Proposed Japanese invasion of Sichuan

The proposed Japanese invasion of Sichuan

The basic plan was to make a multi-front breakthrough to Sichuan from northern Shanxi, central Hubei and southern Hunan. Heavy aerial support and bombing of Chongqing was to support the advance of the Japanese Army and their Collaborationist Chinese Army puppets. Japanese Navy patrol boats from the Yangtze river were to provide further bombardment. Chiang Kai-shek discussed the invasion in his book Soviet Russia in China, stating:

The

Solomon islands also) to reinforce the Japanese expeditionary forces in central China area, to prepare the principal force of ten divisions in south Shanshi and other support group conformed by six Divisions of Ichang in Hubei amongst other Divisions located in Changde, in Hunan, for striking Sichuan and the occupation of Chongqing in September 1942.^[1]

The north Japanese army division would have had the option to either advance towards south Shaanxi to capture Xi'an, or towards Hanzhong to take Chengdu directly. Alternatively, Japan could have utilized airborne forces to cut off Chinese escape routes and take the Chongqing metropolitan area directly.

Interests in Sichuan region

Both Chiang Kai-shek and General Wego W.K. Chiang suspected that the intense bombing of Chongqing by the Japanese Navy and the Japanese Air Force was to support the diversionary Japanese operations against metropolitan Chongqing, as part of the invasion of Sichuan. It was also possible that the Japanese army hoped that a terror campaign against Chongqing would force the Chinese authorities to break from the Allies and make a separate peace with Japan.

Sichuan invasion

Japanese plan

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According to General

Due to opposition against Japan from other Allied countries, the Sichuan invasion was not enthusiastically carried out. In particular, the United States' counter-offensive against Japan heavily undermined the possibility of an invasion. Chiang Kai-shek stated:

But in June 1942, Japanese forces suffered the humiliating defeat in the Battle of Midway, and in August the U.S. forces initiated the counteroffensive against the

Operation KE" during the night of February 1–2, 1943, the last part of the so-called "Tokyo Express"). At the end of 1942, the planning for the Sichuan Invasion was suspended.^[1]

However, the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters was still in favor of an invasion. Hence the Japanese China Expeditionary Army produced a new plan for the capture of Sichuan, which was based on the previous 1942 plan. The May 1943 "Battle of West Hubei" was part of this new attempt to advance to Sichuan.

Nevertheless, by then the Nationalist Chinese armies had the support of the "

In fear of Chinese reinforcements through the cleared route and having sustained much losses in the Battle of Changde, the Japanese army switched their attention to Yunnan to prevent future Chinese counter-offensives from that area.

Reproposal

See also

• Bombing of Chongqing

Notes

References

Sources

• General Wego W.K. Chiang "How the Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek Won the Chinese-Japanese Eight Years War, 1937–1945".
• Gen. Wego W.K. Chiang, Die Strategische Bedetung Taiwans, Taipei
• Idem. Chinese Communists Modernization Problems, Taipei, 1979
• Alphonse Max, Southeast Asia: Destiny and Reality, Montevideo, Uruguay: International Studies (Spanish translation By Dr. Santiago Rompani and Prof. Alvaro Casal), 1985.