| Defense Of Sihang Warehouse |
Article Index for Defense Of |
Website Links For Defense |
Information AboutDefense Of Sihang Warehouse |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT DEFENSE OF SIHANG WAREHOUSE | |
| 1937 in china | |
| sihang warehouse | |
| history of shanghai | |
| battles of the second sino-japanese war | |
| defense of sihang warehouse | |
The Defense of Sihang Warehouse () marked the beginning of the end of the three-month Battle Of Shanghai in the opening phase of the Second Sino-Japanese War . The defenders of the warehouse, known as the Eight Hundred Heroes (), aka the '''Lost Battalion''', held out against numerous waves of Japanese forces and covered the retreat of Chinese forces east during the Battle Of Shanghai . The successful defense of the warehouse provided a morale-lifting consolation to the Chinese army and people in the demoralizing aftermath of the Japanese invasion of Shanghai, proving that when properly led and motivated, even a small group of Chinese troops can overcome a much greater Japanese force. This battle also grabbed the attention, if only briefly, of the international community in Chiang Kai-shek 's bid to gain worldwide support against Japanese aggression. BACKGROUND troops By 1937-10-26 , Chinese resistance in the district of Zhabei was faltering. Generalissimo Chiang wanted to withdraw all forces in the area to defend the rural, western parts of Shanghai, and ordered Gu Zhutong (顾祝同), acting commander of the 3rd Military Region, to leave behind the 88th Division to buy time and canvass international support by showing the League Of Nations , meeting in Geneva on 1 November , of China's determination to resist the Japanese even further.Li, Junshan. "Defence of Shanghai and Nanjing." pp 124 Gu was personally attached to the 88th and unwilling to leave the division behind (he was the commander of the 2nd Division, which became the 88th after Reorganisation ). He telegraphed the 88th's divisional commander Sun Yuanliang (孙元良), who vehemently opposed this plan and sent his Chief Of Staff Zhang Boting (张柏亭) to Gu's HQ, about 20 km from the frontlines, to argue against this plan. Neither Gu, Sun nor Zhang were about to disobey Chiang's orders, but Sun (via Zhang) suggested to Gu that the number of troops left to cover the withdrawal would not matter for such a show of determination. In his words, "it would achieve the same purpose no matter how many people we sacrifice".Zhang, Boting. "Recollections of the 8/13 Battle of Shanghai." ''Zhuan Ji Wen Xue'' vol.41 He proposed that a single regiment be left behind to defend one or two fortified positions. The plan was approved by Gu. Zhang returned to the 88th's divisional headquarters at Sihang Warehouse. Back at the headquarters, Sun decided that even a regiment would be a terrible waste of lives and decided on a single overstrength battalion instead. Xie Jinyuan , a relatively new commander to the 88th Division, volunteered to lead the battalion. At 10PM on 26 October , the 524th Regiment, stationed at the Shanghai North Railway Station, received orders to withdraw to the divisional headquarters at Sihang Warehouse. 1st Battalion commander Yang Ruifu was distraught at having to abandon a position he had held for more than 2 monthsYang, Ruifu. "The Lost Battalion's Four-day Struggle." ''8/13 Battle of Songhu'' pp 158-159, but agreed to do so after being shown Sun's orders for the 1st Battalion to defend Sihang Warehouse. The warehouse itself is a 6-story concrete building situated in Zhabei District north of the Suzhou Creek , at the northwestern edge of New Lese Bridge (now North Tibet Road Bridge). Built jointly by four banks - hence the name Sihang (literally ''Four Banks'') - in 1931, it sits on a 0.3 acre plot of land, with an area of 20,700 m2, 64 m wide by 54 m long, and 25 m tall, making it one of the tallest buildings in the area. The warehouse, used as the divisional headquarters of the 88th Division prior to the battle, was stocked with food, first-aid equipment, shells and ammunition. ORDER OF BATTLE AND EQUIPMENT National Revolutionary Army
