# Canonical recap data for Nanking Massacre Begins (1937)
# Source: https://recap.at/1937/nanking-massacre
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: nanking-massacre
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1937/nanking-massacre"
title: Nanking Massacre Begins
aliases:
- Nanjing Massacre
- Rape of Nanking
- Nanjing Atrocity
subtitle: Japanese forces committed mass atrocities against Chinese civilians and soldiers in Nanking, killing tens of thousands and establishing a template for industrial genocide.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1937-12-13
endDate: 1938-02-02
datePrecision: day
year: 1937
decade: 1930
country:
name: China
slug: china
summaryShort: The Nanjing Massacre or the Rape of Nanjing was the mass rape and murder of Chinese civilians, noncombatants, and prisoners of war by the Imperial Japanese Army in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China. It took place immediately after the Battle of Nanjing and retreat of the National Revolutionary Army during t
summaryLong: The Nanjing Massacre or the Rape of Nanjing was the mass rape and murder of Chinese civilians, noncombatants, and prisoners of war by the Imperial Japanese Army in Nanjing, the capital of the Republic of China. It took place immediately after the Battle of Nanjing and retreat of the National Revolutionary Army during the Second Sino-Japanese War.
lede: In December 1937, Japanese forces occupying Nanjing, China's capital, systematically murdered an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 Chinese civilians and prisoners of war over six weeks. The violence included mass executions, sexual assault, and destruction of the city that shocked the world and became one of the twentieth century's most documented atrocities.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/72/Nanking_bodies_1937.jpg/1280px-Nanking_bodies_1937.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Nanjing Massacre"
importance: 88
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Estimated deaths
  value: 200,000 to 300,000 civilians and prisoners
- label: Duration
  value: 6 weeks (mid-December 1937 to early January 1938)
- label: Occupying force
  value: Imperial Japanese Army, approximately 50,000 troops
- label: City population before siege
  value: Approximately 1 million
- label: Documented by
  value: International Safety Zone Committee, Red Cross, foreign journalists including John Rabe
- label: War crimes tribunal
  value: International Military Tribunal for the Far East (1946–1948)
- label: Commanding general
  value: Matsui Iwane, executed for war crimes in 1948
timeline:
- date: 1937-12-13
  title: Japanese forces enter Nanjing
  description: After weeks of siege, Japanese troops breach the city's walls and begin occupation. Organized military command breaks down as soldiers engage in widespread looting and violence.
- date: 1937-12-14
  title: Systematic killings begin
  description: Mass executions of soldiers and civilians commence. Japanese units establish killing zones throughout the city.
- date: 1937-12-15
  title: International Safety Zone established
  description: Foreign nationals, including German businessman John Rabe and American physician Robert Wilson, create a neutral zone to protect Chinese civilians. Approximately 250,000 people seek refuge.
- date: 1937-12-18
  title: Sexual violence escalates
  description: Organized rape of Chinese women becomes systematic. Japanese soldiers conduct mass abductions targeting women and girls across the city.
- date: 1938-01-09
  title: Massacre subsides
  description: After six weeks, Japanese command imposes greater discipline. Military leadership becomes concerned about international reporting and attempts to suppress documentation.
- date: 1946-06-04
  title: Far East War Crimes Tribunal opens
  description: Tokyo trial begins prosecuting Japanese military leaders. Nanjing atrocities figure prominently in testimony and evidence.
- date: 1948-06-12
  title: General Matsui executed
  description: Matsui Iwane, commanding general, is hanged for war crimes including responsibility for the massacre.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanjing_Massacre"
  title: Nanjing Massacre
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The massacre revealed the brutality of Japanese imperial expansion and became a defining moment in Sino-Japanese relations that reverberates through diplomacy and education to this day. It hardened Allied resolve against Japan and forced international reckoning with war crimes—though attempts at accountability were incomplete and remain contested.
categories:
- war
taxonomy:
domain: military
eventTypes:
- war
- occupation
- genocide
canonicalClasses:
- conflict
- collapse
impactRadius: global
velocity: sudden
predictability: forecastable
intentionality: coordinated
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: conflict
metaDescription: Japanese occupation forces systematically murdered 200,000+ Chinese civilians in Nanjing, December 1937—a documented atrocity that shaped WWII and East Asian history.
wikidataQid: Q192055
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260607083140/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanjing_Massacre"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-07
  label: Nanjing Massacre
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanjing_Massacre"
peoplesVoice:
- source: Matsui Iwane, Japanese military commander and General
  voiceType: official
  context: Commander of the Japanese Expeditionary Force in China, Matsui issued orders during the occupation of Nanjing.
  excerpt: The soldiers must maintain discipline. Excesses will not be tolerated. We are conducting military operations, not a massacre.
  sentimentLabel: dismissive
  significance: 75
  attribution: Synthesized from contemporary military correspondence and later testimony
  publishedAt: 1937-12-13
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Harold Timperley, British journalist and Manchester Guardian correspondent
  voiceType: media
  context: Timperley was one of few Western journalists in Nanjing documenting events and smuggling reports to the international press.
  excerpt: Japanese soldiers have systematically murdered thousands of civilians. The scale of killing defies belief. The world must know what is happening here.
  sentimentLabel: shocked
  significance: 80
  attribution: Synthesized from Timperley's dispatches and reports smuggled to British press, January 1938
  publishedAt: 1938-01-10
  originalLanguage: en
- source: Wang Zhixian, Chinese survivor and witness
  voiceType: consumer
  context: Civilian who witnessed the massacre firsthand and lived through the six-week occupation of Nanjing.
  excerpt: They came into our home without warning. Soldiers killed my father and brothers. The screams never stopped. We thought we would all die.
  sentimentLabel: grieving
  significance: 78
  attribution: Synthesized from survivor testimonies collected post-war
  publishedAt: 1938-02-01
  originalLanguage: en
