Execution of 2 Brutal Japanese Soldiers who Competed over who Could Behead 100 People the Fastest

Execution of 2 Brutal Japanese Soldiers who Competed over who Could Behead 100 People the Fastest. 18 September 1931. Japan, seeking raw materials to fuel its growing industries, invades Manchuria - an industrial area located in Northeastern China known for its rich mineral and coal reserves. In the following years, there will be various “incidents“, or armed clashes of a limited nature between the Empire of the Rising Sun and the Republic of China but full-scale war will not break out between the two countries until the Marco Polo Bridge Incident on 7 July 1937. This marks the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War that will end only with Japan’s surrender on 2 September 1945. During this war, which is the prelude to the Pacific side of World War II, the Japanese army scores major victories, capturing Beijing and Shanghai and in December of 1937, the Japanese military invades Nanjing, then China’s capital. In Nanjing, the Japanese soldiers commit unspeakable atrocities and engage in a campaign of mass killing which over the course of two months will claim the lives of as many as 300,000 civilians and numerous unarmed Chinese soldiers. However, the crimes committed by the Japanese army are not limited only to the period of two months as many atrocities were reported to have been committed as the Japanese army advanced from Shanghai to Nanjing. The most notorious of these atrocities is an infamous contest between 2 Japanese Army officers over who could behead 100 people the fastest using their sword. Their names are Toshiaki Mukai and Tsuyoshi Noda. Conflict in Asia between Japan and China began with the Invasion of Manchuria, well before the official start of World War II. As part of earlier treaty agreements, the Japanese had troops protecting the railroad in Southern Manchuria. However Japan wanted to expand their control over Chinese Manchuria so on September 18, 1931 the Japanese planted a small explosive device next to the tracks owned by Japan’s South Manchuria Railroad near the city of Mukden. The explosion that followed became known as the Mukden incident. Though damage to the railway was minimal, it provided an excuse for the Japanese for the speedy and unauthorized capture of Mukden, now Shenyang, and to seize all the cities along the railroad. Despite Chinese opposition, the Japanese continued to advance and by February 27, 1932, the last Chinese opposing the Japanese were forced to surrender and all of Manchuria was in Japanese hands. A few days later on the 1 March the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo which was dissolved only on 18 August 1945 after the Japanese Emperor Hirohito had announced the unconditional surrender of the Japanese military 3 days earlier. Since the invasion of Manchuria, there were various “incidents“, or armed clashes of a limited nature between the Empire of Japan and the Republic of China, but all had subsided. However, this changed on the night of July 7, 1937, when a small Japanese force on maneuvers near the Marco Polo Bridge demanded entry to the tiny walled town of Wanping in order to search for one of their soldiers. However, the Chinese garrison in the town refused the Japanese entry; a shot was heard, and the two sides began firing. The Chinese government, under strong anti-Japanese pressure, refused to make any concessions in the negotiation of the dispute and the Japanese also maintained their position. As a result, the conflict continued to grow, with larger forces committed by both sides and fighting spread to other parts of China. Following the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, which marked the beginning of The Second Sino-Japanese War or War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression between 1937–1945, the Japanese scored major victories, capturing Beijing, Shanghai and the Chinese capital of Nanjing in 1937, which resulted in the Nanjing Massacre also known as the Rape of Nanjing. Join World History channel and get access to benefits: Disclaimer: All opinions and comments below are from members of the public and do not reflect the views of World History channel. We do not accept promoting violence or hatred against individuals or groups based on attributes such as: race, nationality, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation. World History has right to review the comments and delete them if they are deemed inappropriate. ► CLICK the SUBSCRIBE button for more interesting clips: #ww2 #worldwar2videos #worldhistory