Chinese Stalingrad: Battle of Shanghai | Animated History

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Sources:
Lai, Benjamin (2017). Shanghai and Nanjing 1937: Massacre on the Yangtze. Osprey
Publishing
Harmsen, Peter (2013). Shanghai 1937: Stalingrad on the Yangtze. Casemate
World War 2 Database, Battle of Shanghai: ww2db.com/battle_spec.php?bat... (Last Retrieved 31/07/2020)
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Armchair Historian Theme by Zach Heyde
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[@TheArmchairHistorian]

Use my link bit.ly/WTheArmchairHistorian and claim your Warpath gift using Code: Warpath000 *Now available on Android devices, pre-register on iOS devices

[@drexhorigan9920]

Got it!

[@spitfiremkiv339]

Ok

[@rosingpui5799]

Noice.

[@allanserrano8366]

Epic

[@ramishtariq5368]

I like the Avatar reference

[@starwarsstudio100]

Ah yes, glad that you coverd this battle, the Chinese theatre is pretty much underrated in the majority of western history books, often just being a footnote.

[@mestupkid211986]

In some, but not all.

[@owo5869]

@@mestupkid211986 In most

[@jackl2257]

@@msmit3669less important to the west yes

[@jackl2257]

@@msmit3669 if China fall, the Japanese and the Germans could launch a offense together on the Soviets. And did u just say to me China had a low casualty?

[@jackl2257]

@@msmit3669 ...I suppose

[@alexanderwu]

"I can conquer China in three months" -- Someone who could not conquer China in three months

[@mestupkid211986]

"I can knock out the US navy in one surprise attack, and then we can attack their colony" - the same guy

[@elisalbrecht8560]

"I can conquer the USSR via Manchuria while grabbing a chunk of Mongolia and china so I can get their valuable resources" -The same guy

[@bogdangabrielonete3467]

"I can make a war out of th-" *no don't*

[@earthfederationspaceforce9844]

Well I see some article said they were not saying 'conquer' but 'set the deal', which means they were attempting to make another 'treaty' with the KMT government. But no matter what they tried to do in three months at the moment, THEY FAILED.

[@dogeren0096]

Well, is actually "solve the China incident in three months", they are not dumb enough to say "conquered China". But you're right anyway, they didn't done anything in three months except the fact that start total war against China became pushed fact to make Japan go for a risky move: Pacific war

[@therealspeedwagon1451]

China’s involvement in WWII is very underrated by the west. They always gloss over it and talk about the battle of France or the Blitz when in reality, the Chinese front alone would be by far the deadliest war ever. Poland’s involvement too is often looked over, there were tons of inventions some even used today that were made by Polish people in exile that changed the course of the war, 19% of all planes shot down in the Battle of Britain were shot down by Polish pilots. China and Poland are extremely underrated and I want more people to talk about them.

[@solus2074]

Very well said Mr. Speedwagon

[@johnnytsui7521]

@@solus2074 Can't agree more with you. For most of the westerners, WWII consisted of German invasion of Poland, sweeping the Europe and attacked Russia and then Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. The Soviets beat the Nazis in Stalingrad. The Midway and the Pacific War. Allied forces landing Normandy and then Germany surrendered. The Japanese Kamikaze and the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Japan surrendered. That's it and China (the ROC not the communist PRC) only played a minor role the historic memory of the westerners about the war.

[@lyhthegreat]

@Paul Thomas they probably knew, but most would know that china was getting invaded by japan.

[@thunderbird1921]

Though he had his flaws, Chiang Kai-Shek was an incredibly courageous leader. There's actually an old British newsreel from the 30s showing him doing a grand review of the Chinese forces just before the war with Japan broke out. At the time the Chinese air force was mostly biplanes. Despite all the disadvantages, the Chinese somehow fought on. A remarkable story of bravery, will and determination.

[@jeffreylee252]

My great grandpa served in the Air Force during the war, and I’ d like to tell you why few people talks China’s involvement . most of the battles fought at that time were done by the former government of China (roc) instead of the current one , so even Chinese themselves avoid the discussions of the frontal battlefield in WWII.

[@seansorgeloos6349]

3:30 this dude just did an avatar reference, and i love it

[@1Invinc]

To be fair, Avatar likely referenced the Japanese invasion of China using the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom as proxies.

[@holdthedoor3782]

the avatar reference was referencing THIS war.

[@derth9230]

@@1Invinc how the hell have i not noticed that and i am an avatar fan AND a history buff

[@michaellynes3540]

@@1Invincthe Fire Nation is the Japanese Empire.

[@dingleberry4234]

@@1Invinclate as hell but yes I always loved that reference. The Earth Kingdom being strong but divided and uncoordinated was also a comparison I appreciated

[@HistoricalWeapons]

Yes finally! Very few western channels talk about Chinese involvement in Ww2. Millions have died fighting. Thank you so much for this video!

[@dsasd778]

Agreed

[@joemamaobama6863]

I was like wtf when I got to know how many Chinese dudes died

[@kylef8416]

@@joemamaobama6863 more soviets died

[@KHANSTER1029]

@@kylef8416 It ain't a competition buddy

[@bigmoniesponge]

@@KHANSTER1029 Agreed.

[@pfcparts7728]

I mean they’re literally wearing GERMAN uniforms trapped in a city, it is literally Stalingrad on the Yangtze.

[@Dadouf112]

@Guy Incognito Well the Germans were forced to choose an eastern ally based on logistics, sure, the Germans had invested quite a lot into the Chinese KMT army, equipping over 20k KMT elite shock troopers with modern equipment and assisted China in their industrial and modernization plans, however, it was clear that Japan was much more powerful, already having a large armed forces with a much larger industrial capacity. The Germans had even promised the Chinese that they would be chosen as their eastern ally since the Chinese were even in the anti-Comintern Pact, however, Germany had already abandoned the Chinese in favor of Japan, and not long after, the Japanese had begun another war with China. Chinese socio-economic relations with the Soviet Union, Germany and Japan are pretty confusing at times, with the KMT openly assisting these countries while at the same time being against them.

