Qualla: Battle of Liaoyang

Battle of Liaoyang: Introduction

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit P. F. Collier & Son, Public domain. Both sides chose Liaoyang for the same reason: it was supposed to end the war. The city sat at the heart of Russia's military infrastructure in southern Manchuria, a major population center straddling the rail line that connected Port Arthur to Mukden. The Imperial Russian Army had fortified it with three concentric rings of defenses. For General Aleksey Kuropatkin, it was the place to finally stop the Japanese advance. For Field Marshal Oyama Iwao, it was the prize that would break Russia's grip on Manchuria. In late August 1904, the two armies collided outside the city walls, and the collision changed the course of the war.

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Image: P. F. Collier & Son | Public domain

Battle of Liaoyang: The Converging Armies

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit loki11, Public domain. After Japanese forces landed on the Liaodong Peninsula, Oyama divided his strength into three armies moving on Liaoyang from different directions. General Kuroki Tamemoto's 1st Army approached through Motien Pass from the east, General Oku Yasukata's 2nd Army advanced along the r...

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Image: loki11 | Public domain

Battle of Liaoyang: Kuropatkin's Gamble

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Victor K. Bulla., Public domain. The Russian commander had a different strategy in mind, and it put him at odds with his own superiors. Kuropatkin planned a fighting retreat, trading territory for time while reinforcements arrived from European Russia via the newly completed Trans-Siberian Railroad. He calculate...

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Image: Victor K. Bulla. | Public domain

Battle of Liaoyang: Eyes in the Sky

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. One of the battle's more unusual features was the Russian use of observation balloons, which provided aerial monitoring of the Japanese troop movements across the Manchurian plains. Crews of balloon handlers managed tethered platforms that swayed above the battlefield, giving Rus...

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Image: Public domain

Battle of Liaoyang: A Victory That Felt Like Defeat

Sat, 14 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Fritz Neumann, Public domain. The battle raged from late August into early September 1904, with the Japanese gradually tightening their grip on the city's outer defenses. Though Kuropatkin's forces fought hard and inflicted significant casualties on the attackers, the Russian commander ultimately ordered a wi...

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Image: Fritz Neumann | Public domain