The 1991 San Diego Chargers season was the franchise's 22nd season in the National Football League (NFL), the 32nd overall and the third and final season under head coach Dan Henning. The team failed to improve on their 6–10 record in 1990, losing eight of their first nine games and finishing at 4-12, their fourth consecutive losing season.

San Diego's poor record contrasted with a roughly average statistical season. They struggled in close games, going 2–8 when the margin was seven points or fewer; during Henning's reign, they were a cumulative 6–22 in such games. The Chargers did manage some good wins, defeating two teams (the Los Angeles Raiders and the New Orleans Saints) who made the playoffs in 1991, and a third (the Miami Dolphins) who missed the postseason only because of their defeat in San Diego.

2nd-year quarterback John Friesz won a preseason battle with Billy Joe Tolliver for the starting role, but struggled throughout the season, throwing more interceptions than touchdowns. The Chargers' passing offense was among the NFL's weakest, but their running game, featuring Marion Butts, Rod Bernstine and Ronnie Harmon, ranked second in the league with over 2,200 yards. San Diego's defense regressed in ranking, dropping from 5th in total yardage the previous year to 19th in 1991. Despite this, Leslie O'Neal, Junior Seau and Gill Byrd again had strong seasons, with Seau voted to the first of 12 consecutive Pro Bowls.

Henning, together with his entire coaching staff, was fired by general manager Bobby Beathard the day after the season ended.

Offseason

Departures and arrivals

Lee Williams ended 1990 as the Chargers' career sack leader since records began in 1982, with 65½ through seven seasons. Williams was displeased at being asked to play defensive tackle, and wanted to renegotiate his contract. He became a holdout, and was threatening legal action to void his existing contract when Beathard opted to trade him to Houston, shortly before the season began. In return, San Diego received the Oilers' 1st-round draft pick in 1992, as well as rookie wide receiver Shawn Jefferson.

Billy Joe Tolliver, who had started fourteen games the previous season, lost a training camp battle with John Friesz for the starting quarterback role. Friesz was named the starter on August 23, in the aftermath of the Chargers' final preseason game. Only five days later, Tolliver was traded to the Atlanta Falcons for their 5th-round pick in the 1992 draft, Another quarterback, Mark Vlasic, was left unprotected from Plan B free agency, and signed for the Kansas City Chiefs in March. Vlasic had started once for the Chargers the previous season, and three times in total. Other offensive departures included wide receiver Quinn Early, a 2nd-round pick in 1988 who was left exposed to Plan B free agency after catching 55 passes in three seasons, and claimed by the New Orleans Saints. Veteran tight end Arthur Cox was released midseason, on October 29. After joining the Chargers as a free agent in 1988, he had been a starter through most of his first three seasons, but had seen less time in 1991. Dan Henning described Cox's performance in practice as "inconsistent", while general manager Bobby Beathard said the player had committed numerous errors.

While the Chargers defense had ranked fifth in the league the previous season, Beathard announced soon after the season ended that starting safety Vencie Glenn would not be retained in 1991. Glenn, a starter in 65 of the previous 67 games, was left unprotected in Plan B free agency, amid rumors of a lack of attention to conditioning, and a failure to report to training camp while negotiating a contract. Linebacker Cedric Figaro was also left unprotected: he had started fourteen games in 1989, but only one in 1990 with rookie Junior Seau preferred. Nose tackle Les Miller, a starter in ten games the previous year, joined Early as a Plan B signing for the Saints.

In total, the Chargers lost a league-high eleven players through Plan B free agency, while signing eight players, none of whom were considered big names. Two of these players would go on to start every game during the Chargers' 1994 Super Bowl run, however. Safety Darren Carrington played in all 64 regular season games during his four years in San Diego, starting 35 and intercepting 19 passes; tackle Harry Swayne had accumulated only three starts in four years in Tampa Bay, but started 74 in six years with the Chargers. They also signed journeyman quarterback Bob Gagliano to compete for the starting job.

Shawn Jefferson, who came to San Diego in the Lee Williams trade, caught only twelve passes in his first season as a Charger, but would increase his production in each of the next four years, and was another 1991 acquisition who went on to start every game in 1994.

NFL Draft

The Chargers had the ninth pick in the draft - they used this on Stanley Richard, a safety Beathard described as, "one of the top two football players in the draft," noting that he had the speed to play cornerback as well as safety. Chargers staff expected Richard to start games as a rookie. Despite a lengthy holdout (resolved on August 3), he did, with fourteen starts in 1991. During a four-season stint in San Diego, Richard would go on to start 60 regular season games, including all sixteen during the 1994 Super Bowl run.

San Diego had three 2nd-round selections. With the first of these, they selected defensive tackle George Thornton, who went on to start sixteen games in two seasons with the club. The second, acquired through the previous season's trade of Gary Anderson to Tampa Bay, was used on running back Eric Bieniemy. He scored four touchdowns in four years with the Chargers, backing up Marion Butts and later Natrone Means. Finally, Beathard agreed to a draft-day deal, sending the Chargers' 1992 1st-round pick to Washington in exchange for the Redskins' 2nd-round pick in 1991 and their 5th-round pick in 1992. He selected guard Eric Moten, who spent his six-year career in San Diego, starting 61 games despite a severe knee injury in 1993. Some analysts were surprised by the selection of Bieniemy, the Chargers already having a strong running game, and by the price paid for Moten.

In the later rounds, San Diego selected tight end Duane Young. Primarily a blocker, he had 38 receptions in 64 starts across five seasons with the Chargers. Wide receiver Yancey Thigpen was a Pro Bowler twice in his career. However, he achieved this in Pittsburgh, where he was traded after failing to make an impact during his solitary year in San Diego.

Personnel

Staff

Roster

Preseason

Ronnie Harmon made several big plays as the Chargers won their preseason opener against the Oilers. He was the top receiver in the game for either team, gaining 111 yards on three receptions, including touchdowns catches of 64 and 35 yards from Billy Joe Tolliver. He was also the top rusher, despite having only one carry: a 51-yarder that set up Tolliver's third touchdown pass. Tolliver's main rival for the starting quarterback role, John Friesz, connected with Yancey Thigpen for a touchdown of his own in the second half (neither passer was intercepted). Houston led 29–28 late in the game, but Donnie Elder's interception set up John Carney to hit the winning field goal from 27 yards out with 2:04 to play.

Having scored 31 points in their opener, the Chargers could only manage a total of 23 in their next three games, all losses. Head coach Dan Henning expressed disappointment with the performance of both quarterbacks after neither managed to complete 50% of their passes against the Rams, though Friesz was let down by Anthony Miller dropping a probable touchdown pass. The defense struggled the following week, letting 49ers' quarterback Steve Young break four tackles on a 47-yard touchdown run, and giving up another touchdown on a drive lasting over 12 minutes. Neither quarterback had over 100 passing yards, and rookie Eric Bieniemy scored the Chargers' only touchdown in the 4th quarter.

Friesz won the starting quarterback role in the final preseason game. After Tolliver had struggled, going 7 of 17 attempts for 94 yards, with an interception and a fumble lost, Friesz entered the game and completed 17 of 19 attempts for 210 yards, with a 34-yard touchdown to Miller and no interceptions. Henning said in the aftermath of the game, "We'll give John a chance to keep that spark going."

Regular season

Overview

John Friesz, a sixth-round draft pick for San Diego in 1990, started every game. He was the first Charger quarterback to do this since Dan Fouts in 1982. Friesz threw for 2,896 yards, while throwing 12 touchdowns and 15 interceptions: he had a passer rating of 67.1, falling short of the league average of 76.2. Anthony Miller was the Chargers' leading receiver despite spending the final three weeks of the season in injured reserve; the bulk of his 649 yards came in a run of four games from Weeks 7 through 11. He was supported by 2nd-year wide receiver Nate Lewis (554 yards) and running back Ronnie Harmon (555 yards from a team-high 59 receptions), but the Chargers ranked 24th of 28 in the league for passing yardage.

By contrast, the Chargers' running game was strong, their 2,248 yards ranking second in the league. Marion Butts, who had set a club record with 1,225 the previous season, held out through preseason, trying to force a contract renegotiation he believed Beathard had previously agreed to. On August 26, after accruing fines of approximately $57,000, Butts reported to the Chargers under the advice of his new agent Leigh Steinberg. Having returned, Butts had only 16 carries during the first three weeks of the season, and finished with 72 fewer carries than the previous season. Nonetheless, he led the team with 834 yards. Rod Bernstine saw increased opportunities while Butts was eased back in, rushing for 766 yards despite a three-game midseason stint on injured reserve. He also scored eight touchdowns, a career-high. Harmon added 544 yards at an average of 6.1 yards per carry; this was the league-wide best average yards per carry from any player who gained over 500 yards.

On defense, the Chargers had been the league's 5th-ranked unit the previous year, but slipped to 19th in 1991. Cornerback Gill Byrd led the team with six interceptions, while outside linebacker Leslie O'Neal had the most quarterback sacks with 9. Junior Seau, who made the first of twelve consecutive Pro Bowls, was second with 7 sacks and was credited by the Chargers with a team-leading 129 tackles, ahead of his fellow inside linebacker Gary Plummer with 111.

John Carney had a difficult year as the Chargers' kicker, making 19 of 29 field goals. His 65.5% conversion rate was joint-26th in the league. John Kidd's 40.3 yards per punt ranked 23rd in the league. Nate Lewis had a good year as a kickoff returner, scoring a touchdown and average 25.1 yards per return, second-best in the league. Kitrick Taylor was seventh in the league with 9.6 yards per punt return.

Schedule

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

All game reports use the Pro Football Researchers' gamebook archive as a source.

Week 1: at Pittsburgh Steelers

San Diego lost their opener after giving up a crucial late touchdown. Newly-installed starting quarterback John Friesz lost a fumble on the game's third play, and Gary Anderson put the Steelers ahead with a 38-yard field goal. Gill Byrd stopped the next two Steeler drives with interceptions of Bubby Brister, but the Chargers failed to convert either turnover into points, with John Carney missing a 36-yard kick after the second interception - he did, however, convert a career-high 48-yard attempt on the next Charger possession. Brister responded by leading a 9-play, 80-yard drive that ended with his touchdown pass to Chris Calloway, and the Steelers led 10–3 at halftime.

