In 1937, China was embroiled in a tumultuous period marked by the ongoing Second Sino-Japanese War. The country was facing immense challenges and undergoing significant changes that shaped its social, political, and economic landscape.
The war had inflicted severe damage on China's infrastructure, leaving cities and towns ravaged and many areas in ruins. The scars of conflict were visible across the country, with bombed-out buildings, demolished bridges, and shattered roads bearing witness to the relentless warfare that had engulfed the nation.
Amidst the chaos of war, the Chinese people demonstrated remarkable resilience and determination. The war effort had unified the population, fostering a sense of national pride and solidarity in the face of adversity. Ordinary citizens, alongside soldiers and guerrilla fighters, worked tirelessly to defend their homeland and resist the Japanese occupation.
Life in China during this period was characterized by scarcity and hardship. The war had disrupted agricultural production, causing food shortages and famine in several regions. The Chinese population faced significant challenges in obtaining basic necessities, and hunger and malnutrition were pervasive problems. Many families struggled to secure enough food to sustain themselves, leading to a decline in living standards and widespread suffering.
Despite the difficulties, the Chinese people exhibited remarkable resourcefulness and adaptability. Communities came together to support one another, sharing meager resources and finding innovative ways to survive. and individuals relied on their ingenuity to navigate the challenging circumstances.
In the midst of the war, Chinese society was also grappling with significant political changes. The Republic of China, led by Chiang Kai-shek, continued its resistance against the Japanese occupation. However, internal divisions and power struggles within the government and the Nationalist Party, as well as corruption, hindered the war effort and weakened the nation's resolve.
The war also brought about shifts in gender roles and societal dynamics. With many men away fighting or involved in the war effort, women assumed new responsibilities and took on crucial roles in supporting their families and communities. They became actively engaged in various fields, including healthcare, education, and manufacturing, contributing significantly to the war effort and reshaping gender norms in the process.
In summary, China in 1937 was a nation embattled by war and facing immense challenges. The population endured the devastating consequences of conflict, including destruction, scarcity, and hunger. However, amidst these hardships, the Chinese people demonstrated resilience, resourcefulness, and a strong sense of unity, underscoring their unwavering determination to defend their homeland and rebuild their nation. But one event scars all of this resistance and hardiness, the rape of nanking.
Hi everyone and welcome back to the dark history podcast where we explore the darkest parts of human history. hope everyone is well I’m Rob your host as always.Welcome to the new episode, unfortunately the brief rest bite of last episode is over and we are going to look at an event that is very heavy, if you hadn’t of guessed it’s the 1937 rape of Nanking. This is where the Japanese army laided siege to and utterly destroyed not just the city but it’s entire population committing some of histories most unspeakable acts along the way. So without further ado please sit back and relax next to the fire for more dark history.
The Japanese invasion of China during the Second Sino-Japanese War was a relentless and brutal campaign marked by aggression, strategic planning, and widespread devastation. It was a conflict that had far-reaching consequences and shaped the course of history in East Asia.
In July 1937, Japan initiated the invasion of China, seeking to expand its influence and secure resources. The Japanese Imperial Army swiftly advanced into Chinese territory, utilizing superior military technology, tactics, and firepower. They overwhelmed Chinese defenses, pushing deeper into the country and rapidly capturing major cities and strategic locations.
The invasion was characterized by a combination of conventional warfare, guerrilla tactics, and aerial bombardment. Japanese forces unleashed devastating aerial attacks on Chinese cities and infrastructure, inflicting heavy casualties and widespread destruction. This aerial superiority allowed the Japanese to strike fear into the hearts of both soldiers and civilians alike, as the deafening roar of bombers and the raining of bombs heralded the onslaught of obliteration.
As the invasion continued, the Japanese army conducted systematic campaigns of occupation and subjugation. They established control over captured territories, imposing their authority through military rule and harsh policies. The Chinese population faced forced labor, arbitrary arrests, and brutal punishments for resistance. Local governance structures were dismantled, and the Japanese military took command, further solidifying their control and suppressing any form of dissent.
