After the conclusion of the Huaihai Campaign, the various field armies of our army began to reorganize in accordance with the orders of the General Headquarters, changing each column into an army, and merging several armies to form corps, so as to meet the needs of the large corps operations in the course of the nationwide march.
In this reorganization, the Central Plains Field Army was the most successful. In February 1949, the various departments of the Central Field completed their rest and recuperation in Huaibei and eastern Henan, and were renamed the Second Field Army, with three corps under its jurisdiction, with Chen Geng and Yang Yong serving as commanders respectively.
In the War of Liberation, Chen Geng's unit has always been a strategic mobile force under the direct command of the General Headquarters, and it has cooperated with the first, second, and fourth fields in combat. With their excellent performance, they have won high praise from the headquarters, which has always regarded them as a front army.
Therefore, when Chen Geng was appointed commander of the Corps, this decision was completely reasonable and without any controversy. Although Chen Zaidao, Wang Hongkun and other senior generals of the original Four Front Army are older, their performance among the generals in the second field is also outstanding, with great achievements and good leadership, and they have always been the favorite generals of Chief Liu Deng.
As early as the Anti-Japanese War, he was the main brigade commander of the Eighth Route Army. Because of his good conduct and harmonious relationship between his superiors and subordinates, he was appointed commander of the Corps at the age of 34, and he was also widely recognized.
** Delivered an impassioned speech at the mobilization meeting for the march to the southwest, calling on all commanders and fighters to join in"Go forward bravely and liberate the whole of China!"However, there is controversy about the choice of the leadership of the 5 Corps.
Wang Jinshan was widely regarded as the No. 1 general in Erye, but unfortunately, he was not appointed as the commander of the corps, but was assigned to the 3rd Corps and became Chen Geng's deputy.
This undoubtedly made Wang Jinshan feel a little lost, but he was convinced by Chen Geng and ***. Therefore, the only person he could possibly go to the main position was the 5th Corps. However, the position of commander of the 5th Corps was given to Yang Yong, who was not as successful as Wang Jinshan, which made Wang Jinshan inevitably have some ideas.
Lieutenant General Wang Jinshan is a straightforward person, and he directly found Political Commissar Deng and asked, why can Yang Yong become the commander of the 5th Corps?If you look at it from the perspective of combat exploits alone, Yang Yong seems to be worse than the legendary Wang Jinshan.
However, Political Commissar Deng's answer was brilliant and artistic, he not only explained the reason, but also affirmed Wang Jinshan's combat ability, which made Wang Jinshan feel relieved. As a military general, what could be more proud of than being affirmed for combat ability?
Although Political Commissar Deng did not say any other reasons, Wang Jinshan understood that in addition to his combat ability, Yang Yong's comprehensive quality was also more comprehensive than his. The 5th Corps led by Yang Yong has jurisdiction over the 16th, 17th, and 18th armies, each with its own characteristics and advantages, and the corps has a total of more than 80,000 people.
The veteran powerhouses of the Red Army, the 136th Regiment and the 139th Regiment, were the mainstays of the 5th Corps. Both regiments had 11 purely Red Army companies, the core of the 5 Corps.
The predecessor of the 136th Regiment was the 5th Regiment of the 2nd Division of the 1st Red Army, which was one of the first troops to participate in the Nanchang Uprising.
During the Anti-Japanese War, the regiment was the famous 685th Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, which participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan and was an assault battalion. Although most of the military and political leaders of this regiment died during the Red Army period, very few people survived to the stage after liberation and held high positions, so the propaganda was insufficient, but its historical contribution cannot be ignored.
Similarly, the 139th Regiment was also a veteran unit during the Red Army, participated in the Pingjiang Uprising, and was the 3rd Battalion of the 686th Regiment during the Anti-Japanese War, and also participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan, and was the main regiment of the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Military Region.
In 1939, some cadres of the 115th Division took a group photo in Shandong, including Xiao Hua, Chen Guang, Kuang Rennong, Yang Yong, Zhu Rui and Wang Bingzhang. According to statistics, there are 14 Red Army companies in the entire 5 Corps, of which only 3 companies are from the former Red Fourth Front Army, and the remaining 11 companies are all former Red Front Army units.
