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Sinkiang

Page history last edited by Michael 2 years, 9 months ago

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Sinkiang Province

circa 1935

 

1933 map; the longitude lines are 265 miles apart

 

Geography

 

     Most of Sinkiang is a high desert plateau (the Tarim basin) with the Himalayan mountains to the south and the Tien Shan mountains to the north. Most of the Tarim basin is covered by the dunes of the Taklamakan Desert, the 17th largest in the world. The desert stretches east from the Pamir Mountains about 600 miles, and merges gradually into the Gobi. Some of the sand dunes reach heights of 1,000 feet. The plateau is at an altitude of 3,500' to 5,000' feet above sea level.

     More than ten thousand years ago, the Tarim Basin held a large freshwater lake; shifting weather conditions and runoff from heavy agricultural usage gradually filled in the basin, and by two thousand years ago, little remained of the lake except for the marshes at its eastern end.

     Not much lives in the desert; some of the known native plants have inviting names such as caltrop, camel thorn, and saltwort. The areas near the rivers have a lot of poplar and willow trees. The very large Caspian tiger has pretty much been wiped out from the marshes around the Taklamakan desert, but can still be found in the Ili River valley. It prefers marshes and forests, but wanders from valley to valley over the Tien Shan range, and thus might be encountered in alpine areas.

 

Passes into the Tarim Basin

 

Three passes are employed to enter the Tarim basin through the northern mountains:

 

Turugart Pass:  near the west end of the Tien Shan. This is the only route through the Tien Shan range which can be used by motor vehicles. Closed to vehicles December through May, though people on foot or with yaks could traverse it from March onwards. Summit is about 12,300'.

Bedel Pass:  about midway through the Tien Shan. Not quite as nice as the Turugart Pass; trucks cannot travel over this route. Many long switchbacks; there are bones and dried corpses littering the route, the bodies of about 100,000 refugees who died trying to cross the pass into China in 1916. Closed by snow December through March. Summit is about 13,800'.

Muzart Pass:  east of Tengri Khan, very rough. Motor vehicles may not use this pass, and in fact there's one spot where you have to lower or raise your cattle by ropes about 40'. Narrow wooden paths along cliff faces, ancient rope bridges, ice and snow, and a couple of glaciers to traverse. Impassable December to May. Summit is about 12,000'.

 

From the west, there is one main pass through the Pamirs:

 

Irkeshtam Pass:  relatively easy, though the roads are subject to many washouts in the spring. An important part of the Silk Road, there has been a customs fort here for at least 2300 years -- one old Chinese name for the summit means "Tax Fort". The summit is at about 10,000' elevation. Beyond this pass to the west, the route divides:  the Terek Pass, which leads into the Fergan Valley, and is closed in winter due to heavy snow -- or the all-seasons route down the Alai Valley, wide, flat and dry, mostly uninhabited.

 

From the south, a number of passes cross the mountains from Tibet and India, none very pleasant, and none passable by motor vehicles.

 

Khunjerab Pass:  the main pass between the Hindu Kush and Karakoram range, from Gilgit. Motor vehicles are unable to traverse this pass. Closed by snow December through April. The summit is at 15,400'.

Mintaka Pass:  open all year, but very dangerous and can only be traversed on foot -- not even animals can use this route. Ladders, rope bridges, narrow wooden walkways along cliff-faces, etc. This is the "emergency only" route from Gilgit to Sinkiang; mail-runners use this pass in the winter. The summit is at 15,500'.

Kilik Pass:  another route from Gilgit into Sinkiang; open all year, but very dangerous. Ladders, rope bridges, narrow walkways along cliff faces, etc. The summit is at 15,800'.

Sanju Pass: roughly due south of Karghalik, it leads across the Karakoram range. Cannot be used December to May. It eventually leads to Tibet. Summit is at 17,600'.  

