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40-608: Mai Xin wrote the song in 1937 specifically to honour the valour of the 29th Army during the Marco Polo Bridge Incident , where their standard weapons were only a rifle and a sword known in Chinese as a dadao . The long-hilted Dadao, with its powerful chopping blade, was a favourite weapon of peasant militias. As this name literally means "big knife", the song was also known as "The Big Sword March" . Guizi —literally, "the hateful one(s)"—was

80-748: A racial epithet formerly used against the Western powers during the failed Boxer Rebellion ; the anthem helped popularise its use in reference to the Japanese, which remains current in modern China. The lyrics were later changed to broaden its appeal from just the 29th to the "entire nation's" armed forces. This song became the de facto army marching cadence in the Chinese National Revolutionary Army . The Chinese television series known in English as Chop! in fact used

120-553: A war of attrition between the Japanese army and the Kuomintang. However, he himself still considers this less likely than the "accidental shot" hypothesis, that the first shot was fired by a low-ranking Chinese soldier in "an unplanned moment of fear". In comparison to their Japanese counterparts, the 29th Route Army, and generally all of the NRA for that matter, was poorly equipped and under-trained. Most soldiers were armed only with

160-572: A Japanese naval officer was shot in Shanghai , escalating the skirmishes and battles into full scale warfare. The 29th Army's resistance (and poor equipment) inspired the 1937 " Sword March ", which with reworked lyrics became the NRA's standard marching cadence and popularized the racial epithet guizi to describe the Japanese invaders. The heightened tensions of the Marco Polo Bridge incident led directly to full-scale war between

200-645: A Japanese soldier was temporarily absent from his unit opposite Wanping , and his commander demanded the right to search the town for him. When this request was refused, units on both sides were alerted and the Chinese Army fired on the Japanese Army. However, the missing Japanese soldier had already returned to his lines. The Marco Polo Bridge incident is generally regarded as the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War . In English,

240-627: A cavalry division under the Muslim General Ma Biao to be sent east to battle the Japanese. The Turkic Salar people made up the majority of the first cavalry division sent by Ma. In 1987, the bridge was renovated and the People's Anti-Japanese War Museum was built near the bridge to commemorate the anniversary of the start of the Sino-Japanese War. There is debate over whether the incident could have been planned like

280-697: A flooding, the bridge was reconstructed under the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing dynasty in 1698. The bridge was highly praised by the Venetian traveler Marco Polo during his visit to China in the 13th century, leading the bridge to become known in Europe simply as the "Marco Polo Bridge". The Chinese structural engineer Mao Yisheng bestowed similar praise, once opining that "the most ancient bridge in China

320-462: A former name of the Yongding . In old bilingual plates, the bridge was also named as "Lu Kow Kiao". Over this river there is a very fine stone bridge, so fine indeed, that it has very few equals in the world. Construction of the original bridge on this site commenced in 1189, the final year of Emperor Shizong of Jin 's reign and was completed under his successor in 1192. Following damage from

360-598: A major detachment in Beijing to protect the Japanese embassy. Marco Polo Bridge The Marco Polo Bridge or Lugou Bridge ( simplified Chinese : 卢沟桥 ; traditional Chinese : 盧溝橋 ; pinyin : Lúgōu Qiáo ) is a stone bridge located 15 km southwest of Beijing 's city center in the Fengtai District . It bridges the Yongding River , a major tributary of Hai River . Situated at

400-649: A rifle and a dao (a single-edged Chinese sword similar to a machete ). Moreover, the Chinese garrison in the Lugouqiao area was completely outnumbered and outgunned; it consisted only of about 100 soldiers. The Japanese China Garrison Army was a combined force of infantry, tanks, mechanized forces, artillery and cavalry, which had been stationed in China since the time of the Boxer Rebellion . Its headquarters and bulk for its forces were in Tianjin, with

440-502: A total of 627 lions. The posture of each lion varies, as do their ages. Most date from the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties, some are from the earlier Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), while the few lions dating from as long ago as the Jin dynasty (1115–1234) are now quite rare. Four ornamental columns each 4.65 m (15 ft) high and a white marble stele stand at the ends of

