Bloody Saturday (Shanghai)

Last updated
Bloody Saturday
Part of Battle of Shanghai and the Second Sino-Japanese War
Great World Amusement Center after bombing.jpg
Great World amusement centre after bombing
Native name
  • 大世界坠弹惨案
  • 黑色星期六
LocationThe intersection of Avenue Edward Ⅶ, Yu Ya Ching Road and Boulevard de Montigny, near the Great World amusement centre, Shanghai
Coordinates 31°13′50″N121°28′26″E / 31.230628°N 121.473848°E / 31.230628; 121.473848
DateAugust 14, 1937 (1937-08-14)
Target Japanese cruiser Idzumo
Attack type
Misdirected attack
Deaths1,200
Injured1,400

Bloody Saturday, [1] also known as Black Saturday [2] and the Great World bombing, [3] was a misdirected attack on civilians by the Republic of China Air Force on 14 August 1937 during the Battle of Shanghai of the Second Sino-Japanese War. On the day, the Chinese Air Force, in an unsuccessful attempt to attack the Japanese cruiser Idzumo moored next to the Japanese Consulate in Shanghai, accidentally bombed the city centre, resulting in the deaths of some thousand civilians. [1]

Contents

Background

Weather conditions

In August 1937, an unexpected typhoon swept coastal China, which prevented commercial shipping from accessing the city. The typhoon also damaged Shanghai's telephone system, hindering communication, and led to the suspension of flights between Shanghai and Guangzhou. Despite these disruptions, the recovery was quick, and normalcy returned soon after the typhoon passed. [4]

Ongoing battles

Japan launches its full-scale invasion of China in July. By mid-July, China had lost Peiping and Tianjin. On 13 August, the Japanese gunboats began attacking the Chinese-administered northern Shanghai, especially near the University of Shanghai. [5] In response to the situation in Shanghai, Chiang Kai-shek redirected the focus of the Chinese Air Force from North China to the Shanghai region. By 14 August, the 2nd Bomb Group, 4th Pursuit Group, and 5th Pursuit Group were ordered to relocate to bases in Jining, Qianqiu, and Yangzhou. The Central Aviation School near Hangzhou was also instructed to form new provisional squadrons. Rather than adopting a defensive strategy, the Chinese command directed all air units stationed in Eastern China to launch attacks on Japanese positions in Shanghai. [3]

Refugee crisis

The outbreak of war on 13 August led to a significant refugee crisis in Shanghai's International Settlement and the French Concession, as residents from Zhabei, Hongkou, and Yangshupu sought safety. Between 26 July and 5 August 1937, over 50,000 civilians fled Zhabei, walking through the Garden Bridge over the Suzhou Creek to reach the foreign settlements. Local organisations and institutions, including the notable Great World entertainment complex, began to provide shelter and food for the influx of refugees. [3]

Air combats

On 13 August, upon witnessing the arrival of the Japanese Third Fleet, Claire Lee Chennault, who had been commissioned by Madame Chiang, returned to Nanjing and recommended that Chinese bombers be deployed to attack the Japanese cruiser Idzumo. Since no Chinese officers had prior experience with such an operation, Chennault took command of the mission. [6]

On 14 August, around 40 aircraft arrived over Shanghai, which was blanketed in thick clouds. The first strike happened in the morning when 21 Northrop Gamma bombers targeted Japanese ships at Wusong. A second wave followed with eight Curtiss Hawk III biplanes from the 5th Pursuit Group, each carrying 500-pound bombs, taking off from Yangzhou to attack Japanese ships near Nantong along the Yangtze. [3]

Misdirected attacks

Civilian victims of the August 14 bombing near the Great World Civilian victims of the August 14 bombing near the Great World.jpg
Civilian victims of the August 14 bombing near the Great World

The Chinese planes aimed to strike the Japanese cruiser Izumo, but due to limited visibility and lack of experience, the bombs missed, falling into the Huangpu River instead. This caused large waves and sent shrapnel over the gathered spectators, creating panic. Despite the danger, many onlookers, including refugees who had fled from the northern districts, stayed in the area without realising the risks. [3]

