Order of battle of the Battle of Lanfeng explained
The following units and commanders fought in the Battle of Lanfeng in May 1938.
China
1st War Area - Cheng Qian
- Eastern Honan Army - Xue Yue 64th Army - Li Han-huen
- 155th Division - Chen Kung-hsin
- 187th Division - Peng Ling-cheng
- 102nd Division - Po Hui-chang
- 74th Army - Wang Yaowu
- 51st Division - Wang Yao-wu
- 58th Division - Feng Sheng-fa
- 71st Army Song Xilian 87th Division [2]
- 88th Division - Long Muhan
Reinforcements [May22nd]
- 17th Corps - Hu Zongnan - May22nd
- 1st Army - Li Tieh-chun
- 1st Division - Li Tieh-chun
- 78th Division - Li Wen
- 27th Army - Kuei Yung-ching
- 36th Division [2] - Chiang Fu-sheng
- 46th Division - Li Liang-yung
- 200th Division (1st Column) - Qiu Qingquan
- Tank battalion *
- Infantry battalion
- Engineer battalion
- Armored car battalion
- Antiaircraft unit
- Motor maintenance unit
- Antitank battalion
Note:
- * Tanks of the 1st Column's armoured battalion would have been equipped with new Soviet T-26 tanks. (There is some photographic evidence that there were some of the Italian CV-33 tanks there as well. One was photographed on the Lanfeng battlefield with three Japanese troops examining it. see photo and discussion http://www.china-defense.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=512)
Japan
North China Area Army - Juichi Terauchi [1,3]
1st Army - Kyoji Kotsuki
- 14th Division - Kenji Doihara
- 27th Infantry Brigade
- 2nd Infantry Regiment
- 59th Infantry Regiment
- 28th Infantry Brigade
- 15th Infantry Regiment
- 50th Infantry Regiment
- 20th Field Artillery Regiment
- 18th Cavalry Regiment
- 14th Engineer Regiment
- 14th Transport Regiment
Note: IJA 1st Army had these armoured units directly under its command that could have been assigned to 14th Division: [3]
- 1st Independent Light Armored Car Squadron
- 5th Independent Light Armored Car Squadron
- 2nd Tank Battalion
Sources
[1] Hsu Long-hsuen and Chang Ming-kai, History of The Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) 2nd Ed., 1971. Translated by Wen Ha-hsiung, Chung Wu Publishing; 33, 140th Lane, Tung-hwa Street, Taipei, Taiwan Republic of China.
page 230-235
Map. 9-2
[2] German trained Division. Note these divisions had been badly mauled in the battles of Shanghai and of Nanking in 1937 and were no longer the crack units they once were.
[3] 抗日战争时期的侵华日军序列沿革 (Order of battle of the Japanese army that invaded China during the Sino Japanese War)
[4] 國軍精銳---國民革命軍第二○○師 Elite Troops of the National Revolutionary Army, the 200th Division, (in Chinese)
