Battle of Tai er zhuang
Battle before: Battle of Nanjing
Battle after: Battle of Xuzhou
| Battle of Taierzhuang |
|---|
| Conflict | Second Sino-Japanese War |
| Date | October 1937 and evening of March 24 1938¹ - April 7, 1938 |
| Place | Taierzhuang, Shandong |
| Result | Decisive Kuomintang victory |
| ¹ Assault of Taierzhuang began on March 24 but previous military developments dated back to October |
| Combatants |
|---|
| China, National Revolutionary Army | Japan, North China Theater Army |
| Commanders |
|---|
| Li Tsung-jen (supreme commander), Tang Enbai, Pang Bingxun, Zhang Zizhong, Sun Lianzhong, Sun Zhen, Wang Mingzhang†, Han Fuqu† | Isogai Rensuke, Itagaki Seishiro |
| Strength |
|---|
| 10 divisions, ~100,000 men | 2 divisions (Itagaki 5th, Isogai 10th), ~30,000 men |
| Casualties |
|---|
| ~20000 | over 16000 |
|
The Battle of Tai'erzhuang was a battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1938, between armies of Chinese Kuomintang and Japan.
Taierzhuang is located on the eastern bank of the Grand Canal of China and was a frontier garrison northeast of Xuzhou. Xuzhou itself was the joint of Jinpu Railway (Tianjin-Pudong) and Longhai Railway (Lanzhou-Lianyonggang) and the headquarters of the KMT's 5th War Zone.
The battle involved a Japanese plan to conquer Xuzhou, a major city in the East. The Japanese failed to consider the plans of Li Tsung-jen who planned to encircle the Japnese in the town of Tai'erzhuang. The Japanese overconfidently attacked frontally and failed to consider the Chinese numbers. A major encirclement preceded a major Japanese retreat, which the Chinese unfortunately failed to capitalize by pursuing.
Nevertheless, the Chinese scored a major victory, the first of the Kuomintang in the war. The battle broke the infallibility of the Japanese and resulted in an incalculable benefit to the Chinese morale.
