The 88th Division (Traditional Chinese: 第88師; Simplified Chinese: 第88师; pinyin: Dì 88 Shī) was a German-trained division in the National Revolutionary Army. Traditional Chinese characters are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Simplified Chinese characters (Simplified Chinese: 简体字; Traditional Chinese: 簡體字; pinyin: jiÇŽntǐzì; also called 简化字/簡化字, jiÇŽnhuàzì) are one of two standard character sets of printed contemporary Chinese written language. ... Pinyin (Chinese: 拼音, pÄ«nyÄ«n) literally means join (together) sounds (a less literal translation being phoneticize, spell or transcription) in Chinese and usually refers to HànyÇ” PÄ«nyÄ«n (汉语拼音, literal meaning: Han language pinyin), which is a system of romanization (phonemic notation and transcription to Roman script) for Standard... Preceding and during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Republic of China government sought German assistance in modernizing its National Revolutionary Army. ... The National Revolutionary Army (NRA) (Chinese: 國民革命軍; pinyin: guo2 min2 ge2 ming4 jun1) was the national army of the Republic of China. ...

First Battle of Shanghai

The division, commanded by Yu Jishi, was present at the First Battle of Shanghai (1932) as part of the 5th Army, fighting alongside the 19th Route Army. 1932 (MCMXXXII) is a leap year starting on a Friday. ... A number of nations have had a Fifth Army: British Fifth Army Turkish Fifth Army US Fifth Army This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Order of Battle (1932)

• 5th Army - Zhang Zhizhong (張治中)

• 88th Division - Yu Jishi (余濟時)

• 262th Brigade - Qian Lunti (錢倫體)
• 264th Brigade - Yang Bufei (楊步飛)

The 88th as a German-trained division

The badge of the 88th Division

In 1927, after the dissolution of the First United Front between the Nationalists and the Communists, the ruling Kuomintang purged its leftist members and completely eliminated Soviet influence from its ranks. Chiang Kai-shek turned to Germany, historically a great military power, for the reorganisation of the National Revolutionary Army. The Chinese Nationalist Party (Traditional: 中國國民黨; Simplified: 中国国民党; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chung-kuo Kuo-min-tang; Tongyong Pinyin: Jhongguo Guomindang), commonly known as the Kuomintang (KMT), is a conservative political party currently active in the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan. ... Soviet redirects here. ... Chiang Kai-shek (October 31, 1887–April 5, 1975) was a Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang (KMT) after the death of Sun Yat-sen in 1925. ... The National Revolutionary Army (NRA) (Chinese: 國民革命軍; pinyin: guo2 min2 ge2 ming4 jun1) was the national army of the Republic of China. ...

The Weimar Republic sent advisors to China, but because of the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles, they could not serve in military capacities. When Adolf Hitler became Chancellor in 1933 and disregarded the Treaty, the anti-communist NSDAP and the anti-communist KMT were soon engaged in close cooperation with Germany training Chinese troops and expanding Chinese infrastructure, while China opened its markets and natural resources to Germany. The period of German history from 1919 to 1933 is known as the Weimar Republic (IPA , German Weimarer Republik). ... The treaty was an International affair The Treaty of Versailles of 1919 was the peace treaty which officially ended World War I between the Allies and Germany. ... ▶(?) (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945) was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 and Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and Chancellor) of Germany from 1934 to his death by suicide. ... Chancellor (Latin: cancellarius), an official title used by most of the peoples whose civilization has arisen directly or indirectly out of the Roman empire. ... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Nazi swastika The National Socialist German Workers Party (German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei), better known as the NSDAP or the Nazi Party was a political party that was led to power in Germany by Adolf Hitler in 1933. ... KMT is the Nationalist Party of China. ...

In 1934 General Hans von Seeckt, acting as advisor to Chiang, proposed a "60 Division Plan" for reforming the entire Chinese army into 60 divisions of higly trained, well-equipped troops along German doctrines. The 88th Division was one of the first divisions to be reorganised and together with the 36th and 87th Division the of créme de la créme the National Revolutionary Army. 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Hans von Seeckt Hans von Seeckt (22 April 1866 - 27 December 1936) was a German soldier. ... The National Revolutionary Army (NRA) (Chinese: 國民革命軍; pinyin: guo2 min2 ge2 ming4 jun1) was the national army of the Republic of China. ...

In 1937, still not completely reorganised, the 88th was rushed to the Second Battle of Shanghai (1937) with the other German-trained divisions. The division performed admirably, pushinig the Japanese marines back to the shores of Shanghai, but due to a combination of the absence of air and naval support, poor coordination between units, and the lack of defence in depth, the division suffered heavy casualties near the end of the three-month battle. On Christmas Day, 1937, the division withdrew to join the ill-fated Defence of Nanjing, though the 800 Heroes of the 524th Regiment remained at the Sihang Warehouse for days and successfully covered the retreat of the division, while beating back numerous Japanese assaults on the warehouse. 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Defence in depth is a military strategy sometimes also called elastic defence. ... Joseph and Mary with baby Jesus, at the first Christmas Christmas (literally, the Mass of Christ) is a holiday in the Christian calendar, usually observed on December 25, which celebrates the birth of Jesus. ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Eight Hundred Heroes (Traditional Chinese: 八百壯士; Simplified Chinese: 八百壮士; pinyin: ), also known as the Lost Battalion - not to be confused with the American Lost Battalion of WWI - were the defenders of the Sihang warehouse, who covered the retreat of Chinese forces after the Battle of Shanghai. ...

After the Battle of Nanking, the 88th Division never recovered, and was of limited significance later in the war. The Battle of Nanjing ended with the fall of the capital city of Nanjing in 1937 to Japanese troops two months after the Republic of China Government had evacuated the city and relocated to Chongqing. ...

Order of Battle (1937)

• 88th Division - Total strength: 14,000 men

• 2 infantry brigades

• 1 artillery company
• 1 light artillery company
• 1 signal company
• 1 SpcOps company
• 3 infantry battalions

• 3 infantry companies

• 3 infantry platoons

• 3 infantry squads

• 1 heavy weapons company

• directly under divisional command

• 1 artillery battalion

• 3 artillery companies

• 1 anti-tank company
• 1 anti-air company
• 1 engineer company
• 1 signal company

• 2 "wired" platoons
• 1 wireless platoon

• 1 heavy transport company
• 1 SpcOps company
• 1 field hospital team

• 2 reserve regiments