Pittsburgh dominated the 3rd quarter in terms of time of possession, holding the ball for over 11 minutes. Anderson added three further field goals, the last of these early in the final quarter, running the lead to 19–3. Ronnie Harmon's 23-yard run was the longest play on the ensuing drive, which ended with a successful trick play. Rod Bernstine took a handoff from Friesz and swept right, before pulling up and throwing to an unmarked Nate Lewis for an 11-yard touchdown. Friesz was intercepted on the first play of the next Charger drive, but the Steelers went three-and-out, and San Diego drove into range for a second successful Carney field goal, drawing to within six points with 2:14 to play. After receiving the kickoff, Pittsburgh was twice penalized and was faced with a 3rd and 19 from their own 11, with 1:44 still on the clock and San Diego holding two timeouts. Neil O'Donnell, in for an injured Brister, then threw a pass to Dwight Stone in the left flat; Stone took advantage of an Ernie Mills block on Donald Frank to break clear up the sideline for an 89-yard touchdown. The Chargers scored again through rookie wide receiver Shawn Jefferson, but no time remained on the clock by then.

John Friesz, who had completed over 89% of his passes in the final preseason game, failed to complete 50% in this game. He was 19 of 41 for 192 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. He had only 75 yards passing through the first three quarters. Dan Henning took over the playcalling duties from offensive coordinator Ted Tollner going into the final quarter; two days later, Henning fired Tollner and retained the offensive coordinator role himself for the rest of the season.

Week 2: at San Francisco 49ers

The Chargers failed to build on a strong start, as San Francisco pulled away in the second half. Donnie Elder returned the opening kickoff 42 yards to his own 44, and Rod Bernstine converted a 4th and 1 four plays later. After Bernstine picked up another first down, Marion Butts broke off a 22-yard gain before being brought down inches from the goal line. Friesz threw his only completion of the drive on the next play, faking a handoff before finding Craig McEwen in the right side of the end zone for a touchdown. San Francisco drove into Charger territory on their next three drives: on two of them, they settled for field goal tries, one of which was missed; on the third, Burt Grossman stopped Tom Rathman for no gain on 4th and inches from the 2. The 49ers broke through late in the first half, with Jerry Rice's leaping catch giving them the lead. San Diego responded quickly, with Anthony Miller's diving catch moving the ball 50 yards to the San Francisco 9, from where he scored two plays later on a quick slant. Only 1:55 remained in the half, but Steve Young led a quick 81-yard drive, finding John Taylor for a touchdown and a 17–14 halftime lead.

San Francisco maintained their momentum after the interval, with Rice catching a 70-yard touchdown pass after less than two minutes' play. The Charger defense looked to have given them a way back into the game on the next 49er possession, with George Hinkle forcing a fumble that Grossman recovered. San Diego took over on the opposition 19, but Friesz was sacked on first down and intercepted on third down. He threw a second interception on the next Charger possession, setting up a 49er touchdown, and a third late on in the game.

The Charger defense gave up 344 passing yards and 456 total yards, both of which would stand as season highs.

Week 3: vs. Atlanta Falcons

John Carney missed three field goals as the Chargers lost a battle of winless teams. San Diego failed to cross midfield on each of their first four possessions, punting each time while the Falcons built a 10–0 lead. Anthony Shelton then intercepted Atlanta quarterback Chris Miller at midfield, and Butts swept around right end for 44 yards on the next play. The Chargers were backed up by an Eric Moten holding penalty, but Friesz found Miller for a touchdown on 2nd and goal from the 15. Carney was short from 53 yards out on the next Charger drive. Atlanta drove into San Diego territory shortly before halftime, but a holding penalty caused the final seconds to be run off the clock, denying them a field goal attempt and keeping the score at 10–7.

Rod Bernstine lost a fumble near midfield in the 3rd quarter, and Atlanta converted the turnover into three points with a field goal. On the next possession, Friesz converted a 3rd and 18 with a 20-yard pass to Miller, then found Ronnie Harmon for a 36-yard gain on the next play. The drive stalled, and Carney was wide right on a 47-yard field goal try. Atlanta drove into Charger territory, but their kicker Norm Johnson also missed (short from 53 yards). Shawn Jefferson took an end-around 27 yards on the next play; San Diego reached a 4th and 7 on the Atlanta 21 with five minutes remaining, and opted for another field goal try, which Carney made from 39 yards out. Atlanta went three-and-out when Junior Seau stopped Steve Broussard for a loss of a yard on 3rd and 1. Following a punt, the Chargers began their final drive on their own 40, with 2:17 to play. Harmon had a 10-yard run, and Friesz converted a 3rd and 1 with a 5-yard pass to McEwen, before Carney was wide left on a 47-yard kick with five seconds to play.

Bernstine carried 12 times for 78 yards, and Butts 8 times for 63, as San Diego gained 184 of their 313 total yards on the ground. It was the Chargers' worst run of losses to open a season since 1975, when they started 0–11.

Week 4: at Denver Broncos

Missed opportunities cost the Chargers as they stayed winless. Bernstine converted a 4th and 1 on the game's opening drive, but they stalled on the edge of field goal range and had to punt. On Denver's first play, Martin Bayless forced Gaston Green to fumble, and Hinkle recovered at the Denver 28. Friesz underthrew an open Jefferson in the front of the end zone on the next play, and San Diego settled for a field goal. After Denver tied the game, Harmon took a screen pass 30 yards on 3rd and 16, moving the Chargers back into Denver territory. Friesz had another opportunity to throw a touchdown pass, but his hurried pass went over Miller's head as he broke alone into the end zone. San Diego again settled for a field goal, before driving once more into Denver territory on their next possession. Friesz was intercepted on a 3rd and 10 from the Denver 36, and the Broncos drove into field goal range, tying the score at 6–6 shortly before halftime.

Early in the second half, Seau read an out route, intercepted John Elway, and returned the ball 44 yards for an apparent touchdown. However, Burt Grossman had jumped offside, negating the score and enabling Denver to continue their drive, which ended with a touchdown run by Green which put the Broncos ahead to stay. After Carney pulled three points back with a 43-yard field goal, Gill Byrd dove to intercept Elway at the Bronco 33. Harmon then converted a 4th and 4 with a 5-yard catch, but the Chargers had to settle for another field goal, and a 13–12 deficit early in the final quarter. Only two plays later, Green broke away for a 63-yard touchdown. After an exchange of punts, the Chargers converted on fourth down for the third time in the game, this time with Butts gaining 2 yards on a 4th and 1. Three plays later, Butts bounced off a would-be tackler behind the line of scrimmage and broke upfield, where he hurdled another Bronco and broke through diving tackles from two more, completing a 27-yard touchdown run with 6:11 to play. Denver faced a 3rd and 12 on their next possession, but Elway converted with a 33-yard completion to a wide-open Mark Jackson. Green scored his third touchdown two plays later, and the Chargers' final possession ended with Friesz being sacked and losing a fumble in Bronco territory.

Bernstine rushed 18 times for 103 yards. Denver running back Gaston Green scored three touchdowns in this game but only five others throughout his NFL career.

Week 5: vs. Kansas City Chiefs

San Diego slipped to 0–5 despite shutting out the Chiefs in the second half. Rookie Kansas City running back Harvey Williams returned the opening kickoff for 76 yards, setting up a Christian Okoye touchdown only 79 seconds into the game. Nate Lewis returned the ensuing kickoff 41 yards to start the Chargers off at their own 46 yard line. Bernstine gained 14 yards on their first play from scrimmage, Harmon converted a 4th and 3 with an 18-yard reception, and Bernstine scored from 2 yards out on the ninth play of the drive. Stanley Richard snagged a Steve DeBerg pass for his first career interception on the next Chiefs drive, but DeBerg came back with a touchdown pass midway through the 2nd quarter. San Diego responded with two drives into Kansas City territory, but Friesz threw incomplete on 4th and 4 from the 37, and Carney hit the right upright on a 36 yard field goal attempt.

Trailing 14–7 entering the second half, San Diego opened up with a 61-yard drive. Friesz found Harmon and Bernstine for gains of 21 and 22 yards, but failed to notice an open McEwen in the end zone on 3rd and 7 from the 8. Friesz threw incomplete, and the Chargers settled for a Carney field goal. San Diego again went for it on fourth down on their next possession, but Friesz threw incomplete on 4th and 7 from the Kansas City 33. On the final play of the 3rd quarter, Miller appeared to have earned them a first down at the Chief 18, but Harmon was penalized for a chop block and they were forced to punt. In the final quarter, Butts took a short pass, bounced off a tackle near the line of scrimmage, and broke away for a 46-yard gain to the Kansas City 9. Three plays later, Friesz was sacked and fumbled; Derrick Walker was able to recover, enabling Carney to hit a second field goal and pull the Chargers within a point. The Chiefs, who had failed to gain a first down since their second touchdown, pick up four on their next drive, but Nick Lowery missed a 44-yard field goal with 3:11 to play. San Diego took over on their own 28, needing only a field goal to win. Friesz twice threw incomplete, before finding Harmon for 9 yards. On 4th and 1, Bernstine was stopped an inch short of a first down, and the Chiefs took over with 2:32 to play. After gaining a first down, they ran out the clock.

The Chargers lost despite outgaining the Chiefs (311 to 182), gaining more first downs (17 to 12), and forcing the game's only turnover. They had six drives inside the Chiefs' 40 yard line, but converted them into only one touchdown and two field goals. Bernstine had his second 100-yard game in a row, with 26 carries for 112 yards and a touchdown. Friesz completed less than half his passes for the fourth time in five games, with 10 completions from 25 attempts for 162 yards.

Week 6: at Los Angeles Raiders

The Chargers finally registered their first win of the season, surprising the 3–2 Raiders. Lewis returned the opening kickoff 56 yards to the Raider 41, but San Diego could only gain 4 yards and were forced to punt. They were in Raider territory on their next two drives as well, but punted both times, either side of a Los Angeles field goal drive. San Diego's fourth drive started at the Raider 48, as they continued to enjoy an advantage in starting field position. This time, they needed only seven plays to score, with Bernstine narrowly breaking the plane of the goal line on a 4-yard carry. The Raiders needed less than three minutes to respond, Jay Schroeder throwing a touchdown shortly after Stanley Richard was flagged for a 36-yard defensive pass interference penalty. In response, San Diego used up almost all of the final eight minutes of the first half on a 15-play, 68-yard touchdown drive. They were in trouble early on, facing 2nd and 23 after a sack and a penalty, but Friesz had completions of 16 yards to Harmon and 9 yards to McEwen to keep the drive going. Further third downs were converted by Harmon's 25-yard catch and Bernstine's 1-yard run, the latter of which gave them a 1st and goal from the 2. After three plays gained only one yard, Dan Henning opted to go for it on fourth down, and Butts forced his way through the middle of the line for a touchdown and a 14–10 lead, with just two seconds remaining in the half.

