Second Sino-Japanese War
On the 18th of September 1931, Japanese soldiers detonated a bomb on the Southern Manchurian Railroad. This false flag event provided the pretext for their invasion of Manchuria and the establishment of the puppet state known as Manchukuo. The conflict began with skirmishes in Shanghai and Northern China that continued until summer 1937. Chiang Kai-shek had secretly prepared for war since 1932 by recruiting German military advisors and purchasing foreign arms. However, his government focused its efforts on suppressing the Chinese Communists instead of opposing the Japanese threat. In late 1933, Chiang encircled the Chinese Communists to destroy them, forcing the Long March which resulted in the loss of around 90% of Communist men. A December 1936 kidnapping by two Nationalist Generals forced Chiang to negotiate a United Front with the Communists. On the 7th of July 1937, units of the Japanese China Garrison Army crossed the border near Beijing to conduct night exercises. They claimed Private Shimura Kikujiro went missing and demanded entry to the walled city of Wanping. Fire was exchanged in the confusion, escalating into full-scale war weeks later.
The Battle of Shanghai lasted over three months and involved over 300,000 Japanese troops along with numerous naval vessels and aircraft. By the 5th of November, additional reinforcements from Japan landed in Hangzhou Bay behind Chinese lines. The Imperial Japanese Army ultimately captured Dachang, a key strong-point within Shanghai, on the 26th of October. Following this victory, the Japanese concentrated 220,000 soldiers to capture Nanjing in November 1937. The Japanese forces inflicted heavy casualties on the defending Chinese soldiers, killing approximately 50,000 including 17 Chinese generals. In March 1938, the Chinese decisively defeated the Japanese at the Battle of Taierzhuang using night attacks and close-quarters combat. This battle marked the first Chinese victory of the war as they severed Japanese supply lines from the rear. The Japanese then attempted to surround and destroy Chinese armies in the Xuzhou region but failed. Over 400,000 Japanese men faced over 1 million National Revolutionary Army troops during the Battle of Wuhan. After four months of intense combat, the Nationalists were forced to abandon Wuhan by October 1938.
Upon the capture of Nanjing on the 13th of December 1937, Japanese troops perpetrated mass murder and rape of Chinese civilians. Over the next several weeks, tens of thousands of rapes occurred alongside numerous mass executions. The army looted and burned surrounding towns, destroying more than a third of the buildings. Estimates for the number of Chinese killed range from 100,000 to more than 300,000 according to various sources. From 1941 to 1942, Japan implemented the Three Alls Policy which meant kill all, loot all, and burn all. These measures included massacres, slavery, deportations, and mass rape across North and Central China. They destroyed numerous villages and deployed poison gas against the rural countryside. Aerial bombardments on Chongqing left many people dead, injured, or homeless. During the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign starting the 15th of May 1942, the Imperial Japanese Army spread cholera, typhoid, plague, and dysentery pathogens. As many as 250,000 civilians may have died of disease during this campaign alone. Overall, the war resulted in the deaths of around 20 million people, mostly Chinese civilians.
The Soviet Union provided the greatest material help for China from 1937 into 1941 through fighter aircraft and artillery. Operation Zet provided a group of Soviet volunteer combat aviators who joined the Chinese Air Force from late 1937 through 1939. Some $250 million in credits were approved by the Soviets for munitions and other supplies. After Germany withdrew support in 1938, the United States became China's main financial and military supporter following the Lend-Lease Act passed in 1941. Claire Lee Chennault commanded the 1st American Volunteer Group nicknamed the Flying Tigers with pilots flying American warplanes painted with the Chinese flag. Between the closing of the Burma Road in 1942 and its re-opening as the Ledo Road in 1945, foreign aid was largely limited to what could be flown over The Hump. Overseas Chinese communities in the U.S. raised money to fund an entire squadron of Boeing P-26 fighter planes purchased for the looming war situation. Over 3,200 overseas Chinese drivers and motor vehicle mechanics embarked to wartime China to support military and logistics supply lines.