 

     All of the rivers from the mountains surrounding the Tarim basin eventually wander into the desert and disappear, feeding the groundwater table. In most areas, water can be found by digging 15 feet or so in the depressions. There are hundreds of irrigation tunnels (kharez) dug from the foot of the mountains, out into the lower areas, with regular "wells" to drain the melted water down into the tunnels.

     The northern portion of the province is a region known as Dzungharia (or Zungaria), difficult to reach from the Tarim basin (lots of mountains in the way), especially in winter.Dzungharia is fairly "Mongolian" in character.

     There are two large alpine valleys in the Tien Shan portion of the province:  the Yili (or Ili) Valley, around Kuldja; and the valley around Mongulk. Both support cattle herds and extensive pine forests.

     We have a large-scale set of hex maps for the province.   

 

Weather

 

     Except in the winter, terrible sandstorms sweep across the Tarim basin (about 40 times per year, especially in the spring and summer -- so, about once every week in the non-winter seasons). In the winter, average temperatures hover around 15 degrees Fahrenheit (very cold at night, brisk but clear by day). Summer temperatures are not too hot ... "only" 80 to 100 degrees F in the daytime. Rain or snow are scanty.

 

Population

 

     There are about 3.5 million people living in Sinkiang province. The largest group are the Uighurs (normally just known as "Turks" or "Turkmen" to Westerners), making up about 80% of the population. Turkmen (the language of most Uighurs) is closely related to Turkish, both in structure and lexicon. For Call of Cthulhu purposes, it's just a dialect of Turkish. They are orthodox Sunni Muslim nomads, living in yurts; hospitality to travelers is very important to them, as are all things equestrian.

 

     If your character is perceptive, or speaks Turkish, he or she will soon notice the two large divisions among the Uighurs of Sinkiang: 

 

  • the Aqtaghlik (White Mountain) Uighurs:  more nationalistic, dislike of the Chinese. Most concentrated around Kucha. Slang term:  the sayyid-followers.

  • the Qarataghlik (Black Mountain) Uighurs:  content to remain part of China. Most concentrated at Artush. Slang term:  the Chinese followers.

 

     The two factions have many other minor differences between them; intermarriage between the factions is rare.

     About 5% of the people are "Han Chinese", either members of the military, government officials, settlers, exiles or merchants. They speak Mandarin Chinese (and perhaps some other regional Chinese language), and follow Confucianism and Buddhism. Most the Han Chinese don't consider themselves to be permanent residents of Sinkiang; "when my exile is over" .. "when I make my fortune" ... "when my appointment ends" ... "when I get out of the army" they plan to leave. There is a sizable population of Hui Chinese (aka Dhungans) in Dzungharia -- Mandarin-speaking Muslims, with a fair amount of political clout in that area.

     There are a few Afghan, Tibetan and Hindu merchants and money-lenders, especially in the southern and western towns; and small, isolated populations of Jews in the bigger towns. Kirgiz, Kazakhs, Salars, Uzbeks, and Tatars are all Turkic nomads seen from time to time in the Tarim basin; Tajiks and Mongols are non-Turkic nomadic tribes also present. The plains of Dzungharia are mostly inhabited by a couple hundred thousand Kazakhs; the Yili Valley and the valley around Mongulk are home to more Kazakhs and some colonies of White Russians (totalling around 13,000 persons).

     At remote locations, in the surrounding mountains or at forgotten oases, there are various odd ethnic enclaves -- Asian, Indian, or Caucasian; Christian, Nestorian, Muslim (Sunni, Shia, or others), Buddhist, Manichean, animist, or other; each speaking their own dying dialect. Most of these groups have no regular contact even with such governments as are present; many of them don't use coins; but most will have a few matchlock rifles or crossbows to keep intruders at bay.

     Less than 20% of the population of Sinkiang lives in the towns listed below; perhaps half live in small villages or isolated farmsteads, and the rest are true nomads.

     The one nationality you won't find in Sinkiang is Japanese. Any Japanese person, no matter how innocent, found by the government will be arrested and imprisoned as an agent of the Japanese empire. Doesn't mean there aren't any Japanese agents, but they're either not ethnically Japanese, or they're very good at pretending to be not Japanese. Historically, there were few or no Japanese agents in this province during the Thirties.

