The Yanzhou campaign (), also known as the campaign at the central section of the Tianjin-Pukou Railway (), was a series of battles fought between the nationalists and the communists for the control of the town Yanzhou (兖州), which is today under the administration of Jining, and the region to the north of the town in Shandong, China during the Chinese Civil War in the post World War II era, and resulted in communist victory. Prelude By the summer of 1948, military setbacks had forced the nationalist army in Shandong into the defensive. The nationalists withdrew into major cities such as Jinan and Qingdao while stationing some forces along the Tianjin-Pukou Railway to secure the communication / transportation line. The communists decided to deploy their units in Shandong to annihilate the enemy gradually in the region from Tai'an in the north to Xue City () in the south. This would lead to encircling Xuzhou by linking up with the communist forces in southwestern Shandong. The success of this campaign would assist another communist summer offensive, the Eastern Henan Campaign. To carry out the plan, the local communists in Shandong decided to first take Tai'an and the surrounding regions in the north and south, thus cutting off the link between Yanzhou and Jinan, and then take the isolated Yanzhou and ambush any nationalist reinforcement sent for the town. Order of battle Defenders: nationalist order of battle: The 10th Pacification Zone Command The Reorganized 12th Army The Reorganized 12th Division The 2nd Division The Reorganized 25th Division The Reorganized 84th Division Numerous local security divisions Attackers: communist order of battle: The 7th Column The 9th Column The 13th Column Units from the Central Shandong Military District Units from the Southern Shandong Military District First stage On May 29, 1948, the communist Shandong Corps launched its campaign against nationalist targets along the central section of the Tianjin-Pukou Railway, and forced the nationalist 155th Brigade of the Reorganized 84th Division guarding Tai'an to abandon the city and retreated northward. The communist forces were able to expand their victory from Tai'an northward and southward, and by June 20, 1948, other cities and towns including Dawenkou (), Qufu (east of Yanzhou), and Zoucheng (south of Yanzhou) had fallen into their hands. Meanwhile, Yanzhou was besieged by the communist 7th Column. By June 25, 1948, the nationalist stronghold outside the town, Four Pass () had fallen into