What happened after the 918 incident?

The September 18th Incident (also known as the Shenyang Incident; Japan calls it the Manchuria Incident, because Northeast China was formerly known as Manchuria) refers to a military conflict and political event that broke out in Northeast China on September 18, 1931. The two sides in the conflict are the Chinese Northeast Army and the Japanese Kwantung Army.

After the September 18th Incident, the conflict between Japan and China further intensified. In Japan, the status of the Japanese military, which was leading the war, rose, leading Japan to embark on the path of full-scale invasion of China. Within a few years after this incident broke out, all three provinces in Northeast China were occupied by the Japanese Kwantung Army. Therefore, they were regarded as a national humiliation by the Chinese people. To this day, September 18th is known as the "National Humiliation Day" in many informal occasions in China. . Internationally, this incident is often compared to the Reichstag fire in Nazi Germany

What happened

The Wicker Lake Incident

Main article: Wicker Lake Incident

On the evening of September 18, 1931, the 3rd Company of the 2nd Battalion of the Hushitai Independent Guards of the Japanese Kwantung Army left the original Hushitai Barracks and headed south along the South Manchuria Railway. At around 22:20 at night, a small detachment led by Lieutenant Mamoru Kawamoto, leader of the Liutiao Lake detachment, the commander of the army, detonated small explosives on the Liutiao Hunan Manchuria Railway section about 7.5 kilometers north of Fengtian (now Shenyang), blowing up a small section of the railway. Three Chinese corpses wearing Northeastern Army soldier uniforms were placed at the scene as evidence that the Northeastern Army had destroyed the railway.

After the explosion, the Japanese troops stationed in the Chinese Beidaying and Shenyang City were divided into two groups, the north and the south, and attacked the Chinese army's Beidaying. The Southern Army was commanded by Yukihiro Hirata, the 29th Regiment of the 2nd Infantry Brigade of the 2nd Infantry Division of the Kwantung Army, and the Northern Army was the 2nd Battalion of the Railway Garrison commanded by Masaichi Shimamoto.

At that time, the 7th Brigade of the Northeast Army stationed in Beida Camp was unprepared and was caught off guard. Zhang Xueliang had ordered the Northeast Army not to resist beforehand, but the garrison troops did not make a fierce counterattack. Two of the three regiments of the 7th Brigade withdrew as instructed. Only Wang Tiehan's 620th regiment did not receive the order to retreat in time and was forced to defend itself and finally broke through and withdrew. Due to the implementation of the non-resistance order, the more than 10,000 defenders of Beida Camp were defeated by the Japanese army with only more than 500 people.

[edit] The fall of major towns in Liaoning and Jilin

While the independent garrison attacked the northern camp, the 29th Regiment of the 3rd Brigade of the 2nd Division of the Kwantung Army attacked Fengtian City. In the early morning of September 19, Kwantung Army Commander Honjo Shige ordered: Liaoyang's 2nd Division mainly reinforced the attack on Fengtian; the 3rd Battalion of the Independent Guards attacked Yingkou, and the 4th Battalion attacked Fengcheng and Andong (now Dandong); The main force of the 3rd Brigade of the 2nd Division, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, and the 1st Independent Guard Battalion attacked Kuanchengzi, Erdaogou, Nanling and other places in Changchun respectively. By 10:00 on September 19, the Japanese army had successively captured 18 towns along the South Manchuria Railway and the Anfeng-Fengtian Railway (Andong-Fengtian), including Fengtian, Siping, Yingkou, Fengcheng, and Andong. The Northeastern Army in the Changchun area spontaneously counterattacked, and by the next day, Changchun fell. On September 21, Xiqia, Chief of Staff of the Office of the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Northeast Frontier Defense Force in Jilin Province, led his troops to surrender to the enemy, and the main force of the Japanese 2nd Division occupied Jilin.

