1916年,在湘西怀化地区曾发生过一件举世瞩目的大事:东路护国军司令王文华所属的不足四个团约三千余人的兵力,迎击了北洋军(简称北军)第一路军司令马继增所率的三万余人的四个混成旅。护国军转战两月余,占地千里,攻克城镇数十座,“毙伤敌军近万人,迫使袁家司令马继增羞愤自戕,使北洋军闻风丧胆,取得了湘西战场上的辉煌胜利”。有力地配合了四川、广西方面的护国军作战,创造了中国近代战争史上以弱胜强的光辉战例。护国军之所以能在兵员少,给养困难,装备落后的情况下战胜给养充足,武器精良,近十倍于己的北军,主要是得利于天时地利人和。 In 1916, in Huaihua area of ​​western Hunan Province, there was a world-famous event: the troops of less than four regiments belonging to less than four groups led by Commander-in-chief Wang Wenhua of East China Road in the western part of Huaihua attacked the first road of the Northern Army (North Army) Commander of the military commander Ma Jiseng rate of more than 30,000 four mixed brigade. Hu Guojun fought more than two months, covering a thousand miles to capture dozens of towns, “killing and wounding nearly ten thousand enemy forces, forcing Commander Yuan Jiazhi shame, so that the Northern Army scared, achieved the brilliant victory in the battlefield in western Hunan.” Effectively cooperating with the national army in Sichuan and Guangxi in fighting and creating a brilliant example of weakness and strongness in the history of modern Chinese wars. The reason why the armed forces of the armed forces have been able to defeat the adequate and well-armed North Army by nearly ten times the number of troops, difficulties in providing supplies and backward equipment is mainly benefiting from favorable conditions.