[@timonsolus]

No, they aren’t wearing German uniforms, just German helmets. China bought military equipment from many countries in the 1920’s and 1930’s, Germany was a major supplier. Just as after WW2, many countries bought surplus American helmets, doesn’t mean they were wearing American uniforms, just American helmets.

[@earthfederationspaceforce9844]

@Guy Incognito not allies, just trade partners if i'm right China exports APCR's core(Tungsten ) to exchange AT gun, AA gun, panzer 1(come in late and rusted, unusable).

[@Dadouf112]

@@earthfederationspaceforce9844 Yup, Germany couldn't really provide a lot other than by word due to obvious reasons, Germany and Japan would likely become enemies due to their lack similarities other than ambitions, which is another force to drive them against each other

[@asianlifter]

@@timonsolus Some of their units can be classified as "German", such as the 88th. *coughs* german trained and equipped with german helmets

[@wang8137]

my great grand father was a chinese soldier and lost his life in the battle while saving a civilian.

[@wang8137]

he was only 25, my grandpa was only 1

[@yannicklan3044]

my greatgrand father killed by IJA in Indonesia because his chinese race and resistance.

[@bigkidd2147]

Wow your great grandpa was and is still a hero!!! Thank him for his bravery, sacrifice, and his service. My great grandfather was an officer of the kuomingtang fighting Japan and communist China throughout his life but was killed by the Communist

[@byhyew]

Salute to your grandpa. Mine was also from near Shanghai. He joined the Communist, survived the war, and fought against the Americans in Korea.

[@fridayrobot3923]

@@yannicklan3044 where was ur Grandfather killed? Specifically,in what City in Indonesia?

[@leiyuan-sk6co]

My grandfather's mother died a few years ago. She was 103. Even though she forgot a lot of things, she still remembers her husband as a Chinese soldier who fought against the Japanese and died in the war. Often before she had trouble remembering, and as a child, I told stories of the time, including how brutal Japan was to Chinese civilians. The story that impressed me the most was that my grandfather's unit would pay wages, but all the men were willing to fight and refused to accept wages, use the money to make weapons against the Japanese invaders. They are all heroes

[@carlsonliaunady7907]

Thank your ancestor for helping our people

[@ahhuman9445]

Huge respects to the Chinese soldiers who stood at the front line fighting against the Japanese with poor equipments. They suffered a lot, just to save their country, their home.

[@Jake-dh9qk]

If it helps make them seem even more heroic, these soldiers lived in a time where there were no computer or data to track you if you abandoned your duties and ran away. They couldn't track you to a town miles away and find you via your ip address or purchasing histories. These men stood their grounds and fought to the end. Though, some probably did try to run away.

[@internetexplorer7143]

The Chinese don’t get enough credit for their heroic actions during WW2, they’re always overshadowed by the Americans and British.

[@Jake-dh9qk]

@@internetexplorer7143 Alot of it has to do with the modern political situation involving China and the US. There are active intentions to typecast china as the insignificant country in ww2 so the public opinion of them stays low. This is also how france got the reputation of being useless during ww2 and ww1 when they tried to leave NATO during the 1960s because they didn't agree with America's aggressive policies against Russia/Soviets so America had a campaign that smeered the french reputation because they thought France would defect and form their own power block within Europe. Turns out france never left NATO but the reputation of them being useless and insignificant remains to this day.

[@fuyuan822]

My home province Sichuan sent 3 millions troops to frontlines, mostly poor armed, and suffered more 640 thousands military casualties. They carried a flag with the word "DEATH" on it, not expecting to survive at all.

[@internetexplorer7143]

@@fuyuan822 My province was absolutely fucked over by the Japanese

[@dinokong0128]

My grandma was in Shanghai during the war, as a skinny little girl who barely survived the Japanese occupation.

[@dinokong0128]

@Zerevv not sure, might've been too traumatizing to mention. She did mention though how cruel those Japanese soldiers were and how she managed to steal the ration in order to survive.

[@frankfletcher_1]

Mine was also in Shanghai

[@crodsbye]

@@frankfletcher_1 mine was in Hong Kong. she's still a little disdainful of the Japanese today. I don't blame her though

[@SanderDoesThings]

@@crodsbye Mine is also from Hong Kong. I never had the guts to ask her about the war, still don't

[@Salty_Bear]

"But everything changed, when the Japanese Nation attacked" Thanks for Aang`s reference

[@hwdprtn7670]

5:09 Lieutenant Isao Ōyama (大山勇夫) was actually a Japanese Navy (IJN) officer, so it would be more accurate that he wore naval uniforms instead of army ones.

[@lyhthegreat]

i thought the IJN had some inter-service rivalry with the IJA? The IJN officers were actually against the the IAJ's idea to attack china due to budgeting issues and instead they wanted to direct their attention southwards into southeast asia. Wouldn't staring a war in china had helped the IJA instead?

[@historyfan]

Japan: You can’t lose a battle and expect your troops to gain higher morale! NRA: Observe

[@Zen-sx5io]

Lol.

[@maximilianbeyer5642]

Isn't that what 300 was about?

[@baltulielkungsgunarsmiezis9714]

Its normal to have troop morale high even on retreat if the war is serious.

[@MaxYoung-Maxinfet]

I read your comment before I got to the part of the video saying what NRA meant in this context. I was like what is the national rifle association have to do with this lol.

