December 1937: Nanjing Massacre

After capturing the Chinese capital of Nanjing on 13 December 1937, Japanese soldiers engaged in a period of extended looting, arson, murder, and atrocities against the civilian population of the city and its environs. This period of pillage, known as the Nanjing Massacre, lasted from the Japanese capture of Nanjing until the reimposition of civilian authority in late January 1938. During the Massacre, between 150,000 and 200,000 civilians were killed, constituting the majority of Nanjing’s population; as were around 30,000 POWs. Japanese soldiers also committed numerous other atrocities and widespread arson, resulting in the destruction of around half of Nanjing.

 The massacre was not ordered by Japanese officers and appears to have been a spontaneous event resulting from a desire on the part of soldiers to punish the Chinese for their refusal to surrender and the heavy Japanese casualties sustained during the Battle of Shanghai. The Massacre was stopped when it became internationally embarrassing to the Japanese.

The fall of Nanjing and the subsequent massacre mark the end of the first stage of fighting in the China Theater. In the 6 months since the start of the Second World War, Japan had managed to take over China north of the Yellow River as well as the lower Yangtze, including the capital. The loss of Nanjing and Shanghai crippled the warfighting abilities of the Guomindang, as Japan now controlled the industrial, financial, and political center of the Guomindang. After this point, China will fight on limited supplies, marginal financing, and without a professional officer corps. The fact that the war continues after this point also means that fighting moves away from the heavily populated coast and into the Chinese interior, where it will remain for the rest of the war.