USA Threaten's China with Bombardment Nanking March 26 1927 SF Chronicle B11

Description

Threat of Bombardment Saves Refugees at Nanking  March 21 1927 SF Chronicle (22 Pages)
American Women Attacked
Incident
On 23 March 1927, with the rapidly approaching National Revolutionary Army (NRA) about to reach Nanjing, Beiyang warlord Zhang
Zongchang gave orders for his defeated troops to withdraw from the city. Some of his soldiers who were unable to retreat in time deserted and began to loot foreign properties and attacked two foreigners who were in their way
In the early morning of 24 March, the NRA began to enter Nanjing without any resistance from Zhang Zongchang's army. Afterwards they entered the British, American and Japanese consulates to search for suspected enemies hiding inside, but left peacefully after none were found. But immediately afterwards, uniformed soldiers and local Chinese residents started large scale rioting against foreign interests, burning houses and attacking the British, American and Japanese consulates, and killing the American vice president of the Nanking University Dr. John Elias Williams while almost assassinating the Japanese consul. The 6th Army of the NRA, with its large contingent of communist soldiers, systematically looted the homes and businesses of the foreign residents, and one American, two Britons, one French citizen, an Italian, and a Japanese were killed by Chinese soldiers. Chinese snipers also targeted the American consul and marines who were guarding him, which forced them to flee into "Socony Hill" where American citizens were sheltering. During this mayhem, one Chinese soldier declared, "we don't want money, anyway, we want to kill.