(1894-1895)
War between Japan and China began on August 1st 1894 though some naval fighting had already taken place. The modern Japanese army defeated the Chinese in a series of battles around Seoul and Pyeongyang. They soon took Port Arthur and apparently massacred thousands of the city’s occupants, although the numbers may have been exaggerated by western reporters. The Japanese navies defeated the Chinese navy and in February of 1895 the Chinese surrendered agreeing by treaty to stay out of Korea, cede a large portion of eastern Manchuria, as well as the island of Taiwan (Formosa). This marked the turning point in power from China to Japan.(1)
September 18 1931.
A section of Japanese railroad in southern Manchuria was blown up causing Japanese officials to blame Chinese dissidents for the affair, and use this as an excuse to annex Manchuria. There is some controversy as to who was responsible for the destruction of the railroad. Japan claims it was done by Chinese dissidents, while China insists that the Japanese military was responsible in an attempt to find grounds for annexing Manchuria. However, in the Japanese war museum, the Yashukan , the blame is rested solely on the shoulders of the Chinese. (3)
(July 7th 1937)
The Marco Polo Bridge Incident was a battle between Japan's Imperial Japanese Army and China's National Revolutionary Army, marking the beginning of the 2nd Sino-Japanese War.(2)
(1937–1945)
Major conflict between Japanese and Chinese forces for control of the Chinese mainland. The war depleted the Chinese Nationalist government's strength while allowing the Communists to gain control over large areas through organization of guerrilla units. Thus, it was an important factor in the eventual Communist defeat of the Nationalist forces in 1949. In its early stage, the war was often called the China Incident. This war coincided with The Great East Asia War (WWII). (4)
December of 1937.
The Imperial Japanese Army took over the city of Nanking and spent the next 6 weeks raping, pillaging, and murdering the city and its inhabitants. At least 369,366 Chinese civilians and prisoners of war were slaughtered by the invading Japanese troops. An estimated 80,000 women and girls were raped many of them were then mutilated or murdered. These actions were supported by the Japanese officers and included the rape and mutilation of pregnant women. (15)
In 1942 the Japanese military began testing of certain chemical and biological weapons as an alternative method to winning the war. Human experiments were conducted on civilians and Allied POWs. Both China (PRC) and the United States have demanded the "test results" in exchange for keeping quiet. The name Unit 731 is the cover name for all of the units involved in Japanese experimentation. Unit 731 was was disguised as a water purification unit based in Pingfan in part of the puppet state of Manchukuo. Researchers estimate that anywhere from 3,000 to 200,000 POWs were killed either directly or indirectly by Unit 731’s experiments. These experiments included vivisection and weapons testing, as well as food deprivation, exposure to unfiltered x-ray radiation, and biological warfare testing. (5)
Of late another issue was brought to the forefront of China/Japan conflict, concerning the legitimacy of Japanese history textbooks when recounting the Japanese actions prior to 1945. The Chinese claim that the Japanese are attempting to sugar coat the atrocities committed by Japanese soldiers and to play down their distinctly imperialistic history. (13)