World War II

====Japanese invasion of China (1937)====
{{Main|Second Sino-Japanese War}}
[[File:Shanghai1937IJA ruins.jpg|thumb|[[Imperial Japanese Army]] soldiers during the [[Battle of Shanghai]], 1937]]

In July 1937, Japan captured the former Chinese imperial capital of [[Beijing|Peking]] after instigating the [[Marco Polo Bridge incident]], which culminated in the Japanese campaign to invade all of China.{{sfn|Eastman|1986|pp=547–551}} The Soviets quickly signed a [[Sino-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact|non-aggression pact with China]] to lend [[materiel]] support, effectively ending China's prior [[China–Germany relations (1912–1949)|cooperation with Germany]]. From September to November, the Japanese attacked [[Battle of Taiyuan|Taiyuan]], engaged the [[National Revolutionary Army|Kuomintang Army]] [[Battle of Xinkou|around Xinkou]],<ref name="Hsu & Chang 1971 221">{{Harvnb|Hsu|Chang|1971|pp=195–200}}.</ref> and fought [[Chinese Communist Party|Communist forces]] [[Battle of Pingxingguan|in Pingxingguan]].<ref name=Tucker2009>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5_tSnygvbIC&pg=PA1873|title=A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East [6 volumes]: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East|first=Spencer C.|last=Tucker|year=2009|publisher=ABC-CLIO|access-date=27 August 2017|via=Google Books|isbn=978-1-85109-672-5|archive-date=7 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307201303/https://books.google.com/books?id=h5_tSnygvbIC&pg=PA1873|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=yang>Yang Kuisong, "On the reconstruction of the facts of the Battle of Pingxingguan"</ref> [[Generalissimo]] [[Chiang Kai-shek]] deployed his [[List of German-trained divisions of the National Revolutionary Army|best army]] to [[Battle of Shanghai|defend Shanghai]], but after three months of fighting, Shanghai fell. The Japanese continued to push Chinese forces back, [[Battle of Nanking|capturing the capital Nanking]] in December 1937. After the fall of Nanking, tens or hundreds of thousands of Chinese civilians and disarmed combatants were [[Nanjing Massacre|murdered by the Japanese]].<ref>Levene, Mark and Roberts, Penny. ''The Massacre in History''. 1999, pp. 223–224</ref><ref name=tot>Totten, Samuel. ''Dictionary of Genocide''. 2008, 298–299.</ref>

In March 1938, Nationalist Chinese forces won their [[Battle of Taierzhuang|first major victory at Taierzhuang]], but then the city of [[Xuzhou]] [[Battle of Xuzhou|was taken by the Japanese]] in May.{{sfn|Hsu|Chang|1971|pp=221–230}} In June 1938, Chinese forces stalled the Japanese advance by [[1938 Yellow River flood|flooding the Yellow River]]; this manoeuvre bought time for the Chinese to prepare their defences at [[Wuhan]], but the [[Battle of Wuhan|city was taken]] by October.{{sfn|Eastman|1986|p=566}} Japanese military victories did not bring about the collapse of Chinese resistance that Japan had hoped to achieve; instead, the Chinese government relocated inland to [[Chongqing]] and continued the war.{{sfn|Taylor|2009|pp=150–152}}{{sfn|Sella|1983|pp=651–687}}