"China rewrites history books to extend Sino-Japanese... " Topic

…war by six years

"China's government has ordered that all Chinese history textbooks be rewritten to extend the second Sino-Japanese war by six years, a move likely to inflame relations with Japan.

The conflict, which has been known for generations in China as the "eight-year war of resistance against Japanese aggression", is usually recorded as starting in 1937 and ending in 1945. However, in a statement on Wednesday, President Xi Jinping's government renamed the conflict the "14-year war of resistance against Japanese aggression" and has ordered that textbooks be revised to record it as lasting from 1931 until 1945.

The decision means China officially considers that the second Sino-Japanese war started in autumn of 1931, when the Imperial Japanese army invaded Manchuria, rather than six years later during the Marco Polo Bridge incident, when Japanese and Chinese troops fought along a rail line south-west of Beijing. This event has traditionally been considered by historians…."
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Amicalement
Armand

I learned in the '60's that it was from '32 to '45 so big deal.

I can see there point of view and have wondered for many years why it was not listed as starting in 1931.

I'd heard that too,in the "Why We Fight" films,specifically,"Prelude To War"-the "Manchurian Rail Incident".

The Mukden incident, staged by Japan, in September of 31 was used as an excuse to invade Manchuria and set up the puppet state of Manchukuo 6 months later. One reason to set up Manchukuo was to use it as a staging base for further expansion in China. The Japanese seizure, by force, of an area considered part of China led directly to the so called "Stimson Doctrine" by the US in January of 32.

Some consider 1931 as not only the date of a state of war between China and Japan but the start of World War II. And certainly no one disputes that the "Marco Polo Bridge" incident marked full out armed conflict between the two countries. Once again some consider the 1937 incident as the start of World War II.

1931 makes more sense, so I agree

Me too.

Amicalement
Armand

I don't see 1931 as the beginning of the war.

Why not? Well, because of the lack of continuity. The combat campaigns started in September of 1931, and ended by February of 1932.

It was only five years later, in 1937, that combat started which continued right up to and through the expansion of the war to a world-wide conflagration.

I see the Japanese in Manchuria in 1931-32 as similar to the Italians in Ethiopia in 1935-36, or everyone and their brother in Spain in 1936-39. They were pre-cursors, and made visible and direct contributions to the start of WW2. But they were not part of WW2.

-Mark
(aka: Mk 1)

I must disagree Mark. Armed hostilities continued between China and Japan up to and including 1937. These included both regular Chinese forces and so call Chinese volunteers armed and supported by China. For example we have the Defense of the Great Wall campaign from January-May of 1933. Known in the west as the First Battle of Hopei and to the Japanese as Operation Nekka.

Though lower level at times, and brief lulls, hostilities between the two parties did continue from 1931 up to and through 1945.

It's a fair enough revision of the dates….but it is part of a worrying trend in Chinese nationalism.