 

Locations

 

     Towns include:

 

  • Kashgar:  pop. 80,000; British and Soviet consulates. Over the centuries this city has sometimes been the capital of small kingdoms, usually known nowadays as Kashgaria. There is an aerodrome outside of the town, and of course a barracks for the provincial forces. About thirty miles to the west there are some oil wells and copper mines.

  • Yarkand or Soche; the largest town in the western part of Sinkiang province. Has a barracks for the provincial forces;also a simple runway and a wind sock, and a Soviet consulate. Has a New City (Chinese) and an Old City (everyone else). Notable for its orchards and farms; also the main center for leather production in the province.

  • Aqsu or Aksu:  also known as Uch-Turfan; has a base for the provincial forces, a Soviet consulate and trading agency, also a runway and a wind sock. On the telegraph line from Kashgar into China. There are some oil wells nearby, along with small lead, coal, copper and sulfur mines.

  • Kurlat or Kurla or Korla or Krorain:  the main base for the provincial forces in the Taklamakan area. Has a Soviet consulate, an aerodrome, and is on the telegraph line from Kashgar into China.

  • Khotan:  the headquarters for the 36th Division; does NOT have a landing field. Has the "mint" operated by the 36th Division. Once renowned as a center for production of gold, musk, silk and jade.

  • Urumchi or Urumqi or Tihwa:  the KMT capital for the province; has a provincial military base, a Soviet consulate, and an airfield. This city is near the center of what was once the Mongol kingdom of Dzungaria. Battles took place here in 1933 and 1934 between the 36th Division and the provincial forces. Divided into the New City (Chinese) and the Old City (everyone else).

  • Chitai or Qitai: east of Urumchi, has a provincial military base

  • Hami:  an oasis town at the far eastern end of Sinkiang; famous for its melons; has a provincial military base

  • Turfan or Turpan: southeast of Urumchi; has a provincial military base, and is also on the telegraph line from Kashgar.

  • Charkhlik or Qarkliq, or Jo-ch'ien or Ruoqiang:  in the southeastern part of the province. There's a provincial military barracks here, but the troops are from the 36th Division. A revolt occurs here in the summer of 1935 against the heavy-handed administration of the area by the 36th Division. The famous archaeological sites of Lop Nor are about 100 miles northeast of here.

  • Cherchen or Qarqan or Qiemo:  in the southern part of the province. There is a provincial military barracks here, but the dominant forces are from the 36th Division. This town is famous for the jade found in the local rivers (although mining has ceased in recent months). The ancient kingdom of Calmadana had its capital here (more or less).

 

     Many of these cities are fortified, with very thick walls. 

 

History

 

     The area now covered by the Taklamakan Desert was once a large lake, Lake Tarim. It gradually dried up and became very salty; the salt marshes around Lop Nor are the last remnants of that lake. At any time in the eras before about 1876, there would be half-a-dozen or so kingdoms ringing the basin, each persisting for a few centuries before being destroyed, conquered, or otherwise changing. Near most of the caravan towns or oases there are the masonry remains of ancient towns and strongholds; sand-filled Buddhist shrines, ruined Grecian temples, mysterious tombs, and other unknown relics dot the area. Lop Nor, south of the Turpan Basin and northeast of Charkhliq, was first explored by the Swedish archaeologist Folke Bergman in 1934, uncovered tombs and ruins about 4,000 years old, with Caucasian mummies. After more than a thousand years of Chinese incursions and conquests, the army of General Tso Tsung-tang (famous for the chicken dish named after him) finally conquered Sinkiang for the Chinese emperors "once and for all" in 1876; a fair number of his soldiers became settlers in the province.

