Site of the Jinxi Campaign

Site of the Jinxi Campaign

Site of the Jinxi Campaign:

This includes the sites of the Huangshidu (formerly part of Jinxi) Battle, the Chongling Ambush, the Daxianling Encirclement and Annihilation Battle, and the Changyuansimiao Ambush. It also left behind many stirring revolutionary songs and moving stories. These include well-known revolutionary songs such as "Songs of the Soviet Area," "Revolutionary Song," "Song to Comfort the Red Army," and "Women Have Stood Up," as well as revolutionary stories like "Zhu De at Hougong," "Zhou Enlai Rallying Troops on the Battlefield," and "Zhou Jianping Taking Down His Own 'Local Tyrant'," all of which played significant roles in expanding the Red Army, supporting the front lines, fighting anti-encirclement campaigns, and sustaining underground revolutionary struggles at the time.

In June 1932, Chiang Kai-shek mobilized troops to launch the fourth "encirclement and suppression" campaign against various revolutionary bases. The First Front Army of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (also known as the Central Red Army), under the leadership of Zhou Enlai, the Political Commissar of the Red Army, Zhu De, the Commander-in-Chief of the Red Army and Commander of the First Front Army, and Wang Jiaxiang, the Director of the Political Department of the Red Army, seized the opportunity before the National Revolutionary Army launched its major offensive. On one hand, they eliminated white areas (locations occupied by the National Revolutionary Army) within the base areas to consolidate them; on the other hand, they concentrated the main forces of the Red Army—the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Corps—to fight on the periphery, advancing northeastward to expand the Central Revolutionary Base and establish connections between the Central Soviet Area and the Northeastern Jiangxi Soviet Area, striving for victory in the fourth anti-encirclement campaign.

The Jinxi Campaign lasted from January 4 to 8, 1933, and included the Huangshidu (formerly part of Jinxi) Battle, the Chongling Ambush, the Daxianling Encirclement and Annihilation Battle, and the Changyuansimiao Ambush. On New Year's Day 1933, over 30,000 soldiers from the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Corps of the Central Red Army set out from regions such as Lichuan and Zixi and entered Jinxi County. Along with Zhu De, Zhou Enlai, and Wang Jiaxiang, those who came to Jinxi included Lin Biao, Commander of the 1st Corps, Nie Rongzhen, its Political Commissar, Peng Dehuai, Commander of the 3rd Corps, and Xiao Jinguang, Political Commissar of the 5th Corps. On January 4, the Red Army engaged in fierce combat with the enemy at Huangshidu. By 6 p.m. on January 5, they had killed over 1,000 enemy soldiers, captured more than 3,000 enemy officers and soldiers, and occupied Jinxi County. In the early hours of January 8, at 4 a.m., the Red Army once again clashed with the enemy at Chongling in Jinxi, suffering relatively heavy casualties. At a critical moment, the corps commander personally went to the front line. By 11 a.m., the Red Army had captured the main peak of Chongling.

At 1 p.m. on January 8, in an attempt to salvage their defeat, the enemy reinforced with two regiments from Huxi, joining retreating forces near Changgangbu and Zaoshu and holding defensive positions on the advantageous terrain of Daxianling, where they built fortifications in preparation for a counterattack. At 3 p.m., the Red Army launched a general offensive on Daxianling. By the early hours of January 9, the Jinxi Campaign had concluded in its entirety. During this battle, the Red Army eliminated over 2,000 enemies, captured more than 4,000, routed over three full divisions, and seized over 4,000 rifles. After the battle, the Red Army dispatched work teams to mobilize the masses extensively, carrying out efforts to raise military funds and expand the Red Army. As a result, over 600 young and middle-aged residents of Jinxi County joined the Red Army.