The urban area of ??Shenyang under Japanese occupation

[edit] The fall of major towns in Heilongjiang

On October 1, Zhang Haipeng, the garrison envoy of Taonan in Heilongjiang Province of the Northeast Army, surrendered to the enemy. On the order of the Japanese army, three regiments were sent to attack Qiqihar. On October 16, at Nenjiang Bridge, they were repulsed by the Heilongjiang Provincial Defense Forces. The defenders blew up the No. 1, No. 2, and No. 5 bridges of the Nenjiang Railway Bridge to prevent the Japanese and puppet troops from invading. On October 26, the 29th Regiment of the 2nd Division of the Kwantung Army occupied major towns along the Sitao Railway (Siping-Tao'an). On November 4, the Nenjiang detachment of the Kwantung Army attacked the defenders north of the Nenjiang Bridge. Ma Zhanshan, Acting Chairman of the Heilongjiang Provincial Government and Acting Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Northeast Frontier Defense Force in Jiangsu, commanded 3 brigades and 5 regiments and engaged more than 16,000 people in the Jiangqiao Resistance War. The battle lasted until November 18, but he finally abandoned the provincial capital due to heavy casualties. Qiqihar, withdrew to Keshan and Helen. On November 19, the Japanese army captured Qiqihar.

Nenjiang Bridge Anti-Japanese War in November 1931

[edit] The fall of Jinzhou and Harbin

Zhang Xueliang left Fengtian after the incident broke out and led his subordinates to move to Jinzhou.

On October 8, 1931, the Kwantung Army sent 12 bombers to attack Jinzhou. In this regard, Minister of War Minamijiro still claimed to Prime Minister Reijiro Wakatsuki that "we had to take self-defense actions because we were attacked by anti-aircraft artillery fire from the Chinese army." After that, the Kwantung Army issued a public statement, declaring that "Zhang Xueliang has assembled a large number of troops in Jinzhou. If ignored, It may cause damage to Japan's rights and interests. In order to solve the Manchuria and Mongolia issue as soon as possible, it is necessary for the Kwantung Army to expel the Jinzhou regime." Since then, the international coordination foreign policy advocated by Shigehara has suffered a serious setback, and Japan has gone further and further down the road of militarism. Far. After the Japanese army captured the main towns in Heilongjiang Province, they began to attack the western Liaoning region. On December 15, the Kwantung Army attacked Jinzhou. On December 17, the Central Department of the Japanese Army dispatched an additional 8th Composite Brigade from Japan, and transferred the 20th Division Headquarters, 38th Composite Brigade, and Heavy Bombing Squadron from North Korea to reinforce the Kwantung Army. On December 28, the main force of the 2nd Division crossed the Liaohe River to attack Jinzhou; on December 30, the 39th Huncheng Brigade attacked Dahushan (now Dahushan). On January 3, 1932, the 20th Division Headquarters led the Huncheng 38th Brigade to occupy Jinzhou. The 12th and 20th brigades of the Northeastern Army and the 3rd Cavalry Brigade stationed in Jinzhou have been ordered to retreat to the Luandong area and Rehe, Hebei. On January 28, the 3rd Brigade of the Kwantung Army invaded Harbin from Changchun, and at the same time the 2nd Division was mobilized from the western Liaoning region for reinforcements. At that time, in order to divert the international community's attention from Manchuria, Japan provoked trouble in the international city of Shanghai, triggering the January 28th Incident. On January 31, Li Du, Yilan garrison envoy and commander of the 24th Brigade, led the Jilin Self-Defense Army to defend Harbin. After five days of fierce fighting, the Self-Defense Forces suffered heavy casualties and retreated to Bin County. On February 5, the Japanese army captured Harbin.

[edit] The establishment of Manchukuo

Main article: Manchukuo

Due to widespread condemnation from international public opinion, the Kwantung Army did not dare to occupy Manchuria with brazen force. situation, so they considered establishing a puppet regime. Colonel Doihara Kenji, who was the head of the secret service at the time, lobbied Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty who had abdicated. At that time, the Kwantung Army persuaded Puyi to return to the Northeast on the condition of reviving the Manchu Qing Dynasty. On November 10, Puyi set off from Tianjin, arrived at Yingkou on November 13, and finally stayed in the Japanese military camp stationed in Lushun.

