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In the Tashan Blocking Battle in 1948, the troop strength comparison usually referred to was our 8 divisions versus the 11 divisions of the Eastward Corps.

The numbers of the above-mentioned troops are:

The 10th, 11th and 12th Divisions of the 4th Column of the Northeast Field Army; the 31st, 32nd and 33rd Divisions of the 11th Column; and the 4th and 6th Independent Divisions of the Hebei-Rehe-Liaoning Military Region.

The 8th Division, the Provisional 57th Division, and the 198th Division of the 54th Army, and commanded the Provisional 62nd Division; the 67th Division, the 151st Division, and the 157th Division of the 62nd Army that came from North China, the 21st Division of the 92nd Army, and the Independent 95th Division; the 103rd Division and the 147th Division of the 39th Army that came from Shandong.

However, this is actually the comparison of troop forces in the entire Tashan direction. However, during the blocking battle from October 10 to October 15, 1948, the comparison of troop forces in the main battlefield was not like this.

First, in terms of the East China Field Army, the two independent divisions were actually responsible for supporting and containing missions outside the main battlefield; the combat effectiveness of the independent divisions was relatively weak and they were generally not used in major battles at the time.

The 11th Column had just been promoted to the main force, and was still relatively short of manpower and equipment. It was stationed on the mountain position on the west side of Tashan. This side was relatively easy to defend, and mainly during the above period, it was not the main attack direction of the Eastward Corps.

Therefore, the 11th Column only participated in some small battles from October 10 to 15, and took over part of the positions of the 11th Division of the 4th Column, which completely liberated the division and made it an independent and complete combat reserve.

Therefore, during the Tashan Blocking Battle, the main battle was on the 4th Column's side, and the 4th Column's reserve 11th Division was actually not used much. The main participants in the battle were the 10th and 12th Divisions.

As for the Eastward Corps, although it had 11 divisions on paper, two divisions of the 39th Army were still on ships when the battle broke out, so it did not catch up with the battle.

Among the other nine divisions, two remained in Jinxi and Huludao areas and did not participate in the offensive; the other two divisions had been annihilated by attacks before, and their combat effectiveness after reconstruction was not strong, so they mainly served as reserve forces and did not participate in the war much.

Its main attacking forces were the Provisional 62nd Division that had lost Tashan, the 8th Division of the 54th Army, the Independent 95th Division from North China, and the 151st and 157th Divisions of the 62nd Army.

Therefore, in the Tashan blocking battle, it was actually these five divisions that attacked the two divisions of the 4th Column.

Among the above-mentioned five divisions, the Provisional 62nd Division was a rebuilt ragtag unit and was transferred from outside; since it was the one defending the Tashan position previously, it was understandable that it was pulled in when attacking Tashan again.

However, the combat effectiveness of this division is definitely not strong, and it is the last among the five divisions.

But the other four divisions can be considered the main force.

Among them, the 8th Division was originally a unit of Hu Zongnan's system. Later, it was transferred to the 54th Army and then reorganized into an American-equipped division. In fact, its comprehensive combat power ranked first among the above-mentioned offensive forces.

The Independent 95th Division was the only direct subordinate of the supervising officer Roach at the time, but this division was not equipped with American weapons and its overall strength was inferior to that of the 8th Division.

However, this division was fully equipped and staffed at the time, and because the old commander was also there, it fought the most fiercely.

The 151st and 157th Divisions were from Guangdong. Most of the troops left behind by the Guangdong Army had strong combat effectiveness, and they were fully equipped and staffed when they were in North China.

So in general, during the Tashan blocking battle, the Eastward Corps was mainly composed of four relatively complete and combat-effective divisions plus a crippled division, and launched an attack on the positions of the two main divisions of the East China Field Army.

Judging from the number of troops, it does have the advantage, but it is also a fact that it could not advance even one meter.

The reason why the Tashan Blocking Battle caused such a great shock was not only because of its strategic significance, but also mainly because of its combat effectiveness.

After all, no matter what, the Eastward Corps also sent in four main divisions, and used four main divisions to fight against the two main divisions of the East China Field Army. Everyone can understand that they failed to capture the Tashan position, but the key is that they failed to consolidate a single position, failed to advance even a meter, and even captured almost an entire battalion of prisoners by the East China Field Army in the blocking mode. How can they explain this?

Therefore, it is understandable that Chiang Kai-shek was furious later. After all, according to Chiang Kai-shek's previous estimate, one column of the East China Field Army was equivalent to one of its divisions. Now that the head-on confrontation at Tashan had produced such an effect, it was definitely unacceptable.

But whether you accept it or not, the battle has not been won, so what can we say?

Because of the "battle record" of these fully staffed divisions in North China, it is not difficult to understand why the Kuomintang troops inside the Great Wall often collapsed at the first blow when the East China Field Army entered the Great Wall. How can they fight if their psychological defenses are broken?