Although the predecessor of Erye was the 129th Division of the Eighth Route Army, which was directly adapted from the Red Fourth Front Army, so the troops and cadres of the Central Plains Fourth Front Army of Liu Deng's army were the majority, but the 5th Corps was an exception, and most of the troops of the 17th Army and the 18th Army were established late, not to mention for the time being, the main force of the 16th Army (the original 1st Column) is flowing with the blood of the Red First Army, so the leaders of the 5th Corps should be selected from the cadres of the original First Front Army, so the former 1st Column Commander Yang Yong, political commissar Su Zhenhua was directly promoted to the commander and political commissar of the Corps, This is actually a reasonable decision.
In terms of selecting and employing people for Yang Yong and Su Zhenhua, it may not be appropriate for Wang Jinshan, who was born in the Fourth Front Army, to take charge of the Shuai Yin of the 5th Corps, but it is also inaccurate to say that "Yang Yong is not as good as Wang Jinshan in battle".
During the War of Liberation, Wang Jinshan was indeed more outstanding, but on the battlefield of resisting US aggression and aiding Korea, Yang Yong successfully organized and commanded the Battle of Jincheng, showing an excellent ability to command the coordinated operations of multiple arms of the large corps, so that the famous generals from all walks of life who came to watch the battle were admired, and even Wang Jinshan had to admire.
One year later, the number of the 5th Corps was cancelled, and the organs of the Corps were later merged into the Guizhou Military Region. The three armies under the jurisdiction of this army have undergone many changes, and some units are still the main force of our army to this day.
The 16th Army was the first unit of our army to be fully equipped with Soviet weapons, although it did not participate in major battles after entering Korea, but it was still stationed in the northeast region after returning to China, and the 46th Division has been retained.
The designation of the 17th Army was revoked in 1952, but the 49th Division was retained. In 1969, when the 11th Army was rebuilt, the 49th Division was included and reorganized into the 31st Division.
In the 1984 battle of the reconquistalist Yinshan, the division, under the command of the division commander, successfully conquered the Yinshan Mountain, and achieved significant results at a very small cost, and the 93rd Company of the 93rd Regiment won the title of "Yinshan Hero Company".
The 18th Army of ** was renamed ** Military Region in February 1952 and has been used to this day. Their main force, the 52nd Division (formerly the 1st Column and 20th Brigade, Brigade Commander Wu Zhong), was once dubbed the "Tibetan 419 Unit", and successfully defeated the 7th Brigade, the main force of the Indian army, known as the "Tiger of the Forest", in the counterattack against India in 1962.
In 1969, the division exchanged numbers with the 50th Division of the 149th Army and was transferred to Sichuan and subordinated to the 13th Army. In the 1979 counterattack against Vietnam, the division performed well and made outstanding achievements.
In fact, at the time of the march, the closest to the Tibetan area was the 62nd Army, which belonged to Yiye. However, in order to avoid suspicion, Chief Liu Deng still decided to send troops belonging to Erye.
At first, it was the 10 Army that asked for advice, but they considered it unprepared and with great difficulty. Therefore, the opinions of the 18th Army were consulted again, and Zhang Guohua and Tan Guansan rose to the occasion without asking about conditions, launched the Battle of Qamdo, successfully eliminated the Tibetan army, and successfully marched into Lhasa, and their exploits will forever be recorded in the annals of history.
The 18th Army marched into Lhasa, and when the title was awarded in 1955, two generals emerged from the 5th Corps, Yang Yong and Su Zhenhua. Gan Weihan, director of the Political Department of the Corps, Wang Huiqiu, political commissar of the 16th Army, Wang Bingzhang, commander of the 17th Army, Zhang Guohua, commander of the 18th Army, and Tan Guansan, political commissar of the 18th Army, were all awarded the rank of lieutenant general.
In addition, Shi Xin'an, deputy director of the Political Department, Pan Yan, deputy chief of staff, and Wu Zhong, commander of the 52nd Division, were all awarded the rank of major general. However, the most regrettable is the commander of the 16th Army, Yin Xianbing.
He was originally a brave and warlike general, but during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, he made a serious mistake in his style and was severely punished, so he was only awarded the rank of colonel when he was conferred.
If he hadn't made this mistake, he would have been awarded the rank of lieutenant general.
A precious old ** recorded a group photo of the leaders of the Guizhou Military Region and their families in 1950. Back row, from left, there are Wang Huiqiu, Shi Xin'an, Yin Xianbing, Su Zhenhua, Yang Yong, Chen Zenggu, Xu Yunbei, Pan Yan and others. They have made an important contribution to the peace and prosperity of the motherland. Let's pay tribute to these heroes, inherit the red gene, and promote positive energy.