At 4:27 pm, another group of Chinese aircraft appeared, prompting the Izumo to respond with anti-aircraft fire that filled the sky with smoke. Six planes managed to escape, but four others dropped bombs. Some bombs landed in the river, while others hit Nanjing Road, damaging buildings like the Cathay and Palace Hotels and killing and injuring civilians. Vehicles were also set ablaze. [3] 15 minutes later, two more bombs struck near the Great World amusement centre, where 10,000 refugees gathered. [7] One bomb exploded in mid-air, spreading debris widely and causing significant destruction. The blasts shattered windows, damaged buildings, and resulted in immediate fatalities. These air raids left over 1,200 people dead and around 1,400 injured. [3]

Reactions

The bombing of the foreign concessions in Shanghai led to widespread panics, as it broke the relative safety of the foreign-protected land. People who wanted to leave the city crowded to the ticket office of Dollar Line offices on the Bund, but the ships refused to go up the Huangpu River for the Bund due to the bombing. The French Concession enforced a no-fly zone with anti-aircraft batteries, despite protests from both Chinese and Japanese governments. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claire Lee Chennault</span> American military aviator (1893–1958)

Claire Lee Chennault was an American military aviator best known for his leadership of the "Flying Tigers" and the Chinese Nationalist Air Force in World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bund</span> Historical district in central Shanghai, China

The Bund is a waterfront area and a protected historical district in central Shanghai. The area centers on a section of Zhongshan Road within the former Shanghai International Settlement, which runs along the western bank of the Huangpu River in the eastern part of Huangpu. The area along the river faces the modern skyscrapers of Lujiazui in Pudong. The Bund usually refers to the buildings and wharves on this section of the road, as well as some adjacent areas. This region has a significant European influence, with the style of many structures most comparable to that of European cities, particularly Gothic, Baroque, Neoclassical, Romanesque, Art Deco, and Renaissance architecture. Additionally, some of the city's top eateries are located there. From the 1860s to the 1930s, it was the rich and powerful center of the foreign establishment in Shanghai, operating as a legally protected treaty port.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Shanghai</span> 1937 battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War

The Battle of Shanghai was a major battle fought between the Empire of Japan and the Republic of China in the Chinese city of Shanghai during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It lasted from August 13, 1937, to November 26, 1937, and was arguably the single largest and longest battle of the entire war, with it even regarded by some historians as the first battle of World War II. It resulted in the Japanese capture of the city and heavy destruction to the city.

USS <i>Augusta</i> (CA-31) Northampton-class heavy cruiser (1931-46)

USS Augusta (CL/CA-31) was a Northampton-class cruiser of the United States Navy, notable for service as a headquarters ship during Operation Torch, Operation Overlord, and Operation Dragoon, and for her occasional use as a presidential flagship carrying both Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman under wartime conditions. She was named after Augusta, Georgia, and was sponsored by Miss Evelyn McDaniel of that city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service</span> Air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II

The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) was the air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The organization was responsible for the operation of naval aircraft and the conduct of aerial warfare in the Pacific War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nanjing Road</span> Road in Shanghai, China

Nanjing Road is a road in Shanghai, the eastern part of which is the main shopping district of Shanghai. It is one of the world's busiest shopping streets, along with Fifth Avenue, Oxford Street, Orchard Road, Takeshita Street and the Champs-Élysées. The street is named after Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province and the former capital of the Republic of China. Today's Nanjing Road comprises two sections, Nanjing Road East and Nanjing Road West.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">January 28 incident</span> 1932 China–Japan conflict in Shanghai

