page_title: January 28 incident
section_title: Battle
hierarchical_section_title: January 28 incident / Battle
caption_attribution_description: Zoom into this map at maps.bpl.org. Author: Su, Chia-jung. Publisher: [s.n.] Date: 1932 Location: Shanghai (China) Scale: Scale not given. Call Number: G7811.S1 1932.S8x
context_page_description: 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 District of Shanghai. A Chinese mob attacked Japanese Buddhist priests, killing one. Heavy fighting broke out, and China appealed with no success 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. Internationally, the episode intensified opposition to Japan's aggression in Asia. The episode helped undermine civilian rule in Tokyo; Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated on May 15, 1932.
context_section_description: The situation continued to deteriorate over the next week. By January 27, the Japanese military had already concentrated some 30 ships, 40 airplanes and nearly 7,000 troops around the shoreline of Shanghai to put down any resistance in the event that violence broke out. The military's justification was that it had to defend its concession and citizens. The Japanese issued an ultimatum to the Shanghai Municipal Council demanding public condemnation and monetary compensation by the Chinese for any Japanese property damaged in the monk incident, and demanding that the Chinese government take active steps to suppress further anti-Japanese protests in the city. During the afternoon of January 28, the Shanghai Municipal Council agreed to these demands.
  Throughout this period, the Chinese 19th Route Army had been massing outside the city, causing consternation to the civil Chinese administration of Shanghai and the foreign-run concessions. The 19th Route Army was generally viewed as little more than a warlord force, posing as great a danger to Shanghai as the Japanese military. In the end, Shanghai donated a substantial bribe to the 19th Route Army, hoping that it would leave and not incite a Japanese attack.
  However, at midnight on January 28, Japanese carrier aircraft bombed Shanghai in the first major aircraft carrier action in East Asia. Barbara W. Tuchman described this as also being "the first terror bombing of a civilian population of an era that was to become familiar with it", preceding the Condor Legion's bombing of Guernica by five years. Three thousand Japanese troops attacked targets, such as the Shanghai North railway station, around the city and began an invasion of the de facto Japanese settlement in Hongkew and other areas north of Suzhou Creek. In what was a surprising about-face for many, the 19th Route Army, which many had expected to leave after having been paid, put up fierce resistance.
  Though the opening battles took place in the Hongkew district of the International Settlement, the conflict soon spread outwards to much of Chinese-controlled Shanghai. The majority of the concessions remained untouched by the conflict, and it was often the case that those in the Shanghai International Settlement would watch the war from the banks of Suzhou Creek. They could even visit the battle lines by virtue of their extraterritoriality. On January 30, Chiang Kai-shek decided to temporarily relocate the capital from Nanjing to Luoyang as an emergency measure, due to the fact that Nanjing's proximity to Shanghai could make it a target.
  Because Shanghai was a metropolitan city with many foreign interests invested in it, other countries, such as the United States, the United Kingdom and France, attempted to negotiate a ceasefire between Japan and China. However, Japan refused, instead continuing to mobilize troops in the region. On February 12, American, British and French representatives brokered a half-day cease fire for humanitarian relief to civilians caught in the crossfire.
  The same day, the Japanese issued another ultimatum, demanding that the Chinese Army retreat 20 km from the border of the Shanghai concessions, a demand promptly rejected. This only intensified fighting in Hongkew. The Japanese were unable to take the city by the middle of February. Subsequently, the number of Japanese troops was increased to nearly 90,000 with the arrival of the 9th Infantry Division and the IJA 24th Mixed Brigade, supported by 80 warships and 300 airplanes.
  On February 14, Chiang Kai-shek sent the 5th Army, including the 87th and 88th divisions, into Shanghai.
  On February 20, Japanese bombardments were increased to force the Chinese away from their defensive positions near Miaohang, while commercial and residential districts of the city were set on fire. The Chinese defensive positions deteriorated rapidly without naval and armored support, with the number of defenders dwindling to fewer than 50,000. Japanese forces increased to over a 100,000 troops, backed by aerial and naval bombardments.
  On February 28, after a week of fier
caption: Map of the fighting in Shanghai
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