Manchukuo Emperor Puyi On March 1, 1932, Manchukuo supported by Japan was officially established. Puyi served as the head of state, the capital was set in Xinjing (today's Changchun), and the reign name was "Datong". The above declarations were all issued at the residence of Zhang Jinghui, Chairman of the Northeastern Administrative Committee. The League of Nations strongly condemned the actions of the Japanese government and did not recognize the legitimacy of the Manchukuo government. Japan protested and left the League of Nations.

On March 9, Puyi’s enthronement ceremony was held in Xinjing.

On September 15, 1932, Japan and Manchukuo signed the "Japan-Manchukuo Protocol". Manchukuo recognized Japan's vested rights and interests and allowed the Kwantung Army to station troops in Manchuria

All parties Reaction

[edit] National Government

[edit] Diplomatic efforts

On September 19, China’s plenipotentiary representative to the League of Nations Shi Zhaoji reported the incident to the League of Nations, Ask the League of Nations to uphold justice;

On September 19, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Zhengting lodged a serious protest with Japanese Minister Shigemitsu Aoi;

On September 21, Shi Zhaoji formally lodged a complaint with the League of Nations;

On September 23, the Chinese government notified the U.S. government on this matter, hoping that the other party would be "deeply concerned."

[edit] Non-resistance policy

At the time of the incident, Zhang Xueliang stated that he had received a telegram from Chiang Kai-shek: "No matter how the Japanese army provokes in the Northeast in the future, we should not resist and try to avoid conflicts." . In a speech to the generals of the Northeast Army in 1935, he also said that Chiang Kai-shek had given him a secret message at that time, "Don't provoke yourself." However, after he regained his freedom in 1991, Zhang Xueliang admitted on various occasions that the decision of "non-resistance" was entirely his own and had nothing to do with Chiang Kai-shek. [1]

On September 22, Chiang Kai-shek declared to the people of the country: "At this moment, we must first confront the powerful with justice, use peace against barbarism, endure pain and anger, and temporarily adopt an attitude of resignation and wait. Judgment of international justice.

”

Chiang Kai-shek’s newspaper reports on the incident and the policy of non-resistance at that time said: “In order to fight against foreign forces, we must first pacify the interior. Only by unifying can we resist aggression. There is no country that can win over foreign countries without unification.” " as the principle, with the policy of first eliminating the opposition forces of the Communist Party, and then gathering strength to fight against the Japanese army and other external forces.

Despite Japan's repeated provocations in the Wanbaoshan incident and the Nakamura incident, Zhang Xueliang still On September 6, he called the Chief of Staff of the Northeast Army Rong Zhen and the Political Affairs Committee of the three Northeastern provinces: "Now that Japan is becoming more active in diplomacy towards us, it is best to be prudent in dealing with everything. No matter how the Japanese seek trouble, we must It is tolerated by all parties and cannot be resisted, which may cause trouble. Xixun is a secret power, so it is important to pay close attention to it. "

During the September 18th Incident, Zhang Xueliang was evaluated as a "non-resistance general". However, Zhang Xueliang's non-resistance behavior was later gradually evaluated as: He misjudged the purpose of the Japanese army. If he knew that the Japanese army was not "Looking for trouble", he wanted to annex Northeast China. As the commander-in-chief of Northeast China, he would not give up Northeast China to Japan. In an interview with Japanese state-owned television station (NHK) in 1990, Zhang Xueliang stated that he believed at that time that "war was not in line with the Japanese government." interests, the Japanese government should restrain the Kwantung Army."

It was precisely because of Zhang Xueliang's non-resistance that the Japanese Kwantung Army dared to brazenly launch a war to invade Northeast China, attacking 140,000 people with more than 10,000 people China's Northeastern Army occupied the three northeastern provinces in just six months.

