Battle of West Hubei

The Battle of West Hubei (simplified Chinese: 鄂西会战; traditional Chinese: 鄂西會戰; pinyin: È Xī Huìzhàn), was one of the 22 major engagements between the National Revolutionary Army and Imperial Japanese Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It was also one of the four major battles that took place in Hubei.

It resulted in a Chinese strategic victory, although they lost more troops than the Japanese Army. Historian Barbara W. Tuchman however, writes that the "Japanese withdrew without pursuit from what appeared to have been a training and foraging offensive to collect rice and river shipping."

The Chinese government and Western media reported that the Chinese had scored a major victory.

Results

The Chinese government and Western media reported that the Chinese had scored a major victory. Historian Barbara W. Tuchman had another opinion, who wrote that the "Japanese withdrew without pursuit from what appeared to have been a training and foraging offensive to collect rice and river shipping."

Changjiao massacre

Main article: Changjiao_massacre

During the time period of the Battle of West Hubei, People’s Republic of China historians have claimed that the Changjiao massacre (Chinese: 厂窖惨案) occurred, during which Japanese troops slaughtered more than 30,000 civilians at a factory in the tiny hamlet of Changjiao, northern Hunan over a three-day period from 9–12 May 1943.