Although technically an overstrength battalion, it was actually below-strength, at 423 men, including officers. (In actuality, only 414 were present during the battle. Some sources give 453 as the paper strength of the battalion, and due to the confusion of the general retreat it is possible some groups failed to make it to the battle.) In addition, two months of intense fighting has wittled the original German-trained troops down, and after five reinforcements, the majority of soldiers and officers in the battalion were garrison troops from the surrounding provinces.Sun, Yuanliang. "Xie Jinyuan and the Eight Hundred Heroes." ''8/13 Battle of Songhu'' pp 115 In fact, most of the men were from the 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment of the Hubei Provincial Garrison. Hubei did not want to send its well-trained troops, built over a decade to fight against communists, to Shanghai. In fact, many of the soldiers sent as reinforcements to Shanghai were green recruits, with the latest batch recruited after the Outbreak Of War on July 7 . (The 1st Battalion was not the only battalion in the 524th, but it was by far the most famous after the battle and the 1st came to be equated with the 524th, even within official documents of the period.) helmets and ZB Vz.26 LMG s]] The regiment was assigned used equipment from the front line troops of the 88th. Photos and records show that every soldier was issued a rifle, likely a Gewehr 88 or Gewehr 98 , 300 rounds of 8 Mm Mauser , 2 crates of grenades, a German-made M1935 helmet, a gas mask, and food pouch. There were a total of 27 light machine guns (mostly Czech ZB Vz.26 ), approximately one for each squad. The 4 water-cooled Type 24 Maxim Gun s were the only heavy weapons available to the regiment - a mortar platoon assigned to them was never mentioned by participants of the battle, and was therefore unlikely to have joined the battle. Imperial Japanese Army The Japanese had access to armoured vehicles, likely Type 94 Te-Ke Tankette s, and also Type 89 mortar teams. Japanese infantry used the Arisaka Type 38 Rifle . 27 OCTOBER The various companies of the battalion were spread out across the frontlines that night. Yang Ruifu sent the 1st Company to Sihang Warehouse, and personally led the 2nd Company. The 3rd Company, Machine Gun Company and part of the 1st Company could not be contacted. What initially seemed a disastrous start to the defense was averted at 9 in the morning, when these companies turned up at the warehouse, having heard the orders through word of mouth from other forces that have retreated from Zhabei . That these men essentially volunteered for this suicidal mission was later noted by Chiang Kai-shek as exemplary soldierly conduct. In early morning, news circulated throughout Shanghai that there were still Chinese forces defending Zhabei at Sihang Warehouse. This piqued the interest of a Girl Guide Yang Huimin , who would later play a large part in this battle. At around 4AM she walked to the British guard post at the Chinese end of New Lese Bridge, where she noticed the British soldier throwing a pack of cigarettes into the warehouse. She asked the soldier what he was doing, and he answered that there were Chinese soldiers inside. She wrote a message and asked the British soldier to stuff it in a pack of cigarettes and throw it over. After a while, a message was thrown back saying that the soldiers in the warehouse wanted food, ammunition and lubricant for their guns. Yang Huimin left the bridge and plead with the head of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, who initially did not believe her story, much to her frustration.Yang, Huimin. "Autobiography." ''8/13 Battle of Songhu'' pp 118 Xie deployed the 1st Company on the right side of the warehouse along Tibet Road, the 3rd Company on the left across from the Bank Of Communications building, and the 2nd Company on the other sides. Two heavy machine guns were installed on the roof and the other machine guns were spread out to each company. Xie noted that the fortifications built by the Nationalist Army before the war in preparation against an European attack from the foreign concessions could be used by the Japanese against the warehouse. Therefore, he rigged these fortifications with explosives in case the Japanese tried to occupy them. Makeshift defenses were constructed from sandbags and the sacks of corn, beans, and other merchandise stocked within the warehouse. The electric lights in the warehouse were destroyed, and some of the immediate surrounding buildings were razed to clear a Killing Field . By 7AM the Japanese 3rd Division had moved to the Shanghai North Railway Station, and by 1PM they had reached the general vicinity of the warehouse. A dozen Japanese soldiers tried to secure the rigged fortifications, and were promptly killed. At 2PM a group of Chinese reconnaissance troops, led by Platoon leader Yin Qiucheng (尹求成), exchanged fire with around fifty Japanese soldiers. A short while after, a Japanese company attacked the warehouse from the west, and 3rd Company commander Shi Meihao was shot in the face but continued to command the defense, until he was shot again in the leg. About seventy Japanese soldiers had taken cover in a Blind Spot at the southwest of the warehouse, and some Chinese troops climbed on the roof and threw grenades down at the Japanese. They reported seven Japanese killed and about twenty wounded.Shangguan, Baicheng. "Diaries of the Eight Hundred Heroes and Xie Jinyuan." 