[@elephanteriot1767]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGmvm5iBhpdoes0

[@antiadolph]

My grandfather was a “poorly trained conscript”. Things were not pretty and they were extremely disadvantaged. He left his home to fight the IJA when he was only 17, WTF was I doing when I was 17? Edit: Private Chiang survived the Sino-Japanese war and the subsequent civil war, and eventually made his way to Taiwan as Lt. Colonel Chiang, where he lived to a ripe old age of 96. My respect to all the veterans who resisted the great evil.

[@richardbradley2335]

makes you think...im now thinking what i was doing at 17...oh yeas crying over a girl who went out with someone else...much respect to your grandfather

[@ptolomaios4118]

Same for me, my grandfather left to join the KMT at the age of 15. He never truly forgave the Japanese even after the war haha

[@GreatGhastly_]

You were enjoying the fruits of his sacrifice and the sacrifice of all who resisted the aggressors, same as the rest of us.

[@ptolomaios4118]

@@GreatGhastly_ Yes and for that I am extremely grateful that he survived and raised a family in Taiwan so that today I can live in America

[@yuyuyu25]

Grandfather joined the communist army at some absurd age like 11. He had 2 years of elementary school, so they made him a company commander at 18. I guess it worked out though, he ended up retiring in the 80s as a Major General.

[@dargon1084]

I have no words to express how beautifully done this video was, the visuals, writing and the editing was just superb

[@ranabanik1354]

The narration, the animations, the background music...everything is so perfect in this video! wish I could work in such projects!

[@cristianvillanueva8782]

"Then everything changed when the Japanese nation attacked" hehe, I see what you did there

[@muffinguy25]

Good'ol ATLA reference

[@silentkid2924]

Hmm what "anime" that he mention? 😈😈😈

[@ajp5556]

I thought I was the only one that noticed

[@architech02]

Water: usa and uk Earth: germany and ussr Fire: GERMANY AND JAPAN Air: japan, germany, usa, uk In the end of the war usa became the avatar

[@architech02]

@Ryan Dennis lumpiang shanghai

[@warfare11gaming]

Thanks for covering that battle! I've considered creating a scenario of Shanghai.

[@lotrlmao1648]

There are a lot of good models on workshop for a while

[@CKC_Productions]

Warfare Gaming it's really you!

[@diligentone-six2688]

Will you make a video about the battle of Shanghai?

[@brndonlu9635]

@WarfareGaming, can you do the Vietnam War era Marines invading the Pacific West State please.

[@madhie-kun8614]

Oh yes please

[@Jjcc-pm2ht]

My grandpa was born in Changsha, Hunan. He was conscripted at a young age into the nationalist army. He never talks too much about his war days, he does show us the wound in his shoulder where a Japanese bullet still resides, and the scars on his leg where mortar shrapnel had hit him. After the Japanese surrendered he still had to fight the communists. He never mentioned anything about fighting the communists. Maybe because he felt like compared to the Japanese they weren’t really enemies. One day while retreating with his regiment he passed graves marked with the names of his parents. That’s when he realized they had passed away. He eventually made it to Taiwan and is still alive at 96! I hope the world will not forget these men and the Republic of China 🇹🇼 they fought for.

[@jiaxinlee3087]

I live in mainland China now,I will never forget republic China.Communist is my enemy

[@papabear90]

@@jiaxinlee3087 probably you should move to Taiwan then, must be stressful living a life in a place created by the commies 😂

[@aykye9538]

致敬你的爷爷，无论是共产党还是国民党，当初抗日的都是人民的英雄。我在中国大陆生活，我对我的生活满意，所以我并不反感共产党；但是我不认为因此我就是国民党的敌人。生活就是生活，没必要搞那么多政治仇恨。请替我向老人家说声谢谢，年轻人永远不会忘记先辈的付出和牺牲，祝他老人家一切安好，身体健康！

[@theodorezheng9870]

向国军将士及其后代致敬

[@user-id4yy1hy7m]

真偉大

[@martinsu3441]

Great overview of the battle of Shanghai, my hometown. I been to the actual Sihang warehouse, and I tear up visiting where now is a museum but used to be where my countryman fought the invaders. There is a recent film called “The Eight Hundred”, that tells the story of sihang, excellent film and tragic story.

[@pussinjordans8800]

Japan: lol the chinese are charging their troops at us Also japan: *BANZAAAAAAI*

[@earthfederationspaceforce9844]

who have more machine guns and cannons can wait China can't even guarantee all man join fight can have a standard rifle at the time central army will use Chiang Kai Shek rifle/Type 24 rifle many others uses type 88 rifle/Hanyang 88 commie partisan will have little to NO supply, they MUST grab some IJA rifle from the dead to use like type 38, type 99 civilian partisan? IDK, maybe some hunting rifle from Qing dynasty along side with spears and blades?

[@mirzahamzabaig5667]

@@earthfederationspaceforce9844 There were German supplies as well.. Chinese were using German weaponry too.

[@earthfederationspaceforce9844]

@@mirzahamzabaig5667 supplies? i don't remember any, what are you talking about? ah those things, those were bought by the central government , and some of them are in bad condition like we ordered some panzer I. they not only coming VERY late, and they were rusted, unusable even these little of "supplies" cut very soon as japan tell nazi to do so.

[@earthfederationspaceforce9844]

@@dauzlee2827 stahlhelm (central army only), few 37mm AT gun (few divisions of central army only), few AA maybe (few divisions of central army only), panzer 1 which is broken you call THAT a supply? those run out VERY quick, and nazi never give more.

[@earthfederationspaceforce9844]

@@dauzlee2827 by that meaning those...stuff count as supply, but i don't think THIS (looks at the rusted panzer1) count.

[@CJ_1406]

Chinese Soldier: No Japanese allowed. The Japanese Lieutenant: How about I just go around. *So this is basically the Asian version of the Maginot Line.*

[@Xenophlanes]

Imagine a video just dedicated to that.