The civilian population bore the brunt of the invasion's impact. Cities and towns were subjected to indiscriminate bombings, leaving behind a trail of rubble and ruin. The onslaught of violence and destruction caused mass displacement, as people fled their homes seeking safety from the advancing Japanese forces. Countless lives were disrupted, and communities were torn apart.
Throughout the invasion, the Japanese army perpetrated numerous atrocities against Chinese civilians and prisoners of war.
Despite the overwhelming military might of the Japanese forces, the Chinese people demonstrated resilience and determination in their resistance. They organized guerrilla warfare campaigns, engaged in sabotage operations, and utilized their knowledge of the terrain to harass the invaders. The Chinese forces, though outmatched in many aspects, fought valiantly, often resorting to unconventional tactics to disrupt Japanese operations.
The Japanese invasion of China during the War was a dark and harrowing period in history. It resulted in immense loss of life, widespread suffering, and long-lasting scars on the Chinese nation. The conflict's impact, both in terms of human tragedy and geopolitical ramifications, reverberated far beyond the borders of China, leaving an indelible mark on the region's history. Words cannot describe the lack of consideration the Japanese showed towards the civilians of China , but one story may help. the Osaka Mainichi Shimbun and its sister newspaper, the Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun, covered a contest between two Japanese officers, Toshiaki Mukai and Tsuyoshi Noda of the Japanese 16th Division. The two men were described as vying to be the first to kill 100 people with a sword before the capture of Nanjing. From Jurong to Tangshan (two cities in Jiangshu Province, China), Mukai had killed 89 people while Noda had killed 78. The contest continued because neither had killed 100 people. By the time they had arrived at Zijin Mountain, Noda had killed 105 people while Mukai had killed 106 people. Both officers supposedly surpassed their goal during the heat of battle, making it impossible to determine which officer had actually won the contest. Therefore, according to journalists Asami Kazuo and Suzuki Jiro, writing in the Tokyo Nichi Nichi Shimbun they decided to begin another contest to kill 150 people each.
As the invasion pushed to the capital of China, Nanking, would fall to Japanese forces, and the Chinese government fled to Hankow, further inland along the Yangtze River.
To break the spirit of Chinese resistance, Japanese General Matsui Iwane ordered that the city of Nanking be destroyed.
What would follow in December of 1937 marked a dark chapter in history, characterized by the brutal invasion and occupation of the Chinese citys.
As the conflict escalated, Japanese forces surrounded and eventually captured Nanking, plunging the city into chaos and terror. The start of the Nanking Massacre was marked by an overwhelming sense of fear and despair among the Chinese population. Japanese soldiers, driven by a combination of wartime aggression, nationalist fervor, and a lack of restraint, unleashed a campaign of extreme violence and atrocities upon the defenseless civilian population.
In the initial days, the people of Nanking experienced the horrors of war firsthand. The sounds of gunfire and explosions reverberated through the streets as the city became a battleground. Japanese troops flooded the city, proceeding with a systematic takeover, while the Chinese defenders were overwhelmed and forced into retreat. Panic gripped the citizens as they faced the imminent arrival of the invading forces.
When the Japanese army gained control over Nanking, the true extent of the tragedy began to unfold. The occupation witnessed a wave of looting, arson, and widespread destruction. Japanese soldiers indiscriminately raided homes, businesses, and institutions, pillaging valuable possessions and setting buildings ablaze. This widespread chaos and lawlessness set the stage for even more heinous acts to follow.
Perhaps the most horrifying aspect of the Nanking Massacre was the widespread and organized campaign of sexual violence against women and girls. Countless women of all ages were subjected to rape and sexual assault, often in public and in front of their families. These acts of violence were perpetrated with unparalleled brutality, leaving deep physical and psychological scars on the survivors. These action were unspeakably wicked, The International Military Tribunal for the Far East estimated that 20,000 women, including some children and the elderly, were raped during the occupation, with Yale University claiming over 80,000 rapes. A large number of rapes were done systematically by the Japanese soldiers as they went from door to door, searching for girls, with many women being captured and gang-raped. The women were often killed immediately after being raped, often through explicit mutilation, such as by penetrating vaginas with bayonets, long sticks of bamboo, or other objects.