Although Wang Jingwei later became a traitor, he advocated resistance to Japan during the September 18th Incident. He succeeded Sun Ke as the President of the Executive Council. He sent telegrams to Zhang Xueliang many times, urging him to send troops to resist, and blamed Zhang Xueliang for "abandoning Shenyang last year and losing Jinzhou again, causing 30 million people and hundreds of thousands of land to fall into the hands of the enemy..." However, Zhang Xueliang always excused himself, saying that there was insufficient food and salary, and refused. He failed to take action, and also implied that Wang Jingwei had no authority to command the Northeast Army. As a result, Wang Jingwei resigned and went abroad, thinking that the executive president could no longer do his job

[edit] Domestic public opinion

Nine During the Incident of 18th, the whole of Northeast China fell, and the whole country was in an uproar. On September 20, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China issued the "Declaration on the Rape of the Three Northeastern Provinces by Japanese Imperialism" and condemned the Japanese invasion. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China passed the "Resolution on the Incident of Japanese Imperialism's Seizure of Manchuria" and proposed organizing guerrilla resistance in the Northeast.

The Chinese people were also quite dissatisfied with Zhang Xueliang's "non-resistance". The Independent Review published an article "After the Nation was Shocked", arguing that Zhang Xueliang could not escape the blame for the fall of Rehe. Hu Shi bluntly pointed out: "Zhang Xueliang's physical strength, mental strength, knowledge and training are not capable of taking on such a major and important task. of critical situation. Geologist Ding Wenjiang also published an "open letter to Zhang Xueliang" in the "Independent Review" at the same time, criticizing Zhang Xueliang for not having the ability to command and not going to the front line to supervise the divisions in person, but because he clung to power and trapped the people of Northeast China in dire straits. Country.

[edit] Japanese government

[edit] Cabinet non-expansion policy

On September 19, 1931, the Japanese government held an emergency cabinet meeting. Minister of War Jiro emphasized that this was a self-defense action by the Kwantung Army, but Foreign Minister (Baron) Kijuro Hatahara suspected that it was a conspiracy by the Kwantung Army and tried to resolve the incident through diplomatic means. On September 24, the cabinet meeting decided "No." "Further aggravating the situation" policy. However, the Kwantung Army ignored the government's decision and continued to expand its front in the name of self-defense.

[Editor] Wakatsuki Reijiro's Cabinet Message

December 11 On the same day, Reijiro Wakatsuki resigned as the cabinet chief. On the next day, Takeshi Inukai was appointed Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, and Sadao Araki was appointed Minister of War.

[edit] May 15th Incident

1932 March. On March 12, the Inukai Takeshi Cabinet made a decision that "Manchuria and Mongolia will be separated from mainland China as an independent governing territory. From now on, (Japan will) help it establish a national system." "In fact, the Japanese government was passively restrained by the arbitrary Kwantung Army in this incident. (The May 15th Incident broke out in Japan in the same year, and Inukai Takeshi was assassinated.

)

[edit] International community

[edit] League of Nations and Lytton Investigation Team

The League of Nations sent an investigation team to investigate the incident. On October 2, 1932, the investigation team issued the Lytton Report, pointing out that the incident launched by Japan was an act of aggression against China. Because the League of Nations refused to recognize Manchukuo as an independent country, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations. The investigation team issued its report more than a year after the incident. Admittedly, it was too late - Japan ignored the League of Nations' condemnation and continued its aggressive actions.

[edit] United States

On January 7, 1932, U.S. Secretary of State Henry Stimson issued a note to Japan and China, declaring that Japan’s aggression against Manchuria was an interference in China’s territorial internal affairs. , violated the Paris Non-War Treaty, and therefore was not recognized by the U.S. government. This is called "Stimsonism." China and other European countries at that time generally agreed with this, but Japan ignored this announcement.

[edit] Civilian Anti-Japanese National Salvation Movement

[edit] Northeast Anti-Japanese Allied Forces

Slogans on the streets of Shanghai after the September 18th Incident in 1931After the September 18th Incident , the Japanese army began to invade the Northeast on a large scale, and people and garrisons from various places rose up to resist. The more famous ones were the Northeast Anti-Japanese Allied Forces (referred to as the Northeast Anti-Japanese Alliance) led by General Ma Zhanshan. Unfortunately, due to their own affairs, they were eliminated one by one by the Japanese army, and all three northeastern provinces fell in the early 21st year of the Republic of China.