The January 28 incident or Shanghai incident was a conflict between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. It took place in the Shanghai International Settlement which was under international control. Japanese army officers, defying higher authorities, had provoked anti-Japanese demonstrations in the International Settlement following the Japanese invasion of Manchuria. On January 18th, five Japanese Buddhists in Shanghai belonging to the Nichiren sect allegedly shouted anti-Chinese, pro-Japanese nationalist slogans in Shanghai. In response, a Chinese mob formed killing one monk and injuring two. In response, the Japanese in Shanghai rioted and burned down a factory, killing two Chinese. Heavy fighting broke out, and China appealed to the League of Nations. A truce was finally reached on May 5, calling for Japanese military withdrawal, and an end to Chinese boycotts of Japanese products. It is seen as the first example of a modern war waged in a large city between two heavily equipped armies and as a preview of what was to come during the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Defense of Sihang Warehouse</span> 1937 engagement in the Battle of Shanghai

The Battle of Sihang Warehouse took place from October 26 to November 1, 1937, and marked the beginning of the end of the three-month Battle of Shanghai in the opening phase of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Defenders of the warehouse held out against numerous waves of Japanese forces to cover Chinese forces retreating west during the Battle of Shanghai.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Wuhan</span> Battle in the Second Sino-Japanese War

The Battle of Wuhan, popularly known to the Chinese as the Defence of Wuhan, and to the Japanese as the Capture of Wuhan, was a large-scale battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Engagements took place across vast areas of Anhui, Henan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, and Hubei provinces over a period of four and a half months. It was the single largest, longest, and bloodiest battle of the entire Second Sino-Japanese War. More than one million National Revolutionary Army troops from the Fifth and Ninth War Zone were put under the direct command of Chiang Kai-shek, defending Wuhan from the Central China Area Army of the Imperial Japanese Army led by Shunroku Hata. Chinese forces were also supported by the Soviet Volunteer Group, a group of volunteer pilots from Soviet Air Forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Development of Chinese Nationalist air force (1937–1945)</span> Military unit

The Chinese Nationalist Air Force or simply The Republic of China Air Force was the Air Force formed by the Kuomintang (KMT) after the establishment of the Aviation Ministry in 1920. As tensions mounted between China and Imperial Japan in the 1930s, air units from the Chinese warlords, including those from the Guangdong Provincial Air Force, and overseas Chinese aviators, became integrated into the centralized command of the ROCAF and coordinating with the Second United Front to counter the Imperial Japanese invasion and occupation.

Japanese cruiser <i>Izumo</i> Izumo-Class armored cruizer by Japan

Izumo was the lead ship of her class of armored cruisers built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in the late 1890s. As Japan lacked the industrial capacity to build such warships itself, the ship was built in Britain. She often served as a flagship and participated in most of the naval battles of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905. The ship was lightly damaged during the Battle off Ulsan and the Battle of Tsushima. Izumo was ordered to protect Japanese citizens and interests in 1913 during the Mexican Revolution and was still there when World War I began in 1914.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aerial engagements of the Second Sino-Japanese War</span>

The Second Sino-Japanese War began on 7 July 1937 with the Marco Polo Bridge incident in the Republic of China and is often regarded as the start of World War II as full-scale warfare erupted with the Battle of Shanghai, and ending when the Empire of Japan surrendered to the Allies in August 1945. The Chinese Air Force faced the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy Air Forces and engaged them in many aerial interceptions, including the interception of massed terror-bombing strikes on civilian targets, attacking on each other's ground forces and military assets in all manners of air interdiction and close air support; these battles in the Chinese skies were the largest air battles fought since World War I, and featured the first-ever extensive and prolonged deployment of aircraft carrier fleets launching preemptive strikes in support of expeditionary and occupation forces, and demonstrated the technological shift from the latest biplane fighter designs to the modern monoplane fighter designs on both sides of the conflict.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waibaidu Bridge</span> Bridge in Shanghai, China

The Waibaidu Bridge, called the Garden Bridge in English, is the first all-steel bridge, and the only surviving example of a camelback truss bridge, in China. The present bridge is the fourth Western-designed bridge built at its location since 1856, in the downstream of the estuary of the Suzhou Creek, near its confluence with the Huangpu River, adjacent to the Bund in central Shanghai. It connects the Huangpu and Hongkou districts and was opened on 20 January 1908. With its rich history and unique design the Waibaidu Bridge is one of the symbols of Shanghai. Its modern and industrial image may be regarded as the city's landmark bridge. On 15 February 1994 the Shanghai Municipal Government declared the bridge an example of Heritage Architecture, and one of the outstanding structures in Shanghai. In an ever-changing metropolis, the Waibaidu Bridge still remains a popular attraction, and one of the few constants in the city skyline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kōichi Shiozawa</span>