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480-471: Is also known as the "Lukouchiao", "Lugouqiao", or 'Lugou Bridge incident' from the local name of the bridge, derived from a former name of the Yongding River . This is the common name for the event in Japanese ( 蘆溝橋事件 , Rokōkyō Jiken ) and is an alternate name for it in Chinese and Korean ( 노구교 사건 , Nogugyo Sageon ). The same name is also expressed or translated as the " Battle of Lugou Bridge ", "Lugouqiao", or "Lukouchiao". Tensions between

520-672: Is the Zhaozhou Bridge , the most splendid the Lugou Bridge, and the most elegant and artistic the Five-Pavilion Bridge ." The bridge was also the location of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident , which marked the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) . Following the Communist takeover of China in 1949, the bridge was decked in asphalt and carried motor vehicular traffic. To alleviate traffic on

560-590: The Empire of Japan and the Republic of China had been heightened since the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and their subsequent creation of a client state, Manchukuo , with Puyi , the deposed Qing dynasty emperor, as its chief of state. After the invasion, Japanese forces extended their control further into northern China, seeking to obtain raw materials and industrial capacity. A commission of inquiry from

600-683: The League of Nations published the Lytton Report which was critical of the Japanese, resulting in Japan quitting the League. The Kuomintang (KMT) government of China refused to recognize Manchukuo but did agree to the Tanggu Truce with Japan in 1933. Subsequently, there were various "incidents", or armed clashes of a limited nature, followed by a return to uneasy peace. The significance of

640-695: The Lugou Bridge incident or the July 7 incident , was a battle during July 1937 in the district of Beijing between the 29th Army of the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China and the Imperial Japanese Army . Since the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931, there had been many small incidents along the rail line connecting Beijing with the port of Tianjin , but all had subsided. In this incident,

680-572: The devils' heads, hack 'em off! The whole nation's armed brethren, The day of our defence has come! The day of our defence has come! In front, the northeast volunteers ! In the rear, the populace of the entire nation! Our Chinese army , valiantly advancing! See there! The Enemy ! Destroy them! Destroy them! Charge! Our swords raised over the devils' heads, hack 'em off! Kill! Marco Polo Bridge Incident [REDACTED]   Japan Taishō period Shōwa period The Marco Polo Bridge incident , also known as

720-558: The 20th-century Marco Polo Bridge Incident , which marked the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) . In recent years, the water of Yongding River has been diverted to different areas of Beijing, so there is often no water under the bridge. The name "Marco Polo Bridge" derives from the appearance, before its reconstruction, in Marco Polo 's book of travels , where he praised it highly. The names "Lugou" or "Lukou Bridge" and "Lugouqiao" or "Lukouchiao" derive from Lugou,

760-833: The Chinese 29th Army was forced to withdraw. The Japanese captured Beiping and the Taku Forts at Tianjin on 29 and 30 July respectively, thus concluding the Battle of Beiping–Tianjin . However, the Japanese Army had been given orders not to advance further than the Yongding River. In a sudden volte-face , the Konoe government's foreign minister opened negotiations with Chiang Kai-shek 's government in Nanjing and stated: "Japan wants Chinese cooperation, not Chinese land." Nevertheless, negotiations failed to move further. On 9 August 1937,

800-682: The Empire of Japan and the Republic of China, with the Battle of Beiping–Tianjin at the end of July and the Battle of Shanghai in August. In 1937, during the Battle of Beiping–Tianjin the government was notified by Muslim General Ma Bufang of the Ma clique that he was prepared to bring the fight to the Japanese in a telegram message. Immediately after the Marco Polo Bridge incident, Ma Bufang arranged for

840-426: The Japanese camp to conduct negotiations. However, this proved to be fruitless, and the Japanese insisted that they be admitted into the town to investigate the cause of the incident. At around 04:00, reinforcements of both sides began to arrive. The Chinese also rushed an extra division of troops to the area. At 04:45 Wang Lengzhai had returned to Wanping, and on his way back he witnessed Japanese troops massing around

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880-475: The Japanese was issued two hours later. As a precautionary measure, Qin Dechun , the acting commander of the Chinese 29th Route Army, contacted the commander of the Chinese 37th Division, General Feng Zhi'an , ordering him to place his troops on heightened alert. At 02:00 on 8 July, Qin Dechun , executive officer and acting commander of the Chinese 29th Route Army, sent Wang Lengzhai, mayor of Wanping, alone to