     An account of a Russian expedition in the 1890s (emphasis and common names of plants added):

 

     " ...They crossed (south through) the Tian Shan by the Barskaun and Bedel Passes and reached the Taushkan river. Then they crossed the Karateke chain and when they were on the banks of the Yarkend river they found out that the Kashgar river no longer reaches the Yarkend river but is lost in the irrigation canals of Maral bash. They followed the Yarkend river which rolls a mass of muddy water between quite flat banks covered for some 15 to 30 miles on both sides of the river by thickets of (scruffy poplar trees), tamarisks, (thick, flowering) shrubs and rushes. Sand deserts spread on both sides towards the west to Kashgar and eastwards to Lob-nor. Many ruins of old cities are met with in the deserts which are never visited by the natives. In the thickets of shrubs which fringe (the rivers) there are numbers of tigers and wild boars, while amidst the barkhans of the deserts the wild camels are freely grazing. From Yarkend the expedition went south towards the hilly tracts where it stayed for a month and then it moved towards Kotan ... "

 

     Here is a nice article on archaeology in Sinkiang between the 19th Century and the Thirties. Any expeditions into Sinkiang would have to be approved by either the British or Russian consuls, and by the provincial governor (except, of course, in areas where his authority doesn't run); Chinese scholars and a good supply of provincial troops would accompany any authorized archaeologists. Bribery will be very expensive, since the government feels that (a) any foreigner coming to Sinkiang voluntarily is well-off or insane, and (b) if they want to take anything away it must be very valuable. The official policy of the KMT government is that no archaeological finds may leave China; if removed from where they were found, artifacts must be sent to Nanking. There are many sticky fingers between Sinkiang and Nanking, of course ...

 

Transport and Communications

 

     There are no railways nor any usable waterways in Sinkiang. The roads are pretty hard on trucks. The passes from the south (from India and Tibet) are entirely impassable for trucks; the Soviets have improved the main passes over the Tien Shan (Turugart Pass and Bedel Pass) enough to get trucks and armored cars over with lots of effort and luck with the weather. Normally, motor vehicles arrive in Sinkiang from the east.

     Travel by land (railway, yak and horse) from Delhi to Kashgar takes about five or six weeks if everything goes well. From Gilgit to Kashgar takes 30 days for normal travelers; 15 days for the mail-runners working in relays. From the end of the narrow-gauge Indian railways to Gilgit takes about 10 or 12 days, riding horses or ponies; maybe half that if traveling in sturdy automobiles in good weather.

     There are landing-fields for aircraft at several of the towns with provincial forces. These airstrips were built by the Soviets, almost exclusively for the use of their own aircraft; no fuel is available for anyone else at the airfields, although only Soviet aircraft have ever flown into Sinkiang. The nearest non-Soviet airfield to the south is at Gilgit, in the very northernmost part of India. Scheduled commercial air service in China extends all the way to Lanchow, quite a ways to the east of Sinkiang.

     There is a telegraph line which runs from central China all the way to Kashgar (along the northern side of the Tarim basin); it's often out of service, however, due to theft of the wire, sandstorms, military action, etc. Only official messages are sent; no commercial or personal telegrams can be accepted. All of the towns with airfields have wireless stations operated covertly by the Soviets. The British consulate in Kashgar has the only acknowledged wireless transmitter in the entire province.

     Recently, the Soviets have set up some printing-presses, to produce Turkic-language propaganda; otherwise, any newspapers or pamphlets, whether foreign or from other parts of China, are confiscated and destroyed if discovered by the provincial government. Hardback books, ancient scrolls and so forth, especially if not in a Turkic language, will not be molested. Teaching foreign languages to the locals is frowned upon. Any book or document in a Turkic language, except for religious texts, will be confiscated -- even an "innocent" Turkish-English phrasebook.

 

Economy and Currency

 

     About one-quarter of the export income of the province is the value of wool and cotton, and goods made from them (especially carpets). Silk and jade used to be important exports, but the mines and silk-farms (along the southern edge of the Tarim basin) have all been closed for several months due to the meddling of the 36th Division. 80% of the province's trade is with the Soviet Union; the rest of China, only 15%; and India, 5%.