Kōichi Shiozawa was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Second Sino-Japanese War. The literary critic Rinsen Nakazawa was his older brother.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wusong</span> Subdistrict of Baoshan, Shanghai, China

Wusong, formerly romanized as Woosung, is a subdistrict of Baoshan in northern Shanghai. Prior to the city's expansion, it was a separate port town located 14 miles (23 km) down the Huangpu River from Shanghai's urban core.

HMS Peterel was a river gunboat built by Yarrow Shipbuilders at Scotstoun and she was the sixth ship of the Royal Navy to carry the name and the lead ship of her class. Her name used an archaic spelling for consistency with previous Royal Navy Ships of the same name, in contrast to the modern accepted spelling petrel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geography of Shanghai</span>

The geography of Shanghai is characterised by its location on the Yangtze River Delta on China's east coast and its proximity to the Pacific Ocean via the East China Sea. The city is centred on the Huangpu River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, and extends outwards in all directions, with the suburbs and satellite towns reaching east to the East China Sea, north and west to Jiangsu province, and south to Zhejiang province over Hangzhou Bay.

<i>Bloody Saturday</i> (photograph) Photograph by H. S. Wong

Bloody Saturday is a black-and-white photograph taken on 28 August 1937, a few minutes after a Japanese air attack struck civilians during the Battle of Shanghai in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Depicting a Chinese baby crying within the bombed-out ruins of Shanghai South railway station, the photograph became known as a cultural icon demonstrating Japanese wartime atrocities in China. The photograph was widely published, and in less than a month had been seen by more than 136 million viewers. The photographer, Hearst Corporation's H. S. "Newsreel" Wong, also known as Wong Hai-Sheng or Wang Xiaoting, did not discover the identity or even the sex of the injured child, whose mother lay dead nearby. The baby was called Ping Mei. One of the most memorable war photographs ever published, and perhaps the most famous newsreel scene of the 1930s, the image stimulated an outpouring of Western anger against Japanese violence in China. Journalist Harold Isaacs called the iconic image "one of the most successful 'propaganda' pieces of all time".

The urban planning of Shanghai refers to various phases of planning and development of Shanghai, presently the largest city in China and one of the largest in the world. The topic is the focus of the city's Urban Planning Museum, located in People's Square beside City Hall.

SS <i>President Hoover</i> American ocean liner

SS President Hoover was an ocean liner built for the Dollar Steamship Lines. She was completed in 1930 and provided a trans-Pacific service between the US and the Far East. In 1937 she ran aground on an island off Formosa during a typhoon and was declared a total loss. She had a sister ship, President Coolidge, that was completed in 1931, was made a troopship in 1941 and was lost after striking a mine while attempting to enter the harbor at Espiritu Santo in 1942.

References

  1. 1 2 "Victims of 'Bloody Saturday' bombing, Ave Edward VII, Shanghai, 14 August 1937". Historical Photographs of China. Archived from the original on 2024-06-11. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
  2. Harmsen, Peter (2013-05-03). Shanghai 1937: Stalingrad on the Yangtze. Casemate. ISBN   978-1-61200-167-8.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Henriot, Christian (2015). August 1937: War and the death en masse of civilians. War in History and Memory: An International Conference on the Seventieth Anniversary of China’s Victory for the War against Japan. Taipei, Taiwan: Academia Historica. pp. 492–568.
  4. French 2017, pp. 6-7
  5. French 2017, p. 8
  6. French 2017, p. 11
  7. "The Battle of Shanghai: An Illustrated Guide". Historic Shanghai. Retrieved 2024-11-14.
  8. French 2017, pp. 41-43

Further reading