On the Monday morning, December 13, 1937, the 6th, 16th, and 116th divisions of the Japanese Imperial Army entered the city of Nanjing. Later that afternoon two Japanese Imperial Navy fleets arrived in the Yangtze River. The shattered Chinese army was in rapid retreat while being pursued by the Japanese forces. In order to find any holdouts of Chinese soldiers, the Japanese began to conduct a mop-up operation throughout the city – including in the Nanjing Safety Zone, which was established to protect civilians from the violence.
For one American missionary, John Magee, Nanjing was rapidly turning from a battleground into the site of a horrific massacre. From within and around a center for foreign nationals, he provided journals, photographs, and 16mm video footage of the incident. Other foreigners around the city gathered in order to document the attacks on Chinese civilians, while others decided to take up action with the Japanese Embassy.
One of John Magee’s photographs, where he is seen preaching to Nanjing Residents
Yet despite the numerous testimonials of the Nanjing Massacre survivors, and the first-hand accounts, photographs, and videos, there are some scholars who question the legitimacy of the Massacre. Some scholars beleive that the Massacre didn’t even exist.
I read about the Safety Zone created too, and think you did a great job explaining it/furthering the idea! Because of the countless facts and first-hand accounts, it seems insane to me that people can still refute the events at Nanking. Still, as you pointed out, some scholars very much do.
I think you did a really good job giving such good detail. I also think it is sad that scholars don’t believe that this happened despite all the evidence behind it. Good job tying your article together
You did a good job of drawing to light the amount of evidence there was from unbiased sources, neither Japanese nor Chinese. I think the coverage by Magee and others is the most convincing
I like how you tied it all into the evolution of the Geneva Conventions. I also like that you pointed out that most of the scholars whom opposed the idea of a massacre ever being committed in Nanking were Japanese nationals.
I like how you ended with the statement that there are some scholars who still question whether this event ever took place. I think it is important for modern historians to provide concrete evidence to prove that this event did take place so that something like this will never happen again.
This is a great post, you do a good job pointing out how things like this can get lost or swept under the rug if it wasn’t witnessed by many outside parties. It does seem outlandish that people still claim this event didnt even happen with the evidence that has been provided to prove otherwise.