Los Angeles scored a field goal on the opening possession of the second half and were threatening to take the lead early in the final quarter, having gained a first down at the Charger 33. Joe Phillips then forced a fumble by Roger Craig, which Henry Rolling recovered and returned 53 yards to the Raider 13. Four plays later, Friesz threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to Butts. The final two Raider drives were ended by interceptions, for Rolling and Byrd.

San Diego's offense continued to find more success with the run than the pass, with 158 of their 258 yards coming on the ground. It was the fifth consecutive game in which they gained at least 150 rushing yards.

Week 7: at Los Angeles Rams

A pair of controversial coaching decisions played key roles as the Chargers lost another close game. They began well, taking the opening kickoff and driving 82 yards in 9 plays for a touchdown. Friesz converted three third downs on the drive, with completions of 12 yards to Lewis, 25 yards to Bernstine, and 30 yards to Miller for the touchdown. They gained a first down at the Los Angeles 28 on their next drive, but three penalties, one by Courtney Hall and two by David Richards, backed them up and they were forced to punt. The Rams then drove 80 yards in 8 plays, tying the scores with a Jim Everett touchdown pass. The Chargers needed only 5 plays to respond, with Friesz throwing his second touchdown of the half, a 49-yarder to Lewis with 8:38 to play. The Rams used the bulk of that time on another 80 yard touchdown drive, with Robert Delpino's touchdown run tying the game at 14–14, with 19 seconds left.

San Diego then misplayed a squib kick, which bounced between two Chargers and over the head of Lewis, who chased the loose ball backwards and managed to recover it at his own 1 yard line, with 14 seconds left. On the next two plays, Harmon gained a yard and Butts lost one; the Rams called timeout after each play, and stopped the clock with a single second remaining. Needing to run one more play, San Diego sent Butts on a run to the left, where an unblocked Kevin Greene tackled him well short of the goal line for a safety, and a lead the Rams did not relinquish.

Delpino scored his second touchdown of the game midway through the 3rd quarter, rounding off an 82-yard touchdown drive. The Chargers came straight back with a 7-play, 80-yard touchdown drive, Friesz completing a 43-yard pass to Miller that moved the ball to the 1, from where Bernstine went up the middle for the score. The Rams then produced their fourth 80+ yard touchdown drive of the game, this time going 87 yards, with Everett throwing another touchdown to put his team 30–21 up. Following an exchange of punts, the Chargers put together another 80-yard drive, but this one stalled at the Rams' 9 yard line. Carney's field goal drew the Chargers to within six points. They began their next drive at their own 38 with 2:22 to play. After three incompletions, Harmon could only gain 7 yards on a draw play, and the Rams took over on downs. San Diego had one more drive, but it began at their own 8 with 14 seconds to play. After a short completion, Friesz was intercepted as the game ended.

Friesz completed 21 of 33 for 306 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception, while Miller caught 7 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. Henning was criticized for his handling of the last sequence of the first half, and for calling the late draw play on 4th and 10. Of the safety, he explained that the Chargers did not run quarterback sneaks and that they didn't consider trying a deliberate incompletion, believing that the 250-pound Butts could avoid being tackled for a loss. Of the 4th down draw play, he said, "They had a three-man line and eight people in coverage ... we felt that was our best shot to get the ball downfield."

Week 8: vs. Cleveland Browns

San Diego's struggles in close games continued, as the Browns erased a 14-point deficit to defeat them in overtime. The Chargers opened the scoring after Kitrick Taylor's 48-yard punt return set them up at the Cleveland 12; their offense gained only 2 yards from there, but Carney made a 27-yard field goal. On their next drive, San Diego drove from their own 16 to a 4th and 1 from the Browns 2, with Friesz completing four passes of over ten yards. However, Bernstine was stopped for no gain when they tried to convert the fourth down. Cleveland went three-and-out, and Bernstine carried three times for 31 yards as the Chargers again threatened to score, reaching a 3rd and 9 from the Browns 21. This time, Friesz was sacked and fumbled, Cedric Figaro recovering for Cleveland. After a series of punts, the Browns were able to drive for a game-tying field goal as time expired in the half.

The Chargers forced punts on the first two Browns drives of the second half, giving them excellent field position both times; drives of 41 and 48 yards were capped by touchdown runs from Harmon and Butts, and San Diego led 17–3 late in the 3rd quarter. Bernie Kosar responded with completions on five consecutive plays, taking his team 76 yards for a touchdown. Two plays later, Friesz was hit as he threw, leading to an interception by Richard Brown which set the Browns up at the Charger 11. Joe Morris converted a 4th and 1 for Cleveland, and scored from a yard out on the next play. Friesz bounced back on the following possession, leading a 13-play, 86-yard drive that featured three third downs converted by passing. On the third of these, Harmon made a one-handed catch and hurdled a tackler to bring up 1st and goal at the 3. Steve Hendrickson caught a 2-yard touchdown pass two plays later. Cleveland drove 77 yards on their next possession, scoring their third touchdown in three possessions and tying the score with 4:09 to play. Friesz converted third downs with completions to Miller and Lewis as he moved the Chargers from their own 20 to the Cleveland 24. From there, they were pushed back ten yards by a holding penalty, called on Arthur Cox. Butts regained three of those yards before Carney was narrowly wide left on a 48-yard field goal attempt as time expired in regulation.

The overtime coin toss was won by San Diego, who received the kickoff and started at their own 20. Harmon picked up two first downs, with a 14-yard reception and an 11-yard run, moving the ball to midfield, but the Chargers gained only five yards on their next three plays, and John Kidd pinned Cleveland at their own 6 yard line with a punt. The Browns also gained two first downs before punting, with San Diego starting their next possession from their own 14. They reached a 2nd and 10 from their own 32, whereupon Friesz threw for Lewis off his back foot. David Brandon cut in front of Lewis to intercept the pass and return the ball 30 yards for the winning touchdown.

Friesz set three new career highs with 33 completions from 54 attempts for 321 yards, while throwing a touchdown and two interceptions. Three Cleveland linebackers had takeaways: Figaro, Brown and Brandon. Each of these players was a former Charger.

Week 9: at Seattle Seahawks

The Chargers were kept out of the end zone as they slipped to 1–8. They went three-and-out on their opening possession, and Seattle drove 56 yards for a touchdown, taking a lead they kept for the rest of the game. San Diego pulled three points back early in the 2nd quarter, when Miller drew a 37-yard pass interference penalty, negating an interception and moving the ball to the Seattle 11. They were unable to get any closer to the end zone, and Carney kicked a 29-yard field goal; barely three minutes later, Seattle kicker John Kasay hit a 51-yarder to restore his team's seven-point lead. The Seahawks drove to the Charger 28 on their next possession, but Gill Byrd stopped the threat with an interception near the goal line. San Diego also missed a chance on the ensuing drive, Butts being thrown for a loss on 4th and 2 at the Seattle 42. On their next possession, Harmon's 26-yard reception on 4th and 11 moved the ball to the Seattle 12, setting up another Carney field goal with four seconds remaining in the half.

Carney was short from 56 yards early in the 3rd quarter (Henning mistakenly believed the kick would be a 51-yarder), and Seattle drove to the Charger 29 before Billy Ray Smith intercepted Dave Krieg. San Diego moved back into Seattle territory, this time passing on a long field goal and going for it on 4th and 1 from the Seattle 36. Butts converted with a 14-yard run off right tackle, setting up another field goal and pulling the Chargers within a point at 10–9. Seattle running back Chris Warren ran the ensuing kickoff back 55 yards to the Charger 40. Gill Byrd forced a fumble on the next play, but Seattle recovered, and scored six plays later on a pass from Krieg to Mike Tice. Following a Charger three-and-out, Seattle added another long Kasey field goal, this one from 54 yards out. Needing two touchdowns in the final six minutes of the game, San Diego drove from their own 20 to the Seattle 3, from where Friesz threw incomplete on 4th and goal. Seattle saw out the remaining two minutes without difficulty.

San Diego lost despite clear advantages in rushing yardage (128 to 75) and passing yardage (192 to 127).

Week 11: vs. Seattle Seahawks

John Carney hit a club-record 54-yard field goal to give San Diego their second win of the season. The Chargers started well, forcing a punt and going 75 yards in six plays to take the lead. Friesz completed passes of 24 yards to Miller and 20 yards to Hendrickson, and Butts swept left for a 17-yard touchdown run. Early in the 2nd quarter, Martin Bayless forced a fumble  that Gary Plummer recovered at the San Diego 33. Two plays later, Miller took a mid-range pass for a 58-yard gain to the Seattle 9, setting up another Butts touchdown, this time from a yard out. The Seahawks threatened to get on the scoreboard shortly before halftime, reaching a 1st and goal at the 4. Smith then forced John L. Williams to fumble, and Grossman recovered to leave the Chargers 14–0 up at the break.

There was no scoring in the 3rd quarter. Late in the period, Seattle began an 80-yard drive, culminating in a touchdown pass from Dave Krieg to Williams with 14 minutes to play. After the next three possessions ended in punts, the Seahawks tied the score. Krieg converted a 3rd and 19 with a 24-yard completion and threw his second touchdown pass on the next play. Friesz responded with a 29-yard completion to McEwen, taking the ball to midfield. Though the Chargers were then forced to punt, they pinned the Seahawks at their own 16 with 2:10 to play. Following back-to-back sacks by Donnie Elder and Anthony Shelton, Seattle was forced to punt from their own 5. Kitrick Taylor's 29-yard punt return set the Chargers up at the Seattle 33 with 1:35 to play. Initially, the Chargers went backward, with penalties on Hendrickson and Moten costing them 15 yards. Harmon recovered 12 of those yards with a pair of receptions, and Carney made his winning kick with 18 seconds left. Byrd intercepted Krieg's deep throw as time expired.

Miller finished with 5 catches for 128 yards. The three-point victory ended a run of ten straight defeats for the Chargers in games decided by seven points or fewer.

Week 12: vs. New Orleans Saints

Carney again kicked a late game-winner, as San Diego earned a shock win over the Saints. New Orleans, 9–1 coming into the game, drove 78 yards in 12 plays after receiving the opening kickoff, taking over seven minutes off the clock and scoring on a short touchdown pass by Steve Walsh. The Chargers' reply began at their own 20 yard line. Butts opened the drive with back-to-back carries of 9 and 33 yards. After the next three plays gained only four yards, Friesz connected with Harmon for 8 yards on 4th and 6 to retain possession. Two plays later, Butts swept for 17 yards down to the Saints' 3, and Hendrickson went in for the touchdown on the next play.