1977 Having failed their first assault, the Japanese set fire to the northwest section of the warehouse, which stored fuel and wood. It was put out by 5PM. In their wake the Japanese looted and burned Zhabei . At 9PM Yang Ruifu concluded that there would be no more Japanese attacks for the day, and ordered dinner to be prepared and fortifications repaired. Two defenders were killed and four wounded on this day. 28 OCTOBER The defenders rushed to construct fortifications during the night; nobody was given any sleep. In the morning, Xie called with the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, whose telephone number was provided by Yang Huimin. The location of the warehouse, chosen mainly for its sturdy structure and availability (already a divisional headquarters), turned out to be a fortunate one for the defenders. It was across the foreign Concession s in Shanghai, and the Japanese did not dare to call artillery strikes on the area since a stray shot might land in the concessions and provoke an incident with the Europeans and Americans, whom the Japanese wanted to keep out of the war. Moreever, the Japanese dared not use mustard gas here as they did elsewhere in Shanghai, in full view of the foreign powers. At 7AM a flight of Japanese bombers circled the warehouse, but did not drop any bombs in fear of hitting the concessions. After anti-aircraft fire by the defenders, they flew away from the battle. At 8AM Xie gave a pep talk to the defenders, and inspected the defenses constructed by the soldiers. While on the roof, he noticed a group of Japanese soldiers along the Suzhou River, which according to Yang Ruifu's memoirs was some 1 Km away. Xie grabbed a rifle and shot, one of them promptly fell. It started to drizzle around 3PM, the fire and screen of smoke around the warehouse were gradually extinguished. The Japanese launched another major attack concentrated in the west, occupying the Bank of Communications building, and deployed cannons to the north of the warehouse. The cannons were unable to damage the thickly- Sandbag ged walls of the warehouse, and Japanese troops in the bank building were easily Suppressed by the defenders on the roof of the warehouse with a higher Vantage Point . After 2 hours the Japanese gave up the attack, but managed to cut power and water to the warehouse. Some time in the day, a small group of Chinese soldiers led by regimental commander Shangguan Zhibiao and battalion Field Surgeon Tang Pinzi (汤聘梓) arrived and joined the battle. Meanwhile, the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce was overjoyed at the news of Chinese defenders left in Zhabei, and news of this spread quickly through radio. Crowds gathered on the southern bank of the Suzhou River in the rain, cheering the defenders on. More than ten truckloads of aid were donated by Shanghai's citizens. At night the trucks drove near the warehouse, and the defenders constructed a sandbag wall to the trucks, and then dragged the supplies into the warehouse. The unloading of supplies took four hours and three soldiers were killed by Japanese fire. The defenders received food, fruits, clothing, utensils and letters from the citizens. A couple of journalists arrived at the scene, but the commanding officers were busy and the journalists ended up only meeting Lei Xiong, the Machine Gun Company commander. Xie arranged with the British officers, via the Chamber of Commerce, to transport around ten wounded soldiers from the battle. The British agreed and the wounded were carried off under the cover of darkness. The same night the Chamber of Commerce decided to send the soldiers a Flag Of The Republic Of China .Xie, Jimin. "A Few Explanations Regarding Xie Jinyuan and the Eight Hundred Heroes." ''Shi Lin Xie Ying'' (Shanghai Historical Archive vol.88) pp 210-211 Regiment-sized Chinese units did not carry army or national flags during the war, so when Yang Huimin delivered the flag to the warehouse, Xie had to personally accept the flag as the highest-ranking officer. Yang Huimin asked for the soldiers' plans, to which the answer "Defend to the death!" was given. Yang Huimin, moved, asked for a list of all the soldiers' names to announce to the entire country. Xie could not give a list, of course. Doing so will inform the Japanese of their real strength. Instead, he asked someone to write down around 800 names from the original roster of the 524th Regiment, and this fake name list was given to Yang Huimin. According to Yang Ruifu, the wounded soldiers sent out earlier that night were also ordered to say 800 if questioned. Thus the story of the ''800 Heroes'' spread. 