When the Americans had not recovered from the Pearl Harbor incident and the war against Japan was in a difficult situation, a marine officer led the troops and won the first victory of the US military in the war against Japan on a small island in the Pacific Ocean, which inspired the American people and became a well-known hero. This officer is Navy Colonel Evans Carlson. However, who would have thought that Carlson's victory was the result of the flexible use of guerrilla tactics by the Eighth Route Army.

Climb mountains and learn skills from guerrillas.

Carlson 1896 was born in a pastor's family and joined the US Army at the age of 16. In the 1920s, he was sent to China. After that, he visited China many times and became good friends with edgar snow, a famous international friend.

At the beginning of the Anti-Japanese War, he came to China again as an American naval intelligence officer. In Shanghai, he met his old friend Si Nuo. Si Nuo gave him the newly finished Red Star over China. From the book, he learned about the unique fighting methods of * * *, Zhu De, Zhou Enlai and the Eighth Route Army, and he yearned for the red base areas. He said to Si Nuo, "I want to meet you people who are like God. I think it's very important to find out how they fought with the Japanese in the Northwest Red Zone. Maybe one day they will need it. " 1937 65438+In early February, Carlson went to the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army in Shanxi after many twists and turns and met with Commander-in-Chief Zhu De and political commissar. In the next 20 days, he learned about the political and ideological work and flexible guerrilla tactics of the Eighth Route Army from the two leaders. He was very excited and decided to live, fight and learn guerrilla tactics with the Eighth Route Army.

On February 26th, 1937, 1937, Carlson set out with the Eighth Route Army on his back. Under the watchful eye of Zhu De, their goal was the Shanxi front. The army crossed the village and climbed the mountain, skillfully maneuvering and weaving, which made Card marvel at every movement. A year later, the 600-member detachment of this unit carried out the task of intercepting the Japanese army, and Carlson did not hesitate to follow the action. This time, the task is very arduous, and the team must arrive at the destination more than 90 kilometers away in the shortest time. That night, the team set out. They braved the cold, crossed deep valleys, forests and rapids, and rushed forward at the speed of urgent marching. Carlson barely kept up with the team with his physique trained in the United States Marine Corps.

After 32 hours, the team finally reached the destination and successfully completed the interception task. The exhausted Carlson was surprised to find that although every soldier was extremely tired, no one left behind. He asked a soldier, "How can you not fall behind?" The soldier's answer made Carlson unforgettable. The soldier said, "if a man has only two legs, he will fall behind." But I have two legs and a brain. I understand the significance of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, and I know what this action means to the whole campaign. " Later, Carlson came to Yan 'an, where the Eighth Route Army was brave and tenacious in fighting spirit.

And flexible guerrilla warfare left a deeper impression on him.

Establish the Marine Corps according to the standards of the Eighth Route Army.

1942 February, the Pacific War reached its most difficult moment. After returning to China, Carlson was ordered by the US Navy to form a new type of Marine Corps, which was specially responsible for the attack mission and was called the "attacker" battalion. This battalion needs to select members from good soldier. Carlson always remembered the words of the Eighth Route Army soldier, and he decided to build this special army into an Eighth Route Army-style team. According to the regulations, the quota of this unit is 1 0,000, and there are 3,000 registered volunteers. Carlson decided to choose in his own unique way. On the day of admission, Carlson asked each volunteer the same question: "Why did you fight? What kind of war is this? What are we fighting for? 」

The answers are varied. Some people say, "Sir, I want to fight. Some said, "I want to go overseas quickly and come back soon." Others said, "I just want to join the commando. Carlson is not satisfied with this answer. Finally, he admitted those volunteers who mentioned "revenge for Pearl Harbor", "teach Japanese devils a lesson" and "eliminate fascism and militarism" when answering questions.