[@architech02]

More like the schlieffen plan cuz it ended very badly

[@einsteinonblitz2345]

underrated

[@einsteinonblitz2345]

@Shane L That's true words man. The chinese even had way worse equitment than France

[@architech02]

@@einsteinonblitz2345 fun fact: france has the most powerful army in the beginning of the war

[@Frenchylikeshikes]

Never heard of that battle before.....that's what I love about you tube: makes you discover so many stories and HISTORY from around the world. Thanks 😀

[@winfieldzhai7905]

Good job on this one, so far the best video I've watched that covered China well. Honestly there's was a lot interest political issue during the battle, while chinese force was way larger than the Japanese, but only a small amount of them were Jiang's own force, others were from the warlords who were not really willing to help, while jiang's Army was fighting the Japanese, their large force just there watching, which is why NanJing can fell so fast later.

[@nelsin-nagantkimber-g4760]

Japan: Shanghai in 3 days! China in 3 months! Reality: Shanghai in 3 months. China never fell.

[@user-wswmr233]

Yes,China never fell

[@scottessery100]

Seeing 6:38 and the German stelhelm and then realising they are the good guys was confusing

[@ihateanimeisback8854]

@@user-wswmr233 ,.,.s,.,.,.u,.,.b,. ,.h,.u,.,.m,.a,.,.n,. ,.w,.,.e,.,.e,.,.,,.,.b,.,. ,.,.t,.,.r,.,.,.a,.,.,.,.s,.,.h,.,.,.

[@creamychoclatelobsterwarri979]

It fell. They were useless after nanking

[@derps8690]

@@creamychoclatelobsterwarri979 ...is what someone who doesn't know a thing about the second sino japanese war would say, because they ended up completely halting the japanese, forcing them to enter into a war with the allies... all of this occurring after nanjing, btw

[@MVs1940]

I just realised Luodian is like the Mamayev Kurgan Hill in Stalingrad, where, Wehrmacht and Red Army Forces viciously fought against each other and also exchanging 7 or 8 times in-order to gain control the view of the entire city.

[@jamesgorden9869]

This channel is extremely underrated and i'm so lucky I found it

[@ladasodaexplains3355]

I am from Dachang, Shanghai. I’m honestly ashamed that I am not really aware of this part of history that happened in my home town almost a century ago. The only remanence of the battle today is a small, concrete bunker that still remains in a community center which has a swimming pool, next to a major road through the town. There is still an active airbase in the town, which I’m assuming is where the fight between the Japanese officer and Chinese soldiers in the beginning of the video happened. I’m really grateful that someone in the US put their time and effort to make a long video about what happened in the place I lived for a decade. Thank you.

[@frederickoftheartic2209]

Fun fact: Japanese-Americans fought the germans on the western front while the chinese 88th division used German Weaponry and equipment. Just imagine both Japan and Germany arguing that the one betrayed the other. Italy: *Pathetic*

[@richyhu2042]

My favorite part about the Japanese American division is that there is a recorded incident where they legit charged a German position shouting "banzai"

[@se-ku3op]

@@richyhu2042 video?

[@blocktart4453]

@@se-ku3op Likely none.

[@geoplane3799]

@@blocktart4453 theres one, in "The Front" youtube channel

[@geoplane3799]

@@se-ku3op theres a video in The Front channel on youtube

[@awsumguy-bh9pz]

nobody: that one Japanese lieutenant: *ROAD SAFETY LAWS PREPARE TO BE IGNORED*

[@elephanteriot1767]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGmvm5iBhpdoes0

[@USSCYT]

70th like

[@roskcity]

Wtf was he doing alone driving a truck lol

[@SpaceshipOperations]

_KANSEI DORIFTO?_

[@shinsenshogun900]

He sure made China go postal

[@riveranimations]

I really wish I had your videos shown in history class when I was in school cause these videos are very informative and engaging.

[@jamesmccoy8568]

Thanks for covering this

[@mohamadashkar3201]

3:32 cleanest avatar last air bender reference I’ve ever seen

[@user-tr2xb6rt5h]

I was watching it and was like:did he just did what I think he did.

[@liamselle1990]

Right

[@shinmalpure7872]

@@user-tr2xb6rt5h i be damned, he did

[@takashi.mizuiro]

true

[@oliberrr]

@Arrow Boy Democracy is not in US constitution nor in the declaration of independence. Founding fathers put electoral college to prevent negative effects of democracy.

[@spartanbob6341]

Japan who lost 20% of their army but won: this is a bitter day for the empire.... China who lost the battle, their capital, and half of their army: hip hip hurray!

[@curtiswong7280]

The entire war in a nutshell

[@Lightscribe225]

Then Nanjing happened...

[@unholydanger]

@@Lightscribe225 lol

[@anandsuryansh2971]

look at china and japan now china can destroy japan in a second

[@def3ndr887]

@@anandsuryansh2971 not if the U.S has anything to say about it

[@seanxiong2455]

Thanks mate for everything you did for creating this video.

[@ashenshugar8650]

Good video. I like watching documentaries about relatively neglected or forgotten engagements of ww2

[@Minboelf]

This Battle is one of the factors that lead to the Nanking Masscare

[@AzureZodiac]

I think battle of Nanking was the last draw. On top of 3 months in Shanghai, It took Japanese 12 days to capture Nanking from NRA troops that mostly just retreated from Shanghai with heavy casualties.

