Overview of the September 18 Incident

From the late 19th century to the first half of the 20th century, Japan gradually established the strategic guideline that to conquer the world, it must first conquer China, and to conquer China, it must first conquer "Manchuria and Mongolia." In 1930, the global capitalist economic crisis affected Japan, and in order to divert the increasingly intensified domestic class contradictions, Japan accelerated its military aggression against China. In July and August of 1931, it orchestrated the "Wanbaoshan Incident" and the "Nakamura Incident" in Northeast China. On September 18, Japan further fabricated the "Liaotiao Lake Incident," launching a war of aggression against China and aiming to seize Northeast China.

At around 10 PM that evening, Lieutenant Kawamoto Masamori of the Kanto Army's Ibaraki Unit, along with several subordinates, destroyed a section of railway track near Liutiaohu, approximately 800 meters south of the Beiying in Shenyang. The Japanese army set up a false scene, placing three corpses dressed in Chinese soldier uniforms to falsely accuse the Chinese army of sabotaging the railway. The second battalion of the Japanese independent garrison then launched an attack on the Northeast Army's base at Beiying. The next morning, at around 4 AM, the fifth battalion of the Japanese independent garrison arrived from Tieling to join the battle. By 5:30 AM, the Northeast Army's seventh brigade retreated to Dongshanzui in Shenyang, and the Japanese army occupied Beiying. During the battle, the Northeast Army suffered over 300 casualties, while the Japanese army had 24 casualties. This was the September 18 Incident that shocked both China and the world.

The Kuomintang government adopted a policy of non-resistance towards Japan's aggression. Before the incident, on August 16, Chiang Kai-shek telegraphed Zhang Xueliang: "Regardless of how the Japanese army provokes in the Northeast thereafter, we should adopt a non-resistance stance to avoid conflict." On September 12, during a meeting with Zhang Xueliang in Shijiazhuang, Hebei, he stated: "Recent reliable intelligence indicates that the Japanese army is about to take action in the Northeast. Our forces are insufficient, and we cannot fight. I believe we can only appeal to the League of Nations for justice and a peaceful resolution. The main purpose of this meeting with you is to issue a strict order to the entire Northeast army: in the event of an attack by the Japanese army, no resistance is allowed." After the incident occurred, the Kuomintang government informed the Northeast army: "The actions of the Japanese army are merely of a routine provocative nature. To prevent the incident from escalating, we absolutely adhere to a policy of non-resistance." At that time, the Japanese Kwantung Army had only over 10,000 troops, while the Chinese Northeast army stationed in the Northeast numbered 165,000. The Northeast army received multiple orders prohibiting resistance, and in the face of the sudden attack by the Japanese army, except for a small number who defied Chiang Kai-shek's orders and fought back, the rest retreated without a fight.

On the morning of September 19, the Japanese army occupied the entire city of Shenyang with little resistance. The Northeast Army retreated to Jinzhou. The largest arms and artillery factory in Shenyang, along with over 95,000 rifles, 250 machine guns, more than 650 artillery pieces, over 2,300 mortars, 260 aircraft, and a large quantity of ammunition, equipment, and supplies, all fell into the hands of the Japanese army. According to statistics, on the night of September 18 alone, Shenyang suffered losses amounting to as much as 1.8 billion yuan. Subsequently, the Chinese army in various parts of Northeast China continued to implement Chiang Kai-shek's policy of non-resistance, allowing the Japanese army to swiftly occupy the three provinces of Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang.

On September 18, 1931, the Japanese Kwantung Army stationed in Northeast China suddenly attacked Shenyang, forcibly occupying the region.