began to plan a counterattack. However, due to the urgent defense needs from other parts of the vast coastal regions, the job of retaking the archipelago was given to the ground force, and a strengthened battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
of the communist 41st Army
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
was assigned the mission. However, it was soon discovered that the unit was illprepared for an amphibious landing and as a result, the schedule had to be pushed back to first allow more than 20 days of training to be completed.
Third Stage
Once the training was complete, the communist battalionBattalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
rode in junks
Junk (ship)
A junk is an ancient Chinese sailing vessel design still in use today. Junks were developed during the Han Dynasty and were used as sea-going vessels as early as the 2nd century AD. They evolved in the later dynasties, and were used throughout Asia for extensive ocean voyages...
and departed on October 19, 1952 at 5:00 pm. At 10:00 pm, the communist force landed successfully on Nanpēng island (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛) and after two hours of fierce battle, the nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
resistance on the island ceased and the survivors attempted to hide. The mop up operation and skirmishes on other islands completely stopped the next day at 4:00 am, with the archipelago firmly back in the hands of the communists. The communists managed to kill 79 enemy troops on the main island of Nanpēng (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛), including the nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
commander, major general
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Huang Songsheng (黄颂声), and his deputy commander, also a major general
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
. 37 nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
troops were captured alive on the main island of Nanpēng (Nanpēng Dao, 南澎岛), and the highest ranking nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
was the director of the political directorate, Major Gao Xueqian (高学谦). Another 27 nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
troops were killed and more than a dozen captured alive from other islands and islets of the archipelago. The communists suffered 86 fatalities and more than 300 wounded, almost all soldiers in the battalion reported as casualties.
Outcome
The nationalistKuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
defeat proved that it was impractical to set up forward base at the enemy’s doorstep while the base is far away from the nationalist
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
strongholds, because it was impossible to reinforce the distant base in time during combats. The communists, on the other hand, had paid a heavy price in its attempt to retake the archipelago because they have gravely underestimated the enemy and although the mission was a success, it was a very costly victory, resulting in almost every task force member becoming a casualty. The communist only had numerical superiority but infantry armed only with rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s, light machine gun
Light machine gun
A light machine gun is a machine gun designed to be employed by an individual soldier, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. Light machine guns are often used as squad automatic weapons.-Characteristics:...
s and hand grenades had a very difficult time in exterminating the numerically inferior enemy that was much better armed with superior weaponry.
See also
- Battle of Nan'ao IslandBattle of Nan'ao IslandThe Battle of Nan’ao island was a battle fought between the nationalists and the communists during the Chinese Civil War and communists emerged as the victors. Nan’ao island of Shantou remained in the nationalist hands after Guangdong fell into communist hands...
(an earlier even at the bigger island nearby) - List of Battles of Chinese Civil War
- National Revolutionary ArmyNational Revolutionary ArmyThe National Revolutionary Army , pre-1928 sometimes shortened to 革命軍 or Revolutionary Army and between 1928-1947 as 國軍 or National Army was the Military Arm of the Kuomintang from 1925 until 1947, as well as the national army of the Republic of China during the KMT's period of party rule...
- History of the People's Liberation ArmyHistory of the People's Liberation ArmyThe history of the People's Liberation Army began in 1927 with the start of the Chinese Civil War and spans to the present, having developed from a peasant guerrilla force into the largest armed force in the world.-Historical background:...
- Chinese Civil WarChinese Civil WarThe Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...