Japanese Objectives
Changsha is the capital city of Hunan province and an important junction of two railroads in southern China: the tri-province railroad of Hunan-Kweichow-Guangxi and the one from Canton to Wuhan. Hengyang is also on the tri-province railroad and very close to the Canton-Wuhan Railroad. Furthermore, Lake Dongting and the cities of Changsha, Hengyang, and Lingling, are connected by the Hsiang River. It was imperative for both sides to control the suburban areas of Changsha and Hengyang.
The tactical objective of the Japanese China Expeditionary Army was to secure the railroad of Hunan-Kweichow-Guangxi and the southern area of China. The United States 14th Air Force of United States Army Air Forces also stationed their fighters and bombers at several air bases along the three-province railroad: Hengyang, Lingling, Guilin, Liuzhou, and Nanning. From there, the American Flying Tigers led by Brigadier General Claire Lee Chennault, had inflicted heavy damage on Japanese troops both in China and Formosa and could launch air strikes against the home islands of Japan.
After several ineffective air strikes by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, the Japanese decided to use ground forces to deny Allied air power of these airbases. By a direct order from Shunroku Hata(zh:畑俊六), Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese China Expeditionary Army, the Japanese 11th Army stationed at Wuhan was given the mission to attack Changsha and advance southwest via the tri-province railroad. It was later to join force with the Japanese 23rd Army of the Japanese Sixth Area Army from Canton.
General Isamu Yokoyama(zh:橫山 勇), the two-star general of the Japanese 11th Army, headed five divisions and reinforced by four more divisions and three independent brigades. Shunroku Hata decided to stay at Wuhan from 25 May 1944 until the end of the second phase of Operation Ichi-Go.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Changsha (1944)
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