     The circulating currency is the Sinkiang Tael, which exists only as paper money. Oddly enough, the provincial government doesn't abuse its minting authority (much), and the local tael is accepted in most of the cities. Silver or gold currency is accepted anywhere. Any hard currency spent in the province leaves circulation, and is soon carried out of the province by money-lenders, traders, or government officials. Sinkiang tael notes are worthless outside of the province.

 

     All across China, 1 tael = 10 mace = 100 canderins = 1000 cash. A tael is nominally the value of 38 grams of silver (1.22 troy ounces), or about $1; but actual tael coins are often less than the 38 gram weight. A more typical conversion is 20 or 30 US cents for a tael. Canderins and cash are normally bronze coins; there are a plethora of various currencies issued by the provincial governments, including silver dollars and silver dollar fractions.

 

     In the areas controlled by the 36th Division, a sadly inflated currency is imposed upon the populace. Vast amounts of cheap notes are printed by the military, and the locals are forced to accept them; the military, in turn, accepts (or takes) only silver and gold for taxes, dues, extortion or bribes.

     There are no banks in the province; foreign money-lenders perform only the most basic financial functions. When currency comes into the hands of senior government officials or foreign traders, it soon leaves Sinkiang for good, headed to banks on the coast, or even in other countries.

 

Opportunity for Pirates!

 

     In February of 1935, the provincial governor, Sheng Shih-tsai, agreed to accept a loan from the Soviet government, in return for allowing them access to various natural resources available in Sinkiang. Within a few weeks, Soviet engineers began exploratory oil drilling in Dzhungaria, laying out lumber mills in the Ili Valley, etc.

     The loan is, of course, entirely in the nature of a bribe, being paid in cash. A pretty widespread rumor puts the amount of the loan at five million gold rubles -- about 3 tons of gold! Not a single survey will begin, no axe will be laid to a tree, until the governor has possession of the entire loan. Therefore, the actual transfer almost certainly takes place in March of 1935. The British consulate is aware of the loan within a day or so the deal being made -- in all likelihood the governor will be bragging about it!

     For the referee only:  the amount of the loan might be worth 5 million rubles, but is being paid in silver bullion. If so, it's 200 tons of silver bullion! The Gaz AAA three-axle truck can haul 1.5 tons of cargo on rough roads, so a convoy of 150 trucks (including some fuel tankers, food and camp gear haulers, etc.) and a good number of NKVD armored cars and horse cavalry escorts will haul the loan into Sinkiang. The substitution of silver for gold was probably deliberate by the Soviets -- the governor would be much less likely to run off with 200 tons of silver. If Our Piratical Heroes do the calculations based on the market price of gold, etc. they will presume the loan is being carried on just two (2) trucks, plus an escort.

     The bullion will be shipped in steel-reinforced wooden cases, each weighing 60 pounds, with 50 pounds of silver bars within (about 72 ten-ounce bars). Each Gaz AAA truck can carry 48 cases."Imagine my surprise ..."

     In March, the Irkestam Pass, north of Kashgar, is the likeliest route. Trucks might be able to make 16 miles a day through the mountains; and about 32 miles a day on the terrible roads within Sinkiang province, outside of the mountains. Thus it'll take the convoy about a week to travel from the crest of the pass to Kashgar. Four days of that week-long trip will be through the narrow valleys and icy slopes of the pass.

     At some future point, the governor will no doubt move much of the treasure to Urumchi, and eventually out of the province, but that date might be weeks or months in the future, and it won't all move at once.

 

Notable Persons

 

Provincial Officials

 

  • Chen Chung - Han Chinese, chief-of-staff to the provincial governor

  • Chiang Yu-fen - Han Chinese, chief-of-staff to Liu Pin at Kashgar. An efficient officer, ruthless when the occasion demands.

  • Li Yung - Han Chinese. He is the provincial chairman of the KMT, and entirely a figurehead for Shen Shih-ts'ai.

  • Liu Pin - Han Chinese, born 1895. The tao-yin (district commander) at Kashgar.