On 19 December 1937, the Reverend James M. McCallum wrote in his diary:
I know not where to end. Never I have heard or read such brutality. Rape! Rape! Rape! We estimate at least 1,000 cases a night and many by day. In case of resistance or anything that seems like disapproval, there is a bayonet stab or a bullet.... People are hysterical... Women are being carried off every morning, afternoon and evening. The whole Japanese army seems to be free to go and come as it pleases, and to do whatever it pleases.
for six weeks, life for the Chinese in Nanking became a nightmare. Bands of drunken Japanese soldiers roamed the city, murdering, raping, looting, and burning at whim. Chinese civilians who were stopped on the street, and found to possess nothing of value, were immediately killed.
The Japanese troops were encouraged by their officers to invent ever more horrible ways to slaughter the Chinese population of the city. When the bodies of murdered Chinese choked the streets and the gutters ran red with their blood, the Japanese were forced to refine their methods of slaughter in the interest of preventing the spread of disease. Batches of Chinese civilians were rounded up and herded into slaughter pits. Here the grinning Japanese soldiers would either bury them alive, hack them to death with their swords, use them for bayonet practice, or pour petrol on the victims and burn them alive. The bodies of thousands of victims of the slaughter were dumped into the Yangtze River until the river was red with their blood. After looting Nanking of anything of value, the Japanese started fires that gutted one third of the city.
Independent foreign observers of the Rape of Nanking, including a German businessman and Nazi Party member named John Rabe, were appalled to see Chinese civilians, both men and women, the elderly, and tiny children, put to death by Japanese troops with horrifying brutality. Rabe tried to save as many Chinese as he could by creating a safety zone on his estate. He appealed to Adolf Hitler to intervene, but the Nazi leader rebuffed his appeal. Convincing independent proof of the horrifying scale of the Japanese massacre at Nanking emerged in 1996 with the publication of John Rabe's diary record of the massacre.
Japanese soldiers appeared to be quite willing to be photographed with raised swords beside their intended victims, in the act of bayoneting their victims, and posing with their dead victims in the slaughter pits. The atrocities committed by Japanese troops at Nanking were widely publicised by foreign observers, including newspaper correspondents. When the Japanese high command became aware of the full scope of the horror perpetrated by Japanese troops at Nanking, it went to considerable lengths to destroy evidence of the atrocity.
The violence extended to all corners of society, sparing no one. Men, women, children, and the elderly were subjected to unimaginable cruelty. Innocent civilians were indiscriminately targeted, often chosen at random or based on the whims of the perpetrators. Families were torn apart as loved ones were mercilessly killed before their eyes, leaving survivors traumatized and grief-stricken. On March 7, 1938, Robert O. Wilson, a surgeon at the university hospital in the Safety Zone administrated by the United States, wrote in a letter to his family, "a conservative estimate of people slaughtered in cold blood is somewhere about 100,000, including of course thousands of soldiers that had thrown down their arms."
The slaughter of civilians is appalling. I could go on for pages telling of cases of rape and brutality almost beyond belief. Two bayoneted corpses are the only survivors of seven street cleaners who were sitting in their headquarters when Japanese soldiers came in without warning or reason and killed five of their number and wounded the two that found their way to the hospital. Let me recount some instances occurring in the last two days. Last night the house of one of the Chinese staff members of the university was broken into and two of the women, his relatives, were raped. Two girls, about 16, were raped to death in one of the refugee camps. In the University Middle School where there are 8,000 people the Japs came in ten times last night, over the wall, stole food, clothing, and raped until they were satisfied. They bayoneted one little boy of eight who [had] five bayonet wounds including one that penetrated his stomach, a portion of omentum was outside the abdomen. I think he will live.
Two Japanese soldiers have climbed over the garden wall and are about to break into our house. When I appear they give the excuse that they saw two Chinese soldiers climb over the wall. When I show them my party badge, they return the same way. In one of the houses in the narrow street behind my garden wall, a woman was raped, and then wounded in the neck with a bayonet. I managed to get an ambulance so we can take her to Kulou Hospital ... Last night up to 1,000 women and girls are said to have been raped, about 100 girls at Ginling College...alone. You hear nothing but rape. If husbands or brothers intervene, they're shot. What you hear and see on all sides is the brutality and bestiality of the Japanese soldiers.
