Ears for Souvenirs PTO (id:#59803)

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Loudian Sector, Shanghai, China 1937-09-20 (0 others)

Overview:

The slaughter during the battle for Shanghai exceeded that of Stalingrad five years later. The Japanese had become enmeshed in the horrific urban fighting where the Chinese could utilize their superior numbers in a prolonged battle of attrition. At Luodian, a major transportation hub of Shanghai, German advisor Alexander von Falkenhausen told Chiang Kai-Shek that it was imperative that the area be held. The Chinese General Chen Cheng proceeded to concentrate 30,000 soldiers in the sector. The intensity of the fighting and carnage at Luodian was unprecedented and earned it the Japanese nickname, “Grinding mill of flesh and blood”. The Chinese lines consisted of block after block of buildings fortified with sandbags and poorly armed troops. Their armies suffered an appalling 50% casualty rate during the battle. Symptomatic of Japanese frustration was several cases of mutilation in which Chinese soldiers had their ears cut off and “collected” as souvenirs. This barbarity was to become formalized months later during the infamous “Rape of Nanking”, the next city in the path of the IJA.

Defender: Chinese (Elements of Chinese 66th Corp, 159th Division)  

Errata (source)