In the 2nd quarter, Bayless tipped a Walsh pass, and Smith intercepted, setting San Diego up near midfield. Lewis then caught a 25-yard pass, but a pair of sacks knocked the Chargers back out of field goal range. John Kidd came in to punt, but his kick was blocked and ran back 37 yards for a touchdown. From the ensuing kickoff, Lewis angled through a large hole to the right, and completed a 95-yard touchdown return without being touched. New Orleans went back in front on their next drive, Walsh finding ex-Charger Quinn Early for a touchdown and a 21–14 lead. Butts lost a fumble on the next play, but the defense held and Morten Andersen missed a 39-yard field goal. An interception that was thrown by Friesz shortly afterward also led to no further points.

Defenses took control in the second half, as the first seven drives featured seven punts and only two first downs. Smith recovered a fumble in Saints' territory early in the final quarter, but the Chargers turned the ball back over when Friesz threw incomplete on 4th and 2 from the 25. New Orleans then crossed midfield, but lost another fumble, this time forced by Sam Seale, recovered by Bayless and lateraled to Byrd, who returned the ball to the Charger 37 with 6:31 to play. Friesz completed 6 of 8 passes for 48 yards on the ensuing drive, and Butts tied the score from the 5 after fighting through tacklers on the goal line. New Orleans was forced to punt after picking up a single first down, and San Diego took over on their own 29 yard line, with 1:36 to work with. Harmon had a 15-yard run on a draw, and Friesz completed passes of 13 yards to Lewis and 29 yards to Chris Samuels, the latter moving the ball to the 1 yard line. Carney kicked a 19-yard chip shot on the next play, with five seconds remaining, and Hendrickson recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff to clinch the win.

The key reception by Samuels was one of only two during his single season in the NFL.

Week 13: at New York Jets

An early turnover and two key injuries led to a one-sided defeat for the Chargers. The game's opening kickoff was short; Mitchell Benson, a defensive lineman who usually blocked on kick returns, fielded the ball at his own 24 but fumbled, with the Jets recovering. On the first play of the ensuing drive, Gill Byrd went out for the game with an ankle injury; on the fourth play, Ken O'Brien's touchdown pass put the Jets ahead to stay, 97 seconds into the game. New York forced a punt and drove 76 yards on their second drive to make it 14–0, and Friesz was also intercepted before the opening quarter ended. San Diego did manage to score in the 2nd quarter after being pinned at their own 10. Butts had back-to-back carries of 23 and 12 yards to start the drive, and Harmon took a screen pass for 11 yards on 3rd and 11 before Carney made a 53-yard field goal. Friesz, however, injured his ankle while being sacked towards the end of the drive, and did not return after Carney's kick. Elder thwarted the Jets with an end-zone interception on 3rd and goal from the 7, but New York led 14–3 at halftime.

With Bob Gagliano in at quarterback, the Chargers carried little threat in the second half. After a Jets field goal, they did manage to move from their own 25 to the New York 28; this was the furthest they penetrated into New York territory all game, but Carney missed a field goal to end the drive. A Gagliano interception later set up the Jets' third touchdown; in the final quarter, he lost a fumble and twice threw incomplete on fourth down.

San Diego had 186 yards on the ground (Harmon led the team with 70), but only 105 through the air. Gagliano was 9 of 22 for 76 yards and an interception while being sacked three times for a loss of 22 yards.

Week 14: vs. Los Angeles Raiders

A weak offensive performance set up another defeat for the Chargers. Their defense played well, starting on the game's opening play when Darren Carrington intercepted Raider quarterback Jay Schroeder. Three runs by Butts earned San Diego a first down, but he lost a fumble two plays later. The Chargers gained no further first downs throughout the first half; the Raiders had numerous scoring threats, though they managed only three field goals by Jeff Jaeger. Martin Bayless and Henry Rolling stopped drives with further interceptions, and Seau stopped Marcus Allen on a 3rd and goal from the 1 before the second Jaeger field goal. By halftime, the Raiders had a 190–5 advantage in total yardage. Friesz, who had recovered sufficiently from his ankle injury to start the game, had completed none of his eight passes.

The offensive improved in the 3rd quarter. Butts was stopped on fourth down on their first possession, but they drove 89 yards for a touchdown the next time they had the ball. Kitrick Taylor drew a 37-yard pass interference penalty to move into Raider territory, Lewis caught a 32-yard pass on 3rd and 4 to bring up 1st and goal from the 1, and Bernstine scored from there two plays later, closing the deficit to 9–7. Early in the final quarter, McEwen had a 30-yard reception, and Butts converted a 4th and 1 at the Raider 46 with a 5-yard carry. Harmon lost a fumble on the next play to end that drive. After forcing a punt, the Chargers took over at their own 13 with 7:22 to play. Taylor had 5 receptions for 54 yards on the ensuing drive, and Derrick Walker appeared to have caught a 22-yard touchdown. A holding penalty on Courtney Hall wiped out that score, and Carney's 44-yard field goal was blocked with 1:57 to play. The final Charger drive began at their own 6 yard line with only 23 seconds to play, and ended with an interception.

San Diego were outrushed for the first time since Week 1, by 161 yards to 75. Friesz improved somewhat after his bad start, finishing 12 of 27 for 150 yards and an interception.

Week 15: at Kansas City Chiefs

The Chargers lost a fourteen-point lead en route to their second overtime loss of the season. After forcing the Chiefs to punt on their first possession, San Diego put together an 18-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that took 11:52 off the clock. Friesz converted a pair of third downs with completions to Bernstine and Taylor, and Bernstine twice rushed for 2 yards on 4th and 1. Friesz finished the drive with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Lewis, two plays into the 2nd quarter. The Chiefs drove as far as the Chargers 32 in response, but Donald Frank intercepted a sideline pass by Steve DeBerg, returning the ball untouched for a 71-yard touchdown. Late in the half, Carrington ended another Kansas City threat with an interception, and the Chargers led 14–0 at the interval.

Former Charger Mark Vlasic replaced DeBerg for the second half. His first drive went 71 yards and ended in a field goal. Three plays later, Friesz fumbled, and Derrick Thomas recovered at the Charger 1, setting up a touchdown on the next play. San Diego drove into Chiefs territory on their next two possessions, but were foiled by an interception and Carney's missed 47-yard field goal. After the second of these, Kansas City went 70 yards in only 4 plays, taking the lead on Vlasic's touchdown pass to Harvey Williams with 3:00 to play. Friesz and Lewis connected on completions of 16 and 14 yards, both times converting third downs, and Carney sent the game into overtime with a 27-yard field goal, eleven seconds from time.

Kansas City took the overtime kickoff and punted, pinning the Chargers at their own 4. Friesz completions of 15 and 16 yards helped San Diego get as far as their 40 before they too were forced to punt. The Chiefs crossed midfield before having to punt again - this time, they pinned the Chargers at their own 1. San Diego failed to gain any yards in three plays and had to kick again, with Kansas City taking over only 30 yards from the end zone. Two plays later, a 28-yard run by Barry Word set up Nick Lowery's 18-yard chip shot to win the game.

San Diego had slightly more first downs (23–21) and yards (366–349) but committed 14 penalties for 117 yards.

Week 16: vs. Miami Dolphins

Rod Bernstine scored three of the Chargers' four 4th quarter touchdowns in a come-from-behind win over Miami. Following an exchange of field goals, Miami went 10–3 up with under six minutes to play in the first half, Dan Marino rounding off an 80-yard drive by running 10 yards for a touchdown on 3rd and goal. The Chargers responded with a 13-play, 75-yard drive. Friesz converted a pair of third downs with pass completions, and Bernstine gained 3 yards on 4th and 1 to reach the Miami 36. Friesz fumbled while being sacked on the next play, but Courtney Hall recovered for a loss of 9. Harmon then slipped through multiple tackles on a draw play, gaining 33 yards to the 12, from where Friesz found McEwen open in the end zone, tying the score with 21 seconds to play.

Marino dominated the 3rd quarter, completing 7 of 7 on two drives, and finishing both with touchdown passes. Pete Stoyanovich missed the extra point after the first of these, so the Dolphins led 23–10. Friesz responded with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Harmon early in the final quarter. On the next play from scrimmage, Leslie O'Neal broke through on Marino's blindside to sack the quarterback, forcing a fumble that Joe Phillips recovered on the Miami 13. On 3rd and 2 from the 5, Bernstine went up the middle for a touchdown, and the first Charger lead. Three plays later, Richard intercepted Marino and returned the ball to the Dolphin 43. Friesz converted a 3rd and 19 with a 29-yard completion to Jefferson, and Bernstine scored his second touchdown on 3rd and goal from the 1. Marino led a quick touchdown drive to draw his team within a point with 2:37 left. Four plays later Bernstine swept left and went 63 yards untouched for the clinching score, benefitting from a key block at the line by Derrick Walker.

Bernstine had 13 carries for 104 yards and three touchdowns. The 28 4th-quarter points tied a club record set in 1966, also against the Dolphins.

Week 17: vs. Denver Broncos

San Diego ended their season with another close loss. They failed to pick up a first down on their first six possessions of the game, while a Taylor fumble and a Friesz interception set up 10 points for Denver. In the final stages of the half, they did manage to put together a long drive, going 82 yards in 11 plays for a touchdown. Harmon's 21-yard run and Taylor's 18-yard reception on 3rd and 15 were the longest gains, and McEwen caught a 1-yard touchdown pass in what would prove to be his final NFL game.

After a scoreless 3rd quarter, Denver scored their second touchdown early in the 4th, taking a 17–7 lead. The Chargers responded immediately, Harmon (with a 16-yard carry) and Taylor (with a 19-yard reception), again had the biggest gains, before Bernstine scored on 3rd and goal from the 1 to pull the deficit back down to three points with 10:25 to play. San Diego had three further possessions but failed to cross midfield on any of them, punting once before Friesz threw two interceptions.

Leslie O'Neal had four of five Charger sacks. John Friesz completed 12 of 34 passes, for 123 yards, with a touchdown and three interceptions. This gave him a passer rating of 19.6, which would stand as his worst through 38 career starts.

Standings

Awards
Three Chargers were named to the 1992 Pro Bowl. Also, Richard received a single vote as Defensive Rookie of the Year.

