An Inventory of Individual Equipment of the Kuomintang's 74th Division During the Chinese Liberation War: Not All Equipment on Soldiers Was American-Made

During the Chinese Liberation War, the Reorganized 74th Division was a top-tier elite unit of the Kuomintang army. It not only was equipped with a large amount of American-style weaponry, but also had a scale and combat effectiveness close to that of a division in the U.S. Army during World War II.

However, the individual equipment of ordinary soldiers was rather mixed. After the end of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Kuomintang army also received a large amount of Japanese-style equipment, which continued to be used to equip its troops during the Chinese Liberation War. Therefore, not every officer and soldier of the 74th Division was equipped with American-made items; a mix of American-style and Japanese-style equipment was also possible.

So, in this article, we will talk about the individual equipment of ordinary soldiers in the Kuomintang 74th Division during the Chinese Liberation War.

Ⅰ.Japanese-made Type 90 Steel Helmet

After the end of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Kuomintang army seized a large quantity of weapons and equipment left by the Japanese army. Besides various types of Japanese-style firearms and artillery, this also included a large number of Japanese Type 90 Steel Helmets.

When the Chinese Liberation War began, the captured Japanese Type 90 Steel Helmets continued to be used to equip Kuomintang soldiers.

Despite the fact that most of the elite 74th Division was equipped with American-style gear, for ordinary soldiers on the front lines, the majority of them did not wear American-style steel helmets. Instead, many wore Japanese Type 90 Steel Helmets, and even a large number of soldiers had no steel helmets at all.

II. American-style Imitation Combat Soft Cap

Starting from the latter part of 1945, the Kuomintang army began to phase out the German-style imitation mountain caps used during the War of Resistance Against Japan and replaced them with American-style imitation combat soft caps.

This type of combat soft cap had a similar appearance to the officers' broad-brimmed caps, featuring a tall brim and a thick sun visor. However, the soldiers' caps were of relatively poor workmanship, focusing on simplicity and practicality to facilitate large-scale equipping. As a result, the materials used were ordinary, and there was no inner lining inside the cap. When squeezed, the brim would become severely deformed, which is why it was called a "soft cap".

During the Chinese Liberation War, this American-style imitation combat soft cap was not only equipped by the U.S.-armed 74th Division, but also widely used by soldiers of other Kuomintang units.

III. Military Uniforms

Although the 74th Division was a U.S.-armed unit during the Chinese Liberation War, only its senior officers were equipped with American-style military uniforms. The uniforms of junior officers and ordinary soldiers remained inconsistent, with no adoption of American-style ones.

Instead, they continued to use the Republic of China (ROC) Model 24 military uniforms from the 1930s. Only minor modifications were made to the collars and buttons, while the overall style remained unchanged.

The summer version of the military uniform was generally khaki, while the winter version was thickened and its fabric was changed to green or khaki.

IV. American-style Canvas Belt

Most of the belts for ordinary soldiers of the 74th Division were American-made, belonging to the U.S. M36 series. This was the same style used by the U.S. Army and Marine Corps during World War II.

As an American-made item, the M36 series belt was generously constructed with materials. The entire belt was woven from heavy canvas, and there was a row of eyelets at regular intervals to fit the waist sizes of different soldiers.

The belt was also equipped with adjustable metal buckles at the front and back, allowing for quick and easy donning and doffing.

V. Rubber Shoes

After the outbreak of the Chinese Liberation War, the Kuomintang army had basically phased out the cloth shoes and straw shoes used earlier and began to extensively equip its troops with rubber shoes. Compared with the early multi-layer cloth-soled shoes, these rubber shoes were more wear-resistant and better suited for military operations.

At that time, although the Kuomintang 74th Division had introduced a large number of American-style combat boots and also captured Japanese woven boots, these were generally equipped to officer guards or other special units. Most officers and soldiers on the front lines wore rubber shoes and also had to wear leg wrappings.

