Capturing Chinese cities did not end resistance. The continuing war used up resources and increased American opposition to Japan.
The seizure of Manchuria in 1931 did not mean Japan already controlled China. In July 1937, fighting at the Marco Polo Bridge near Beijing spread into full-scale war. Japan captured major cities, including the capital, Nanjing, in December. But China's Nationalist government under Chiang Kai-shek and Chinese Communist forces continued resisting, despite their political rivalry.
A long war needed a continuing supply of soldiers, money, weapons and fuel. Holding captured land also used resources. Japan therefore remained dependent on imported materials to sustain its forces. Winning a city was a military gain, but it had not achieved the larger aim of ending Chinese resistance.
Expansion threatened Chinese sovereignty, meaning China's control of its own land and affairs. It also endangered American trade and people in China. Reports of Japanese violence increased American sympathy for China. The United States gradually provided more support to China and restricted supplies to Japan. This deepened the dispute, but support and economic pressure were not the same as entering the war: the United States did not declare war on Japan in 1937.
Worked example: Why taking a capital did not solve the resource problem
Japan captured Nanjing in December 1937, but Chinese forces continued fighting.
- Capturing the capital did not bring Chinese surrender, so Japanese forces still had to fight and hold territory.
- Ships, aircraft and other military equipment still needed fuel, while troops needed supplies.
- A longer war made access to imports more urgent. Growing American restrictions therefore threatened the ability to continue the campaign.
Watch out for this
China stopped resisting when Japan captured Nanjing.
Chinese resistance continued. Occupying major cities did not give Japan uncontested control of China.
Check your understanding
Why did the continuing war in China make a wider crisis more likely?
- Capturing Nanjing ended organised resistance and reduced Japan's need for supplies.
- American support for China meant that the United States had already declared war in July 1937.
- A prolonged war increased Japan's resource needs while its expansion provoked more foreign opposition.