Incident incident
On the morning of July 7, 1937, the Japanese troops stationed in Fengtai held a military exercise in the area north of Marco Polo Bridge . At about 11 o'clock, the Japanese army claimed that a soldier had left the team and disappeared during the exercise and requested a search in the city. After being severely rejected by Ji Xingwen, commander of the 219th Regiment of the 37th Division of the 29th Army of the Chinese Garrison, they quickly surrounded Wanping County on this pretext. The next day, Qin Dechun, deputy commander of the 29th Army and mayor of Peiping Qin Dechun , agreed with the Japanese side to prevent the situation from expanding, and both sides sent personnel to investigate.
However, the Japanese army took advantage of the negotiation and violently attacked Wanping County on the morning of the 8th. They also occupied the sand hill in the northeast of Wanping and fired the first shot of the siege. The Chinese defenders could not bear it anymore and fought back. The Japanese army attacked Wanping City three times in a row on the same day, but they were all bravely resisted by the Chinese defenders.
htmlOn July 8, the Peiping authorities ordered the garrison to defend Marco Polo Bridge. Song Zheyuan called Chiang Kai-shek to report the Marco Polo Bridge Incident truth.On the same day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Nationalist Government lodged a verbal protest with the Japanese Ambassador over the Marco Polo Bridge Incident.
On the same day, the Japanese Cabinet meeting proposed the so-called policy of "do not expand the incident and resolve it on the spot" to deceive world public opinion, paralyze the Kuomintang authorities, and buy time to mobilize troops.
html On the 9th, the Peiping authorities reached an agreement with the Japanese army: (1) both sides immediately stopped shooting; (2) the Japanese army retreated to the left bank of the Yongding River , and the Chinese army withdrew to the right bank; (3) the Marco Polo Bridge garrison was held by the Hebei Security Team Shiyou 3rd Division. . The next day, the Chinese army retreated. Not only did the Japanese army fail to fulfill their promise, but they mobilized a large number of troops to attack the Chinese army. html On November 11, the Pingjin authorities and the Japanese army reached an on-the-spot agreement: (1) Representatives of the 29th Army issued a statement to apologize to the Japanese army and punish those responsible for the incident; (2) Ban the Communist Party, Blue Clothes Society and other anti-Japanese groups anti-Japanese activities; (3) No Chinese troops are stationed east of the Yongding River. html On the 10th, all parties reported that the Japanese troops had arrived from Tianjin, Gubeikou, Yuguan and other places one after another, and there were artillery, tanks , etc. advancing towards Marco Polo Bridge, and had occupied Wulidian in Dajing Village and other places; Pingluyun The roads are impassable and fighting is about to resume. html Starting from 011, the Japanese army bombarded Wanping City and its surrounding areas with artillery. The residents in the city suffered many casualties. The regiment leader Ji Xingwen was also injured, so the residents in the city were evacuated to safer areas outside the city. The war thus expanded to Babaoshan, Changxindian, Langfang, Yangcun and other places. Various parts of the 29th Army were scattered everywhere to respond to the enemy. The Japanese army dispatched aircraft to conduct reconnaissance and strafing operations everywhere, and the fighting continued intermittently. The Marco Polo Bridge Incident opened the prelude to the national war of resistance against Japan.
On the second day of the July 7th Incident, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China sent a message to the whole country, calling on the Chinese military and civilians to unite to resist the Japanese aggressors. People of all ethnic groups and all walks of life across the country responded enthusiastically, resisting Japan and saving the nation. The movement was at an all-time high. Under this situation, Chiang Kai-shek delivered a speech in Lushan on July 17, announcing a comprehensive war of resistance against Japan.
Don’t forget the national humiliation.
