The Rape of Nanking

Archival Summary & Scope

Iris Chang's *The Rape of Nanking*, a *New York Times* bestseller, exposes one of history's most brutal and overlooked atrocities. In December 1937, the Japanese army destroyed China's capital, Nanking, unleashing a six-week reign of terror. Over 300,000 Chinese civilians and soldiers were systematically raped, tortured, and murdered—a death toll surpassing the combined atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Chang meticulously reconstructs this horrific episode from the perspectives of Japanese soldiers, Chinese victims, and the Westerners who risked their lives to create a safety zone, saving nearly 300,000 lives. Beyond detailing the violence, Chang analyzes the militaristic culture that enabled such disregard for human life and explores the concerted Cold War efforts by both Western powers and China to suppress discussion of this atrocity. Drawing on extensive survivor interviews and newly uncovered documents, Chang's definitive history stands as a powerful testament to a pivotal, yet largely forgotten, moment on the eve of World War II.