The New Battle Plan
(November 8, 1936)
To the five comrades Zhu [De] and Zhang [Guotao], Peng [Dehuai], and He
[Long] and Ren [Bishi]:

1. Since all units under Hu [Zongnan], Mao [Bingwen], Wang [Jun], and
Guan [Linzheng] are advancing northward, it is impossible to continue to carry
out our Ningxia plan for the time being.
2. We have decided to make the following new plan:
a. The main forces of the three front armies will be conducting operations in
the area from Guanqiaobao to Jinji and Lingwu in November, hoping to
wipe out one unit of the enemy forces in one or two campaigns. Try to get
some rest and make preparations, and let the enemy believe that we are
going to cross the river, thus luring Hu's division to move northward, and
inducing Guan's division to advance to Shizuizi, and Wang Yizhe to advance to Yuwang.
b. Set out in two groups after the first ten days of December.
c. The First and Second Front armies will form the southern group. The first
step is to take the area of Zhenyuan, Xifeng, Heshui, Zhengning, and
Ningxian; the second step is to take the area of Tongguan, Yaozhou,
Chunhua, Zhongbu, Nijun, Luochuan, and Fuxian; the third step is to take
the area of Hancheng, Nichuan, and Yanchang. Try to extend the time for
these three steps as much as you possibly can. We estimate that this will
allow us to maneuver for about three months. The task is not to wipe out
Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng but, rather, to expand the soviet areas,
expand the Red Army, and solve the problem of supplies.
d. The two armies of the Fourth Front Army will constitute the Northern
Route Army, wait in the Lingwu and Yanchi area for the opportunity, and
set out after the resistance war in eastern Suiyuan has begun. The first step
is in the Anbian area, where we must find a way to take Anbian City. The
second step is in the Hengshan-Yulin area, and we should act as though we
were feigning an attack on these two cities to lure the two Gaos¹ as well as

Our source for this text is Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 1, pp. 652-55, where it is
reproduced from a manuscript copy in the Central Archives.
1. The "two Gaos" were Gao Guizi and Gao Shuangcheng, respectively, commanders
of the Eighty-fourth and Eighty-sixth divisions of the Shaanxi-Suiyuan-Ningxia
Bandit-Suppression Headquarters.
the Twenty-first Division to come north for reinforcement, so that we can
regain the Washi and Yanchuan area, and lure the remaining shattered
enemy troops in Shenfu to the west. The third step is in the Shenfu area,
and we should arrive at the banks of the Yellow River at the same time as
the Southern Route Army.
e. Choose an appropriate time to start building boats in the three different
places of the two Yans,² Qingsui, and Shenfu, and prepare to cross the
river and enter Shanxi.
f. If by then we have succeeded in reaching a compromise with Chiang
[Kaishek] and Yan [Xishan], then we will act according to the agreement.
g. If by then a compromise has not been reached, we will launch the eastern
expedition.
h. After entering Shanxi, if we can participate in the resistance against Japan
on the basis of an agreement, we will begin to resist Japan.
i. If we are unable to resist Japan, then our first step is to take the Tongpu
Railway³ to launch a campaign and expand the Red Army. As our second
step, if there is still no hope that Chiang and Yan will compromise and there
are too many difficulties in the eastern expedition, but, on the other hand,
Chiang's troops in Shaanxi and Gansu have been moved to the east, we can
still come back to Shaanxi and Gansu. If it is advantageous to go toward the
east, we will advance to the point where Hebei, Henan, and Shanxi intersect.
Moreover, according to the plan, our third step is to march to the point where
Hebei, Shandong, and Henan meet, and cross the Yellow River there. The
fourth step is to go to [the intersection of] Anhui, Henan, and Shandong. The
fifth step is to go to [the intersection of] Hubei, Henan, and Anhui. The sixth
step is to go to [the intersection of] Hubei, Henan, and Shaanxi. After that we
can come back again to the Northwest, and we plan to accomplish this in one
to two years.
j. The purpose of the second through the sixth steps is to expand our political
influence, expand the Red Army, strive for the victory of the united front
in the whole country, strive to reach an agreement with Nanjing, and strive
for a war of resistance.
k. Xu [Xiangqian]'s and Chen [Changhao]'s troops will constitute the Western Route Army, whose task is to set up base areas on the western bank of
the river and fight through to create a direct passage to the distant place.4
We plan to accomplish this in one year.
3. The preceding new plan has not yet been finally decided upon, and we

2. The two Yans refers to Yanchang and Yanchuan in Shaanxi Province.
3. The Tongpu Railway was a narrow-gauge line, running from Datong in northern
Shanxi to Puzhou Village in the southeastern corner of the province, which was just in the
process of completion at this time.
4. The term "the distant place" (yuanfang) is a coded reference to the Soviet Union.