This review has been submitted to Sabretache Journal.
Title:
Nanjing1937: Battle for a Doomed City
Author:
Peter Harmsen
ISBN:
978-1-61200-28-2
Publisher:
Casemate
Year:
2015
Hardcover
Pages:
336
Photographs/Maps:
52/12
The Sino-Japanese War which
precluded but was, for the most art, eclipsed by World War 2, was a
particularly vicious conflict in which the Japanese were notorious for their
particularly brutal approach to warfare. Harmsen’s book follows on his last
work about the fall of Shanghai and the continuing fight between the two
powers. Many of the Japanese and Chinese units initially introduced in the
Shanghai work continue to be followed as they march and fight east to Nanjing.
Nanjing was important to the Kai-shek government as its capital and the
symbology of being the final resting place of Sun Yat-sen, the founder of
modern China. For the Japanese, it was viewed as the last remaining major city
that they needed to capture in order to force the surrender of the Chinese.
Hansen has done a good job with his
narrative covering the period running from the fall of Shanghai to the fall of
Nanjing. He provides a clear picture of the difficulty of operations, both
offensive and defensive, faced by the opposing forces as a result of
challenging weather conditions, unreliable logistics, poor reconnaissance and a
hostile population (for the Japanese). He also explains the important role of
the international community in creating a safe haven environment for civilians
as well as eyewitness accounts of the nature and ferocity of the fighting;
including the conduct of the combatant armies towards property and civilians.
The battle for Nanjing has become
synonymous with rape, murder and pillage on the part of the Japanese. Harmsen
not only discusses this as part of the overall discussion but he also brings
attention to perhaps the two most significant questions relating to this
particular portion of the war. Those being: how much of the direction, conduct
and control of the war was actually exercised by Tokyo and why was it that the
Japanese conducted themselves so appallingly in their treatment of the Chinese?
The author does not undertake enough analysis of these questions for the
satisfaction of the reader. He certainly does not ignore them and he does
suggest reasons for the actions and the loss of control such as the frustration
felt by the Japanese at the lack of appreciation on the part of the Chinese at
their liberation. Unfortunately, given the depth and breadth of the brutality
and the complete absence of humanity in the Japanese treatment towards the
Chinese civilians, it would be assumed that a deeper more comprehensive
discussion would have been undertaken by the author. Similarly, the obvious
loss of strategic control by the Japanese high command and its government to the
commanders of the Central China Area Army was another area where a more
comprehensive analysis may have helped to understand better the Japanese
command climate and societal influences on their approach to war.
Certainly one area that is well
covered and is worthy of standalone research is the role of the Soviet Union in
the battle. Having essentially wiped out the Chinese Air Force, the Japanese
had command of the air. The Soviets intervened and provided pilots, ground crew
and aircraft in support of Kai-shek’s forces. While this did not alter the tide
of battle, it did cause considerable difficulty for the Japanese forces in the
area. The author does a commendable job at tracing the roots of this assistance
and its impact.
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