Japan timeline
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Japanese Army Withdraws from Shanghai, Officially Ending Conflict, Despite Continued Sporadic Fighting
On 29 February, the Japanese 11th Infantry Division landed near Liuhe behind Chinese lines. The defenders launched a desperate counterattack from 1... Read more
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Ma Zhanshan Announces Reestablishment of the “Heilungkiang Provincial Government” Independent of Manchukuo (Manchu State)
At Heihe on April 7, Ma announced the reestablishment of the “Heilungkiang Provincial Government” independent of Manchukuo, and reorganized his... Read more
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Defense of the Great Wall
Falling back from Rehe, Wan Fulin's 32nd Corps retreated to Lengkou Pass, while the 29th Corps of General Song Zheyuan also fell back, Zhang... Read more
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Japanese Forces Take Over Mishan
On December 24, 1932, the Japanese 10th Division attacked guerrilla forces to the north of Mudanjiang River. January 5, 1933, General Kuan... Read more
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Battle of Rehe
The Battle of Rehe (sometimes called the Battle of Jehol) was the second part of Operation Nekka, a campaign by which the Empire of Japan... Read more
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Signing of the Tanggu Truce Formally Ends the Japanese Invasion of Manchuria
The Tanggu Truce resulted in the de facto recognition of the existence of Manchukuo by the Kuomingtang government, and acknowledgement of the loss... Read more
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Inner Mongolian Army Faction Attacks Chinese Garrison at Hongort
On November 14, 1936 a coalition of the Inner Mongolian Army's 7th and 8th Cavalry Divisions, Wang Ying's Grand Han Righteous Army, and Mongol... Read more
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Axis Powers formed through Anti-Comintern Pact
The Anti-Comintern Pact was concluded between Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan (later to be joined by other countries) on November 25, 1936 and... Read more
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Marco Polo Bridge Incident (Battle of Lugou Bridge)
From June 1937, Japanese troops carried out intensive military training maneuvers in the vicinity of the western end of the Marco Polo Bridge.... Read more
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Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (July 7, 1937 – September 9, 1945) was a military conflict fought between the Republic of China and the Empire of... Read more
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Fighting Erupts at Langfang Between Chinese and Japanese Troops Despite Recent Truce
By 25 July, Japanese reinforcements in the form of the IJA 20th Division arrived and fighting re-erupted first at Langfang, a city on the railroad... Read more
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Tungchow Mutiny
The Tungchow Mutiny (通州事件 Tsushu jiken, Chinese: 通州事件; pinyin: Tōngzhōu Shìjiàn), sometimes referred to as the Tōngzhōu Incident, was an assault on... Read more
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Tianjin Falls to Japanese Forces
Meanwhile on the coast at dawn of 29 July, the IJA 5th Division and Japanese naval forces separately attacked Tianjin and the port at Tanggu, which... Read more
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Beijing Falls to Japanese Forces
On 28 July, Chiang Kai-shek ordered Song Zheyuan to retreat to Paoting in southern Hebei province. Over the next two days, intense fighting took... Read more
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Japanese Forces Begin Attack on Chinese at Nankou
On August 8th the Japanese 11th Independent Mixed Brigade, commanded by Gen. Shigiyasu Suzuki began their attack on the left flank of the 13th... Read more
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First Phase in the Battle of Shanghai
Around 9am on August 13, the Chinese Peace Preservation Corps exchanged small arms fire with Japanese troops in Zhabei, Wusong, and Jiangwan... Read more
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Phase Two in the Battle of Shanghai
On August 23, the Japanese Shanghai Expeditionary Army, led by Iwane Matsui, landed in Liuhe, Wusong (吳淞), and Chuanshakou. Chiang Kai-shek had... Read more
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Japanese Army Air Service Commences Aerial Bombing of Nanking
On September 21, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, commanded by Prince Naruhiko Higashikuni, began aerial bombardment of Nanking. The aerial... Read more
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Xie Jinyuan Leads Chinese Defense of Sihang Warehouse Against Japanese Aggression as Generalissimo Chiang Withdraws Forces West of Shanghai
The Defense of Sihang Warehouse (simplified Chinese: 四行仓库; traditional Chinese: 四行倉庫; pinyin: Sìháng Cāngkù) took place from October 26 to November... Read more
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Phase Three in the Battle of Shanghai
Starting the night of October 26, the Chinese began withdrawing from Shanghai urban center. Because Dachang and other vital suburban towns had been... Read more
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Chinese Defense of Sihang Warehouse against Japanese Ends with with Foreign Intervention
The Japanese launched a new wave of attack at 7 a.m. on the 30th. There were fewer infantry assaults at the warehouse this time; the Japanese... Read more
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Japanese Forces Take Taiyuan and Surrounding Area, Ending Large-Scale Resistance in the North China Area
The Japanese offensive called 太原作戦 or the Battle of Taiyuan (traditional Chinese: 太原會戰; pinyin: Tàiyuán Huìzhàn; Wade-Giles: T'ai-yüan Hui-tsan)... Read more
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Japanese are Victorious Over Chinese at Xinkou
Yan Xishan gathered all available Chinese troops under his command to make a stand at Xinkou, because this location is flanked by Wutaishan and... Read more
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General Matsui Iwane Issues Order to Japanese Army to Take Nanking by Force
The Japanese awaited an answer to their demand for surrender. When no Chinese envoy had arrived by 1:00 p.m. on December 10, General Matsui Iwane... Read more
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Japanese Attack on United States Gunboat Panay
A flat-bottomed craft built in Shanghai specifically for river duty, Panay served as part of the U.S. Navy's Yangtze Patrol in the Asiatic Fleet,... Read more