Battle of Chinchow () was a battle between the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the China, People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five Military branch, service branches: the People's ...

and the

National Revolutionary Army The National Revolutionary Army (NRA; ), sometimes shortened to Revolutionary Army () before 1928, and as National Army () after 1928, was the military arm of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the Chinese Nationalist Party) from 1925 until 1947 in China ...

during the Liaoshen Campaign in the

Chinese Civil War The Chinese Civil War was fought between the Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and forces of the Chinese Communist Party, continuing intermittently since 1 August 1927 until 7 December 1949 with a Communist victory on main ...

. The battle was a turning point in the campaign, which eventually led to capture of

Northeast China Northeast China or Northeastern China () is a geographical region of China, which is often referred to as "Manchuria" or "Inner Manchuria" by surrounding countries and the West. It usually corresponds specifically to the three provinces east of ...

by the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel ...

Background

Chinchow is a key strategic point where the main route from central China through

Shanhai Pass Shanhai Pass or Shanhaiguan () is one of the major passes in the Great Wall of China, being the easternmost stronghold along the Ming Great Wall, and commands the narrowest choke point in the Liaoxi Corridor. It is located in Shanhaiguan ...

enters Manchuria. The fall of Jinzhou to the Communists would allow the Communist to drive into the

North China Plain The North China Plain or Huang-Huai-Hai Plain () is a large-scale downfaulted rift basin formed in the late Paleogene and Neogene and then modified by the deposits of the Yellow River. It is the largest alluvial plain of China. The plain is border ...

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also Romanization of Chinese, romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the List of national founde ...

addressed the importance of capturing Jinzhou in a telegram to the Communist commanders in the Northeast, saying that the key to the success of the entire Liaoshen Campaign is "to strive to capture Jinzhou in one week."Mao Zedong Military Anthology, Page 480-482

Outside the city

To attack Chinchow, it was necessary for the PLA to clear away the Nationalist positions in the outskirts of Jinzhou. Between 8 to 13 October, the Communists captured all the Nationalist strongholds outside Jinzhou, which set up the final assault on 14 October. In the meantime, in the Battle of Tashan nine PLA divisions defeated eleven NRA divisions attempting to reinforce Jinzhou.

Final assault

The PLA massed 900

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

pieces, and launched the final assault on Chinchow on 14 October 1948. The entire defensive line of Jinzhou was broken through soon after. Nationalist resistance ended the next day on 15 October.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* {{Chinese Civil War

Jinzhou Jinzhou (, ), formerly Chinchow, is a coastal prefecture-level city in central-west Liaoning province, China. It is a geographically strategic city located in the Liaoxi Corridor, which connects most of the land transports between North Chin ...

J Military history of Manchuria 1948 in China