[edit] Parades and rallies

On September 28, 200,000 people in Peiping held an anti-Japanese national salvation rally, demanding a declaration of war against Japan and the recovery of lost territory.

On September 28, more than 2,000 students in Nanjing and Shanghai petitioned and attacked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Nationalist Government. Foreign Minister Wang Zhengting was injured by students and later forced to resign.

[edit] Boycott of Japanese Goods

In July 1931, due to the Wanbaoshan Incident, Japan incited North Korea to exclude and oppose China, and another boycott of Japanese goods broke out in China; After the incident, the movement intensified

Memorial of the September 18th Incident

The Government of the People's Republic of China opened the September 18th Incident Exhibition Hall in Shenyang on September 18, 1991. Former Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto visited this place during his visit to China in 1997. September 18 is considered by many Chinese to be a “day of national humiliation”, and demands from the Chinese public for September 18 to be designated as a day of national humiliation have also appeared from time to time.

Since 1995, Shenyang City has sounded an air raid siren for three minutes every year on the night of September 18 to warn the public not to forget the national humiliation. At present, more than 100 cities including Harbin, Changchun, Kunming, Hefei, Hangzhou, Urumqi, Nanchang, Qiqihar, Jinhua, and Benxi have chosen to sound air defense sirens on September 18 every year.

[edit] Modern exploration of the causes of the incident

(Taiwan independence) writer Cao Changqing believes that the Northeast Army may not be a match for the Japanese Kwantung Army at all. "Zhang Xueliang once led the Northeast Army to fight against the Soviet Army to compete for railway rights. The result was a huge defeat and he was forced to sign a humiliating treaty. That disastrous defeat was tantamount to showing Japan that the Northeast Army was not a Siberian tiger, but a paper tiger. March 1933 In the Battle of Rehe, the Japanese army used only 128 leading cavalry to capture Chengde, the capital of Rehe Province, almost without a fight. One can imagine the combat power of the Northeast Army and Zhang Xueliang's commanding ability. "

Historian Tang Degang said. It is believed that Zhang Xueliang's "Change of Flags" is an important reason. He once commented in his book "Shu Yuan and Ren Yuan": "It is not impossible for Marshal Zhang to imitate Li Hongzhang's old technique of using barbarians to control barbarians. He united with Russia to fight against Japan and also with Japan to fight against Russia. In the balance of power between the two invaders, he tried to survive. And Xueliang also gave up this. He ignored the old rules, but (as he said), he "overestimated his capabilities and planned to take back the power of Northern Manchuria" and "sent his troops to fight against Russia". Hitler took a risk and attacked the two invaders from the north and the south. Unable to defeat him, he finally abandoned his armor and fled with his troops. Maybe he asked Xueliang why he had not seen this before?

The reason why Zhang Xueliang has this "innocent heart" is that "he has no unpredictable bosses above him, no colleagues vying for power in the middle, and many loyal and dead subordinates below him. His daily administration He does everything for the country, the people, and the relationship, that is, for himself. He has no need to engage in intrigues."

General Li Zongren believes that the "Central Plains War" is the key. Because Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang, and Yan Xishan were equally powerful in the Central Plains War, whether Zhang Xueliang entered the customs or not would naturally play a decisive role. "When the armies of Chiang Kai-shek, Feng and Yan were at war with each other in the Central Plains, all three parties sent people to lobby Zhang Xueliang. Feng and Yan only gave them the fictitious title of 'Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the National Army, Navy and Air Force'. In addition to the title of deputy commander-in-chief of the Navy and Air Force, he also had territory in Hebei, Shanxi and other provinces, plus six million in cash, Zhang accepted." Then the Northeast Army entered the pass and the Northeast became empty, giving the Japanese an opportunity