[@rayray6490]

The Japanese high command was actually debating if they should just stop at Shanghai since they were like “wtf just happened to us these last 3 months, the Chinamen were suppose to cave.” But the Japanese officers on the ground just decided to march to Nanjing despite no formal order to do so. The Chinese really did put everything into Shanghai, even their Wufu and Xicheng lines were breached earlier than expected. Their morale and ranks were depleted by the time the Japanese were at the gates of Nanjing

[@denialdaniela4876]

Nanking massacre happen because of the japanese imperial wanted a revenge cuz its took too long and too much soul to capture some city of china etc shanghai

[@dddddh1]

The Japanese have always been afraid of being liquidated by China. Japan recruited a lot of foreign students in China for free. A famous Chinese professor named Zheng Qiang described his experience when studying in Japan: When Japanese students asked about Unit 731 and the Nanjing Massacre, Japanese professors always scolded Japanese students and kept silent. But they were very respectful to Chinese students, although they didn't ask, and they didn't need to ask. 

 Later, a Japanese professor said to the Chinese students, "One day, when China liquidates Japan, you should put in a good word for us. After telling the audience about his experience in Japan, Zheng qiang said to the students, "Why do you think Japan recruits so many foreign students in China for free? Of course it is for cultural brainwashing to influence the next generation and future of China." When you think about it, our ancestors died in a Japanese killing contest. The prisoners were starved for five days and then machinegunned down. The Japanese trampled the baby to death in front of the Chinese mother. Cut off a woman's breasts for her husband to eat. Unit 731 dehydrates a man to death to determine the percentage of water lost to death. Put a living person in a pressurized room and get data on how much pressure a person will die at. Put a person who has been injected with the virus in a room with a group of normal people to test the spread of the virus... It's too much to say. Only people think, without them can not do. This is not a simple war of aggression, this is taking your life while you are sick. Just like when Abe was assassinated, the suspect could not be forgiven even after bowing and apologizing. Some things can not be done with a bow and apology, we are not qualified to forgive the Japanese for their ancestors. What? It was done by yesterday's Japanese and has nothing to do with today's Japanese? Ok, but today Japan is not obedient and does not respect history, so China should also be the bad guy today. Tomorrow's problems will be dealt with tomorrow, let's call it "father pays son". As a normal Chinese, when this reckoning will happen, I don't know, but I hope to see. Maybe when The US and China go to war? Probably not, there will be no war between The US and China, and Japan will be of no use to the US other than adding buffs to the Chinese military. But one might expect it to take the form of a Conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

[@user-cx9nc4pj8w]

@@dddddh1 I'm following until you mention Russia and Ukraine. Like seriously, wtf does a war between two former soviet countries in Eastern Europe have to do with China and Japan? I guess there's parrallels, with a more powerful country underestimating the resolve of it's opponents, and fascists in positions of power doing bad things, but that has nothing to do with it being caused by previous history.

[@_j_i_jordan5691]

Japanese in 1937: Look at these people charging at machine guns Japanese in 1945: BANZAAAI

[@leinde3901]

Lol

[@CHRF-55457]

Lol

[@danewoodruff5697]

Lol

[@jblazerndrowzy]

Desperation does that to you

[@justineallandevelos6491]

US Marine officer: hey someone call those flamethrower tanks we need them again! US Marine private: another banzai charge sir? US Marine officer: what does it look like private? US Marine private: *sighs* fine i'll get on the line

[@expiredcracker1757]

this is a very important topic ! thanks for introducing

[@ropersf]

There is a real good book on the Chinese Nationalists called "The Soong Dynasty" by Sterling Seagrave. The Soongs were a wealthy and powerful family with connections to the Nationalists. One daughter married Sun Yat-Sen another married Chiang Kai Shek, and another was the banker and finance minister for the Nationalist. It's a fun read with tons of drama, intrigue and criminal gangs.

[@WanderlustZero]

Japan and China: *There is only one nation allowed to have a sun as a flag. We fight to the death.* Argentina: *slides back into the hedge*

[@Teddybaerchen2012]

Where is Macedonia

[@elim.4204]

is that why japan invaded philippines :0

[@zyanego3170]

@@Teddybaerchen2012 Under Bulgarian Control

[@chepiepanela2637]

Philippines: invisibility: on

[@jundonjose]

Uruguay?

[@RoseKnight04]

Amazing as always!!

[@thunderbear4254]

Just watched "The Eight Hundred" last night and it was 🔥🔥🔥

[@InspectHistory]

A Chinese movie name The Eight Hundred talk about this 😎

[@laurynasjonika6133]

Hey

[@hyltoniali257]

"800" is a false claim, it was in fact only 430

[@avgft3419]

Hyltonial I that makes it even more impressive

[@laurynasjonika6133]

69likes lol

[@laurynasjonika6133]

@@hyltoniali257 no its 420

[@kingjoolien2495]

It’s incredible and also quite depressing how in many western countries, we hardly recognise China and Burma as fronts in WW2, even though they suffered many casualties through brutal fighting. Another Amazing informative video too, you gained a sub! 👍

[@ThatGuy-fd5px]

My Great Uncle fought in Burma. I believe he was in the Royal Marines and fought at night. I'll ask again but I know my uncle rarely spoke about it or refused to.

[@Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

@@ThatGuy-fd5px Cant blame him mate that was one of the worst theatres as far as combat conditions and terrain went

[@Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

@CKS1949 Also most of the Japanese army was stationed in China and Burma too.

[@Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

@Guy Incognito Japan would have 300,000 odd troops there. 20,000 on Iwo Jima. 77,000 on Okinawa. 939,000 facing the Russians. 400,000 in the Philippines. So it was a pretty important theatre for the IJA.

[@ThatGuy-fd5px]

To say it wasn't important is pretty ignorant.

[@Mater585]

This is a great topic I hope to see you post more of. This portion of WWII is so often overlooked but interesting to learn about.

