Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek was the leader of the Nationalist party and the head of the Republic of China. It was he who made a decision to leave Nanking without any defense, sensing that there was no chance to defeat the Japanese army. As soon as he ordered his director of military training to leave the city, the army felt abandoned and neglected.
Tang Sheng-chin
Tang Sheng-chin is the Chiang Kai-shek’s director of military training. In spite of the fact that he promised to defend the city till the last man, he held negotiations with the Japanese in order to avoid unnecessary destructions and deaths. Complying with the wish of Chiang Kai-shek, he left the city before the start of massacre.
Matsui Iwane
Matsui Iwane was a Japanese general, who was responsible for the battle for Nanking. He forbade his soldiers to assault the civilians, but was disobeyed. When he fell ill and could not command, Prince Asaka and General Yanagawa took his place. They did nothing to stops killing of the civilians. Later on, the massacre reached such an enormous scale that Matsui proved to be unable to stop it. However, he was not blameless. Due to inhumane treatment of the prisoners of the war and other war crimes, he was hanged.
Prince Asaka
Prince Asaka was a commander of the Japanese army during the assault for Nanking. He was responsible for his soldiers’ behavior, for he did nothing to stop them. One of the possible explanations of his cruelty was that he wanted to improve his position in the Japanese imperial family.
General Yanagawa
General Yanagawa took part in the battle for Nanking and was the commander of the troops which were accused of numerous killing during the rape of Nanking.
George Fitch
George Fitch was the representative of the YMCA.
John Rabe
John Rabe was a successful German businessman; he refused to flee from the Republic of China and did everything possible to protect people. He turned his house into a shelter for people in need and became the head of the Nanking Safety Zone. In a moment of despair, he wrote a letter to Hitler asking him for help. Although he never got an answer, the Swastika helped him a lot. It seemed that it was only one thing which could scare the Japanese soldiers.
Christian Kröger
Christian Kröger was an acquaintance of John Rabe and a member of the Nazi party. He was a treasurer of the International Committee for the Nanking Safety Zone.
Robert Wilson
Robert Wilson was an American physician and one of not many doctors and only one surgeon who worked in Nanking during the massacre. Although his parents were Americans, he was born in Nanking, for they were missionaries. He graduated from Harvard Medical School, married and returned to Nanking. When it became clear that the war was inevitable, he sent his wife and daughter back to the USA, but didn’t follow them. He worked without any day-off, saving as many lives as possible. He helped to establish the Nanking Safety Zone.
Wilhelma Vautrin
Wilhelma Vautrin or Minnie Vautrin was a teacher at Ginling College. She saved lives of thousands refugees during the massacre. She opened the gates of the college for women, who had no place to hide from the Japanese soldiers. Many times, she had to protect them by herself.