  • Ma Shih-Chang - a wealthy Uighur leader and patriarch, appointed by Sheng as commander of the provincial military forces at Kashgar and Yarkand (the 32nd and 33rd Cavalry Regiments). Preparing for an Uighur uprising and the foundation of a Sharia-based Islamic nation of Turkmenistan. Seeking support from the Afghans, Soviets, or British ...

  • Qadir Beg - an Uighur, pro-Soviet chief of police in Kashgar.

  • Salih - an Uighur, the commander of the garrison troops in Kashgar.

  • Sheng Shih-ts'ai - Han Chinese, born 1897. The tupan (provincial governor) for the KMT since 1933; even more so, a tool of the Soviets; even more than that, an autocrat out to enrich himself. Paranoid, perverse, xenophobic (except about the Russians; but especially suspicious about the Japanese) and ruthless, frequently employing torture. He first came to the province in late 1929, as chief-of-staff for the provincial army. His personal treasure already amounts to a thousand pounds of gold and 5 tons of silver. His younger brother, Sheng Shi-tsi is attending the Frunze Academy in Moscow.  

 

36th Division

 

  • Kamal Kaya Effendi - Turkish, trained at the French military academy at St. Cyr; served as an officer in the Imperial German Army, the Turkish Army, and in some anti-Communist forces during the Russian Civil War. Chief of staff for the 36th Division, and the most experienced and skilled officer in the unit.

  • Ma Chung-ying - Tungan, born 1910. Former commander of the 36th Division of the KMT army. Nickname:  "Big Horse". Charismatic and reasonably loyal to the KMT, he disappeared in July of 1934, apparently into the Soviet Union. His men are still loyal to him (or his memory), though he is probably either dead or in a Soviet dungeon somewhere. Strongly anti-Japanese.

  • General Ma Hu-shan - Tungan, born 1910. Current commander of the 36th Division of the KMT army, and de facto ruler of Tunganistan. Also strongly anti-Japanese. He is a member of the "Five Ma" warlord faction in Chinese politics -- all are Muslims, as their names indicate ("Ma" is the Chinese equivalent of "Mohammed").

  • Ma Ju-Lung - Tungan. Commander of the 1st Brigade of the 36th Division. Illiterate, but boisterous and charming.

  • Ma Sheng-kuei - Tungan, born ~1900. Commander of the 2nd Brigade of the 36th Division. Illiterate, a former bandit, cruel; very likely to use torture, ultimately loyal only to himself.

     

Soviets

 

  • Garegin A. Apresoff - the senior Soviet consul to Sinkiang; his office is in Urumchi, but he moves around between the various Soviet-influenced cities. A specialist in central Asian affairs; speaks Farsi, Arabic, Turkish, Mandarin Chinese, French, English (and of course Russian).

  • General Bekteev - a Soviet officer, commander of the Southern Front (that is, everything to do with Sinkiang). He reports in turn to the Central Asian Military District commander in Tashkent.

  • Adi Karimovich Malikov - senior Soviet military adviser to the provincial governor.

  • Brigadier-General Pogodin - NKVD officer in charge of the provincial secret police. Technically his rank is "Commissar Second Grade of State Security". His boss is Artur Artuzov, back in Moscow, a Commissar First Grade.

     

White Russians

 

  • Colonel Chernev - a White Russian officer, commander of the White Guards

 

Other Nationalities

 

  • Colonel John William Thomson-Glover, CBE - an Indian Army officer (formerly of the 35th Sikhs), appointed as the British consul-general in Sinkiang since about 1932; his wife is also there. The consulate at Kashgar is supervised by the Foreign and Political Department of the Government of India, and has a large and powerful radio transmitter (since November of 1934). The consular guard force are fifteen Hunzas from the Gilgit Scouts, with SMLE rifles.

  • H.A.N. Barlow - the British vice-consul.

  • Sven Anders Hedin - b. 1865, a Swedish explorer and surveyor. He knows more of the geography of the basin and mountains than anyone else. He is also working with the Ahnenerbe, although it is not known whether he is aware of their more sinister intentions.