The destruction and desecration of cultural heritage were additional dimensions of the atrocities. Historical landmarks, religious sites, and cultural artifacts were vandalized or destroyed, erasing centuries of rich history and cultural identity. Libraries were set ablaze, and countless books and precious manuscripts were lost forever.
The aftermath of the Rape of Nanking left a city in ruins and a scarred population struggling to rebuild and heal. The profound impact of the atrocities continues to be felt to this day, as the survivors and their families grapple with the lasting trauma.
Describing the atrocities of the Rape of Nanking is a distressing task, but it is crucial to remember and acknowledge the suffering endured by the victims. By confronting this dark period in history, we strive to honor the memory of those who perished and reaffirm our commitment to prevent such atrocities from ever happening again.
In late January 1938, the Japanese army forced all refugees in the Safety Zone to return home, immediately claiming to have "restored order". After the establishment of the weixin zhengfu or t he collaborating government in 1938, order was gradually restored in Nanjing and atrocities by Japanese troops lessened considerably.
On 18 February 1938, the International Committee for the Nanking Safety Zone was forcibly renamed the Nanjing International Rescue Committee, and the Safety Zone effectively ceased to function. The last refugee camps were closed in May 1938.
The judges of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (also known as the Tokyo War Crimes Trials) were prepared to accept that at least 200,000 Chinese civilians and prisoners of war were slaughtered by the Japanese in the six weeks after Nanking fell. The judges were also prepared to accept that the death toll would be much higher if estimates of the number of Chinese burned alive by the Japanese in mass slaughter pits and bodies dumped in the river were added. Non-Japanese historians are prepared to accept that the slaughter at Nanking could have reached as high as 370,000 victims.
The appalling brutality displayed by Japanese troops at Nanking was by no means unique. It has been estimated by historians that several million Chinese civilians and prisoners of war were murdered in the course of Japan's undeclared war on China between 1937 and 1945.
Despite photographic and independent eyewitness evidence, the Japanese government still refuses to acknowledge or permit Japanese schoolchildren to be told the full story of the slaughter, rape and looting that took place at Nanking in 1937. In recent years, the Japanese government has made a small concession to the weight of international and local criticism of this censorship by permitting brief and vague references in history textbooks to the Rape of Nanking (Nanjing Massacre), but the atrocities are described as the "Nanjing Incident" and the text suggests that the victims died during the battle for the city, and not in a horrifying massacre that took place during the six weeks that followed the fall of the city to the Japanese.
Even these small concessions to historical truth are now coming under attack in Japan from militarists and neo-nationalists. The neo-nationalists, who include Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, prominent members of Japan's parliament, and senior academics such as Professor Nobukatsu Fujioka of Tokyo University, believe that these concessions have gone too far, and that school textbooks should be censored to delete all references to Japanese war guilt and atrocities, and to instil national pride rather than shame.
Thank you everyone for taking the time out of your day to listen to this very dark episode. It's a harrowing thing to research the topic of the rape of Nanking, word can't do it justice, the picture on the other hand do. a book I've used for this episodes research is by iris chang it's a very famous book but it shows everything.
The book gives a very detailed account of the extent and appalling nature of the Japanese atrocities in Nanking. The horrifying photographs in the book survived the attempt by the Japanese high command to cover up the Nanking atrocities because the perpetrators entrusted the "happy snaps" recording their vile behaviour to a Japanese-owned photographic shop in Shanghai for processing. A Chinese employee secretly made extra copies and smuggled them out of China. I must warn you if you do look at this book it show the rape of nanking for all of its despicable glory and spares nothing.
The death toll for this incident is incredibly difficult to tie down, In 2003, the director of Japan's Military History Archives of National Institute for Defense Studies said that as much 70 percent of Japan's wartime records were destroyed pair this with the mass disposal of Chinese corpses by Japanese soldiers; the revisionist tendencies of both Chinese and Japanese individuals and groups, who are driven by nationalistic and political motivations; and the subjectivity involved in the collection and interpretation of evidence make it a difficult task. However, the most credible scholars in Japan, which include a large number of authoritative academics, support the validity of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East and its findings, which estimate at least 200,000 casualties and at least 20,000 cases of rape.
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