Defense of Sihang Warehouse

Defense of Sihang Warehouse
Part of the Battle of Shanghai in the Second Sino-Japanese War
Date October 26 – November 1, 1937 Location Zhabei, Shanghai, China Result Chinese withdrawal
Belligerents
China	Japan
Commanders and leaders
Xie Jinyuan	Iwane Matsui
Strength
524th Regiment 88th Division (423 men including 16 officers)	3rd Division (Imperial Japanese Army)
Casualties and losses
10 killed 37 wounded	200+ killed Several armoured cars destroyed and damaged

Defense of Sihang Warehouse
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	四行倉庫
Simplified Chinese	四行仓库
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Sìháng Cāngkù
Eight Hundred Heroes
Traditional Chinese	八百壯士
Simplified Chinese	八百壮士
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Bābǎi Zhùangshì
Japanese name
Kanji	倉庫の4行
Transcriptions Romanization Sōko no 4-gyō

Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Sìháng Cāngkù

Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Bābǎi Zhùangshì

Transcriptions
Romanization	Sōko no 4-gyō

The defense of Sihang Warehouse took place from October 26 to November 1, 1937, and marked the beginning of the end of the three-month Battle of Shanghai in the opening phase of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Defenders of the warehouse held out against numerous waves of Japanese forces and covered Chinese forces retreating west during the Battle of Shanghai.

The successful defense of the warehouse provided a morale-lifting consolation to the Chinese army and people in the demoralizing aftermath of the Japanese invasion of Shanghai. The warehouse's location just across the Suzhou Creek from the foreign concessions in Shanghai meant the battle took place in full view of the western powers.

It was across from the foreign concessions in Shanghai, and the Japanese did not dare to call naval artillery strikes on the area, since a stray shot might land in the concessions and provoke an incident with the Europeans and Americans, whom the Japanese wanted to keep out of the war. Moreover, the Japanese dared not use mustard gas here as they did elsewhere in Shanghai, in full view of the foreign powers. This proximity drew the attention, if only briefly, of the international community to Chiang Kai-shek's bid for worldwide support against Japanese aggression.

In Chinese, the 423 defenders are known as the Eight Hundred Heroes, because commander Xie Jinyuan not wanting to reveal their true strength to the Japanese, provided an exaggerated number to girl guide Yang Huimin to announce to the public.

Using the Marco Polo Bridge Incident as a pretext, Japan launched an invasion of China on 7 July 1937. As the Imperial Japanese Army swept down from the north, fighting between Chinese and Japanese forces started in Shanghai on 13 August. Despite having logistical problems, inferior training, and a lack of air and artillery support, the Chinese held on to Shanghai City, much of it reduced to ruins.

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Wikipedia