The Concept of Operations for the Huai-Hai Campaign
#PUBLICATION NOTE
This edition of The Concept of Operations for the Huai-Hai Campaign has been prepared and revised for digital publication by the Institute of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism under the Central Committee of the Communist Party in Switzerland on the basis of the following editions:
- The Concept of Operations for the Huai-Hai Campaign, in the Selected Works of Mao Zedong, First English Edition, Vol. 4, Foreign Languages Press, Beijing, 1965.
- The Concept of Operations for the Huai-Hai Campaign, in Mao's Road to Power, First English Edition, Vol. 10, Routledge, New York and London, 2023.
#INTRODUCTION NOTE
This is a telegram to the Eastern China and Central Plains Field Armies of the Chinese People's Liberation Army and to the Eastern China and Central Plains Bureaus of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, drafted by Comrade Mao Zedong for the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Party's Central Committee in Xibaipo, Pingshan, Hebei, China on the 11th of October, 1948. It was first published in the Selected Works of Mao Zedong, Vol. 4, in 1960.
The Huai-Hai Campaign was a campaign of decisive importance fought by the People's Liberation Army over a large territory in Jiangsu, Shandong, Anhui, and Henan Provinces, centring on Xuzhou, and extending as far as Haizhou in the east, SHangqiu in the west, Lincheng (now renamed Xuecheng) in the north, and the Huai River in the south. The Nationalist forces massed in this theatre of war consisted of five armies and the troops of three Pacification Zones — the four armies and the troops of three Pacification Zones under Liu Zhi and Du Yuming (respectively Commander and Deputy Commander of the Nationalist Party's «Bandit Suppression» Headquarters at Xuzhou) and the army under Huang Wei, which was later dispatched there from central China as reinforcements. On the side of the People's Liberation Army, a force more than 600'000 strong took part in the campaign — it included 16 columns from the Eastern China Field Army, seven columns from the Central Plains Field Army, and regional armed forces from the Eastern China Military Area, the Central Plains Military Area, and the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Area (then a part of the Northern China Military Area). The campaign lasted 65 days, from the 6th of November, 1948 to the 10th of January, 1949; 22 corps, or 56 divisions, of the Nationalist Party's crack forces, comprising 555'000 troops, were completely wiped out (including 4 1/2 divisions which revolted and came over), and two armies under Liu Ruming and Li Yannian (reinforcements from Nanjing) were repulsed. As a result of the campaign, those parts of the eastern China and Central Plains areas north of the Yangzi River were almost entirely liberated. The campaign took place in three stages. During the first stage, from the 6th to 22nd of November, the Eastern China Field Army, in coordination with the Central Plains Field Army, surrounded and wiped out the army under Huang Baitao in the Xin'anzhen-Nianzhuang sector east of Xuzhou, killing Huang Baitao and liberating large territories on both sides of the Longhai Railway east of Nianzhuang, on both sides of the Xuzhou-Bengbu section of the Tianjin-Pukou Railway, and to the west and north of Xuzhou. In the Tai'erzhuang-Zaozhuang sector, 3 1/2 divisions of the Nationalist Third Pacification Zone, totaling over 23'000 troops, revolted and came over to the people. During the second stage, from the 23rd of November to 15th of December, the Central Plains Field Army, in coordination with the main force of the Eastern China Field Army, surrounded and wiped out the army under Huang Wei at and around Shuangduiji, south-west of Suxian, capturing Huang Wei and Wu Shaozhou, the commander and deputy commander of the army; one division of this army revolted and came over to the people. At the same time, the people's forces wiped out the army under Sun Yuanliang which was fleeing west from Xuzhou. Only Sun Yuanliang managed to escape. During the third stage, from the 6th to 10th of January, 1949, the Eastern China Field Army, in coordination with the Central Plains Field Army, surrounded and annihilated in the Qinglongji-Chenguanzhuang sector, north-east of Yongcheng, two Nationalist armies which were fleeing westward from Xuzhou and were commanded respectively by Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi, under the personal command of Du Yuming. Du Yuming was captured, Qiu Qingquan was killed, and Li Mi barely escaped. This marked the successful end of the great Huai-Hai Campaign.
The Huai-Hai Campaign was one of the three greatest campaigns of decisive significance in the Chinese People's War of Liberation. The campaign was fought jointly by the Eastern China and Central Plains Field Armies and the regional troops of the eastern China and Central Plains areas. In this campaign, over 555'000 Nationalist troops were wiped out. The concept of operations put forward by Comrade Mao Zedong in this telegram led to complete success; in fact, the campaign proceeded more smoothly than expected, and the victory was therefore quicker and greater. After this campaign, Nanjing, the capital of the reactionary Nationalist government, became subject to direct threat by the People's Liberation Army. The Huai-Hai Campaign was concluded on the 10th of January, 1949, and on the 21st of January, Jiang Jieshi announced his «retirement»; after that, the reactionary Nationalist ruling clique in Nanjing fell apart.
#Workers and oppressed people of the world, unite!
#THE CONCEPT OF OPERATIONS FOR THE HUAI-HAI CAMPAIGN
#TELEGRAM OF THE REVOLUTIONARY MILITARY COMMISSION OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA TO THE EASTERN CHINA AND CENTRAL PLAINS BUREAUS OF THE PARTY'S CENTRAL COMMITTEE AND TO THE EASTERN CHINA AND CENTRAL PLAINS FIELD ARMIES OF THE CHINESE PEOPLE'S LIBERATION ARMY
#Mao Zedong
#11th of October, 1948
#★
#To Rao Shushi, Su Yu, Tan Zhenlin, the Eastern China Bureau, and the Central Plains Bureau
Here are a few points for your consideration concerning the dispositions for the Huai-Hai Campaign. We will let you know our final opinion when we have discussed it at the war council meeting on the 15th.