[@shlomoshlomo963]

I feel like it's overlooked because although the Chinese suffered immense casualties the US (which suffered far less with "only" half a million dead and the mainland unharmed) did most of the work to beat japan in naval battles that the Chinese just couldn't compete with (because of bad technology and equipment). So the us war against japan (which japan never really had a chance, they could never do anything to the main land so it was an extremely dumb decision) and the soviet war against Germany is by far the most talked about fronts in the war with the eatern front being by far on top because it was where the biggest and most important battles of the second world war occurred.

[@empi492]

Thank you for the video it really puts things into perspective. I’m from Shanghai, but I still find it surreal how the suburbs where I grew up used to be a war zone. I still remember the story of how my dad found the skull of a dead soldier from one of the many battles which took place there. It’s hard to believe that my 97 y/o great grandmother has witnessed all of that.

[@LeachingJack]

"The second Sino-Japanese war lasted for eight years." Initially, when asked by the US, the Chinese government predicts they can hold on for a maximum of 3 months. Salute to the Nationalist army, who fought the vast majority of the battles. Salute to all other factions too, including the Communist army and the Flying Tigers squadron -- the only squadron of warplanes that fought for China, flown by American pilots. The nickname of the SWAT team in Hong Kong is named after the Flying Tigers.

[@Hellingame]

I could be mistaken, but the question asked by the US was how long the Chinese government predicted they could hold a conventional front-to-back war. And it was true, the Chinese Nationalist government lacked the infrastructure and command structure to wage a full scale war for longer than a few months, which is why most of the fighting after 1938/39 devolved into guerilla styled warfare (until the tides began turning). Regardless, all factions within the Chinese side fought bravely, and sacrificed more than anyone could ask for.

[@woisy6]

btw most of the commies was wating for the suprise attack for the NRA lol

[@Salty-Doggy]

Japanese invasion actually may have saved the Communists in China

[@LeachingJack]

@@Salty-Doggy I would say it actually did save the Communist part and in return, the Communist winning the civil war saved Japan because the US needed someone to contain China. Japan was the perfect ally and thus received much aid that was needed to rebuild Japan.

[@Jackuves]

Eh chairman Mao would eventually bring the apocalypse back

[@lordkent8143]

I've always said this: we still need a game on the Chinese Theater of War.

[@MaxYoung-Maxinfet]

I agree with you but handling Nanjing and other cities in a tactful manner in a video game is a steep challenge and probably why it's not covered very often in any type of entertainment. It's amazing how little this theater of world war II is covered considering how influential it is on the region.

[@Joshua-fq9tm]

exactly!!

[@lordkent8143]

@@MaxYoung-Maxinfet yes, but in terms of a game, it can be done. I think it's more so the lack of support to make the game. Game companies want to make sure it sells and yet want to avoid any bad publicity since it could be political.

[@mydlear4238]

@@lordkent8143 well a big consumer of video game is China. So don’t expect Chinese people buying a game criticising their country or even worse, a game saying good about the nationalists, especially with the actual Chinese policy. And well it goes very political after that

[@lordkent8143]

@salty sailor I'm talking about a COD style game where you fight as a NRA soldier or communist soldier

[@rickzabroski6347]

My great grandparents lived there during the war. When I was a kid, we had this traditional Chinese-looking wardrobe that had a huge scar on it. It’s through one of the front side door of the wardrobe. I asked my grandma what caused the scar, she said it was Japanese soldier’s bayonet when they entered the resident of my great parents’ and checking for people hiding in the wardrobe. Glad they survived that time.

[@hippylikepig]

Thank you for talking about it

[@hooderik8699]

Being very honest: this is pretty good for a western theater-based channel, keep up

[@williamyoung9401]

"For a western theater-based channel?" What does that even mean? What do you have? o_O

[@noelwym123]

@@williamyoung9401 He just means that given The Armchair Historian often covers European or American history rather than Asian, he did a pretty good job explaining the battle of Shanghai.

[@jiemingou2010]

I'm so glad someone covered this! People always seemed to forget the war in China was always apart of WW2. Quality channel, keep it up!

[@theedgyhighschoolkid1328]

3:32 nice reference, you brought back a year of nostalgia in around 5 seconds.

[@abelyau763]

Thank you for the reminder !

[@Ras_al_Gore]

“Flesh Mill” So... you think “meat grinder” might be a more appropriate translation?

[@hiimryan2388]

Nah mate its more like a meat factory

[@TheMrPeteChannel]

Probably lost in translation. The west calls it a meat grinder. Probably a better transition for Flesh Mill is Slaughterhouse.

[@harshbansal7982]

Flesh mill sounds better tbh .

[@notafrog2040]

Meat grinder is not as cool

[@thysmillan2067]

The original Chinese phrase is 血肉磨坊 "a grinding-mill of flesh and blood", for which "meat grinder" seems a lackluster substitute

[@Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

It's a shame the Chinese and Burma fronts are mostly forgotten because that's actually where 80% of the Japanese army were stationed, they had millions of troops in those theatres compared to the handful of divisions they deployed to the Pacific Islands.

[@ethanyee17]

Literally in the middle of a civil war and with poor weapons they managed to hold the Japanese respect+++

[@Nietabs]

They made a truce between the NRA and the CCP to fight the Japanese. As soon as Japanese left, CCP backstabbed NRA in the back

[@doujinflip]

The CPC didn't do much fighting either, mostly hiding in the mountains and indoctrinating themselves on Communist philosophy. They were less inept and less corrupt than the KMT though, so the few engagements they did have were more successful which allowed them to elevate themselves as the superior alternative until they gained the whole Mainland.