  • Peter Fleming - British traveler and journalist, older brother of Ian Fleming

  • Ella "Kini" Maillart - a Swiss traveler and writer

    • these two travelers are present in the Summer of 1935

  • Folke Bergman - Swedish archaeologist and explorer

     

Political Situation

 

(see chapter I and II in the linked text)

 

     Nominally a province of China, the region is embroiled in chaos; China's hold on Xinjiang is weak. After the death of the last long-serving governor in 1928, there have been frequent rebellions, shifting alliances, insurrections and civil wars at least once a year. Since the mid-Twenties, the KMT has little control over the provincial government; the governor is heavily influenced by (and bribed by) the Soviets. The towns and cities are filled with spies and conspiracies. The Uighur nationalist movement is growing; despite being the majority of the population, the Uighurs are oppressed by the Chinese everywhere. The governor has established a secret police force, the Pau-an-tui (Security Preservation Force), with NKVD advisors. 

 

     (Peter Fleming reports on the end of a speech given by a Chinese general in Kashgar):  " ... (General Liu) brought his speech to an end with the disarming admission that he had not the faintest recollection of what he had been saying or why he had said it. Whereupon, with a loud cry of "Y.M.C.A.!", he started to dance, uncertainly but with great vigour, and in this impromptu exhibition Kini was soon persuaded to join him. Nobody was assassinated."

 

     A Soviet adviser reported:

 

     "The (current provincial officials) took over all the worst methods of the old Chinese district chiefs. Torture and beatings of those arrested in order to obtain confessions are used more than before. A ‘normal’ inventory for a judge or police chief consists of a leather plait for striking the cheeks, a three-edged stick for beating the thighs, a mallet for hitting the ankles, blocks for squeezing the feet, and finally, a stand to hold the suspect up, who is no doubt weak from having his shins pounded."

     “(provincial military officers are) illiterate, lacking initiative, cowardly, robbing their own soldiers… Naturally, a starving army, systematically robbed by its commanders, would turn to supplying itself at the expanse of the population, engaging in raids, marauding, and looting.”

 

     Soviet influence began growing in December of 1933. Beginning in June of 1935, Soviet engineers, advisers, and political agents begin arriving in the cities. They are establishing Russian-language schools, opening drinking establishments (to counter Muslim influence, it is said), mocking mullahs, spreading atheism and Marxist-Leninist propaganda, hanging photographs of Sun Yat Sen and Stalin in mosques; all the while claiming to support the KMT through the governor. The Soviet-Sinkiang Trading Company, usually known as Sovsintorg, is an important financial tool for the Soviets. While less likely to be lazy or bribed, the Soviet agents and advisers are often recalled or liquidated due to mysterious political currents back in the Soviet Union. Any of them gathering too much money is likely to come to the attention of the Division for the Fight Against the Embezzlements and Speculations of the Socialist Property. 

 

This is Armenian Radio; our listeners asked us: “Why are Soviet advisers always sent in teams of three?”

We’re answering: “The advisers are always chosen in such a way that one of them knows how to read,

the other how to write, and the third one, naturally, has to keep watch over those two intellectuals.”

 

     Under Soviet influence, governor Sheng has issued a provincial flag, red with a yellow six-pointed star in the center. The Nationalist (KMT) flag is still sometimes flown, as well.

 

Military Forces

 

36th Division

 

     A unit of the Nationalist Army. Recruited originally from Chinese Muslims of the Gansu province (Tungans), but by now about half of the troops are Turkic Uighurs; officers speak Mandarin Chinese. The commander is Ma Hu-Shan. There are three cavalry brigades (2,000 men each), a regiment of infantry, 25 machineguns, and a dozen old breech-loading cannon (from before 1911). Currently the division occupies the southern part of Sinkiang, in the Khotan area; the officers are divided on the question of either taking over more of Sinkiang, starting with Kashgar; or, returning to Gansu province. The Uighur population of Khotan resents the division greatly; confiscation, requisition, taxation, and plain robbery are used to support the division. Uniforms are greenish-yellow, with KMT insignia; most rifles are .303" SMLE, machineguns are mostly .303" Vickers, with some MP18 submachineguns and full-auto Mauser pistols. The troops carry big "dao dao" swords, and are very well-trained (especially by Chinese standards).

