Battle of Xiushui River
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Xiushui River was fought in March 1939 as part of the Battle of Nanchang, northeast of Nanchang
, China
.
During the Second Sino-Japanese War
, Japanese artillery
forces marched a long distance into the vast area of continental China. They were much troubled by bad roads. To lighten the burden on transport, many regiments replaced their artillery with mountain gun
s.
Most fights in China were pursuit battles; large artillery battles seldom happened. In the Battle of Nanchang, the Japanese deployed the largest artillery force of the Sino-Japanese War. They bombarded in support of their crossing of the Xiushui River
(1939). However, the Chinese offered little resistance and the Japanese bombardment ceased when it reached one third of the planned level.
used the "6th Field Heavy Artillery Brigade" artillery unit under the command of Major Gen. Sumita.
The artillery sections used were
Nanchang
Nanchang is the capital of Jiangxi Province in southeastern China. It is located in the north-central portion of the province. As it is bounded on the west by the Jiuling Mountains, and on the east by Poyang Lake, it is famous for its scenery, rich history and cultural sites...
, China
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...
.
During the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
, Japanese artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
forces marched a long distance into the vast area of continental China. They were much troubled by bad roads. To lighten the burden on transport, many regiments replaced their artillery with mountain gun
Mountain gun
Mountain guns are artillery pieces designed for use in mountain warfare and areas where usual wheeled transport is not possible. They are similar to infantry support guns, and are generally capable of being broken down into smaller loads .Due to their ability to be broken down into smaller...
s.
Most fights in China were pursuit battles; large artillery battles seldom happened. In the Battle of Nanchang, the Japanese deployed the largest artillery force of the Sino-Japanese War. They bombarded in support of their crossing of the Xiushui River
Xiushui River
The Xiushui River is a river in Jiangxi, China that runs 200 km west to the Poyang Ho....
(1939). However, the Chinese offered little resistance and the Japanese bombardment ceased when it reached one third of the planned level.
Order of battle
The Japanese ArmyImperial Japanese Army
-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...
used the "6th Field Heavy Artillery Brigade" artillery unit under the command of Major Gen. Sumita.
The artillery sections used were
- 13th Field Heavy Artillery Regiment (Lt. Col. Okoshi, 24 Type 4 15cm Howitzers)
- 14th Field Heavy Artillery Regiment (Lt. Col. Maruyama, 24 Type 4 15cm Howitzers)
- 10th Field Heavy Artillery Regiment (Lt. Col. Nagaya, 24 Type 4 15cm Howitzers)
- 15th Independent Field Heavy Artillery Regiment (Col. Horikawa, 16 Type 14 10cm Cannons)
- 2nd Independent Heavy Artillery Battalion (Lt. Col. Manba, 4 Type 89 15cm Cannons)
- 101st Field Artillery Regiment (Lt. Col. Yamada, 34 Type 38-improved 75mm Field Guns)
- 3rd Independent Mountain Gun Regiment (Lt. Col. Morikawa, 24 Type 41 75 mm Mountain GunType 41 75 mm Mountain GunThe Type 41 75 mm mountain gun is a Japanese license-built copy of the Krupp M.08 mountain gun. Originally it was the standard pack artillery weapon. After it was superseded by the Type 94 75 mm mountain gun, it was then used as an infantry "regimental" gun, deployed 4 to each infantry...
s) - 106th Field Artillery Regiment (Lt. Col. Uga, 32 Type 38-improved 75mm Field Guns)
- 2nd Battalion/2nd Independent Mountain Gun Regiment (Major Matsumoto, 12 Type 41 75 mm Mountain GunType 41 75 mm Mountain GunThe Type 41 75 mm mountain gun is a Japanese license-built copy of the Krupp M.08 mountain gun. Originally it was the standard pack artillery weapon. After it was superseded by the Type 94 75 mm mountain gun, it was then used as an infantry "regimental" gun, deployed 4 to each infantry...
s)