On the 16th of April 1942, 7,000 British soldiers were encircled by the Japanese 33rd Division during the Battle of Yenangyaung and rescued by the Chinese 38th Division. Chiang Kai-shek continued to receive supplies from the United States despite sea routes being closed since 1940. In late November 1944, the Japanese advance slowed approximately 300 miles from Chongqing due to shortages of trained soldiers and materiel. By the end of 1944, Chinese troops under Sun Li-jen attacking from India joined forces with those under Wei Lihuang attacking from Yunnan in Mong-Yu. This successful operation drove the Japanese out of North Burma and secured the Ledo Road, China's vital supply artery. American general Joseph Stilwell served as Chiang's chief of staff while simultaneously commanding American forces in the China-Burma-India Theater. Relations between Stilwell and Chiang soon broke down over strategic differences regarding offensive operations. The Allies' Europe first policy did not sit well with Chiang who preferred a patient strategy of out-waiting the Japanese. Despite severe shortages of matériel, the Chinese were successful in repelling major Japanese offensives in Hubei and Changde in 1943.
The Second United Front completely broke down culminating in the New Fourth Army Incident in January 1941. Mao Zedong outlined the 721 policy stating they were fighting 70 percent for self development, 20 percent for compromise, and 10 percent against Japan. Starting in 1940, open conflict between Nationalists and Communists became more frequent in occupied areas outside of Japanese control. The only success the Japanese had was to recruit a large Collaborationist Chinese Army to maintain public security in the occupied areas. This included prominently the regime headed by Wang Jingwei, one of Chiang's rivals in the Kuomintang. However, atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army left the puppets very unpopular and largely ineffective. In Shaan-Gan-Ning, Communists fostered opium production, taxed it, and engaged in its trade including selling to Japanese-occupied provinces. Communist forces actively engaged the Japanese early on to weaken their forces in Shanxi and other areas in the North. When compromise with the CCP failed to incentivize the Soviet Union to engage in an open conflict, the KMT withheld further support for the Communists.
Japan's 1944 Operation Ichi-Go mobilized 500,000 Japanese troops, 100,000 horses, 1,500 artillery pieces, and 800 tanks. It was the largest military campaign of the Second Sino-Japanese War targeting American airfields along railway lines. Although Operation Ichi-Go achieved its goals of seizing United States air bases, it did so too late to impact the result of the broader war. After Operation Ichi-Go, Chiang Kai-shek started a plan to withdraw Chinese troops from the Burma theatre against Japan in Southeast Asia. The poor performance of Chiang's forces during Operation Ichi-Go became widely viewed as demonstrating his incompetence. By the spring of 1945, the Chinese launched offensives that retook Hunan and Guangxi. China formally surrendered on the 2nd of September 1945 following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet declaration of war. The war resulted in the deaths of around 20 million people, mostly Chinese civilians. China regained Taiwan and became one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.
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Common questions
When did the Second Sino-Japanese War begin and what triggered it?
The Second Sino-Japanese War began on the 7th of July 1937 when units of the Japanese China Garrison Army crossed the border near Beijing to conduct night exercises. The conflict escalated after they claimed Private Shimura Kikujiro went missing and demanded entry to the walled city of Wanping, leading to exchanged fire.
What happened during the capture of Nanjing by Japan in December 1937?
Upon the capture of Nanjing on the 13th of December 1937, Japanese troops perpetrated mass murder and rape of Chinese civilians over the next several weeks. Estimates for the number of Chinese killed range from 100,000 to more than 300,000 according to various sources while the army looted and burned surrounding towns.
Which countries provided military aid to China during the Second Sino-Japanese War?
The Soviet Union provided the greatest material help for China from 1937 into 1941 through fighter aircraft and artillery including Operation Zet with volunteer combat aviators. After Germany withdrew support in 1938, the United States became China's main financial and military supporter following the Lend-Lease Act passed in 1941.
How many people died during the Second Sino-Japanese War overall?
Overall, the war resulted in the deaths of around 20 million people mostly Chinese civilians. During the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign starting the 15th of May 1942 alone as many as 250,000 civilians may have died of disease spread by the Imperial Japanese Army.
When did the Second Sino-Japanese War end and what were the consequences for China?
China formally surrendered on the 2nd of September 1945 following the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet declaration of war. China regained Taiwan and became one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council after the conflict concluded.