29 OCTOBER In the early morning of 29 October, residents of Shanghai found a 12-feet wide Flag Of The Republic Of China flying atop Sihang warehouse. Yang Huimin only brought the flag itself and the defenders did not have a flag pole in the warehouse. Therefore, the flag was hoisted on a makeshift pole made of two Bamboo Culm s tied together. In the warehouse itself, only a small group of soldiers attended the flag-raising ceremony. The gathered crowd, reportedly thirty thousand strong,"Our Determined Lone Army Makes Final Stand." ''Lihpao Daily'' 29 Oct 1937 was jubilant, shouting "Long live the Republic of China!" while the Japanese were furious and sent aircraft to attack the flag. Due to heavy anti-aircraft fire and fear of hitting the foreign concessions, the planes soon left without destroying the flag. Meanwhile, two days of fighting had damaged or destroyed many field fortifications around the warehouse, and the warehouse itself was also damaged. At noon the Japanese mounted their largest offensive thus far. Attacking from all directions with cannon fire and Tankette s, they pushed the 3rd Company out of their defensive line at the base of the warehouse and forced the 3rd into the warehouse itself. The west side of the warehouse originally lacked windows (as can be seen from the photos above), but the Japanese attacks conveniently opened up firing holes for the defenders. A group of Japanese soldiers tried to scale the walls to the second floor with ladders, and Xie just happened to be at the window they appeared from. He grabbed the first Japanese soldier's rifle, choked him with the other hand, pushed him off, and finally shot another Japanese soldier on the ladder before pushing the ladder off. Also, a private, traumatized by the battle, jumped off the building while strapped with grenades and took out some twenty Japanese soldiers in exchange for his own life. The battle lasted until dark, with Japanese attacks now supported by armored vehicles, supported by cannon fire. Finally, after all else has failed, they used an excavator and tried to dig a tunnel towards the warehouse. During this day's battle Chinese citizens across the river helped the soldiers by writing on big posters informing them of the Japanese army's actions. One helpful individual even phoned the warehouse after witnessing the Japanese preparing a new attack. 30 OCTOBER TO 1 NOVEMBER The Japanese launched a new wave of attack at 7AM on the last day of the battle. There were less infantry assaults at the warehouse this time; the Japanese attack was mainly concentrated cannon fire. Because of the sturdy construction and the abundance of sandbags and materials to fortify and mend the warehouse with, the defenders merely repaired the warehouse while the Japanese tried to destroy it. Cannon fire was so rapid, recalled Yang Ruifu, that there was approximately one shell every second. When night appraoched, the Japanese deployed several floodlights to illuminate the warehouse for their artillery to strike at. The battle on the 30th lasted the whole day, and the defenders destroyed and damaged several armored cars. The foreigners in Shanghai did not want the site of combat to be so close to them. Thus faced with pressure from the Japanese, they agreed to try to convince the Chinese to cease resisting. On the 29th the foreigners submitted a petition to the National Government to stop the fighting "for humanitarian concerns". To Chiang, the battle was already won as most of the Chinese forces in Shanghai had successfully been redeployed to defend more favourable positions, and the defense of the warehouse now had the attention of the western world, so he gave the go-ahead for the regiment to retreat on 31 October. A meeting was arranged with the British general Telfer-Smolett , and it was decided the 524th would retreat to the foreign concessions and then rejoin the rest of the 88th Division, which had been fighting in west Shanghai. The Japanese commander Matsui Iwane also agreed and promised to let the defenders retreat. Xie, on the other hand, wanted to remain in the warehouse and fight to the last man. Zhang Boting finally convinced Xie to retreat.Sun, Yuanliang. "A Moment In A Billion Years." ''8/13 Battle of Songhu'' pp 120 At midnight, 1 November Xie led 376 men towards the British concession. The Japanese, meanwhile, reneged on their deal and opened fire on the retreating defenders. About ten soldiers were wounded by Japanese machine gun fire.Su, Hua. "We Are Praying For