The Legend of the 29th Army and the Great Sword Brigade: Heroism and Harsh Realities of China’s War Against Japan

The Gathering Storm: Japan’s Expansion and China’s Desperate Stand

In the wake of Japan’s invasion of Manchuria in 1931, the Imperial Japanese Army turned its ambitions toward North China. By January 1933, Japanese forces had seized Shanhaiguan—the iconic “First Pass Under Heaven”—marking the beginning of the Battle of the Great Wall. As Japanese troops advanced toward key passes like Lengkou and Xifengkou, China’s fractured military forces scrambled to mount a defense.

Among them was the 29th Army, a poorly equipped but fiercely determined unit under General Song Zheyuan. Composed primarily of former Northwestern Army soldiers, the 29th Army embodied both the resilience and vulnerabilities of China’s military at the time. Their most famous contingent—the “Great Sword Brigade”—would soon become legendary, though their story reveals uncomfortable truths about China’s wartime struggles.

The Battle of Xifengkou: A Night of Blades and Blood

On March 9, 1933, Japanese forces launched a brutal assault on Xifengkou Pass. Outgunned and outnumbered, the 29th Army resorted to desperate measures. In the early hours of March 12, General Zhao Dengyu led 500 soldiers armed with traditional dadao (大刀) broadswords in a daring nighttime raid against Japanese positions.

The attack achieved stunning initial success:
– Over 1,000 Japanese casualties reported
– Capture of tanks, artillery, and even an aircraft
– Psychological blow to Japanese forces unaccustomed to close-quarters combat

This victory inspired composer Mai Xin to create The March of the Broadsword (大刀进行曲), an anthem that would rally Chinese troops for years. Yet the triumph was fleeting. While celebrated nationally, the Great Sword Brigade suffered heavy losses during their retreat, a fact often omitted from patriotic narratives.

The Steel Gap: Why Swords Against Guns?

The Great Sword Brigade’s very existence highlighted China’s industrial weakness:
– Equipment disparity: The 29th Army possessed just 100 machine guns and a handful of artillery pieces for 20,000 men. Many rifles were locally made and unreliable.
– Steel production: Japan’s annual output (580,000 tons) dwarfed China’s (700 tons), forcing reliance on melee weapons.
– Training imbalance: Japanese soldiers received rigorous bayonet training, while Chinese troops often supplemented military drills with traditional martial arts.

As Guangxi general Huang Shaohong observed, the media’s glorification of sword-wielding soldiers risked repeating the Boxer Rebellion’s tragic miscalculations—romanticizing outdated warfare against modern firepower.

The Paradox of Song Zheyuan: From Hero to Hesitant

General Song’s trajectory reveals the complexities of China’s wartime leadership:
– 1933: His “Better to die fighting than live as slaves” proclamation made him a national hero.
– Post-Xifengkou: Expanded his army to 100,000 men while keeping both Nationalist and Communist forces out of his North China domain.
– 1937: Initially hesitated during the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, still hoping to negotiate with Japan to preserve his regional power.

This hesitation proved disastrous. When full-scale war erupted in July 1937, the 29th Army—once celebrated for its Xifengkou victory—was quickly overwhelmed defending Beijing. Generals Zhao Dengyu and Tong Linge died in combat, while Song’s withdrawal marked the loss of China’s ancient capital.

Legacy: Beyond the Myth

The Great Sword Brigade’s legend endures, but its deeper lessons remain vital:
1. Courage vs. Technology: The 1933 victories showed determination could achieve localized successes, but couldn’t overcome systemic military inferiority.
2. Unity’s Limits: While the Great Wall battles saw rare cooperation between Nationalist, Communist, and regional forces, factionalism ultimately undermined China’s defense.
3. Media Narratives: Wartime propaganda emphasizing sword-wielding heroes boosted morale but obscured the urgent need for modernization—a tension still relevant in historical memory today.

At Taierzhuang in 1938, Chinese troops would again charge Japanese lines singing The March of the Broadsword. Their courage was real, but as the war progressed, so too was the hard-won understanding that spirit alone couldn’t defeat industrialized warfare. The 29th Army’s story—both its heroism and its tragedies—stands as a poignant reminder of this truth.