920-484: The Marco Polo Bridge incident is that, following it, tensions did not subside again; instead, there was an escalation, with larger forces committed by both sides and fighting spreading to other parts of China. With hindsight, this small incident can, therefore, be regarded as the start of a major conflict. By the terms of the Boxer Protocol of 7 September 1901, China had granted nations with legations in Beijing

960-566: The attack. The Chinese 219th regiment staged an effective resistance, and full scale fighting commenced at Langfang on 25 July. After launching a bitter and bloody attack on the Japanese lines on the 27 July, General Song Zheyuan was defeated and forced to retreat behind the Yongding River by the next day. On 11 July, in accordance with the Goso conference, the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff authorized

1000-460: The battle is usually known as the "Marco Polo Bridge incident". The Marco Polo Bridge is an eleven-arch granite bridge, an architecturally significant structure first erected under the Jin dynasty and later restored during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing dynasty in 1698. It gained its Western name from its appearance in Il Milione , Marco Polo 's record of his travels. It

1040-566: The bridge with the help of reinforcements, but suffered tremendous losses. At this point, the Japanese military and members of the Japanese Foreign Service began negotiations in Beijing with the Chinese Nationalist government. A verbal agreement with Chinese General Qin was reached, whereby: This was agreed upon, though Japanese Garrison Infantry Brigade commander General Masakazu Kawabe initially rejected

1080-549: The bridge, the New Marco Polo Bridge ( Chinese : 蘆溝新橋 ; pinyin : Lúgōu Xīnqiáo ) located about 1 km to the south was completed in 1971. Later, due to the cultural and historical significance of the old bridge, it was decided that the old bridge be preserved, and another new bridge was to be built to take over the vehicular traffic. The new bridge, which carries the Jingshi Expressway ,

1120-662: The bridge. One stele, installed on top of a stone tortoise , records the reconstruction of the bridge by the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing dynasty in 1698. The other stele bears calligraphy by the Qianlong Emperor , a grandson of the Kangxi Emperor. It reads "Morning moon over Lugou" (蘆溝曉月 Lúgōu xiǎoyuè ). For the 800 years since its completion, the bridge has been a well known scenic spot in Beijing. As well as being famed for its aesthetic features, Marco Polo Bridge

1160-399: The bridge. The most intriguing feature of these beasts is the fact that there are more lions hiding on the head, back or under the belly or on paws of each of the big lions. Investigations to determine the total number of animals have been carried out on several occasions but the results have proved inconsistent, ranging anywhere from 482 to 501. However, record has it that there were originally

1200-638: The deployment of an infantry division from the Chosen Army , two combined brigades from the Kwantung Army and an air regiment composed of 18 squadrons as reinforcements to Northern China. By 20 July, total Japanese military strength in the Beiping-Tianjin area exceeded 180,000 personnel. The Japanese gave Song and his troops "free passage" before moving in to pacify resistance in areas surrounding Beijing and Tianjin. After 24 days of combat,

1240-574: The earlier Mukden incident , which served as a pretext for the Japanese invasion of Manchuria . According to Jim Huffman this notion has been "widely rejected" by historians, as the Japanese would likely have been more concerned over the threat posed by the Soviets. Controversial conservative Japanese historian Ikuhiko Hata has suggested that the incident could have been caused by the Chinese Communist Party , hoping it would lead to

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1280-664: The eastern end of the bridge is the Wanping Fortress , a historic 17th-century fortress, with the Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance Against Japanese Aggression inside. The Marco Polo Bridge is well known because it was highly praised by the Venetian traveler Marco Polo during his visit to China in the 13th century (leading the bridge to become known in Europe simply as the Marco Polo Bridge ), and for

1320-476: The missing soldier; the Chinese refused. Private Shimura later returned to his unit; he claimed to have sought immediate relief in the darkness from a stomach ache and become lost ); according to Peter Harmsen, he had visited a brothel. By that time both sides were mobilizing, with the Japanese deploying reinforcements to surround Wanping . Later that night, a unit of Japanese infantry attempted to breach Wanping's walled defenses but were repulsed. An ultimatum by