[@wikihowfrog9034]

Empire oft The Sun is a fantastic film set during the Second Sino-Japanese War/Pacific War. Probably one of my favourite films out there and it's definitely worth a watch

[@annoyedbrox4851]

THANKU I WILL WATCH :)

[@ludovisuis]

everyone talking about the "when the Japan nation attacked", but did nobody saw "China is free real estate"? 4:04

[@tabletopa4548]

yeah because in the 1800s I think the french, Japanese, german and britan were taking advantage when china was super weak

[@nmevaz9250]

It’s rare you hear the Chinese theater of the Second World War. This was a great topic and I hope you guys talk more about the Asian Theater of the War soon!

[@RealRotkohl]

Would be awesome

[@TanzaniaCountryball]

So true! I would like people to actually hear about the Tanzanian sacrifices in Burma.

[@echo8481]

"But then, everything changed when the Japanese nation attacked." Reference 💀

[@janizl.5995]

I like on how you used a lot of references as well as from games as well..

[@jackjin1183]

As a Chinese, thank you for explaining the battle happening in Shanghai. I really like your videos. I would also like to explain to people living in Europe and Americas that China did participate through the WW2. It has joined the allied forces on December 8, 1941 after the attack of Pearl Harbor. Even before that, we had provided important stuff for Europe that it could be prepared to face the Japanese invasion in their Asian colonies.

[@gurufabbes1]

Most people that have studied the period are aware that China was fighting Japan since the 1930s, before everyone else.

[@xxcxpl]

Going even deeper in history what's often overlooked is Chinese involvement in Europe during WW1. Greetings from Poland (another country torn apart by its imperial neighbours time&time again) ✌️

[@billyfox6368]

@@gurufabbes1 Yes, but even people who haven't studied the period would know about the British and American involvement et cetera; however, they probably wouldn't know about the Chinese.

[@pirateofthemist3764]

Corona Land

[@orthosarthak]

I'm curious, we have been told China doesn't allow it's people to interact with the rest of the world through any social media platform. So they have their own version of Facebook and WhatsApp. Does it allow you to access and interact over KZbin? Or are you staying outside China?

[@AndasMus]

Chinese: (use frontal bayonet charges) Japan: (starts losing to the Americans) Japanese generals: so what did the Chinese do?

[@rickshao1276]

not surrendering

[@AndasMus]

@@rickshao1276 Exactly!

[@Hideyoshi1991]

so many lives lost for no reason. A war that should never have happened

[@theishaanandankitashow]

@@Hideyoshi1991 Agreed.

[@WillYouPanMe]

national party held against the japanese for so long even after losing many key cities and states. Their ability to defend was already weaken due to the previous civil war against the communist party, which you see today. Japan took advantaged of a weaken china and attacked.

[@loonardtheloonard]

"But everything changed, when..." I wasn't even looking, yet i precisely knew how the animation looked at that moment. Kudos to the animator(s) for naking my evening

[@brianchu821]

During the 2nd Sino-Japan War, Taiwan (Formosa) was a part of Japan. I'm surprised to see that the maps in the thumbnail and content contradict with each over.

[@potatonoodlebear8035]

It is more of a seized territory, so i think both pics make sense.

[@ChaosMongrel]

I love how far this channel has come. The information was always interesting and well researched. But the animations have noticeably improved over time. I'm a big fan of the style.

[@holyromanempireball465]

Seeing the armchair historian make an Avatar reference with the Japanese being like the fire nation is just cool

[@Fontadlens8067]

Amazing videos!!

[@viny.8191]

Also never forget the Nanking massacre...

[@Martoto94]

Can I just say that this channel is absolutely terrific and just marvelously well made. The animations are sublime, the references (avatar: the last air bender) are great, and the way such important events are distilled to such short time frames without sacrificing historical accuracy is masterful. Please, keep doing what you’re doing.

[@user-te2vs2vt3r]

3:37 love the last airbender reference

[@TheCredfield]

The animation is so good!

[@michelangelosimoni2324]

Great vid，respect&thumbs up！

[@nircentv3104]

Dude whoever made that opening sequence needs a pay raise, it felt like watching a movie! Can't wait to watch the rest of the video now Edit: Just finished. 10/10 quality, I feel guilty for watching these videos for free

[@armorsmith43]

Yes, except for the map that ignores the fact that Manchukuo exists.

[@moneymane8246]

This dude pauses the video just to make a comment

[@alanc3845]

@@moneymane8246 Underated comment

[@nircentv3104]

@@moneymane8246 lol imagine, I liked it so much I had to pause

[@TheArmchairHistorian]

@@armorsmith43 3:40

[@godlesspenguin8701]

The bulk of the Japanese Army was tied down in China during the ensuing Pacific War, unavailable to fight against the Western Allies. I think the 3rd Battle of Changsha would have been a better comparison to Stalingrad. I hope there will be an Animated History episode on this battle one day.

[@caominhnhat1455]

The pacific war was pretty much win when US win Midway. No matter how much Troop Japan had to bulk their defense. No way they could transfer those big troop to prevent Us island hopping as the good amount of them crippled during midway and Us spam destroyer like ants.

[@FTW3152]

@@caominhnhat1455 Plus a huge portion of the Japanese troops in the Pacific never saw combat, the US just used their navy to stop supplies from reaching any island they didn't capture with ground troops. As a result a huge amount of Japanese ended up starving to death or died of disease without seeing an enemy combatant.

[@YuuSHiiiN]

@@caominhnhat1455 Even without Midway, the US would eventually overwhelm the Japanese with their industrial output + fresh manpower. Isoroku Yamamoto said it himself that war with the US was unwinnable from the start.

[@JackY-pu5nh]

I agree

[@porksterbob]

Third Changsha is smaller than the battle of Shanghai

[@ano9518]

Thank you... For letting the world to know about this... Thank you

[@SK-le1gm]

Thanks man !!! 🍻

[@dennisfischer4838]

Everything changed when the Japanese nation attacked Was that a Avatar the last air bender reference,

[@YAH2121]

Yes, a fitting one too. The fire nation are pretty much Imperial Japan

[@dennisfischer4838]

Would that make China earth kingdom or water tribes?