 

Provincial Forces

 

     The government troops are poorly equipped and led. Not much of their pay reaches them, they don't receive enough food, their barracks are falling down, and training is nonexistent. There are 14 units, mostly garrison troops. Small arms total 16,000 weapons - a mix of  random Great War bolt-action weapons (Moisin-Nagant, SMLE, Mausers, Carcanos, Mannlichers, etc.); British Lee-Enfields seem to have been preferred however. Handguns are Nagant revolvers and C/96 Mauser pistols, with some full-auto Mauser pistols and MP18 submachineguns thrown in. The troops possess 107 light machineguns (probably Degtyaryovs and Lewis guns, maybe some Madsen guns or ZB26) and 130 heavy machineguns (either Maxim guns or Vickers guns). 50 pieces of artillery are available (probably 75mm French and 76mm Russian guns, plus a few mountain guns), most of which are out of service. Half a dozen FAI armored cars and some Polikarpov Po-2 reconnaissance bombers and Polikarpov R-5 utility airplanes are at Urumchi and Kashgar, mostly wrecked or broken down. When the aircraft are working, however, they often turn the tide of battle by dropping a few 25 kg HE bombs (and sometimes mustard gas bombs). The provincial forces do have plenty of ammunition. All units have Chinese commanders, a Soviet senior advisor to the commander, a Soviet training NCO, and a Soviet political officer; these Red officers have only been in the country six months or so. Enlisted men are mostly Chinese (in garrisons) or Uighurs (in the cavalry). Uniforms (when present) are blueish-gray, with KMT insignia. Components are:

 

    • garrison troops at Urumchi, Chitai, Hami, Turfan, Charkhlik, Cherchen, Aksu, Kashgar and Yarkand.  Nominally about 1,000 men each. While nominally "motorized infantry" units, none of them will operate where their trucks can't go, and their trucks can hardly go anywhere.

    • four cavalry squadrons

    • the armored car / aviation company

 

the 6th Altai Cavalry Regiment

 

     In appearance, a unit of White Russians employed by the provincial government forces, wearing Tsarist uniforms and KMT insignia. Actually, entirely a Soviet force, with half-a-dozen FAI armored cars and a battery of 76mm artillery. Small arms are entirely standard Soviet equipment. Last year (1934) there was a major Soviet incursion, invited in by the governor to help quell an uprising. The Soviets (slightly disguised as Whites) mostly departed, but left this unit and many advisers.

 

Chernev's White Guards

 

     A significant mercenary force, 2,200 cavalry (formed as two regiments, more or less) and a battalion of horse-artillery; has gone though several changes of commanders in recent years; members are Whites and their children. Their home is in the Yili Valley. Uniforms and weapons are Tsarist, with insignia changing as needed, uniforms replaced, and some equipment picked up over the last 15 years -- sort of a "George Washington's hatchet" situation.

 

the 32nd and 33rd Cavalry Regiments

 

     Provincial military units, based near Kashgar, and actually under the control of Ma Shih-Chang. Soldiers and officers are Uighurs; there are three Soviet advisers with this unit as well. Small arms are various Great War bolt-action weapons. Blue-ish gray uniforms with KMT insignia.

 

Media

 

     Here's some film shot in the Thirties in Sinkiang, along with some modern documentary stuff.

 

Sources

 

  • News from Tartary: A Journey from Peking to Kashmir, by Peter Fleming, Alden Press 1936

  • Warlords and Muslims in Chinese Central Asia: A Political History of Republican Sinkiang 1911-1949, by Andrew Forbes, Cambridge University Press 1986

  

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