References

San Diego Chargers
San Diego Chargers seasons
San Diego Chargers season


The American Society of Transplantation (AST) is an international organization of over 4,000 transplant professionals dedicated to advancing the field of transplantation through the promotion of research, education, advocacy, organ donation, and service to the community through a lens of equity and inclusion. It is the largest professional transplantation society in North America.

History

The history of the AST begins in 1981, when the charter members of the society met at the annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology (ASN). It was at this meeting where a new society, known as the American Society of Transplant Physicians (ASTP), was created to meet the professional needs of a burgeoning group of transplant physicians. The ASTP was founded on May 10, 1982, with membership open to physicians and certain other health professionals who shared an interest in transplantation medicine and biology. In 1998, the ASTP changed its name to the American Society of Transplantation (AST) and opened its membership to additional health professionals working in the area of transplantation.

Meetings and Education

The society's first annual meeting (as the ASTP) took place on June 3, 1982, in Chicago. In 2000, the AST returned to Chicago in conjunction with the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS) and held the first American Transplant Congress (ATC). Since that time, the ATC has met annually in a variety of North American cities, and is currently the largest annual meeting of transplant professionals.

The first Fellows Symposium on Transplant Medicine was held July 27–28, 1996 in St. Louis, Missouri. Renamed the Fellows Symposium on Transplantation in 2015, this meeting gives clinical fellows and residents, surgical fellows, research fellows, pharmacists, and other trainees the opportunity to participate in specialized scientific sessions and meet one-on-one with senior transplant specialists.

The first AST Winter Symposium was held February 13–17, 1997, in Phoenix, Arizona. The AST's winter meeting has been designated as the Cutting Edge of Transplantation (CEOT) meeting.

The AST held its first Transplant Patient Summit in October 2017. The meeting was held in Washington, DC and was the society's first patient-focused meeting. The society later changed the name of this summit to the Transplant Community Summit. The second was held during the Transplant Games of America in August 2018.

In 2007, the Transplant Nephrology Core Curriculum (TNCC) was launched as an online program provided jointly by the ASN and the AST. The TNCC focuses on key information needed to prepare for the American Board of Internal Medicine Nephrology Board Certification and Maintenance of Certification examinations.

In 2011, the AST launched the Timely Topics in Transplantation (T3) webinar series. The T3 webinars can be viewed live or on-demand, and span all transplant topics.

In 2017, the AST launched the Comprehensive Trainee Curriculum, an educational resource that helps young transplant professional expand their broad understanding of the field.

The Society also launched its Transplant in 10 resource in 2017. Transplant in 10 aims to educate busy transplant professionals with videos that are 10 minutes or less.

Communities of Practice (COPs)

The AST Communities of Practice (COPs) are specialty-area focused groups within the larger society. The AST currently has 16 COPs:

 Advanced Practice Providers
 Community of Basic Scientists
 Infectious Disease
 Kidney Pancreas
 Live Donor
 Liver and Intestinal
 Pediatric
 Psychosocial and Ethics
 Recovery and Preservation
 Thoracic and Critical Care
 Trainee and Young Faculty
 Transplant Administration and Quality Management
 Transplant Diagnostics
 Transplant Pharmacy
 Transplant Regenerative Medicine
 Women's Health

Publications

The American Journal of Transplantation is the joint monthly peer-reviewed medical journal of the AST and ASTS, published by Wiley-Blackwell.

Additional publications:
 AST Handbook of Transplant Infections
 AST Primer on Transplantation, 3rd Edition
 Special Issue: The American Society of Transplantation Infectious Diseases Guidelines, 3rd Edition
 Transplant Immunology

Presidents

 2023-2024: Josh Levitsky, MD
 2022-2023: Deepali Kumar, MD
 2021-2022: John Gill, MD
 2020-2021: Richard Formica, MD
 2019-2020: Emily Blumberg, MD
 2018-2019: Dianne McKay, MD
 2017-2018: Ronald Gill, PhD
 2016-2017: Anil Chandraker, MD, FRCP, FAST
 2015-2016: James S. Allan, MD, MBA, FAST
 2014-2015: Kenneth A. Newell, MD, PhD, FAST
 2013–2014: Daniel R. Salomon, MD
 2012–2013: Roslyn B. Mannon, MD, FAST
 2011–2012: Robert S. Gaston, MD, FAST
 2010–2011: Maryl Johnson, MD, FAST
 2009–2010: Joren C. Madsen, MD, DPhil
 2008–2009: Barbara Murphy, MD
 2007–2008: Flavio Vincenti, MD
 2006–2007: Jeffrey S. Crippin, MD
 2005–2006: Richard N. Fine, MD
 2004–2005: Jay Alan Fishman, MD, FAST
 2003–2004: Michael R. Lucey, MD
 2002–2003: William E. Harmon, MD
 2001–2002: Laurence A. Turka, MD, FAST
 2000–2001: Mohamed H. Sayegh, MD, FAST
 1999–2000: John R. Lake, MD
 1998–1999: John F. Neylan, MD
 1997–1998: J. Harold Helderman, MD, FAST
 1996–1997: Leslie W. Miller, MD
 1995–1996: Douglas J. Norman, MD, FAST
 1994–1995: Thomas A. Gonwa, MD, FAST
 1993–1994: Manikkam Suthanthiran, MD, FAST
 1992–1993: Alan R. Hull, MD
 1991–1992: Ronald H. Kerman, PhD, FAST
 1990–1991: M. Roy First, MD
 1989–1990: William E. Braun, MD, FAST
 1988–1989: Barry S. Levin, MD
 1987–1988: Lawrence G. Hunsicker, MD
 1986–1987: Nancy E. Goeken, PhD
 1985–1986: Fred P. Sanfilippo, MD, PhD
 1984–1985: Robert B. Ettenger, MD
 1983–1984: Charles B. Carpenter, MD
 1982–1983: Ronald D. Guttmann, MD, FRCPC
 1982–1983: Terry B. Strom, MD

AST Research Network

The AST Research Network is the AST's mechanism for identifying, funding, and providing ongoing support to the most innovative research in transplantation and immunology.

Power2Save (P2S)

Power2Save (P2S) is an initiative developed by the AST dedicated to increasing public awareness around the importance of donating organs, advocating for patient health, and funding transplant research.

References

External links
 American Society of Transplantation
 American Transplant Congress
 American Journal of Transplantation

1981 establishments in the United States
Health care-related professional associations based in the United States
Surgery journals
Transplantation medicine


An indirect presidential election was held in Cuba on 24 February 2008, in which the National Assembly of People's Power elected a new President of the Council of State and the members of the Council of State. The election followed the January 2008 parliamentary election. In the election, Raúl Castro, who had been Acting President since July 2006, was elected as President of the Council of State, succeeding his older brother, Fidel Castro.

It was initially considered  uncertain whether the ailing 81-year-old Fidel Castro would be elected for another term as President of the Council of State or acting president Raúl Castro would formally assume the presidency, but on 19 February Fidel Castro said that he would not seek another term because his physical condition would not allow him to properly carry out the duties of the office.

Raúl Castro, aged 76, was elected as President of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers by a unanimous vote of the National Assembly (on a ballot with only his name for the position) on 24 February 2008. José Ramón Machado Ventura, at age 77, was elected as First Vice-President of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers, contrary to speculation that someone younger would be chosen for the post. Raúl emphasized that his brother remained "Commander in Chief of the Cuban Revolution", and the National Assembly voted to permit Raúl to consult with Fidel on important issues.

600 deputies chose to cast united votes for all Council of State candidates, while nine deputies cast selective votes. Castro was elected with a unanimous vote of 609 deputies, while Machado received 601 votes. Juan Almeida Bosque, Abelardo Colomé Ibarra, Carlos Lage Dávila, Esteban Lazo Hernández, and Julio Casas Regueiro were elected as Vice-Presidents of the Council of State, all receiving 608 votes except for Lage, who received 609. José Miyar Barruecos was elected as Secretary of the Council of State with 608 votes. 23 other members of the Council of State were elected:

José Ramón Balaguer Cabrera (608 votes)
Iris Betancourt Téllez (609 votes)
Roberto Fernández Retamar (609 votes)
Luis Herrera Martínez (608 votes)
Orlando Lugo Fonte (608 votes)
Felipe Pérez Roque (609 votes)
Pedro Sáez Montejo (609 votes)
Ramiro Valdés Menéndez (608 votes)
Francisco Soberón Valdés (608 votes)
Carlos Valenciaga Díaz (609 votes)
Surina Acosta Brook (609 votes)
Regla Dayamí Armenteros Mesa (609 votes)
Leopoldo Cintra Frías (609 votes)
Inés María Chapman Waugh (609 votes)
María del Carmen Concepción González (608 votes)
María Yolanda Ferrer Gómez (609 votes)
Guillermo García Frías (608 votes)
Tania León Silveira (609 votes)
Álvaro López Miera (608 votes)
Julio Martínez Ramírez (609 votes)
Dignora Montano Perdomo (609 votes)
Juan José Rabilero Fonseca (606 votes)
Salvador Valdés Mesa (609 votes)

References

Cuba
President
Elections in Cuba


The campaign to suppress bandits in northeast China (东北剿匪) was a counterinsurgency operation waged by the Chinese Communist Party against bandits and guerrillas affiliated with the Kuomintang near the end of the Chinese Civil War.

Strategies
Both sides had made grave miscalculations initially, but the Communists were quicker to correct their miscalculation and immediately adjust their strategy to achieve final victory.  The Nationalists, on the other hand, entered the campaign overconfident and did not modify their strategy quickly enough, resulting in their failure. This had serious consequences later on as their communist enemy had successfully stabilized their rear area when winning the campaign.

Nationalist strategy
As when the Nationalists had attempted to fight guerrilla and insurgency warfare against the communists after being driven from mainland China half a decade later, grave strategic mistakes made by the Nationalists contributed as much as if not more than Communist political and military pressure to the Nationalist defeat in the campaign.  The very first strategic mistake made by Chiang Kai-shek and his followers was when they had neither the sufficient troops nor enough transportation assets to be deployed into the Japanese-occupied regions of Northeast China. Unwilling to let these regions falling into communist hands, Chiang's government ordered these bandits to fight communists in any way they could.  This grave strategic miscalculation resulted in alienation and resentment to the Nationalists by the local population, which had already blamed the Nationalists for losing the regions to the Japanese invaders during the war.  However, the bandits were deeply feared and hated by the local populace they plagued for so long, and Nationalist troops left behind joining the bandits certainly did not help them win the support of the general population.  In fact, it served the exact opposite, it caused Chiang's government to lose popular support to the least, if not strengthening the popular support of their communist enemy.