Additionally, this type of rubber shoe equipped by the Kuomintang army served as the prototype for the Liberation Shoes used by the Chinese military after the founding of the People's Republic of China. This shoe was further developed and popularized in China, remaining in use until the early 21st century when it was completely replaced by modern military boots.

VI. Leg Wrappings

As for leg wrappings, it goes without saying that both the PLA (People's Liberation Army) and the Kuomintang army at that time-from ordinary soldiers to grassroots commanders-were basically each equipped with a pair.

The American-style 74th Division was no exception; both the elite guards of officers and ordinary soldiers fighting on the front lines were also equipped with leg wrappings.

VII. Japanese-made Type 94 Canteen

The types of military canteens used by the officers and soldiers of the 74th Division back then were quite mixed. There were domestically produced 0.8-liter military canteens made in China during the War of Resistance Against Japan, captured Japanese Type 94 military canteens, and later imported U.S. M1910 series canteens.

However, for ordinary soldiers, the most commonly used one was still the Japanese Type 94 canteen. This was because after the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Kuomintang army received a large amount of stockpiled Type 94 canteens, and when the Chinese Liberation War broke out, these canteens were basically all equipped to frontline soldiers.

Although the Japanese-made Type 94 canteen was not very attractive in appearance, it was quite practical. Its body was oval-shaped and could hold approximately 1 liter of drinking water.

VIII. Springfield M1903 Rifle

The infantry of the 74th Division were equipped with relatively good weapons during the Chinese Liberation War: imported U.S. Springfield M1903 bolt-action rifles. These rifles had not been re-chambered and fired the original 7.62×63mm Springfield rifle ammunition. Compared with the domestically produced Chiang Kai-shek rifle (Type 24 rifle) and the captured Japanese Arisaka Type 38 rifle, they had a longer range and greater lethality.

This rifle was originally the standard-issue rifle of the U.S. military during World War I. By the 1940s, it was already obsolete. After the U.S. military fully replaced it with the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle, most of the Springfield M1903 rifles were phased out-and most of these obsolete rifles were sold to the Kuomintang army.

Though it was an unremarkable obsolete weapon of the U.S., it was still an American-style weapon after all. Therefore, it was regarded as a good rifle by the Kuomintang army, which even gave it the nickname "Huaci Zhongzhengshi" (American-style Chiang Kai-shek Rifle).

IX. M1923 Ammunition Pouch

In addition to the early-issue ammunition pouches, some infantrymen of the 74th Division were also equipped with U.S.-made M1923 ammunition pouches, which were designed to match the Springfield M1903 rifles.

The M1923 ammunition pouch was belt-like in structure and also made of canvas, with adjustable hooks at both ends. The entire set consisted of 10 ammunition compartments; when loaded with 5-round stripper clips, it could hold a total of 50 rounds of ammunition.

In addition to being usable with the Springfield M1903 rifle, it could also be used with the U.S. M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle. Moreover, this type of ammunition pouch was widely used by the U.S. military during World War II to hold the M1 Garand's 8-round clips.

X. Wooden-handled Hand Grenades

During the Chinese Liberation War, besides a small number of American-style hand grenades equipped to its soldiers, the majority of ordinary infantrymen in the 74th Division were still equipped with domestically produced Gong-made wooden-handled hand grenades.
As a large quantity of this type of hand grenade had been produced during the War of Resistance Against Japan, there was naturally a large stockpile of them. When the Chinese Liberation War broke out, these hand grenades continued to be issued to soldiers for use.

During combat, a Kuomintang soldier usually carried two of these grenades, along with a canvas grenade carrying pouch. This pouch was hung around the soldier's neck during operations for easy access.

The above is the individual equipment of ordinary soldiers in the Kuomintang 74th Division during the Chinese Liberation War. If there are any errors or shortcomings in the text, your comments and suggestions for improvement are greatly appreciated. For more information, please remember to follow us-we will continue to update with the next episode.