World War II is often thought to have started in 1939, when Germany invaded Poland, leading Britain and France to declare war on Germany. However, many historians argue that the war actually began two years earlier, in 1937, with Japan’s invasion of China. This event marked the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War, which would become a major theater of the larger global conflict.
In the years leading up to 1937, Japan had been steadily expanding its empire in Asia. It had annexed Korea in 1910 and, in 1931, had invaded and occupied Manchuria, a resource-rich region in northeast China. Despite international condemnation, Japan continued to pursue its expansionist policies, seeing itself as a rising power that deserved greater influence in Asia.
In July 1937, tensions between China and Japan reached a boiling point in what is now known as the Marco Polo Bridge Incident. The incident began with a skirmish between Chinese and Japanese troops near the Marco Polo Bridge outside Beijing. The situation quickly escalated, with both sides sending reinforcements and the Japanese launching a full-scale invasion of China.
The Chinese government, led by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, resisted fiercely, but was ill-equipped to deal with the modern Japanese army. Despite this, the Chinese managed to inflict heavy losses on the Japanese and slow their advance.
The conflict quickly spread throughout China, with both sides committing atrocities and civilian populations suffering greatly. The Japanese used chemical weapons and engaged in mass killings, while the Chinese launched guerilla attacks and suffered famine and displacement.
The Second Sino-Japanese War had far-reaching consequences beyond China. It helped to shape the global balance of power and set the stage for World War II. As the war raged on in China, other countries in Asia began to feel the impact of Japan’s aggressive expansionism. In 1940, Japan invaded French Indochina, prompting the United States to cut off oil supplies to Japan. This, in turn, led Japan to launch a surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941.
, the outbreak of World War II in Europe in 1939 has tended to overshadow the events in Asia that preceded it. However, many historians argue that the war actually began in 1937, with Japan’s invasion of China. The Second Sino-Japanese War was a brutal conflict that claimed millions of lives and had far-reaching consequences for the world as a whole. It served as a prelude to the larger global conflict that would soon follow, and is a reminder of the devastating toll that war can take on human life and society as a whole.
The events that occurred in the years leading up to World War II in different parts of the world were all interconnected and played a significant role in building up the stage for the war.
In Asia, the start of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937 marked a significant turning point in the build-up to the war. Japan, seeking to expand its empire, had already annexed Manchuria in 1931 and established a puppet state there. The invasion of China proper in 1937 marked a further escalation of Japan’s aggression and set the stage for a broader conflict in the region.
Meanwhile, in Europe, Germany was also aggressively expanding its territories. In 1936, German troops marched into the Rhineland, which had been demilitarized after World War I, and annexed Austria in 1938. These actions violated the terms of the Treaty of Versailles and threatened the peace in Europe.
In Africa, Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935, seeking to build up its own empire. The League of Nations, established after World War I to prevent another world war, was powerless to stop the aggression.
In Spain, a civil war broke out in 1936 between the democratically elected Republican government and the fascist forces led by General Francisco Franco. The war became a proxy for the larger conflict between democracy and fascism that would eventually engulf Europe.
The events in Asia, Europe, Africa, and Spain were all interconnected and contributed to the build-up of tensions and aggression that ultimately led to the outbreak of World War II. The failure of the League of Nations to prevent aggression, the rise of fascist and totalitarian regimes, and the quest for imperial expansion all played a significant role in creating the conditions for war. The invasion of Poland by Germany in 1939 finally ignited the war in Europe, and the conflict soon spread to other parts of the world.
In conclusion, while World War II officially started in 1939 with Germany’s invasion of Poland, its roots can be traced back to the events that occurred in Asia in 1937. The Japanese invasion of China, followed by the Second Sino-Japanese War, caused a ripple effect throughout the world that ultimately led to the outbreak of war in Europe.
Japan’s aggression in Asia prompted the United States to impose economic sanctions, which further escalated tensions between the two nations. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor then drew the United States into the war, ultimately resulting in the Allied victory and the end of the war. The events of the late 1930s and early 1940s demonstrate how the actions of one nation can have far-reaching consequences and highlight the importance of international diplomacy and cooperation in preventing future conflicts.