The second grave strategic miscalculation made by the retreating Nationalists was also similar to the one the Nationalists had made when it attempted to simultaneously solve the warlord problem that had plagued China for so long with the problem of the exterminating communists together: Those warlords allied with Chiang's Nationalist regime were only interested in keeping their own power and defected to the Japanese side when Japanese invaders offered to let them keep their power in exchange for their collaborations.  After World War II, these forces of former Japanese puppet regimes once again returned to the Nationalist camp for the same reason they defected to the Japanese invaders. Obviously, it was difficult for Chiang to immediately get rid of these warlords for good as soon as they surrendered to Chiang and rejoined Nationalists, because such move would alienate other factions within the Nationalist ranks, and those bandits and former Japanese puppet regime's warlords could still help the Nationalists to by holding on to what was under their control and fighting off communists, and they and the communists would both be weakened.  Similarly, the bandits Chiang's government had failed to exterminate were obviously not good candidates for neither joining the regular troops nor being honorably discharged, and using them to fight communists appeared to be the only logical alternative.  If the communists were great weakened by the bandits, then it would the Nationalists would have easier time in their counterattacks to retake China.  If the bandits were defeated, then the Nationalists would have easier job to eradicate them later after retaking China.  However, just like those warlords, these bandits were mostly only interested in keeping their own power also, and thus did not put any real efforts to fight the communists like some of the Nationalists who were dedicated to their political cause.  The eradication of bandits by the communist regime only strengthened its popular support since previous governments dating back from Qing Dynasty had failed to do so.

The third grave strategic miscalculation made by the retreating nationalist regime was similar to the second one, but this one was about its own troops left behind during the Second Sino-Japanese War.  The resource strained nationalist government could not provide enough supports to these troops left behind the enemy lines, who were forced to turn to banditry for survival when they were left on their own, and this had alienated many of the troops left behind, and it was impossible to expect them to fight their communist enemy with the same kind of dedication like those nationalist agents who believed in their political cause, or the American trained new forces.  The banditry also alienated the local populace and caused the nationalists to lose popular support.  Compounding the problem, due to the need of bandits' knowledge of local area, and the fact that they were the only pro-nationalist force in the region, they were often rewarded with higher ranks than the highly trained regular nationalist troops sent to Northeast China.  As a result, the regular nationalist troops sent to Northeast China after World War II lacked any willingness to work together with the bandits, especially when many of the bandits were former warlords's troops cooperated with Japanese invaders.  Many loyal nationalists were enraged by the fact that they had to serve under the former-enemy they once fought: in all, Chiang's government awarded bandits with many high military ranks: 32 commander-in-chiefs, 33 army commanders, and 158 division commanders in all.  In contrast, the highly trained regular nationalist army sent to Northeast China after World War II had much fewer similar ranks, meaning that most highly qualified professional officers ranked below bandits.  Meanwhile, the bandits lacked the similar willingness and attempted to expend those nationalist troops whenever they could to save their own skin, and often used the superior ranks Chiang's government given to them as their excuses to ignore correct strategies ordered by the nationalist regular army.

The fourth grave strategic miscalculation made by the Chiang government was financial / economical: due to the lack of money, those bandits turned guerrillas were not sufficiently provided with supplies and money.  The bandits turned guerrilla had no problem of looting the local population to get what they need, as they had done for decades, which inevitably drove the general popular support further into the communist side.  The little financial support provided by the nationalists was simply not enough to support such guerrilla and insurgency warfare on such a large scale, when the country was in desperate need of resources to recover from the devastation of war.  Another unexpected but disastrous result of the insufficient financial support was that it had greatly eroded the support of the nationalists within its own ranks.  The wealthy landowners and businessmen were the strong supporters of Chiang's government and as their properties were confiscated by the communists and redistributed to the poor, their hatred toward the communist regime was enough to cause many of them to stay behind voluntarily to fight behind the enemy line.  However, the landowners and businessmen were also longtime victims of bandits due to their wealth, and suffered even more than the general populace.  As these former landowners and businessmen turned guerrilla fighters were ordered to join their former bandits who once threatened, looted, kidnapped and even killed them and their relatives, it was obvious that such cooperation was in name only and cannot produce any actual benefits, and the alienation and discontent toward the nationalist regime harbored by these once ardent nationalists would only grow greater.

Another problem for the nationalists was the strong disagreement among themselves over how to fight the war against their communist enemy.   While some preferred to fight a total war, incapacitate the enemy's ability to fight, but this inevitably conflicted with the interest of another faction of strong supporters of the nationalist regime: the landowners and businessmen, who joined bandits to oppose such tactic.  The reason was that landowners and businessmen supporting and joining the nationalist guerrilla firmly believed that the nationalists would be able to exterminate the communists within several months and they would be able to regain their lost lands, businesses, and other properties that were confiscated and redistributed to the poor by the communists.  As some of the nationalists suggested and destroyed the production facilities and businesses as part of the total war, the landowners and businessmen would not be able to regain any valuable properties after the return of the nationalist regime because those properties had been destroyed.  The bandits agreed with the businessmen and landowners to oppose the idea of total war for a different reason: when the properties were destroyed and productivity dropped, they would not be able to loot enough supply to survive.  As a result, despite the animosities between the bandits and landowners and businessmen, they were united together in the opposition to those nationalists advocating a total war.  This strategic difference meant that despite being interrupted, the rear area of communists was not destroyed and remained intact so that a continuous supply could be provided for the communists' war efforts, which ultimately led to their final victory.

Communist strategy
Communists, like their nationalist counterparts, also made a grave miscalculation, but in comparison to the nationalists, the communists were very quick in correcting their miscalculation and avoided disasters nationalists had suffered.  The communist miscalculation was only made in the initial stage when they first ventured into Northeast China after World War II: during the start of their Campaign to Establish Communist Base in Northeast China, communists were eager to expand their force in region, but most of the communist force sent to Northeast China did not reach their final destination, especially after the Defense of the Great Wall.  Although the communists managed to send more than 270,000 troops to Northeast China, most of them were contained in Rehe, Chahar, and Suiyuan by the nationalist forces.  Although most of these areas belonged to the communist Northeast China Military Region, the communist force contained there was not much of help in supporting their comrades in the northeast.  The problem of the lack of soldiers was further compounded by the need to enlist troops who knew the local area and as a result, the northeastern communists made a grave miscalculation in concentrating on expanding their numbers by enlist the help of local bandits.  However, the economically deprived communists were obviously no match for the better conditioned nationalists who could provide more resources, and as a result, when the communists begun to abandon large cities in Northeast China in their retreat, most bandits that first temporarily sided with communists defected to the nationalists in battalions and regiments, or even in brigades.  For example, in a single communist base to the north of Changchun alone, over 33,200 former bandit-turned communist troops turned against the communists by the end of December 1945.

Communists responded rapidly to the situation.  At the end of November 1945, communists in the communist base to the north of Changchun held its conference on bandit eradication, and decided to send out communist guerrillas to the regions with weak communist control.  In addition to military operations, the communist guerrillas were also charged with political tasks of mobilizing local populace, especially the lower class peasantry, to fight bandits.  On 2 December 1945, Songjiang communists leaders held a conference for the similar purposes, and decided to stop expanding communist forces purely based on numbers.  Instead, the communist force would be strengthened by political purification.  These two tactics became the foundation bases on which the communist bandit-eradication campaign strategies would later develop, which eventually expanded into three major parts:

The first part was to send a large number of communist cadres to the rural area (eventually totaled over 12,000) to mobilizing the local populace.  Once the local population was rallied to the communist side, the nationalist agents hidden among the local population became increasingly difficult to survive, and the intelligence source of bandits was severed.  In addition, bandits' secret base in remote locations hidden in the forest and mountains were revealed by the local populace, thus cutting off bandits' supply.  The second part was to increase political pressure against the bandits by continuously launching psychological / propaganda / political assaults on the bandits, pressuring them into surrender.  The military part was mainly involved in concentrating force to fight bandits, targeting the largest bands of bandits first, so that when they were exterminated, it would send shockwaves to smaller bands of bandits.  Construction of fortifications was a must to protect the communist controlled area.  Mobile strike force was also a must in pursuing the bandits, and cavalries, troops riding in vehicles and trains were assigned this task.  Land reformed had played a very important role in the eventual communist victory because when the tenant peasants obtained their own land, their support for the communists strengthened.

In accordance with their strategy, communists reorganized their forces.  In Songjiang, Military and Administrative Committee was formed, with Zhang Xiushan (张秀山) as the secretary, and bandit extermination command was also formed, with order to exterminate bandits given.  In Heilongjiang, communists decided to strengthen their control of Keshan, secure Baiquan (拜泉), and then take Yi'an (依安), and finally, relief Dedu (德都) that was under siege.  Communists of other region in Northeast China also made plans to exterminate bandits before the complete withdraw of Red Army.  From 20 to 28 December 1945, Hejiang communists decided on their meetings to exterminate bandits in Yilan (依兰) and Huachuan (桦川) Counties.  To strengthen their force in the campaign, communists deployed regular army from other area, including Shandong 7th Division, 3rd Division of the New Fourth Army, Tiansong (田松) Squadron, and 359th Brigade.  These regular units would fight side by side with the ten thousand member strong communist militia established during the campaign.

Prelude
Due to the grave communist blunder, nationalists had an upper hand in the initial struggle for the control of Northeast China.  Despite being reaching the region before the nationalists could, vast majority portion of the region was dominated by the bandits sided with the nationalists.  Bandits under the command of Ma Yuechuan (马越川) with more than eighteen thousand troops, including artillery and cavalries controlled most of Nenjiang (province), and attacked Martial Art Temple region of (Wu Miao Zi, 武庙子) in Tailai (泰来) county, succeeded in killing the communist commander-in-chief of Tailai (泰来) Military Sub-Region, Zhang Pingyang (张平洋).  The vital communication line between the region to the north of Changchun and south of Changchun was controlled by three thousand bandits headed by Ma Xishan (马喜山) and Zheng Yunfeng (郑云峰). Communist controlled trains were constantly ambushed and the greatest casualties suffered in an ambush exceeded a hundred.  In Hejiang, over twenty thousand bandits under the command of Li Huatang (李华堂) and Xie Wendong (谢文东) struck numerous times, including successfully killing Sun Xilin (孙西林), the communist deputy mayor of Jiamusi.  However, the bandits made a serious blunder when they indiscriminately murdered more than two hundred innocent ethnic Korean civilians in three villages in execution style in Mishan (密山) County, even babies of several weeks old were not spared.  The mass execution and the subsequent burning down of every building in the village had outraged the local populace, and ethnic Koreans in the local area were firmly allied with communists as a result.

