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Taiwan was the principal Nationalist refuge after the Communist victory on the Mainland. There were also a number of small islands, some very close to the coast that Nationalist tried to hold. The islands in reality had little strategic value, but figured extensively in Cold War politics during the 1950s. In particular it was a way that the Communists could easily hammer the Nationalists with few consequences. Chinese shelling of Quemoy and Matsu in particular reflected twists and turns in difficult to follow Chinese politics. The American policy toward Communist China was largely determined by the Korean War which was a major factor in the subsequent security commitment to the Nationalists on Taiwan. [Clubb] A major issue became whether the United States should include the islands in the Taiwan defense perimter. The Communists wanted them as the first step in invading Taiwan and finally defeating the Nationalists. The Nationalists wanted them as part of their dream of retaking the Mainland. Some like Quemoy and Matsu they did manage to hold on to, repulsing a Communist invasion force. They went on to be a major flash point in the Cold War. Others the Communists sucessfully seized and still others were evacuated by the Nationalists. The U.S. handling of the crises largely fell to Presidents Truman and Eisenhower. The issue became a subject of debate in the United States 1960 presidential election between Senator John F. Kennedy and Vice President Richard M. Nixon. Over the years, the vCommunidts managed to seize most of the offshore islands with the exception of Quemoy and Matsu.
The Nationalist in addition to Taiwan held on to several small islands much closer to the coast. The best known were Quemoy and Matsu. They were just 8 miles off the mainland coast. Matsu is a single island, while Quemoy is a group consisting of Quemoy, Little Quemoy, and 12 islets in Xiamen Bay. The Communists planed to inade Taiwan ans destroy the Nationalists in the final battle of the Civil War. The first step in the invasion was to seize Quemoy. The Communists landed on Quemoy in force (October 1, 1949). The resulting fighting is known as the Battle of Kuningtou/Jinmen. After bloody fighting, the Nationalists prevailed. This was a rare Nationalist victory in the Civil War. It was important because at the time the United States was not committed to the defense of Taiwan and thus the Nationslists were on theor own. The Communists realized, however, that if they could not take Quemoy, that sucessfully invading Taiwan was impossible until they had developed a much greater naval and air capability. Chiang ordered that these small islands be fortified seeing them as the route for a future campaign to retake the mainland. The Communists did overun some islands north of Taiwan. The Nationalists were able, however, to hold Quemoy and Matsu. The islands became political footballs. At times Chiang prvoked Mao and at other times Mao ordered the provcations. As the islands were in artillery range, such provocations were a simple matter.
Hainan like Taiwan was a very substantial island. It was closer to the coast than Taiwan. After the estanlishment of the Chinese Republic and World War I, Hainan became a hotbed of Communist activity. After Chiang Kai-shek orecestrated a bloody suppression of the Communists in Shanghai and other cities (1927), surviving Communists went into hiding. Up to this point, Chinese Communism had been a largely urban movement of workers. Hainan became one of the areas in China where Communist influences was most imbedded. The Japanese invaded China (1937). The ininial battles were in the north. The Japanese seized Hainan (1939). The Communists and the Li natives resisted the Japanese in a determined guerrilla campaign. The Japanese response was brutal. The Japanese to defeat the resistance killed about a third of the island's male population. Feng Baiju led the Hainan Independent Column of fighters against first the Nationalists and than the Japanese. After the Japanese surrender (1945), control of the island was transferred to the Nationalists. Hainan proved to be the last areaof China the Nationalist took possession of from the Japanese. The Communists carried out landings on the island (March-May 1950). Feng Baiju and his guerrilla fighters played an key role in the Communist success. They not only scouted the landing sites, but helped to disrtract the defending Nationalist forces by launcing attacks. This and the closeness to the coast were key factors in the Communist victory.
The Communists seized the Wanshan Islands off Guangdong (May-August 1950).
The Communists seized Zhoushan Island off Zhejiang (May 1950).
The Tachen Islands are located north of Taiwan off the coast of Chekiang/Zhejiang Province. The Nationalists maintained control of the islands after the Communist victory on the Mainland. The Nationalists governed the islands as the capital of Chekiang Province. As othervislsnds fell to the Communists, the Natiionalists buiklt up their defenses and managed to hold on to the Tachen Islands. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) began a military buildup along the coast facing the islands (January 1955). Communist forces on the Chinese mainland threatening the Nationalist stronghold for several weeks. The Nationalists wanted to maintain control of the islands, but the United States to help defuse tensions in the Taiwan Straits wanted the Nationalists to withdraw. The withdrawl began days after the U.S. Senate voted to ratify the Nationalist Chinese-American defence treaty which committed the Unites States to defend the Nationalists on Taiwan. The Nationalists then agreed to the evacuation. It occured during the First Taiwan Strait Crisis. The United States Seventh Fleet deployed 132 boats and 400 aircraft to evacuate 14,500 civilians, 10,000 military personnel, and 4,000 guerrilla fighters (February 1955). The U.S. Navy also removed 40,000 tons of military equipment and supplies. The PLA did not interfere with the evacuation, but didcfire on American patrol aircraft. The PLA occupied the islands 3 days after it was completed.
Clubb, O. Edmund. "Formosa and the Offshore Islands in American Policy, 1950-1955," Political Science Quarterly
Vol. 74, No. 4 (December, 1959), pp. 517-31.
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