Nanjing Massacre 1937
Also called: Rape of Nanking · Topic: Paths to Modernisation: Japan, China, Korea · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Nanjing Massacre was the mass killing and rape of Chinese civilians and prisoners of war by Japanese troops. It lasted several weeks after Japan captured Nanjing in December 1937. Nanjing was then the capital of the Guomindang (Nationalist) government. It happened during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It remains one of the worst war crimes of that war and still strains relations between China and Japan.
Example
Japanese forces entered Nanjing in December 1937 and killed very large numbers of soldiers who had surrendered and ordinary civilians. Japanese troops also raped huge numbers of women in the city.
Don't confuse with
- Manchurian Incident (1931): In 1931, Japan used a staged explosion to seize Manchuria. The Nanjing Massacre came six years later, during the full-scale war.
Related concepts
- First Sino-Japanese War
- Russo-Japanese War
- Japanese aggressive nationalism
- Manchurian Incident 1931
- Overcoming Modernity