In Heilongjiang, the rear area of communists in Northeast China, the bandits were most numerous, totaling more than seventy thousands, all received ranks and titles from Chiang's government because the nationalists planned to use them to harass the rear area of their communist enemy. The largest band of bandits were headed by Shang Qiyue (尚其悦), totaling over ten thousands, struck many time, succeeding raiding communist held areas numerous times. In Yan'an (延安) County, (communist party) secretary Zhao Guang (赵光) was ambushed and killed when he was sent to Tongbei (通北) County. Gu Yanling (顾延岭), the communist chief of Xunke (逊克) County and two squads of communist soldiers totaling eighteen were captured and executed by being buried alive. Communist garrison of Sunwu (孙吴) County totaling forty soldiers were also executed by being buried alive after their capture. However, such brutal execution only strengthened communist resolve to exterminate the bandits to avenge the death of their comrades, which totaled 154 in a single region to the north of Changchun along. Another unexpected consequence of such brutal methods of execution was that the highly disciplined regular nationalist army sent to Northeast China later on was equally outraged with the bandits' behavior like the local populace, and not wanting to be associated with the bandits and thus had their image tarnished, hence they were not enthusiastic in coordinating their military operations with these bandits to fight together against the communists, despite the fact that Chiang's government rewarded most of the bandit chiefs with higher ranks than these nationalist regular army commanders. However, the bandits did enjoy the temporary advantage over the communists, controlling over two-thirds of the total territory. For example, in the region to the north of Changchun, twenty-nine out of sixty-five cities and towns were controlled by bandits, and over two-thirds of the rural area was also in the bandits' hands. In Songjiang, communists were only able to control four towns including Bin (宾) County, Hulan (呼兰), Bayan (巴彦) and Shuangcheng, while for the rest, garrisons of fifteen counties totaling over ten thousand troops defected and joined the bandits. The total number of bandits peaked in December 1945 when they strength exceeded 110,000.

Order of battle
With the exception of the initial stage where communist regular army was involved, most of the campaign was largely fought by the militia and irregular forces.

Nationalists order of battle
Despite rewarding the bandits with military ranks that were often higher than their regular army, the eleven-hundred member strong bandit force in Northeast China was mostly fighting on their own because the regular nationalist army in the south was unwilling to associate themselves with bandits, and thus was not enthusiastic about joining the bandits by fighting along their side.  The strength of various groups of bandits included:
Colonel General Li Huatang (李华堂), commander-in-chief of 1st Army Group of the Northeast Moving Forward Army (totaling 10,000+)
Major General Zhang Bojun 张伯钧
Major General Liu Shandong 刘山东
Colonel General Xie Wendong (谢文东), commander-in-chief of 15th Army Group of the Northeast Moving Forward Army (totaling 10,000+)
Major General Zheng Yunfeng (郑云峰), brigade commander of Moving Forward Army
Major General Sun Rongjiu (孙荣久)
Lieutenant General Zhang Yuxin (张雨新), army commander of the Advanced Army
Lieutenant General Wang Naikang (王乃康), deputy-commander of the Advanced Army
Lieutenant General Jiang Pengfei (姜朋飞), army commander of the Newly Organized 27th Army
Major General Li Mingxin (李明信)
Major General Cui Dagang (崔大刚)
Lieutenant General Ma Yuechuan (马越川), army commander of Northeast Recovery Army (totaling 18,000+)
Colonel General Ma Xishan (马喜山), commander-in-chief of the Advanced Army (totaling 3,000+)
70,000+ bandits in Heilongjiang, including the largest group below:
Lieutenant General Shang Qiyue (尚其悦), army commander of Northeast Recovery Army (totaling 10,000+)

Chinese Communist Party order of battle
In addition to regular army, communists had taken the opportunity to build a strong militia to fight in the campaign, and the total strength exceeded hundred thousand.
Shandong 7th Division
3rd Division of the New Fourth Army
Tiansong (田松) Squadron
359th Brigade
Self-defense Force (militia): over 100,000

Initial phase
Despite the slight numerical and technical superiority over their communist enemy, the bandits were disorganized and mostly fought independently on their own turfs.  The lack of overall cooperation between different groups of bandits was due to their intention to keep their own strength and thus provided the communist enemy with the opportunity to concentrate their forces to defeat them one group at a time.  According to communists, the campaign was divided into two phases, with the initial phase covering the period from November 1945 through April 1946.  At the beginning of this initial phase, communists concentrated on bandits active in the region bounded by Liaoyang in the south and Anshan in the west.  On 28 November 1945, communist force attacked the base of bandits in Thousand Mountains () and Seventh Ridge ().  After two days of fierce battle, over three thousands of bandits were killed or captured.  The communists then turned their attention to strengthen their control of the troops by forming units which could be absolutely controlled.  Starting at squad level, then to the platoon level, and the next was battalion level, and finally, regimental level.  Once the communists had the absolute control of an entire regiment, the unit was sent out to engage bandit group with larger number.  In the meantime, communist militia was also established in the form of Self-defense Force, which would eventually do the major portion of the fighting.  After communist Shandong 7th Division and 359th Brigade had arrived to in the beginning of February 1946, the local communists strength was further expanded and larger offensives against bandits were launched.

By the end of March 1946, over 212 major offensives against bandits were launched, and all resulted in communist victory.  A total of 78,495 bandits were killed / captured / defected, with over 25,500 repeating rifles, 911 handguns, 52 artillery pieces, and 618 machine guns and other weaponry such as single shot rifles were captured in the process.  As majority of the bandits were annihilated, communists strengthen the control of their rear area and a total of 118 towns / cities formally in the hands of bandits had been taken by the communists.  With the exception of the region to the north of Changchun where over thirty thousand bandits remained active, all bandits in other communist region behind the frontline had been exterminated by March 1946.  On 7 July 1946, communists held a meeting to analyze the situation and issued order to strengthen the popular support and to mobilize the local population via land reform.  Meanwhile, communists decided to take the advantage of the stalemate reached between the nationalists and the communists in Northeast China to launch additional campaigns against the bandits in their area of control.  Communists launched another round of offensive in the region to the north of Changchun and by the end of August 1946, another ten-thousand bandits were annihilated.  On 29 August 1946, communist high command ordered the communist force in Northeast China to use September to prepare for the incoming conflict with regular nationalist army in the south because intelligence indicates that the nationalist force in the south would launch a campaign to destroy the communist base in the northern part of Northeast China.  The communists in Northeast China consequently ordered their regular force to prepare for the income conflict and the task to exterminate bandits was transferred to militias and local garrisons.

Main phase
After communists were forced to give up large cities including Siping, Changchun and Jilin City, the surviving thirty thousand bandits behind the communist frontline had their hope up again and increased their strikes against the communists in the rear.  However, due to the rapid military success, the regular nationalist army was even less enthusiastic in cooperating and joining forces with bandits because they felt that the communists could be defeated without the help from bandits, who would only be a burden to the regular nationalist army for tarnishing their image due to the bandits' notoriety.  Seizing on the opportunity, the communists were quick to exploiting the internal division among nationalist forces and planned another round of offensives.  According to the communist, the main phase of the campaign was period from June 1946 to April 1947. The surviving 30,000 strong bandits were divided into six groups, active in six regions behind the communist frontline:
5,000+ bandits in the region to the south of Harbin and along the Songhua River often struck places including Shuangcheng, Wuchang City, Bin (宾) County, Elm Tree (Yu Shu, 榆树), and Hulan (呼兰).
5,000+ bandits in the region to the west of Liaoyang, often struck places including Daze (大责), Qian'an (乾安) and Forward Flag (Qian Bu Qi, 前部旗). This is only group that actually cooperated with regular nationalist army, acting as the scouts of the latter.
5,000+ bandits active in Nenjiang (province)
5,000+ bandits active in regions to the east of Changchun
In Hejiang, over 40 bands of bandits totaling more than 8,000 had successfully severed the railway from Mudanjiang to Jiamusi by taking counties including Dongning (东宁), Dong'an (东安), Luobei (萝北) and Tongjiang.  Most high ranking commanders of bandits belonged to this group, including Li Huatang (李华堂), Xie Wendong (谢文东), Zhang Yuxin (张雨新), and Sun Rongjiu (孙荣久).
The communist high command in Northeast China decided in June 1946 that it was critical to secure the rear area behind their frontline to concentrate on fighting the regular nationalist army in the front, so the communist force was redeployed to exterminate bandits by concentrating on the major groups first, and then the smaller ones.   In Hejiang, six thousand mobile strike force would first exterminate bandits in the regions of Tongjiang, Luobei (萝北), Fujin (富锦), Yilan (依兰), Peace Town (Tai Ping Zheng, 太平镇) and the regions to the north and the east of Boli (勃利).  Afterward, they would attack bandits in Baoqing (宝清) region in a pincer movement from both the east and the west.  Communist force in Mudanjiang was responsible for exterminating bandits in Dong'an (东安), Mishan (密山), Muling (穆棱) and Dongning (东宁). Communist force in Harbin was responsible for exterminating bandits in regions including Yanshou (延寿), Muohe (沫河), Weihe (苇河), Tonghe (通河), and Fangzheng (方正). The communists planned their offensive in three stages.

During the first stage of their offensive that lasted from June 1946 through the end of August 1946, communists deployed the 717th Regiment and the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade to support the local communist force from Hejiang and Mudanjiang Military Regions to attack bandits headed by Xie Wendong (谢文东) in three fronts in the regions of Dong'an (东安) and Mishan, (密山). After two battles, over six thousand bandits were killed while the surviving bandits fled to the region of Baoqing (宝清) and Fujin (富锦). By the end of June, bandits in Dongning (东宁) region headed by Wang Laolin (王老林) were also annihilated. The communists continued their attack eastward from Dong'an (东安) toward Tiger Forest (Hulin, 虎林) and Rao (饶) River regions, annihilating local bandits. Meanwhile, another communist force cross the Wanda (完达) Mountain and with the help of communist force in Hejiang, attacked bandits fled to Baoqing (宝清). On 1 July 1946, in the region of Youtou (尤头) Bridge and Toudaihezi (头道河子), the surviving bandits headed by Xie Wendong (谢文东) was once again defeated. On 3 July 1946, communist Hejiang mobile strike force attacked northward to pursue the 1,400 strong bandit force that fled to the regions of Huachuan (桦川) and Fujin (富锦) and joined the local bandits. After eight days, the bandits were annihilated and by 12 July 1946, 972 bandits were captured alive. Communist subsequently launched intensive political / psychological / propaganda offensives and over 800 surviving surrendered. Huachuan (桦川) and Fujin (富锦) regions were cleared and by the end of August 1946, near ten thousand bandits were killed. In Songjiang, communists in Harbin uncovered a nationalist underground intelligence directly controlled by the bandits and the bandit chiefs including Jiang Pengfei (姜朋飞), Li Mingxin (李明信) and Cui Dagang (崔大刚) were all arrested.

