September 17, 1939 · South China — Hunan Theater
September 17, 1939
General Xue Yue defended Changsha against four separate Japanese offensives between 1939 and 1944, winning three of them. His 'Tianlu formation' (a tactical system of elastic defense, feigned retreat, and encirclement) inflicted catastrophic losses on Japanese forces in 1939, 1941, and 1942. The city finally fell in 1944 during the Ichigo Offensive. Xue Yue became known as 'Tiger of Changsha' — the most successful Chinese defensive commander of the war.
Commanders