#1
In the first stage of this campaign, the central task is to concentrate forces to wipe out Huang Baitao's army, effect a breakthrough in the centre, and capture Xin'an City, the Grand Canal Railway Station, Caobaji, Yixian, Zaozhuang, Lincheng, Hanzhuang, Shuyang, Pixian, Tancheng, Tai'erzhuang, and Linyi. To achieve these objectives, you should use two columns to wipe out each enemy division, that is to say, use six or seven columns to cut up and wipe out the enemy's 25th, 63rd, and 64th Divisions. Use five or six columns to hold off and attack enemy reinforcements. Use one or two columns to annihilate the one brigade under Li Mi at Lincheng and Hanzhuang and strive to capture those two towns in order to menace Xuzhou from the north, so that the two armies under Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi will not dare move east in full strength as reinforcements. Use one column plus regional formation in south-western Shandong to make a flank attack on the Xuzhou-Shangqiu section of the railway in order to tie down a portion of Qiu Qingquan's army (as three enemy divisions under Sun Yuanliang are about to move east, it is hoped that Liu Bocheng, Chen Yi, and Deng Xiaoping will dispose their troops at once to attack the Zhengzhou-Xuzhou line and so tie down Sun Yuanliang's army). Use one or two columns to operate in the Suqian-Suining-Lingbi area to hold down Li Mi's army. These dispositions mean that, before the objective of annihilating the three divisions of Huang Baotao's army can be achieved, more than half our total force has to be employed against the two armies under Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi to tie down, check, and destroy part of them. The dispositions should, by and large, be similar to those of last September for capturing Ji'nan and attacking the enemy's reinforcements;[^1] otherwise, it will be impossible to achieve the objective of annihilating the three divisions of Huang Baotao's army. You must strive to conclude the first stage two to three weeks after the start of the campaign.
#2
In the second stage, use about five columns to attack and wipe out the enemy in Haizhou, Xinpu, Lianyungang, and Guanyun and capture these towns. It is calculated that by then, the enemy's 54th and 32nd Divisions will very likely have been transported by sea from Qingdao to the Haizhou-Xinpu-Lianyungang area.[^2] Altogether three enemy divisions will be in that area, including the one division already there; therefore, we must use five columns to attack them and employ the remaining forces (our main strength) to tie down the two armies under Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi, again on the principle underlying the dispositions made in September for capturing Ji'nan and attacking the enemy's reinforcements. You must strive to conclude this stage also in two to three weeks.
#3
In the third stage, it may be assumed that the battle will be fought around Huaiyin and Huai'an. By that time, the enemy will have increased their strength by about one division (the Reorganized Eighth Division in Yantai is being shipped south); therefore, we must be prepared again to use about five columns as the attacking force, while using the rest of our main force to strike at and hold down the enemy's reinforcements. This stage will also take about two to three weeks.
These three stages will take about a month and a half to two months.
#4
The result of the Huai-Hai Campaign will open up the northern battlefield of Jiangsu, and will combine Shandong and northern Jiangsu into one. The corps of Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi will take their defence solidly around the line of the Xu-Beng area, making it difficult for us to annihilate them. At this time, you should still be divided into an eastern and western corps. You should form an eastern corps with about five columns to fight in northern and central Jiangsu, and a western corps with the rest of your forces to fight out of Henan and Anhui Provinces and to cooperate with Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping to capture Heze, Kaifeng, Zhengzhou, Queshan, Xinyang, Nanyang, the Huaihe River Basin, and the cities in the Dabie Mountain region. By cooperating in fighting together, the western corps and Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping should deploy minor forces to attack the cities, and they should use the main body of their troops to attack and block enemy reinforcement, to wipe out the enemy one by one. Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, due to a shortage of troops, were unable to achieve the same kind of operations as your attack on Ji'nan and the reinforcements as well as in the Huai-Hai Campaign. After your western corps joins them, you could achieve that kind of operation. The Battles of Kaifeng, Suixian, and Qixian in June and July were the result of combined efforts by the western corps and Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping.
#5
You are to complete the Huai-Hai Campaign in two months, November and December. Rest and consolidate your forces next January. In February, the western corps will be transferred. From March to July, you will be fighting in coordination with Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping to drive the enemy to points along the Yangzi River, where the enemy will dig in. By autumn, your main force will probably be fighting to cross the Yangzi.
#Central Military Commission
#11th of October
[2] "Capturing Tsinan and attacking the enemy's reinforcements" refers to the tactics employed by the People's Liberation Army during the Tsinan campaign in the middle of September 1948. Tsinan, a strategic position of the Kuomintang in Shantung Province, was garrisoned by over 110,000 men of the Kuomintang 2nd Pacification Zone. In addition, 23 brigades of the Kuomintang's main forces, with some 170,000 men, which were disposed in the Hsuchow area, were ready to move north to relieve Tsinan. Our Eastern China Field Army formed a group of 7 columns to assault the city and another group of 8 columns to strike at the enemy's reinforcements. The onslaught against Tsinan started on the evening of September 16, 1948. On September 24, after eight days and nights of continuous fighting, the enemy garrison was completely wiped out (1 corps revolted and came over to us), and Wang Yao-wu, Commander of the Kuomintang 2nd Pacification Zone, was captured. Our forces took Tsinan so rapidly that the enemy at Hsuchow did not dare to go north to its rescue.
[3] In fact, these 2 enemy divisions did not dare to come.