The Nanjing Massacre, also known as the Rape of Nanjing, was a historical event (1937–1938) that involved series of mass murder and rape committed by Japanese army against Chinese people who lived in Nanjing—then the capital city of China. The emphasis of many historians has been on the factors that led to this incident, with many focusing on the traits and nature of Japanese army and political administration as the leading causes of the invasion that led to the said atrocities in Nanjing. Japanese behavior in Nanjing was primarily due to Matsui’s desire for a short and decisive campaign and the country’s drift towards fascism.
Matsui, without bitter enemies among his subordinates and at the Tokyo Headquarters, wanted a short and decisive campaign that would bring peace in a short time. As a result, he imposed a lightning offensive against Nanjing in the sense that there was to be no opportunity to kill residents on the battlefield. However, as the Japanese did not have access to adequate logistics for prisoners of war, the temptation was too high to go contrary to Matsui’s expectations. The officers already had the experience of living in the country, and their free movement between Nanjing and Shanghai was a sequence of rape, killing, and looting that describes the criminal laxity in the city of Nanjing (Brook 678).
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"Why Did The Japanese Commit Atrocities At Nanjing?".
Besides, historians agree that before the Nanjing Massacre, Japan was drifting fast towards fascist ideology presented to them by Germany and Italy. The adoption of this model in Japan caused ultra–nationalists, totalitarian, and militarists tendencies to proliferate over the years. The evolution of Japan’s political model shaped its conception of war by expressing victory as absolute and transforming the nation into a kind of colony (Brook 681). This new model and concept of leadership in Japan led to violent approaches towards political matters, giving birth to radicality and bitterness of enmity.
In conclusion, the causes of the massacre at Nanjing were centered around Japanese violent behavior that was significantly influenced by Matsui’s desire for a short and decisive campaign and the country’s drift towards fascism. However, while there exist other reasons for the massacre at Nanjing, historians have actively acknowledged Japanese behavior as the central cause of hate towards neighboring countries—including China and its citizens.
- Brook, Timothy. “The Tokyo Judgment and The Rape of Nanking”. The Journal of Asian Studies, vol. 60, no. 3, 2001, pp. 673-700. Cambridge University Press (CUP), doi:10.2307/2700106. Accessed 4 Dec 2018.
