Defense of Sihang Warehouse
| Defence of Sihang Warehouse | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Battle of Shanghai (1937), part of the Second Sino-Japanese War | |||||||
 Map of the area. | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| 524th Regiment, 88th Division, National Revolutionary Army | 3rd Division, Imperial Japanese Army | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Xie Jinyuan | Iwane Matsui | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 414 men including 16 officers | ? | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 27 wounded, 10 killed | More than 200 killed | ||||||
The Defence of Sihang Warehouse (simplified Chinese: 四行仓库保卫战; traditional Chinese: 四行倉庫保衛戰; pinyin: Sìháng Cāngkù Bǎowèi Zhàn) marked the beginning of the end of the three-month Battle of Shanghai in opening phase of the Second Sino-Japanese War.
The defenders of the warehouse, known as the Eight Hundred Heroes (simplified Chinese: 八百壮士; traditional Chinese: 八百壯士; pinyin: Bābǎi Zhùangshì), 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 defence of the warehouse provided a morale-lifting consolation to the Chinese army and people in the demoralising 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
By 1937-10-26 the 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.[1] 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 20km 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".[2] He proposed that a single regiment be left to defend one or 2 fortified positions. The plan was approved by Gu. Zhang returned to the 88th's divisional HQ at Sihang Warehouse. Back at the HQ, 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, 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 HQ (Sihang Warehouse). 1st Battalion commander Yang Ruifu was distraught at having to abandon a position held for more than 2 months[3], 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-storey concrete building situated in Zhabei District north of the Suzhou River, at the north-western edge of the 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 20,700m2, 64m wide by 54m long, and 25m tall, making it one of the tallest buildings in the area. The warehouse, used as the divisional HQ 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
- 524th Regiment, 88th Division - Regimental commander, Army Lieutenant Colonel Xie Jinyuan
- Regimental commander, Army Major Shangguan Zhibiao (上官志标)
- 1st Battalion, 524th Regiment - Battalion Commander, Army Major Yang Ruifu (杨瑞符)
- 1st Company, 1st Battalion - Company commander, Army Captain Tao Xingchun (陶杏春)
- 2nd Company, 1st Battalion - Company commander, Army Captain Deng Ying (邓英)
- 3rd Company, 1st Battalion - Company commander, Army Captain Shi Meihao (石美豪, wounded), Army Captain Tang Di (唐棣)
- Machine Gun Company, 1st Battalion - Company commander, Army Captain Lei Xiong (雷雄)
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, 2 months of intense fighting has wittled the original German-trained troops down, and after 5 reinforcements, the majority of soldiers and officers in the battalion were garrison troops from the surrounding provinces.[4] 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![2]
(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.)
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 8mm Mauser, 2 crates of grenades, a German-made M1935 helmet, a gas mask, and food pouch.[3] There were a total of 27 light machine guns (mostly Czech ZB vz.26), approximately 1 for each squad. The 4 water-cooled Type 24 Maxim guns 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.[2]
Imperial Japanese Army
The Japanese had access to armoured vehicles, likely Type 94 Te-Ke tankettes, 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 defence 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 they encountered after already having left Zhabei. That these men essentially volunteered for this suicidal mission was later noted by Chiang Kai-shek as exemplary soldierly conduct.[1]
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, ammo and lubricant for their guns. Yang Huimin left the bridge and went to plead with the head of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, who initially did not believe her story, much to her frustration.[5]
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. 2 heavy machine guns were installed on the roof and the other machine guns were spread out to each company.[3] Xie noticed the fortifications built by the Nationalist Army before the war in preparation against an European attack from the foreign concessions, which could have been used by the Japanese against the warehouse. He rigged these fortifications to explode when the Japanese tried to occupy them.
Makeshift defences 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 trapped fortifications, and were promptly killed. At 2PM a group of soldiers on out recon, led by Platoon leader Yin Qiucheng (尹求成), exchanged fire with around 50 Japanese soldiers. After a while, a Japanese company attacked the warehouse from the west, 3rd Company commander Shi Meihao was shot in the face but continued to command the defence, until he was shot again in the leg. About 70 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 7 Japanese killed and about 20 wounded.[3][6] Having failed their first assault, the Japanese set fire to the northwest section of the warehouse, which happened to be storing 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, and ordered dinner to be prepared and fortifications repaired. 2 defenders were killed and 4 wounded on this day.
