Yellow River flooding has killed and displaced millions over the centuries. But in June 1938, the river's levees were intentionally breached, leaving half a million civilians dead — another reminder of the impossible choices that defined much of World War II.
The Battle of Luding Bridge is part of the founding lore of the Chinese Communist Party. People outside China first learned of the incident through the writings of American journalist Edgar Snow — but the battle was far less cinematic than Snow (and others) led the public to believe.
Xu Xiake was China's first, most popular, and most prolific travel writer. He visited 16 modern provinces over more than three decades, and the observations he left behind, from the scientific to the mundane, provide us with a comprehensive guide to 17th-century China.
A Life magazine cover in 1938 sought to rally American public support for the war in the Pacific. The images inside that front cover were much more horrifying, revealing war atrocities committed in Nanjing.
An age-old story of diplomatic misunderstanding and technology transference.
China's greatest train hijacking, by a band of outlaws calling themselves the Autonomous Army, changed the Republic of China.
The Yellow Flower Mound Uprising, also known as the Second Guangzhou Uprising, may have failed, but its legacy is now celebrated in mainstream Chinese culture. Here's how it happened.
In 1942, a band of American pilots conducted a daring bombing run over Japan, with the plan to land in airfields set up in China. The mission "succeeded" thanks to the assistance of Chinese civilians who sheltered and guided the pilots — and who suffered immeasurably for their kindness.
Eight Chinese passengers boarded the Titanic in Southampton, six survived. Their story — largely untold until Steven Schwarkert came across it during his research on Chinese maritime history, and now a documentary produced by James Cameron — opens a window to wide-ranging political issues of the day.