Battle of Yalu River (1904)
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| Russo-Japanese War |
|---|
| Port Arthur (naval) Chemulpo Bay (naval) –Yalu River – Nanshan –Telissu – Yellow Sea – Ulsan (naval) – Port Arthur (siege) – Liaoyang – Shaho – Sandepu – Mukden – Tsushima |
Preparation
The Russian commander in the Far East, General Alexei Kuropatkin was aware that the Japanese were advancing from their forward bases at Chemulpo (present day Inchon) north and were preparing to cross the Yalu River to invade Manchuria. Kuropatkin's strategy was to only engage the Japanese in defense stalling actions, while waiting for reinforcements to be brought up to the front via the Trans-Siberian Railway. Kuropatkin dispatched the Eastern Detachment under the command of Lieutenant-General M.I. Zasulitch with 15,000 infantry, 5,000 cavalry and some 60 artillery pieces to fight a static delaying action at the river. However, General Zasulitch did not hold the Japanese army in a very high regard and was chose to ignore Kuropatkin's phased withdrawal order (confirmed by Kuropatkin's chief of staff, General V.V. Sakarov).Prelude
The Japanese 1st Army, commanded by Major-General Baron Tamemoto Kuroki, consisted of three divisions: the 2nd, the 12th, and the Guards, with a total strength of about 42,500 men. The Japanese knew the exact locations of the Russians deployment from intelligence by forward scouts disguised as Korean fishermen, as the Russians made no effort to conceal their positions.The prelude to major action took place on the night of April 25-26 1904, when the Guards Division seized two islands in the Yalu River. The forward Russian observation post withdrew to the main Russian lines on the north shore. In full view of Russian positions, the Japanese began constructing a causeway across the Yalu River, which was immediately targeted by two Russian batteries. With the Russians so engaged, the Japanese prepared nine other bridges that could quickly be moved into position for a rapid assault across the river at other locations.
Once the midstream islands were secured, Kuroki ordered a feint on the lower Yalu River when Japanese gunboats engaged Cossack detachments at the river mouth. This convinced General Zasulitch that the main Japanese attack would fall on the vicinity of the town of Antung, and he concentrated his forces there.
Kuroki was thus able to maneuver against the weak Russian left, and deployed the 12th Division across the Yalu River at a fordable point at Su-Ku-Chin. The Russians observed these movements with trepidation, and the local commander informed Zasulitch that the Japanese were about to assault the position in force and his position was in danger of being flanked. Zasulitch chose to ignore the report, and continued to ignored Kuropatkin's standing orders to merely delay while keeping the lines of communication open. Zasulitch remained convinced that the main Japanese attack would fall at Antung, and kept his main force as well as his reserves at that location.
Battle
The Japanese main attack began in the early morning hours of 27 April 1904. By 0300, the balance of the 12th Division had crossed the river and was advancing in three columns. Zasulitch, still convinced that this was only a feint, redeployed a single battalion with four guns.
While the Japanese 12th Division advancing on the right, the Guards Division was moving into position in the center. By 0400, the artillery of the Guards Division was within range of the exposed Russian lines. The 2nd Division took its position on 1st Army's left, ready to advance on the newly erected causeways leading from the town of Wiju. The Japanese had a number of 4.7 inch howitzers, custom-made by Krupp. The Russians were unaware that the Japanese possessed such weapons.
As the Japanese began to advance, they drew fire from two small Russian batteries. The Japanese returned fire with over 90 guns and howitzers on the exposed Russians. In light of these developments, Zasulitch was strongly encouraged by his staff to pull back to a more defensible position. However, the general stubbornly refused to concede, even sending a telegram to the Tsar in Saint Petersburg informing that victory was soon certain.
The Japanese First Army continued its three-pronged advance and was across the Yalu by midnight of the April 29 1904 with very little opposition. Limited visibility masked the Japanese movements from Russian observation. When the fog finally lifted about 0500, the Japanese artillery opened up on the Russian formations.
General Kuroki had planned to continue the advance of 12th Division to envelope the Russian left. However, now that enemy artillery had been neutralized, he decided to engage the Guards and the 2nd Division in a simultaneous assault. It was at this point the Japanese encountered the first serious resistance from the Russian lines. The advance of the 2nd Division was disrupted for a time, and had any of the Russian artillery survived, the outcome might have been different. The Russians were driven from their lines with severe losses, and the survivors fell back to the position that Zasulitch’s advisors had unsuccessfully encouraged him to fall back to earlier. During the retreat, a counterattack was made by elements of the Russian 12th East Siberian Rifle Regiment, which was cut to pieces and opened further the breaks in the Russian lines.
The Russian position now became wholly untenable, and remaining formations now were in danger of being encircled. At the appearance of the Japanese 12th Division the Russian left flank panicked and collapsed.
This development was initially unknown to central command on the Russian right flank. Zasulitch and his command staff with what remained of the his army was forced into a narrow gorge, where upon the advance of the Guard Division and 2nd Divisions, coupled with arrival of 12th Division, the Russians found themselves penned.
At 1730 on 01 May 1904, the remnants of the Russian Eastern Detachment surrendered and the Battle for the Yalu River came to an end.
The fighting had cost the Japanese 1036 dead and wounded out of the total 1st Army strength of 42,500 (although it is thought that the total Japanese casualties were deliberately deflated for propaganda purposes). The Russian Eastern Detachment suffered some 2700 casualties overall, including about 1,400 killed in action and 600 prisoners.
Importance
This was the first major land campaign of the Russo-Japanese War. The destruction of the Russian Eastern Detachment removed the perception that the Japanese would be an easy enemy, that the war would be short, and that Russia would be the overwhelming victor.The Battle of the Yalu River opened the road to Manchuria from Korea. General Kuropatkin's static defensive strategy failed, largely because his subordinates such as Alexiev and Zasulitch ignored their orders.
References
- Kowner, Rotem (2006). "Historical Dictionary of the Russo-Japanese War". Scarecrow. ISBN 0-8108-4927-5
External links
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