In 1985, Chengdu Military Region belonged to two group armies, which were deployed in Sichuan and Yunnan respectively. What was the point?
In June 1985, after experiencing a dramatic "Chengkun Incident", the Central Military Commission officially decided to abolish the Kunming Military Region. Later, the 11th and 14th armies of the original Kunming Military Region were transferred to the Chengdu Military Region and merged into the new Chengdu Military Region. At this time, the Chengdu Military Region already had the 13th and 50th armies. In other words, the Chengdu Military Region had jurisdiction over four field armies in a short period of time. However, this situation soon changed due to the orderly advancement of millions of disarmament.
▲ Old photos of the original Chengdu Military Region
The Chengdu Military Region used the above-mentioned armies as the backbone to form the 13th and 14th Group Armies. The military headquarters of the 13th Group Army was located in Chongqing, Sichuan ( had not yet restored the municipality at that time), while the military headquarters of the 14th Group Army was located in Kunming, Yunnan. What are the strategic considerations behind the deployment of the Chengdu Military Region? What unique advantages do Sichuan and Yunnan have?
The author needs to briefly talk about the basic situation of the 13th and 14th Group Armies. The 13th and 14th Group Armies were born out of the 13th and 14th Armies, the old main forces of the Second Field Army. During the War of Liberation, these two armies belonged to the Chen Geng Corps battle order. During the Revolutionary War, the 13th and 14th armies and their predecessors were capable of attacking well and defending well, fighting skillfully, and being simple and hard-working. They were repeatedly entrusted with important tasks by Chen Geng.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the 13th and 14th armies guarded the southwest for a long time. They experienced actual combat tests in various complex environments and were particularly skilled in mountain and jungle operations. During the counterattack against Vietnam, although the 13th and 14th armies were not in the same military area, there was a tacit understanding between them, and they followed the old tradition of the second field. During the two-mountain battle , the 13th and 14th armies (group armies) competed with each other. Whether it was the number of enemies killed or individual heroes (units), they were not inferior to their brother armies.
▲ Old photos of the 14th Group Army of the former Chengdu Military Region
Overall, the 13th and 14th Group Armies have extremely rich practical experience and can be called the two most powerful divisions in the Southwest. In particular, the 14th Group Army has been in combat for more than 30 years, which is extremely rare in the history of our army. The reason why the Chengdu Military Region deployed the 13th and 14th Group Armies in Sichuan and Yunnan is actually to focus on Chongqing and Kunming. The author believes that there are three reasons:
(A) Chongqing and Kunming each have their own advantages in geographical location;
Chongqing is known as a "mountain city" and has always been a hub for water transportation on the Yangtze River . If you look at the map, you will understand that Chongqing is located at the junction of the Sichuan Basin, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, and the Jianghan Plain. After the Yangtze River flows into this place, it joins the Jialing River to the north, and then joins the Wujiang River, a tributary on the right bank, in the Fuling District. Li Bai has a poem that goes: " Chao Ci Ci Bai Emperor among the colorful clouds , thousands of miles of Jiangling returned in one day", which refers to the outstanding value of inland waterway shipping in Chongqing.
▲ Southwest Topographic Map
Although the Three Gorges Water Conservancy Project had not yet emerged in 1985, Chongqing, with its convenient inland shipping, is a strategic location connecting the Southwest and Central and South . The topographic characteristics of mountains and rivers make Chongqing a battleground for military strategists. In comparison, Kunming also enjoys the reputation of "Water City" despite its relatively weak inland river shipping foundation. Kunming is located in the southwest and in the middle of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, with obvious geographical advantages, which can be summarized as " it is connected to the coastal areas of Guizhou, Guizhou and Tong to the east, to the Central Plains via Sichuan and Chongqing to the north, to the south from Vietnam and Laos to Thailand and Cambodia, and to the west it is connected to Myanmar and India and Pakistan."
(B) The railways in Chongqing and Kunming are developed;
Sichuan's railway transportation advantages are extremely obvious. In Chongqing, where the 13th Army Headquarters is located, there are Sichuan-Guizhou Railway , Xiangyu Railway , Chengdu-Chongqing Railway and other main railway lines that meet here. The connection with brother provinces is very convenient. Among them, the Chengdu-Chongqing Railway is connected with the Baocheng Railway and Chengdu-Kunming Railway . This means that the 13th Group Army can use the developed railway network to achieve cross-military mobilization, which has a very special status and significance.
▲Distribution map of my country’s main railway lines (pay attention to southwest region )
Like Sichuan, Yunnan’s railway advantages are also obvious, not to mention the provincial capital city of Kunming. When the 14th Group Army was formed, there were already Kunming-Guizhou Railway, Chengdu-Kunming Railway and other main railway lines in Kunming. In the subsequent development process, Kunming's railway scale has further expanded, becoming the focus of Yunnan's railway artery, and even an important node of my country's railway network. It is also a railway hub station composed of 12 railway trunk and branch lines in my country.
Combined with the railway advantages of Chongqing and Kunming, we can draw a conclusion: is deployed along the railway line, which is a favorable location for easy maneuvering. This truth couldn't be clearer. Railways have the advantages of large carrying capacity, low cost, and strong long-distance continuous travel capabilities. They have always been one of the important means to achieve thousands of miles of mobility. For example, the various units of the former 54th Group Army of the Jinan Military Region are basically deployed along the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway and Longhai Railway, which is similar to the situation of the 13th and 14th Group Armies.
(C) Sichuan and Yunnan are provinces with relatively strong industrial foundations;
During the Republic of China, the national industries of Sichuan and Yunnan developed to some extent, but due to inconvenient transportation, there was no major breakthrough for a long time. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, my country concentrated on developing railways. The Chengdu-Kunming Railway injected vitality into the industrial development of Sichuan and Yunnan, and later the aforementioned railways were built one after another. The development and growth of the Sichuan and Yunnan railways is undoubtedly an important reason for the strong industrial foundation of these two provinces.
▲ Third-line construction
In addition, the “third-line construction” that began in the 1960s has allowed the industrial scale of Sichuan and Yunnan to expand unprecedentedly. Taking Sichuan as an example, my country's then quite advanced military industry , state-owned enterprises, and scientific research institutes traveled thousands of miles to Sichuan to vigorously develop industry. The famous Panzhihua Iron and Steel Company was born in this historical period of vigorous third-line construction. By 1985, the industrial foundations of Sichuan and Yunnan had been solid and they had become an important part of their respective economic structures.
It can be seen from the above that the Chengdu Military Region deployed the 13th and 14th Group Armies in Sichuan and Yunnan, mainly taking into account the unparalleled advantages of these two provinces. In June 1997, Chongqing was restored to a municipality directly under the Central Government, and the 13th Army ended its ties with Sichuan. However, Sichuan and Chongqing have been one family since ancient times. The developed railway network and other modes of transportation have greatly shortened the time and space distance between them. In the Seven Military Regions era, the 13th and 14th Group Armies guarded the southwest for the motherland in a "one south and one north, supporting each other" pattern.
▲Old photos of exercises of a unit of the 13th Group Army of the former Chengdu Military Region
In February 2016, the Chengdu Military Region came to an end, Sichuan and Chongqing were transferred to the Western Theater Command , and the 13th Group Army was also transferred to the Western Theater Army. During the same period, Yunnan was placed under the Southern Theater Command, and the 14th Army was transferred to the Southern Theater Army . At this point, the history of two legendary heroic troops fighting side by side under the same flag ended. In the new round of military reform in 2017, the designations of the 13th and 14th Group Armies were deactivated. Their respective bloodlines still play an important role in the new historical journey of building a new army.
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