Battle of Shanghai
1937 · Shanghai · China · Early modern
The Chinese army concentrated its main forces in Shanghai and fought the Japanese fiercely for three months, contesting every house and street using the city and its network of rivers, but was finally forced into a general retreat by the great disparity in equipment and Japanese landings on its flank.
Belligerents
Chinese army
- Commanders
- Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang, Chen Cheng
- Strength
- More than 700,000 elite main-force troops of the National Revolutionary Army
Japan
- Commanders
- Matsui Iwane
- Strength
- Japanese forces with combined land, sea and air operations, more than 200,000 troops
Background
After the Marco Polo Bridge Incident the war widened, and China chose to open a front in Shanghai, aiming to turn the Japanese axis of attack from north-south to east-west and to win international attention.
Course of the battle
- Taking the offensiveThe Chinese army took the initiative in attacking Japanese positions in Shanghai, and full-scale fighting broke out.
- Street-by-street fightingThe two sides fought back and forth at Zhabei, Luodian and elsewhere, with enormous casualties.
- Flank broken throughThe Japanese landed at Hangzhou Bay and outflanked the Chinese rear, forcing the Chinese army into a general retreat.
Outcome at a glance
| Date | 1937 |
|---|---|
| Place | Shanghai |
| Result | The Chinese army concentrated its main forces in Shanghai and fought the Japanese fiercely for three months, contesting every house and street using the city and its network of rivers, but was finally forced into a general retreat by the great disparity in equipment and Japanese landings on its flank. |
| Winner | Japan |
| Casualties | The Chinese army suffered heavy casualties, losing large numbers of elite troops and junior officers, while the Japanese also paid a far higher price in casualties than they had expected. |
| Territorial change | Shanghai fell, and the Japanese army then advanced west along the Shanghai-Nanjing line, with the fighting soon reaching Nanjing. |
Impact
It thwarted Japan's strategic aim of "a quick war and a quick decision," and at great sacrifice bought time for moving industry inland and for a protracted war of resistance, but Nanjing was immediately left exposed.
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