In the world of reenactment, China enthusiasts are a small, but dedicated and growing group. These videos, kindly provided by Ryan Daniels, are from a recent event in Massachusetts and clearly demonstrates the attention to detail and historical accuracy.
German intelligence operations in China were thoroughly reorganized in the fall of 1942, and a new top spy was put in charge. His name was Ludwig Eisentraeger, but he called himself Ludwig Ehrhardt (not to be confused with post-war German politician Ludwig Erhard). Reflecting the priorities in Berlin, which was consumed by the gigantic struggle…
In June 1940, German official Theodor Louis Siefken, who was working in Italy extracting Germans from East Africa amid the widening war with Great Britain, was recalled to Berlin. His masters had other plans for him. Siefken, who had served in the German air force during World War One, was to go to Shanghai and…
Caucasians in Japanese-looking uniforms like the group in the photo to the left do not belong to the average type of World War Two imagery. In fact, the men in the picture are Russians. The background story is complicated and reflects the way the tumultuous first decades of the 20th century moved people across continents to lands…
September 18 is a date many Chinese want to remember, and some Japanese want to forget. On that date, in 1931, Japanese officers blew up a piece of railroad at a pretext to invade northeast China, or what was then referred to as Manchuria. Years of Sino-Japanese tension erupted into open conflict, setting in motion…
Reenactment seems to be growing worldwide. Along with war gaming it is one of the ways that history enthusiasts can get a physical feel for the periods that they study in the books. An added value is the related research, often involving original sources, to ensure the highest possible degree of accuracy in terms of uniforms of…
“Keenly observant”, “riveting”, ” marvellous, microscopically descriptive” — the reviewers have rained down the superlatives on Canadian non-fiction writer Taras Grescoe’s new book Shanghai Grand: Forbidden Love and International Intrigue in a Doomed World. The subject matter is Shanghai before and during World War Two, as seen through the eyes of glamorous American journalist Emily Hahn. It was an…
In early 1945, it was obvious that the Japanese had lost the war, but it was still unclear how much longer they would hold out or where the final stages of the conflict would be fought. Various scenarios were likely enough to be seriously considered. It was not impossible that large numbers of US troops…
Scenes of despair unfolded as the Japanese army moved in on Shanghai in late 1937, spreading terror among the city’s three million civilians. Tens of thousands were thronging at the narrow gates leading into the international parts of Shanghai, which had been left almost untouched by the hostilities. Very few gained entry, but were beaten…
China’s reaction after Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941 may surprise many. This article is based on a presentation made by Peter Harmsen at the King’s College ‘Second World War Research Group’s ‘1940-1942: Fulcrum of the Twentieth Century Conference’, held at the Joint Services Command and Staff College on June 1, 2016. It was first published on Defence-in-Depth…
