Losses in the Second World War. China during the Second World War

Countries suffered huge losses in the Second World War. China was no exception. Naturally, against the backdrop of a variety of figures, which are a reflection of the material costs of a certain people, which have found their expression in numerous devastations, human losses do not seem great. Especially when you consider that they are replenished by an excess of fertility that arises after international conflicts. But such judgments are too superficial. Human losses have always been considered basic. Everyone plays an important role, and his loss is a significant loss for the nation. This can not be said about material values.

The role of China was not appreciated

Scientists noted that China played an important role in World War II. The conflict in this country, according to experts, began in 1931. It was during this period that Japan attacked Manchuria. Until now, humanity has not been assessed the role of China in the victory over fascism. However, the troops of this country for a long period shackled the forces of Japan, preventing it from starting a conflict against the Soviet Union. To understand what losses China suffered in the Second World War, it is necessary to study in more detail the events that occurred in those distant times.

The beginning of hostilities

In 1937, two years before the outbreak of hostilities against Poland on the part of Germany, the Chinese troops engaged in a skirmish with the Japanese garrison. It happened on the south side of Beijing. It was this spark that triggered the conflict in Asia. The years of the war caused great sacrifices. The confrontation lasted for 8 years.

About domination in Asia, Japan began to think about since the 20-ies. In 1910, the status of the Japanese colony was obtained by Korea. In 1931, the officers of the Japanese troops occupied and annexed Manchuria. This region of China had about 35 million people and possessed a significant amount of natural resources.

By the beginning of 1937 the Japanese forces had occupied a considerable part of internal Mongolia. In addition, the pressure exerted on Beijing has increased. In those days, the capital of China was the city of Nanking. The leader of the country and the nationalist party, Chiang Kai-shek, realized that everything was going to war with Japan.

Combat Collisions

The clashes near Beijing only intensified. The Chinese did not intend to fulfill the demands put forward by the Japanese. They refused to yield. Carrying losses in World War II, China decided to act more decisively. Chiang Kai-shek ordered the need to protect Shanghai, along with which a large part of the Japanese army is located. In the ensuing battle, about 200,000 Chinese died. The loss of Japan was about 70 thousand.

One of the episodes is firmly entrenched in history. During the battle, the Chinese unit held back attacks by the superior forces of the Japanese, despite the losses. In World War II, China (it should be noted) used German weapons. And in many respects thanks to this, it was possible to keep its positions to the Chinese unit. In history this episode entered under the name "800 heroes".

The Japanese managed to capture Shanghai. Subsequently, reinforcements arrived, and the troops began to put pressure on the capital of China.

Incompetence of the leadership of the Chinese army

In the first years of the war, the Chinese Communists practically did not show any activity. The only thing they could achieve was a victory in the passage of Pingxingguan. Naturally, there were losses. In World War II, China was very much exsanguinated. However, this victory took far more lives of Japanese soldiers.

The actions were further complicated by the incompetence that the Chinese leadership had. Through their fault, there was a riot, which led to a large number of deaths. The Japanese took advantage of this, captured the prisoners, who were subsequently executed. China in the Second World War suffered so much loss that the exact number of dead is still unknown. What is worth only the Nanking massacre, during which the Japanese killed the civilian population.

A bloody battle, with the help of which it was possible to stop the Japanese

The lack of success in the military operations has upset the spirit of the Chinese troops. However, resistance did not stop even for a minute. One of the biggest battles took place in 1938 near the city of Wuhan. Chinese troops held back the Japanese for four months. Their resistance was broken only by gas attacks, which were very many. Of course, China's participation in World War II was very expensive. But it was not easy for Japan either. Only in this battle more than 100,000 Japanese soldiers were lost. And this led to the fact that the invaders for several years stopped their march deep into the country.

The struggle of two parties

It should be noted that during the Second World War, China was controlled by two parties - the nationalist (Kuomintang) and the Communist. They with variable success rate operated in different years. Individual territories were controlled by the Japanese. Nationalists were helped by America. But their joint actions were complicated by constant disputes that arose between Chiang Kai-shek and Joseph Stilwell (an American general). The Communist Party cooperated with the USSR. The parties acted separately, which led to an increase in losses among the population of the country.

The Communists took care of their forces to begin military operations against the nationalist party after the end of the confrontation with Japan. Accordingly, they did not always send their fighters to fight with Japanese soldiers. This was noted in due time by the Soviet diplomat.

