Modern Era
Great Kanto Earthquake (1923): Tokyo and Yokohama in Ruins
About 105,000 people died, most in fires; Tokyo and Yokohama were largely destroyed and thousands of Koreans were murdered in the aftermath.
Region
Asia
Modern Era
Salt March (1930): Gandhi's Walk to Dandi Against British Rule
Gandhi broke the salt law at Dandi, launching a nationwide civil disobedience campaign that led to tens of thousands of arrests and the Gandhi-Irwin Pact of 1931.
Modern Era
Mukden Incident (1931): How Japan Seized Manchuria
Japan's Kwantung Army occupied Manchuria and created the puppet state of Manchukuo, and Japan left the League of Nations after being condemned.
Modern Era
1931 China Floods: The Yangtze and Huai River Catastrophe
Floods covered roughly 180,000 square kilometres, affected tens of millions of people and caused somewhere between about 150,000 and 2 million or more deaths from drowning, famine and disease.
Modern Era
Long March (1934-1935): Mao and the Red Army's Epic Retreat
The Central Red Army survived with a small fraction of its strength, established a new base in Shaanxi, and Mao Zedong emerged as the Communists' leading figure.
Modern Era
Nanjing Massacre (1937): Japanese Atrocities in China's Capital
Japanese troops killed tens of thousands to over 200,000 prisoners and civilians and committed mass rape; the event became a defining symbol of the Second Sino-Japanese War.
Modern Era
Hundred Regiments Offensive (1940): China's Communists Strike
Heavy damage to Japanese railways and mines in north China, followed by severe Japanese reprisals against Communist base areas.
Modern Era
Battle of Hong Kong (1941): The Black Christmas Surrender
Japanese victory; the governor surrendered on 25 December 1941 and Hong Kong was occupied until August 1945.
Modern Era
Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse (1941): Force Z Lost
Both British capital ships were sunk by Japanese land-based aircraft with the loss of about 840 men, leaving the Allies without heavy ships in the region.
Modern Era
Doolittle Raid (1942): The First American Air Attack on Tokyo
Light physical damage to Japan but a major boost to American morale; all 16 aircraft were lost and Japan responded with a punitive campaign in eastern China and a push to take Midway.
Modern Era
Bataan Death March (1942): Allied Prisoners in the Philippines
Thousands of Filipino and American prisoners died on the march and many more in the following months at Camp O'Donnell; Homma was later tried and executed.
Modern Era
Fall of Singapore (1942): Britain's Worst Military Defeat
Japanese victory; about 80,000 British, Indian and Australian troops surrendered on Singapore, and the island was occupied until September 1945.