The second stage covers the period from September 1946 through the end of December 1946.  After suffering defeats, the surviving 1,500 bandits headed by Li Huatang (李华堂), Xie Wendong (谢文东), and Zhang Yuxin (张雨新) fled to the region of Yilan (依兰), Boli (勃利), and Linkou (林口) bordered by Songhua River in the north, and Mudanjiang in the west. Communist 359th Brigade and Hejiang and Mudanjiang forces surrounded the above region and after battles at Zi'erlazi (子尔拉子) and Cold Spring (Han He, 寒春) River, over 140 bandits were killed, 654 bandits surrendered and 121 bandits captured. The communists also captured 738 guns, 110 horses, but the biggest gain was the capture of the bandit chiefs: on 20 November 1946, Xie Wendong (谢文东) was captured by the communist and soon after, Zhang Yuxin (张雨新) was captured. On 2 December 1946, Li Huatang (李华堂) was captured in the forest in the region to northwest of Diaoling (刁翎).  In Songjiang, over four thousands bandits were annihilated from early October through 22 November 1946. In the region to the west of Changchun, five thousand bandits headed by Wang Naikang (王乃康) were annihilated by mid-December. In the region to the east of Changchun, after 600 bandits were killed, sixteen groups of bandits surrendered to the communists without a fight.

The third and last stage in the main phase of the campaign covers the period from January 1947 through April 1947, during which the bandit chief Sun Jiurong (孙荣久) was captured on 26 March 1947 in Hejiang. In March and April 1947, communist force in Longjiang took the last four bandit strongholds at Huma (呼玛), Oupu (欧浦) Black Cloud (Wuyun, 乌云), and Muohe (漠河). Over seven thousand bandits were killed, including their chiefs Zhang Bojun (张伯钧) and Liu Shandong (刘山东).  By April 1947, the communist victory was complete and the area behind the frontline was cleared of bandits. As a result of their victory, communists had firmly established themselves in Northeast China when their bases in the rear area there were secured and strengthened, which was critical in the victory in Northeast China.

Outcome
Although sharing the common anticommunist goal, the nationalist guerrilla and insurgency warfare was largely handicapped by the enlistment of bandits, and with the lack of active military support of the highly trained nationalist regular army sent to Northeast China after World War II and the unconditional political and financial support of Chiang's government, the communists successfully eradicated bandits turned nationalist guerrillas in Northeast China.  Riding on their success, the communist immediately launched Summer Offensive of 1947 in Northeast China against nationalists.  The experienced learned in the campaign also helped the communists half a decade later in other counterinsurgency / counter guerrilla campaign campaigns against bandits turned guerrillas allied with nationalists after the communist revolution in China.

See also

 Campaign to Suppress Bandits in Wuping
 Campaign to suppress bandits in southwestern China
 Campaign to Suppress Bandits in Eastern China
List of battles of the Chinese Civil War
National Revolutionary Army
History of the People's Liberation Army
Chinese Civil War

References

Zhu, Zongzhen and Wang, Chaoguang, Liberation War History, 1st Edition, Social Scientific Literary Publishing House in Beijing, 2000,  (set)
Zhang, Ping, History of the Liberation War, 1st Edition, Chinese Youth Publishing House in Beijing, 1987,  (pbk.)
Jie, Lifu, Records of the Liberation War: The Decisive Battle of Two Kinds of Fates, 1st Edition, Hebei People's Publishing House in Shijiazhuang, 1990,  (set)
Literary and Historical Research Committee of the Anhui Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Liberation War, 1st Edition, Anhui People's Publishing House in Hefei, 1987,
Li, Zuomin, Heroic Division and Iron Horse: Records of the Liberation War, 1st Edition, Chinese Communist Party History Publishing House in Beijing, 2004,
Wang, Xingsheng, and Zhang, Jingshan, Chinese Liberation War, 1st Edition, People's Liberation Army Literature and Art Publishing House in Beijing, 2001,  (set)
Huang, Youlan, History of the Chinese People's Liberation War, 1st Edition, Archives Publishing House in Beijing, 1992,
Liu Wusheng, From Yan'an to Beijing: A Collection of Military Records and Research Publications of Important Campaigns in the Liberation War, 1st Edition, Central Literary Publishing House in Beijing, 1993,
Tang, Yilu and Bi, Jianzhong, History of Chinese People's Liberation Army in Chinese Liberation War, 1st Edition, Military Scientific Publishing House in Beijing, 1993 – 1997,  (Volum 1), 7800219615 (Volum 2), 7800219631 (Volum 3), 7801370937 (Volum 4), and 7801370953 (Volum 5)

1945 in China
1946 in China
1947 in China
Campaigns of the Chinese Civil War
Conflicts in 1945
Conflicts in 1946
Conflicts in 1947


Northwestern Region (, ) is one of the traditional eight regions of Iceland, located in the north of the island. The largest town in the region is Sauðárkrókur, with a population of 3000.

One of the primary attractions of the area is the basalt rock Hvítserkur, 15 meters high and resembles a dragon that throws its head to take a sip of water.

References

External links


Chekhovskaya () is a station of the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line of the Moscow Metro. It was opened on December 31, 1987, and served as the northern terminus of the line for the following year. Its depth is . The vestibule is located in Pushkinskaya Square, while the station is named for the writer Anton Chekhov. It was the deepest station in Moscow Metro from 1987 until 1991.

Transfers
The station provides transfers to the Tverskaya station of the Zamoskvoretskaya Line, and the Pushkinskaya station of the Tagansko-Krasnopresnenskaya Line.

Gallery

External links
Chekhovskaya on metro.ru

Moscow Metro stations
Railway stations in Russia opened in 1987
Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line
Railway stations located underground in Russia


Roman Road railway station was a railway station on the East Kent Light Railway. It opened in May 1925 and closed to passenger traffic on 1 November 1928. Today there is no trace of the station.

References

Sources

Disused railway stations in Kent
Former East Kent Light Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1925
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1928


The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toamasina () is one of five Latin Metropolitan archdioceses on Madagascar, yet depends on the missionary Roman Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

Its cathedral archiepiscopal see is the Cathédrale Saint Joseph, dedicated to Saint Joseph in the city of Toamasina. It was elevated to the rank of Metropolitan Archdiocese by Pope Benedict XVI on Friday, February 26, 2010.

Statistics
As per 2014, it pastorally served 620,022 Catholics (31.1% of 1,992,866 total) on 23,690 km2 in 21 parishes with 59 priests (22 diocesan, 37 religious), 185 lay religious (82 brothers, 103 sisters) and 19 seminarians.

Ecclesiastical Province
Toamasina has as suffragan sees:
 Roman Catholic Diocese of Ambatondrazaka
 Roman Catholic Diocese of Fenoarivo Atsinanana
 Roman Catholic Diocese of Moramanga.

History
 Established on June 18, 1935 as Apostolic Prefecture of Vatomandry, on territories split off from the then Apostolic Vicariate of Fianarantsoa and Apostolic Vicariate of Tananarive
 Promoted on May 25, 1939 and renamed after its new see as Apostolic Vicariate of Tamatave.
 Promoted on September 14, 1955 as Diocese of Tamatave
 On 1968.04.09 it lost territory to establish the Diocese of Mananjary
 Renamed on January 31, 1990 like its see as Diocese of Toamasina
 Promoted on February 26, 2010 as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Toamasina

Ordinaries
(all Roman rite)

Apostolic Prefect of Vatomandry
 Father Alain-Sébastien Le Breton, Montfort Missionaries (S.M.M.) (born France) (1935 – 1939.05.25 see below)

Apostolic Vicar of Tamatave
 Alain-Sébastien Le Breton, S.M.M. (see above 1939.05.25 – 1955.09.14 see below), Titular Bishop of Hypselis (1939.05.25 – 1955.09.14)

Suffragan Bishops of Tamatave
 Alain-Sébastien Le Breton, S.M.M. (see above 1955.09.14 – retired 1957.03.15); emeritate as Titular Bishop of Salona (1957.03.15 – death 1964.12.16)
 Jules-Joseph Puset, Sulpicians (P.S.S.) (born France) (1957.11.14 – retired 1972.03.25), died 1983
 Jérôme Razafindrazaka (1972.03.25 – retired 1989.05.15), died 1992
 René Joseph Rakotondrabé (1989.05.15 – 1990.01.31 see below); previously Titular Bishop of Umbriatico (1972.03.25 – 1974.02.28) as Auxiliary Bishop of Tuléar (Madagascar) (1972.03.25 – 1974.02.28), succeeding as Bishop of Tuléar (1974.02.28 – 1989.05.15)

Suffragan Bishops of Toamasina
 René Joseph Rakotondrabé (see above 1989.05.15 - retired 2008.11.24), died 2012
 Desire Tsarahazana (2008.11.24 - 2010.02.26 see below); previously Bishop of Fenoarivo Atsinanana (Madagascar) (2000.10.30 – 2008.11.24), remaining a while Apostolic Administrator of Fenoarivo Atsinanana (2008.12 – 2009.02.10); future Cardinal

Metropolitan Archbishops of Toamasina
 Desire Tsarahazana (see above 2010.02.26 - ...), also President of Episcopal Conference of Madagascar (2012.11 – ...); Cardinal in 2018

See also
 List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Madagascar
 Roman Catholicism in Madagascar

Sources and external links
 GCatholic.org
 Catholic Hierarchy

Roman Catholic dioceses in Madagascar
Christian organizations established in 1935
Roman Catholic dioceses and prelatures established in the 20th century
1935 establishments in Madagascar


Northeastern Region ( ) is one of the traditional eight regions of Iceland, located in the north of the island. The biggest town in the region is Akureyri, with a population of 17,300.

External links