1360-588: The railways. This number of men, and the amount of concomitant matériel, was several times the size of the detachments deployed by the European powers, and greatly in excess of the limits set by the Boxer Protocol . By this time, the Imperial Japanese Army had already surrounded Beijing and Tianjin. On the night of 7 July, the Japanese units stationed at Fengtai crossed the border to conduct military exercises. Japanese and Chinese forces outside

1400-434: The right to station guards at twelve specific points along railways connecting Beijing with Tianjin. This was to ensure open communications between the capital and the port. By a supplementary agreement on 15 July 1902, these forces were allowed to conduct maneuvers without informing the authorities of other nations in China. By July 1937, Japan had expanded its forces in China to an estimated 7,000 to 15,000 men, mostly along

1440-808: The song's opening line as its title. It also appears in the films Lust, Caution and The Children of Huang Shi . 大刀向鬼子们的头上砍去！ 全国武装的弟兄们！ 抗战的一天来到了， 抗战的一天来到了！ 前面有东北的义勇军， 后面有全国的老百姓， 咱们中国军队勇敢前进！ 看准那敌人！ 把他消灭，把他消灭！ 冲啊！ 大刀向鬼子们的头上砍去！ 杀！ 大刀向鬼子們的頭上砍去！ 全國武裝的弟兄們！ 抗戰的一天來到了， 抗戰的一天來到了！ 前面有東北的義勇軍， 後面有全國的老百姓， 咱們中國軍隊勇敢前進， 看準那敵人！ 把他消滅，把他消滅！ 衝啊！ 大刀向鬼子們的頭上砍去！ 殺！ Dàdāo xiàng guǐzi men de tóu shàng kǎn qù! Quánguó wǔzhuāng de dìxiongmen! Kàngzhàn de yītiān láidào liǎo, Kàngzhàn de yītiān láidào liǎo! Qiánmian yǒu dōngběi de yìyǒngjūn, Hòumian yǒu quánguó de lǎo bǎixìng, Zánmen Zhōngguó jūnduì yǒnggǎn qiánjìn, Kàn zhǔn nà dírén! Bǎ tā xiāomiè, bǎ tā xiāomiè! Chōng a! Dàdāo xiàng guǐzi men de tóu shàng kǎn qù! Shā! Our swords raised over

1480-428: The town of Wanping —a walled town 16.4 km (10.2 mi) southwest of Beijing—exchanged fire at approximately 23:00. The exact cause of this incident remains unknown. When a Japanese soldier, Private Shimura Kikujiro, failed to return to his post, Chinese regimental commander Ji Xingwen (219th Regiment, 37th Division, 29th Army) received a message from the Japanese demanding permission to enter Wanping to search for

1520-410: The town. Within five minutes of Wang's return, a shot was heard, and both sides began firing , thus marking the commencement of the Battle of Beiping-Tianjin , and, by extension, the full scale commencement of the Second Sino-Japanese War at 04:50 on 8 July 1937. Colonel Ji Xingwen led the Chinese defenses with about 100 men, with orders to hold the bridge at all costs. The Chinese were able to hold

1560-711: The truce and, against his superiors' orders, continued to shell Wanping for the next three hours, until prevailed upon to cease and to move his forces to the northeast. Although a ceasefire had been declared, further efforts to de-escalate the conflict failed, largely due to actions by the Chinese Communists and the Japanese China Garrison Army commanders. Due to constant Chinese attacks, Japanese Garrison Infantry Brigade commander General Masakazu Kawabe ordered Wanping to be shelled on 9 July. The following day, Japanese armored units joined

1600-539: Was built next to the New Marco Polo Bridge in 1985. After the completion of the Jingshi Expressway bridge , vehicular traffic was shifted to the two new bridges and the old Marco Polo Bridge was closed to motor vehicles. The asphalt surface of the old bridge was removed during a restoration in 1986. The Marco Polo Bridge is 266.5 meters (874 ft) in length and 9.3 m (30.5 ft) in width, supported on 10 piers and 11 segmental arches . Hundreds of artistically unique stone lions from different eras line both sides of

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