Military Regions or War Areas, were 76 northern military district

Military district

Military districts are formations of a state's armed forces which are responsible for a certain area of territory. They are often more responsible for administrative than operational matters, and in countries with conscript forces, often handle parts of the conscription cycle.Navies have also used...

s and the largest formations of the National Revolutionary Army

National Revolutionary Army

The 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...

, under the National Military Council

National Military Council

The command of the Chinese National Revolutionary Army was directed by the National Military Council , chaired by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II...

, chaired by Chiang Kai Shek 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...

 and World War II. 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...

 the National Revolutionary Army

National Revolutionary Army

The 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...

 eventually organized itself into twelve Military Regions.

In August 1937 there were:

Region	Area of Operations
1st Military Region	Hebei Hebei ' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei... , northern Peiking - Hankou Railway Front (in September 1937)
2nd Military Region	Shanxi Shanxi ' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
3rd Military Region	Shanghai Shanghai Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
5th Military Region	Tientsin - Pukow Railway Front (From Oct. 1937)
6th Military Region	Tientsin - Pukow Railway Front (September - October 1937)

As the Japanese advanced, three more military regions were formed and the older ones reassigned on 17 January 1938 following the capture of Nanjing

Nanjing

' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...

.

Region	Area of Operations
1st Military Region	northern Peiking - Hankou Railway Front
2nd Military Region	Shanxi Shanxi ' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
3rd Military Region	Jiangsu Jiangsu ' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name... , Zhejiang Zhejiang Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
4th Military Region	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... , Guangxi Guangxi Guangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
5th Military Region	Tientsin - Pukow Railway Front
8th Military Region	Gansu Gansu ' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east... , Ningxia Ningxia Ningxia, formerly transliterated as Ningsia, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Located in Northwest China, on the Loess Plateau, the Yellow River flows through this vast area of land. The Great Wall of China runs along its northeastern boundary... , Qinghai Qinghai Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake... , Suiyuan

Following the Battle of Xuzhou

Battle of Xuzhou

The Battle of Xuzhou was fought between Japanese and Chinese forces in May 1938 during Second Sino-Japanese War. In contemporary accounts in English, the event was usually referred to as the "Battle of Hsuchow", using the Chinese Postal Map Romanization....

 and Northern and Eastern Henan

Northern and Eastern Honan 1938

During the Second Sino-Japanese War the Japanese 1st Army under Lt. General Kiyoshi Katsuki drove the Chinese forces of General Cheng Chien's 1st War Area out of Northern and Eastern Honan until they were stopped by the disastrous 1938 Yellow River flood caused by the diversion of the Yellow River...

 5th Military Region defended Anhui

Anhui

Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...

 and Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

 north of the Yangtze River

Yangtze River

The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...

. 1st Military Region defended Henan

Henan

Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...

. 3rd Military Region extended itself to defend Anhui

Anhui

Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...

 south of the Yangtze. 4th Military Region extended its command to the coast of Fukien

Fujian

' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...

.

In early July 1938, during the battle of Wuhan

Battle of Wuhan

The Battle of Wuhan, popularly known to the Chinese as the Defence of Wuhan, and to the Japanese as the Capture of Wuhan, was a large-scale battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War...

 the 9th Military Region was activated. It commanded units the 1st and 2nd Army Corps

NRA Army Corps

The Army Corps, 兵團, was one of the largest military formations in the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China during the Second Sino-Japanese War. These Army Corps were composed of a number of Group Armies, Army, Corps, Divisions, Brigades and Regiments...

 and the Wuhan Garrison, in Jiangxi

Jiangxi

' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...

 west of Poyang Lake, southern Hupei and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

 south of the Yangtze River.

Following the Battle of Wuhan the Chinese army was reorganized along with the Military Regions.

Region	Area of Operations
1st Military Region	Henan Henan Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan... , part of northern Anhui Anhui Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...
2nd Military Region	Shanxi Shanxi ' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period.... , part of Shensi
3rd Military Region	Jiangsu Jiangsu ' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name... , Anhui Anhui Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...  south of the Yangtze, Zhejiang Zhejiang Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital... , Fukien Fujian ' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
4th Military Region	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... , Guangxi Guangxi Guangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
5th Military Region	Western Anhui, Hubei Hubei ' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...  north of the Yangtze, southern Henan Henan Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...
8th Military Region	Gansu Gansu ' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east... , Ningxia Ningxia Ningxia, formerly transliterated as Ningsia, is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Located in Northwest China, on the Loess Plateau, the Yellow River flows through this vast area of land. The Great Wall of China runs along its northeastern boundary... , Qinghai Qinghai Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake... , Suiyuan
9th Military Region	northwestern Jiangsi, Hubei Hubei ' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...  south of the Yangtze, and Hunan
10th Military Region	Shensi

Additionally there were two special Military Regions behind Japanese lines:

• Shandong-Jiangsu Military Region - northern Jiangsu
  Jiangsu
  ' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
  
   and Shandong
  Shandong
  ' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
  
  .
• Hopei-Chahar Military Region - Hopei and Chahar
  Chahar (province)
  Chahar , also known as Chaha'er, Chakhar, or Qahar, was a province of China in existence from 1912 to 1936, mostly covering territory in what is part of eastern Inner Mongolia. It was named after the Chahar Mongolians....
  
  

6th Military Region was reactivated a second time in October 1939, after the first Battle of Changsha

Battle of Changsha (1939)

Battle of Changsha was the first attempt by Japan to take the city of Changsha, China, during the second Sino-Japanese War. It was the first major battle of the war to fall within the timeframe of what's widely considered World War II.- Background and strategy :The war had already reached a...

. It commanded forces in Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

 south of the Yangtze and west of the Hsiang River. It included forces formerly part of 9th Military Region.

Source

• Hsu Long-hsuen and Chang Ming-kai, History of The Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) 2nd Ed. ,1971. Translated by Wen Ha-hsiung, Chung Wu Publishing; 33, 140th Lane, Tung-hwa Street, Taipei, Taiwan Republic of China.