The defenders rushed to construct fortifications during the night; nobody was given any sleep. In the morning, Xie traded telephone calls with the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, the number was provided by Yang Huimin.[5]
The location of the warehouse, chosen mainly for its sturdy structure and availability (already a divisional HQ) turned out to be a fortunate one for the defenders. It was across the foreign concessions 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 1km away. Xie grabbed a rifle and shot, one of them promptly fell.[3]
It started to drizzle around 3PM, the fire and screen of smoke around the warehouse was 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-sandbagged walls of the warehouse, and Japanese troops in the bank building were easily suppressed by the defenders on the roof of the warehouse, having a higher vantage point. After 2 hours they gave up the failed attack, but managed somehow to cut power and water to the warehouse.
Some time in the day, a small group of 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. Large amounts of aid were donated by Shanghai's citizens, more than 10 truckloads.[5] 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. After 4 hours and 3 soldiers killed by Japanese fire while moving the supplies, 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 they 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 10 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.[5][7] 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.[5] 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.[3]
In the early morning of 29 October, residents of Shanghai found a 12-metre wide flag of the Republic of China flying atop Sihang warehouse. In the warehouse itself, only a small group of soldiers attended the flag-raising.[5] The gathered crowd, reportedly 30 thousand strong,[8] was jubilant, shouting "Long live the Republic of China!" while the Japanese were furious and sent aircraft to attack the flag.[3] Due to heavy anti-aircraft fire and out of fear of hitting the concessions, the planes soon left without destroying the flag. Meanwhile, 2 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 armoured cars, 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 2nd floor with ladders, and Xie just happened to be at the window they appeared from. He grabbed the first Japanese's rifle, choked him with the other hand, then pushed the him off the, and finally shot another Japanese soldier on the ladder before pushing it off.[6] Also, a private, traumatised by the battle, jumped off the building while strapped with grenades and took out some 20 Japanese soldiers in exchange for his own life. The battle lasted until dark, with Japanese attacks now supported by armoured cars, 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.[3] One helpful individual even phoned the warehouse after witnessing the Japanese preparing a new attack.
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 repair 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.[3] 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 a battle so close to them, so faced with pressure from the Japanese, they agreed to convince the Chinese to stop the battle. On the 29th the foreigners submitted a petition to the National Government to stop the fighting "for humanitarian concerns". To Chiang, the battle was won as the defence 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,[2] and it was decided the 524th would retreat to the foreign concessions and then rejoin 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.[2][9]
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.[3] About 10 soldiers were wounded by Japanese machine gun fire.[10] By 2AM the retreat was complete.
Aftermath
After the retreat, the remaining soldiers set forth to regroup with the rest of the 88th Division. However, British troops appeared and 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 promoted every defender by a level, and promoted Xie to colonel, awarding him 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.
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 defence of Shanghai proved to the Chinese people and foreign powers alike that China was actively resisting the Japanese. The media capitalised on the defence 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 3 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 3 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 International Settlements 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 returned to the war. 36 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 100 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 retreated to Taiwan with the Kuomintang government, while those who remained were persecuted in the Cultural Revolution because they were Kuomintang soldiers.[citation needed]
Legacy
Xie Jinyuan's body was interred in the 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
- ^ a b Li, Junshan. "Defence of Shanghai and Nanjing." pp 124
- ^ a b c d e Zhang, Boting. "Recollections of the 8/13 Battle of Shanghai." Zhuan Ji Wen Xue vol.41
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Yang, Ruifu. "The Lost Battalion's Four-day Struggle." 8/13 Battle of Songhu pp 158-159
- ^ Sun, Yuanliang. "Xie Jinyuan and the Eight Hundred Heroes." 8/13 Battle of Songhu pp 115
- ^ a b c d e f Yang, Huimin. "Autobiography." 8/13 Battle of Songhu pp 118
- ^ a b Shangguan, Baicheng. "Diaries of the Eight Hundred Heroes and Xie Jinyuan." 1977
- ^ 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
- ^ "Our Determined Lone Army Makes Final Stand." Lihpao Daily 29 Oct 1937
- ^ Sun, Yuanliang. "A Moment In A Billion Years." 8/13 Battle of Songhu pp 120
- ^ Su, Hua. "We Are Praying For You." Lihpao Daily, 2 Nov 1937
External links
- Template:En icon IMDB page on 1976 movie
- Template:En icon Brigitte Lin page on 1976 movie
- Template:En icon Chinese Movie Database page on the 1938 movie
- Template:Zh icon Chinese-American leaders petition the mayor of Shanghai for the preservation of Sihang Warehouse
- Template:Zh icon Old survivors visit graves of old comrades-in-arms
- Template:Zh icon The 800 Heroes - Symbolising the Spirit of the Resistance