China in WW2

Modeling the Shanghai Battle

• By Peter Harmsen
• 21 October, 2015
• 1 Comment

For decades, hobby modelers have been able to bring decisive battle of World War Two back to life, and with the emergence of the Internet, they are able to reach whole new audiences and exchange information globally in a way that was impossible before. The favorite subject areas remain the European theatre of war (both the Eastern and the Western fronts) as well as the war in the Pacific. However, the Second Sino-Japanese War is also becoming more popular and occupies a small but, it seems, growing niche. Here are some splendid examples of dioramas made by John Chiang, a resident of Taiwan. One diorama tackles the epic 1937 battle of Shanghai, while the other one is about the Burma Road, a few years later in the war with Japan.

88th Chinese Division at a prepared defensive position

Chinese gun crew getting ready to fire

Chinese infantry braces for Japanese attack

Chinese regimental commander surveys the Shanghai battle field

Chinese soldiers jumps onto Japanese Type 94 tank, preparing to throw hand grenade down the turret

Japanese soldier panics and flees the battlefield

Banner of the 88th Chinese Division

Japanese soldier has left his Arisaki Type 38 rifle behind

Unexploded Japanese shell sticks into the rubble

War slogans and advertisements fill the wall

China’s leader Chiang Kai-shek

Animals and vehicles vie for space on the Burma Road

Traffic in both directions

Road sign on Burma Road