You." ''Lihpao Daily'', 2 Nov 1937 The Japanese also started shelling New Lese Bridge, which connected the warehouse to the foreign concessions. By 2AM the retreat was complete. and 4 of his subordinates while imprisoned]] AFTERMATH After the retreat, the remaining soldiers set forth to regroup with the rest of the 88th Division . However, British troops seized all their weapons and placed all the soldiers under arrest. The reason was that the Japanese threatened to invade the concessions if the Heroes were allowed to leave the area. They were herded into the Italian area of the concessions and fenced off. Chiang Kai-shek promoted every defender by a rank, and awarded Xie the Order Of Blue Sky And White Sun With Grand Cordon . After their incarceration, citizens of Shanghai would often visit the Heroes, giving them performances and entertainment. The officers opened classes for the soldiers, teaching foreign languages, math, and even Christian theology. Chen Daowang , the Chinese translator of the Communist Manifesto , would also visit the camp from time to time. The Heroes spent their day doing military drills and kept their fighting spirit high. Their practice of singing the National Anthem Of The Republic Of China every day was continuously disrupted by the foreign authorities, until it was violently put down by White Russian mercenaries. Faced with the defeat in the Battle of Shanghai and the loss of a third the NRA 's best trained troops, the failed but nevertheless brave defense of Shanghai proved to the Chinese people and foreign powers alike that China was actively resisting the Japanese. The media capitalized on the defense of the warehouse and lauded the ''Eight Hundred Heroes'' (embellished from the original 414) as national heroes, and a patriotic song was also composed to encourage the people to resist Japanese aggression. Within the "Lost Battalion Barracks" the Heroes languished for more than three years, and after refusing numerous offers from Wang Jingwei 's collaborationist government, Xie Jinyuan was assassinated on 24 April , 1941 at 5 AM, by Sergeant He Dingcheng and three other of his own troops, who were bought over by Wang 's government. He died at 6 AM. More than 100,000 people turned up for his funeral and he was posthumously made a Lieutenant General of the National Revolutionary Army . After the Pearl Harbor attack, Japanese forces occupied the foreign concessions and captured the soldiers. They were shipped off to Hangzhou and Xiaolingwei to do hard labour. Part of the group sent to Xiaolingwei escaped and some rejoined the Chinese forces. Thirty-six officers were sent to Papua New Guinea to do hard labour, and in 1945 when the war went against Japan, they overpowered their captors and took them prisoners instead. At the end of the war, some one hundred survivors of the Battalion returned to Shanghai and the Sihang Warehouse. When the Chinese Civil War broke out, most of them wanted to fight no more and returned to civilian occupations. Later some of them, including girl guide Yang Huimin, retreated to Taiwan with the Kuomintang government, while some of those who remained were persecuted in the Cultural Revolution because they were Kuomintang soldiers.Leng, Peiyu. "Difficult Years for the Eight Hundred Heroes." 26 Jul 2005. Revolutionary Committee of the Kuomintang. 11 Apr 2006. {Link without Title} ]] LEGACY Xie Jinyuan 's body was interred in a small garden along ''Singapore Road'' (now ''Yao Road'') where his bunk used to be. In 1947 the Shanghai city government renamed ''Jiaoyuan Park'' (where the soldiers lived) as ''Jinyuan Park'', and renamed an elementary school in the vicinity ''12th District Jinyuan National Elementary School''. The road to the immediate north of the warehouse was renamed ''Jinyuan Road''. On 16 April , 1983 , Xie's grave was moved to the Wanguo Public Mausoleum . On the same year the barracks area was rebuilt and named ''Jinyuan Alley''. In March 1986 the city council of Xie's hometown Jiaoling , Guangdong set up a monument in his honour, and his Alma Mater ''Jiankeng Elementary School'' was renamed ''Jinyuan Elementary School''. The Sihang Warehouse is still standing, and part of it is now a repository of documents, photos and journals during the Battle Of Shanghai . Most of the warehouse is still what it was meant to be - a (furniture) warehouse - and there is even a Bowling Alley on the third floor. The exhibition room is open every Friday 1:30 - 4:00 PM. The actions of The Eight Hundred Heroes were made into a 1938 movie of the same name, and then later in 1976 made into a Taiwanese production starring Brigitte Lin . REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|