Sino-Japanese War (1937-1941)

On By bfIn Japan, Move to Global War, Uncategorized

Causes

  • Marco Polo bridge incident (7/7/1937)
    • According to an agreement – JP soldiers could be stationed here → someone went missing → thought they were kidnapped ⇒ exchange of fire
    • Chiang Kai Shek = saw this as an attack on ❤ of China – turning point
    • June 1937 – a loyalist, Prince Konoe Fumimaro became PM of JP → used this event to stir up nationalism
  • Battle for Shanghai
    • 26 July 1937 – issued an ultimatum by JP to withdraw
    • War declared on 7th August
    • 14th August – CN planes aiming for JP dropped bombs on the Bund, killing 1000
    • Jiang forced the world to take notice
      • Brussels conference – appealed to Nine-Power allies but nothing was done

Key features

  • The Panay incident
    • December 1937 – American patrol boat Panay is bombed by JP forces, Ladybird (UK) was under fire in Yangtze ⇒ UK willing to send 9 ships if US would, US didn’t ⇒ WAR ALMOST breaks out
    • UK Didn’t do anything
    • Only support of China was the USSR = non aggression pact in 1st August, 1938 = 250m USD given to CKS
    • By Nov 1937 = retreated to Chongqing from Nanjing
  • December 1937 – Nanjing falls
    • Rape of Nanjing: killed/raped women, girls, extreme brutality
    • Feb 1938 – International Peace Campaign
      • Protested JP invasion, boycott of JP goods
        • Southampton – refused to unload cotton from Japan
        • Commonwealth Federation @ US = boycott JP goods going into Seattle
        • Oct 1937 = stockings of cotton instead of silk
  • Events of the War
    • Initially = JP won Beijing, SH, NJ, Wuhan in 1938 ⇒ 1939, most of Eastern Coast of China + biggest cities
      • 1938 – New Order in East Asia
    • Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere (attempt to create JP economic empire) → direct threat to Western position in Asia
      • Gov’t still frustrated because Chinese did not surrender even though JP took control of the capital city → it was still an ‘incident’
        • 1938: Nazi Germany recognises Manchukuo
        • Fascist italy joins Japan and Germany in the Anti-comintern pact
    • 1941 – economic blockade/embargo in Japan
    • 1941 – Nationalist and Communist forces – US, UK, USSR = held 1m JP troops in China (enabling counter-attack across the Pacific Ocean → with JP surrendering 2nd Sept 1945)

Impact

  • Japan
    • 1930s – gov’t wasn’t making policies, it was responding to events
    • Military grew in power (PM Konoe Fumimaro made efforts to build up support against China, for the war)
    • 1938: National Mobilization Act of 1938 – JP entered total war
      • Labour union dissolved, gov’t control economy
      • Workers = war effort, schools = nationalism
      • Censorship = positive war
      • PM Konoe ⇒ war intention to “struggle against Western imperialism and its Chinese agent, CKS” to establish “new order in Japan”
  • Feb 1936 – political tension in JP increased, military officers attempted coup to remove obstacles preventing union between emperor and people (FEB COUP)
        • Made division of the military
  • Imperial Way faction – remove zaibatsu, overthrow capitalism, assist countryside, military dictatorship!
    • Control faction – future war against West, need zaibatsu + bureaucracy to built up armaments (military and naval power!)
    • Coup =
      • Now Control Faction in fully in control, assert authority, army ministers have right to appoint cabinet
      • PM Hirota signed military budget to finance rearmament
      • Anti-Comintern Pact with Germany
  • New order in East Asia
    • New Japanese policy – Imperial conference
    • Shift of power to Imperial Way faction – loss of moderate voice – (wanted to conquer china) → did not recognise Chinese gov’t unless…
      • It recognised Manchukuo
      • Created neutral zones in northern China/Mongolia
      • Paid reparations to JP
      • Cooperated in central China (area occupied by Japan)
    • Japan being drawn into war which drained resources + economy
      • Nov 1938: CKS refused ultimatum ⇒ locked in an unwinnable war
      • Puppet regime was set up in Nanjing
      • New order – Japan becomes China’s main trading partner
      • Departure from Washington System 1922 (Open Door Policy)
      • Unions dissolved, censorship, Imperial Rule Assistance Association = replaced ALL POLITICAL parties in 1940
    • General Tojo, appointed PM in October 1941
  • Foreign policy in USSR
    • tension with USSR over Manchukuo border
    • Battle of Nomonhan – 20,000 Japanese killed
    • Abandons idea of attacking USSR, decides to attack South in South East Asia
  • China becomes divided
    • China Kai Shek rules Chongqing – supported by US/UK
    • Mao Zedong rules communist regions from Yan’an in North-West
    • Wang Jingwei had a pro-JP puppet regime in Nanjing (traitor

Political developments within China—the Second United Front

  • Causes
    • Communist Red Army out of Jiangxi → Long March
    • 1935: instruction from USSR to ally with the GMD
    • CKS realised he needed Soviet Support to fight JP if a war broke out
      • Secret negotiations
      • In public ⇒ “GMD IS SUCCESSFUL!”
  • Xi’an Incident
    • Zhang Zuolin’s sun (Zhang Xueliang)
      • Kidnapped CKS
      • December 1936 – announced that GMD would join forces to defend China against Japan

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