Eight Hundred Heroes: China's Lost Battalion and the Fall of Shanghai - Hardcover

by Stephen Robinson (Author)

Acclaimed historian Stephen Robinson brings
to life a legendary last stand in a revelatory new account of the Defense of
Sihang Warehouse.

Shanghai 1937. With invading Japanese troops
poised to capture one of the world's greatest cities after almost three months
of brutal urban warfare, the Chinese Army begins to retreat - except for a
single battalion that stays to fight. These 'Eight Hundred Heroes' defended
Sihang Warehouse, a six-storey concrete building and natural
fortress, from wave after wave of Japanese assaults.

The incredible battle waged for five long
days. Thousands of spectators looked on from the relative
safety of the British Concession inside Shanghai's International Settlement.
Western journalists with front row seats to the spectacle spread the story
across the globe as the plight of the heroes captured the sympathy of the
world. Their valour raised Chinese morale, as did the actions of the heroine
Yang Huimin, a Girl Guide who delivered a Chinese flag to the defenders that
flew over Sihang Warehouse as a beacon of hope.
Eight Hundred Heroes is a thorough depiction of this legendary battle,
for the first time bringing together first-hand accounts of the Chinese
participants and the observations of Western witnesses. It explores how this
incredible feat of heroism became an enduring myth that helped define modern
China.

Author Biography

Stephen Robinson studied Asian history and politics at the University of Western Sydney, graduating with First Class Honours. He has worked at the Department of Veterans' Affairs researching British atomic weapons tests and as a policy officer in the Department of Defence. Stephen Robinson is also an officer in the Australian Army Reserve and has served as an instructor at the Royal Military College. He also graduated from Australian Command and Staff College.