[@curtiswong7280]

@@dennisfischer4838 China is the Earth Kingdom. A large and populous nation, with an inferior technological edge, heroically fighting every inch of the way against an enemy that by all rights should've destroyed it by then.

[@dennisfischer4838]

Bosingsae is a Chinese name I think so that would make sense

[@usernotfound-jw7xs]

yes.

[@applepie4287]

Warpath: Sponsors a video about the Chinese in WW2 Also Warpath: Releases a WW2 game ad without China

[@giovanineiva8083]

awesome material Zhongguo Renmin, Wanshui

[@brianbaker5671]

Ps great work I love your vid’s

[@pablosahuquillobarba660]

3:32 8 years later: "It's a giant mushroom! Maybe it's friendly!"

[@brucebelvin2058]

Japane: "Hey, you wear German helmets, and bayonet charge like Japanese. That's cultural appropriation!"

[@XCal]

China is like Brood War Protoss player who takes time to mind control an SCV and a Drone to build an army of everything.

[@newbie1958]

China: "You're using our characters! Who's the cultural appropriator now?!

[@mxn1948]

@@nathanb.8114 well yea. japan had near total air and naval dominance, and their division had like 5x the fire power of a typical chinese division of the time. it was literally an industrial nations fighting a agricultural nation.

[@fredricknoe3114]

They just have the Chinese knock off.

[@elephanteriot1767]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGmvm5iBhpdoes0

[@inigochicano]

3:30 I loved that ATLA reference!

[@huwenkai440]

This battle will stay as part of my soul. Seeing how the outcome like, it made chill to think about how China, by then still a sick man, stood up for its independence.

[@tubesocks1019]

when u said everything changed when the Japanese nation attacked 3:26 i thought of avatar the last Airbender

[@mgway4661]

It’s too depressing

[@ethanmcfarland8240]

He was making an Avatar joke

[@tubesocks1019]

@@ethanmcfarland8240 ye lol

[@Jacob-hx6lv]

You should do more on the sino-japanese wars. This is really interesting

[@laurynasjonika6133]

Yea m8

[@joemamaobama6863]

Yea m8

[@iamhorny4542]

Its a shame that this is so overlooked. China had the 2nd highest casualties in ww2, and is the equivalent of the soviet union for the Japanese if we compare the Japanese to Germans.

[@dddddh1]

The Japanese have always been afraid of being liquidated by China. Japan recruited a lot of foreign students in China for free. A famous Chinese professor named Zheng Qiang described his experience when studying in Japan: When Japanese students asked about Unit 731 and the Nanjing Massacre, Japanese professors always scolded Japanese students and kept silent. But they were very respectful to Chinese students, although they didn't ask, and they didn't need to ask. 

 Later, a Japanese professor said to the Chinese students, "One day, when China liquidates Japan, you should put in a good word for us. After telling the audience about his experience in Japan, Zheng qiang said to the students, "Why do you think Japan recruits so many foreign students in China for free? Of course it is for cultural brainwashing to influence the next generation and future of China." When you think about it, our ancestors died in a Japanese killing contest. The prisoners were starved for five days and then machinegunned down. The Japanese trampled the baby to death in front of the Chinese mother. Cut off a woman's breasts for her husband to eat. Unit 731 dehydrates a man to death to determine the percentage of water lost to death. Put a living person in a pressurized room and get data on how much pressure a person will die at. Put a person who has been injected with the virus in a room with a group of normal people to test the spread of the virus... It's too much to say. Only people think, without them can not do. This is not a simple war of aggression, this is taking your life while you are sick. Just like when Abe was assassinated, the suspect could not be forgiven even after bowing and apologizing. Some things can not be done with a bow and apology, we are not qualified to forgive the Japanese for their ancestors. What? It was done by yesterday's Japanese and has nothing to do with today's Japanese? Ok, but today Japan is not obedient and does not respect history, so China should also be the bad guy today. Tomorrow's problems will be dealt with tomorrow, let's call it "father pays son". As a normal Chinese, when this reckoning will happen, I don't know, but I hope to see. Maybe when The US and China go to war? Probably not, there will be no war between The US and China, and Japan will be of no use to the US other than adding buffs to the Chinese military. But one might expect it to take the form of a Conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

[@danieltrepsenishti33]

3:30 I love what you did here

[@nicofranco3432]

This is an interesting subject. Hoping you would do a video next time discussing "The Battle of Manila" or "Manila Liberation".

[@M0rshu64]

The annimation here is stunning! Especially at 7:20 with that camera work!

[@spitfiremkiv339]

I love it how Griffin's styles of Video making changes in each video.

[@criticizingcriticizer]

Speaking of Sihang Warehouse, I would highly recommend watching the film "The Eight Hundred" which is about that battle!

[@sophiareuter2221]

About the Baoshan town: A Chinese battalion had to face overwhelming Japanese invaders on their own. Outnumbered, outgunned, knowing their fate at the very beginning, they fought street by street and made the Japanese suffer even heavier casualities. The gunfire only subsided after seven days when the last defender fell, including all the officers. The battalion commander Major Yao Ziqing was later promoted to Major General posthumously. There is a movie with this story as the theme.

[@heimskurhungog3346]

3:30, I see what you did there, Avatar: Last Airbender.

[@ethanmcfarland8240]

Avatar is an allegory for WW2 btw

[@frostwang6557]

As a Chinese, it's really good to see a video like this... Thanks a lot

[@anthonyendack3138]

same, I'm chinese

[@ricardonunez2204]

Thank you !

[@vanngocthien]

This actually brought more light to the battle for the Sihang warehouse and the movie "the eight hundred".