The Terrifying Story of the Rape of Nanking
Often overshadowed by other global events of the World War II era, the Rape of Nanking is not just a historical footnote but a reminder of wartime barbarity and human suffering on an unimaginable scale.
In the winter of 1937–1938, the ancient city of Nanking (now Nanjing), then the capital of Nationalist China, bore witness to one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century.
The Japanese Imperial Army, having captured the city, embarked on a six-week campaign of violence. This period, known as the Rape of Nanking, saw the systematic mass murder and sexual assault of tens of thousands of Chinese civilians and disarmed soldiers.
Sour Sino-Japanese Ties
The historical tensions between China and Japan can be traced back centuries, marked by conflict and uneasy truces.
By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Japan’s rapid industrialization and militarization contrasted sharply with China’s Qing Dynasty, which was struggling with internal rebellion and the pressures of Western imperialism. The First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) ended in a resounding victory for Japan, leading to the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which…
