Battle of Kalgan
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Kalgan was a battle occurring during the off and on mediation of a cease fire between the Kuomintang
and the Communist Party of China
by George Marshall
. It was fought in the renamed city of Zhangjiakou, China.
was prepared to propose another cease fire agreement, as the Nationalist armies were within Kalgan, with the Communists
to George Marshall, as long as the Communists agreed to the proposal of the National Assembly
. Zhou Enlai
responded that the cease fire must occur at once. According to Zhou, if Kalgan falls into the Nationalist hands, there would be a "total national split." Marshall told Chiang that if the attack was called off, Mao Zedong
would consider the cease fire and that the Communists would also be willing to join the National Assembly or the coalition of Nationalist and Communist troops.
Chiang knew the strategic location of Kalgan as the "gateway" for both armies movement in and out of Manchuria. Its importance was that it helped secure the area south of the Great Wall.
Marshall rejected the idea of the attack on Kalgan and threatened to send a message to President Truman
to have himself recalled back to the US. On October 4, Chiang tried to persuade to Marshall that he always have treated him very well and not to leave. Upon hearing that Marshall had indeed sent a radiogram to Washington D.C., Chiang proposed a ten day truce. Marshall rescinded his decision and stayed.
With a diplomatic package, proposing Communist delegates to the National Assembly and the amalgamation of the Communist armies into the Nationalist armies as suggested by Chiang, and agreed upon by Marshall and Ambassador John Stuart
, Zhou rejected it, saying that it was as equivalent to ask the Communists to surrender. Zhou sent a plan to Marshall, which he became "more impatient with Zhou than at any time during the year." Marshall told Zhou that there were no other reason to continue on with the talks.
The Communist army lost about 100,000 soldiers in the defense. The Communist armies in Manchuria
were also cut off from Yan'an
.
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 Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
by George Marshall
George Marshall
George Catlett Marshall was an American military leader, Chief of Staff of the Army, Secretary of State, and the third Secretary of Defense...
. It was fought in the renamed city of Zhangjiakou, China.
Prelude
Around September 1946, Chiang Kai-shekChiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek was a political and military leader of 20th century China. He is known as Jiǎng Jièshí or Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng in Mandarin....
was prepared to propose another cease fire agreement, as the Nationalist armies were within Kalgan, with the Communists
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
to George Marshall, as long as the Communists agreed to the proposal of the National Assembly
National Assembly of the Republic of China
The National Assembly of the Republic of China refers to several parliamentary bodies that existed in the Republic of China. The National Assembly was originally founded in 1913 as the first legislature in Chinese history, but was disbanded less than a year later as President Yuan Shikai assumed...
. Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
responded that the cease fire must occur at once. According to Zhou, if Kalgan falls into the Nationalist hands, there would be a "total national split." Marshall told Chiang that if the attack was called off, Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
would consider the cease fire and that the Communists would also be willing to join the National Assembly or the coalition of Nationalist and Communist troops.
Chiang knew the strategic location of Kalgan as the "gateway" for both armies movement in and out of Manchuria. Its importance was that it helped secure the area south of the Great Wall.
Marshall rejected the idea of the attack on Kalgan and threatened to send a message to President Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
to have himself recalled back to the US. On October 4, Chiang tried to persuade to Marshall that he always have treated him very well and not to leave. Upon hearing that Marshall had indeed sent a radiogram to Washington D.C., Chiang proposed a ten day truce. Marshall rescinded his decision and stayed.
With a diplomatic package, proposing Communist delegates to the National Assembly and the amalgamation of the Communist armies into the Nationalist armies as suggested by Chiang, and agreed upon by Marshall and Ambassador John Stuart
John Leighton Stuart
John Leighton Stuart was the first President of Yenching University and later United States ambassador to China; he was the last person to hold that position before the transfer of the embassy to Taipei.- Early life :...
, Zhou rejected it, saying that it was as equivalent to ask the Communists to surrender. Zhou sent a plan to Marshall, which he became "more impatient with Zhou than at any time during the year." Marshall told Zhou that there were no other reason to continue on with the talks.
Battle
On October 10, 1946, General Fu Zuoyi attacked the city of Kalgan. The battle lasted to October 20.Outcome
Of the 150,000 inhabitants, 50,000 fled with the remnants of the Communist armies. The model city of the Communists was "lies gutted and ghost-like." The retreating Communist army demolished or set fire to parts of the city. Three weeks after the battle, the city was still without running water, electricity, and lines of communication. They also destroyed 52 factories located in the city which "[deprived] families of 3,000 workers of their livelihood." According to TIME coorespondant, Frederick Gruin, the destruction of the city may have been a political mistake and may also have "undermined their own guerrilla potential."The Communist army lost about 100,000 soldiers in the defense. The Communist armies in Manchuria
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
were also cut off from Yan'an
Yan'an
Yan'an , is a prefecture-level city in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi province in China, administering several counties, including Zhidan County , which served as the Chinese communist capital before the city of Yan'an proper took that role....
.
See also
- List of battles of the 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...