At the very beginning of the war, the Communist Party formed an army. And she was quite capable. This could be seen after a single offensive, which was later called the battle of a hundred regiments. There was a battle in 1940 under the leadership of General Peng Dehuay. However, Mao Zedong criticized his actions, accusing him of revealing the strength of the party. And then the general was executed.

Japan's surrender

Japan capitulated in 1945. First, before America, and then before the troops of the nationalist party. Although China's participation in World War II ended, another conflict began. He appeared between two parties and had a civil character. It lasted four years. America refused to support the Kuomintang, which only accelerated the defeat of the party.

The losses in the war were very high

Those who died in the Second World War were not only soldiers. In comparison with the First World War in this conflict, a lot of civilians suffered. And their number exceeded the scale of the damage among soldiers. Accordingly, the losses were also quite large. About 50 million people are dead in the Second World War. By countries, the USSR and Germany accounted for the largest losses. There is nothing surprising in this, since the most active and large-scale battles took place on the Soviet-German front. So long, continuous and fierce confrontations between soldiers there was nowhere. In addition, the length of the Soviet-German front was more than all other fronts several times. And mostly those who died in the Second World War were soldiers of the Red Army, their total number was several times higher than the losses suffered by German troops.

What factors needed to be taken into account when assessing losses?

Assessing the losses of Soviet troops, some factors were taken into account. They are as follows:

1. The most significant part of the losses fell on the first years of hostilities. Soldiers retreated, weapons were not enough.
2. About 3 million soldiers died in captivity.
3. There is an opinion that the official data on the dead German soldiers are strongly understated. About 4 million soldiers were buried in the USSR alone. Also do not forget about Germany's allies. Their losses amounted to about 1.7 million soldiers.
4. The fact that the losses in the armies opposing Germany are much greater, speaks of its strength.

Losses in the Allied forces

The dead Chinese people in the Second World War (their total number, as well as the level of losses among other allies of the USSR) are not so numerous when compared with the indicators of the Red Army. This is due to the fact that the Soviet troops spent the first 3 years of battles without any support. In addition, America and England had the opportunity to make a choice, where exactly to conduct military operations and when to do it. The USSR did not have such a choice. A highly organized, better, stronger army collapsed instantly, forcing the soldiers to fight continuously on a large front. All the power of Germany hit the USSR, while the Allied forces were opposed by a small part of it. There was also a place for unjustified losses, which are largely related to the implementation of orders. For example, many died, trying to keep the enemy "at any cost."

Victims of the Second World War were among the French and English. But their number is not very large. Especially when compared with the indicators of the First World War. This is also easy to explain. The armies of France and Great Britain took part in the fighting only a year. In addition, we should not forget that England was fought for its colonies.

The losses of America exceed the figures that were noted after the First World War. This can be attributed to the fact that American soldiers fought not only in Europe, but also in Africa and Japan. And the largest part of the losses fell on the US Air Force.

Estimating the losses by countries, the idea involuntarily creeps in mind that France and the UK have achieved their goals. They pitted Germany and the USSR among themselves, while they themselves remained aloof from the fighting. But it can not be said that they were not punished. France repaid several years of occupation, a shameful defeat and dismemberment of the state. Britain was threatened by an invasion and bombed. In addition, the inhabitants of this country for some time lived half-starving.

Losses among civilians

The most tragic thing was that a lot of civilians died. Millions of people were victims of bombing. They were destroyed by the Nazis, seizing territory. During several years of war, Germany lost about 3.65 million inhabitants. In Japan, due to the bombing, about 670 thousand civilians were killed. In France, about 470 thousand people died. But it is difficult to assess for what reason. Bombing, shooting, torture - all this played a role. The losses of Great Britain amounted to 62 thousand. The main cause of death of civilians was bombardment and shelling. Some were dying of hunger.

Why were such large losses observed among civilians? This is due to the policy of Germany regarding the lower races. The troops systematically destroyed Jews and Slavs, considering them subhuman. During the war years, German troops destroyed about 24.3 million civilians. Of these, 18.7 million are Slavs. Jews were killed in the amount of 5.6 million. Here are the statistical data concerning dead people who did not take part in hostilities.

Conclusion

The role of China in the Second World War is quite large. The Chinese have done everything possible to prevent the Soviet troops from fighting with Japan. But all these hostilities led to incredibly large losses. And both on one side and on the other. Soldiers and civilians died, defending their homeland, speaking out against the invaders. And by this they contributed to the end of hostilities. All of them will remain in memory for many years, as their feat and sacrifice are invaluable.