February is the rainy season in California. After a heavy rain, Elliot Barracks near San Diego was muddy, and the 1000 raid camp was expecting Carlson's first speech. Carlson's first sentence surprised all the soldiers: "We will eat, live, work and fight with you. We voluntarily gave up all our privileges. There was a slight commotion in the team, and the soldiers had never heard the chief say such things, because these words subverted the life tradition of the American army. Then, Carlson described the training they had to receive. He said: "You must practice not eating or sleeping, and March more than 50 miles every day;" You must also learn to fight in the jungle and shoot with all kinds of weapons in all kinds of imaginable positions. One day, I

Our only rations are food found on the bodies of Japanese devils. Finally, Carlson told them the story of the 600-member Eighth Route Army detachment. Since then, the "attacker" camp has a magnificent and powerful camp song, a slogan that embodies "unity" and "cooperation", and a management style that officers and men share weal and woe. Carlson won the trust of all officers and men, and he was affectionately called "the old man" by them.

Majin Island won the first battle.

On August 9th, 1942, a small task force composed of U.S navy submarines was ordered to leave Pearl Harbor base quietly and sail for gilbert islands (now Kiribati) 3,000 kilometers southwest. The submarine is equipped with 2 15 "attacker" battalion officers and soldiers. They will use the hit-and-run tactics of the Eighth Route Army to attack the Makin Atoll occupied by the Japanese, destroy the enemy's effective forces, destroy facilities, capture prisoners and collect archives.

/kloc-On the evening of 0/6, the submarine arrived in the sea area of Majin Island, but the weather suddenly deteriorated, the sea was stormy and the waves rolled, which brought great difficulties to landing and landing. Carlson boarded the watchtower, observed it for a while and said, "In this weather, the Japanese are definitely unprepared. We can take it by surprise. He ordered the officers and men to land on rubber boats immediately. In the rough sea, most of the engines of the rubber dinghy died. With the usual training in the waves, the officers and men tried their best to paddle to the coast and finally boarded Majin Island at 5: 30 am on 17.

It began to dawn and the morning fog gradually dispersed. Carlson sent several groups of patrols to search for Japanese troops on the island from different directions. Soon, gunshots rang out from the other side of the island. It turned out that the patrol met the Japanese army. Just then, three indigenous people came out of the Woods, and they were willing to provide information for the US military. Carlson learned that there were two or three hundred Japanese troops on the island, most of whom were concentrated in Wen Zhuang Wharf and Wuji Pass. I also learned that the Japanese army arranged many snipers in the jungle. He immediately radioed the submarine for artillery support. A few minutes later, shells roared overhead and exploded in the direction of Wen Zhuang Wharf and Wujiguan.

Subsequently, Carlson divided the troops into groups and launched a jungle guerrilla war with the Japanese army with various light and heavy weapons. The battle lasted for four hours, and Japanese seaplanes and Zero fighters from nearby islands came to reinforce. They frantically bombed and strafed the jungle, and the officers and men of the "attacker" battalion began to deal with the enemy skillfully. Carlson, on the other hand, runs between various combat teams, and with his unique calmness and composure, inspires the soldiers' confidence in defeating the enemy on an island far from the base and without retreat.

At 5 o'clock in the afternoon, the gunfire on makin island began to sparse, and the Japanese resistance became weaker and weaker. At 7: 30, Majin Island fell silent, and Carlson's task was completed, so he led the troops to retreat to the submarine by rubber boat.

In this battle, at the cost of 30 people, the "attacker" battalion wiped out more than 300 Japanese troops, destroyed 2 small transport ships, 2 radio stations and 2 seaplanes, and won the first victory of the US military since the outbreak of the Pacific War. When the news came, America was full of joy. * * * and Time magazine have made long reports on this; The New York Herald Tribune published an editorial entitled "The Attacker Carlson", which spoke highly of Carlson and the attacker.

Later, Carlson participated in the Battle of Guadalcanal (now Solomon Islands) with the attack battalion, and achieved good results.