Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
30th January 1938. Nanking fell to the Japanese 6 weeks ago. Since then, the Japanese have unleashed one of the worst atrocities in human history upon the city’s civilians. Looting, rape, and slaughter have consumed the city. In a small house on Hankow Road, another woman is about to suffer the same fate. Her husband’s body is in a coffin in one room, while a Japanese soldier throws her to the floor in the other. But suddenly a man arrives. He bursts through the door, shouting in his foreign tongue, and grabs the rapist. He drags the soldier out of the room and throws him out of the house. The soldiers disappear into the streets while the woman tearfully thanks the man who saved her. She has never met him before, but everyone left in Nanking knows who he is. His name is John Rabe, and he is totally unarmed. His only protection from the monstrous violence of the Japanese is his red armband, emblazoned with the Swastika of his beloved Nazi Party.
Today on A Day In History, we’re revealing the story of how the Nazi John Rabe became a hero for the people of Nanking during one of the darkest moments in human history. Rabe and Nanking On the surface, there was nothing that remarkable about John Rabe. The 55 year old German worked for the appliance company Siemens AG where he ran the company’s Nanking office, selling telephones and other appliances to the Chinese government. A father and grandfather, he was reasonably wealthy and quite social, which made him a well-known face among Nanking's small German community. Like many Germans, he embraced the rise of the Nazis and became an outspoken supporter of Hitler, eventually becoming the leader of the city’s Nazi Party chapter. Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan were allies, so when fighting intensified between Japan and China in late 1937, Rabe didn’t have to worry. He was wealthy and connected enough to easily find a way out of Nanking before Japanese troops arrived, and the Japanese would not attack a member of Hitler’s party anyway. As most of Nanking’s residents fled the city, Rabe remained.
Sources:
Iris Chang, The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II, (1997) John Rabe, translated by John E. Woods, The Good Man of Nanking: The Diaries of John Rabe, (1998),
Copyright © 2025 A Day In History. All rights reserved.
DISCLAIMER: All materials in these videos are used for entertainment purposes and fall within the guidelines of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. If you are, or represent, the copyright owner of materials used in this video, and have an issue with the use of said material, please send an email to adayinhistory2021@gmail.com
30th January 1938. Nanking fell to the Japanese 6 weeks ago. Since then, the Japanese have unleashed one of the worst atrocities in human history upon the city’s civilians. Looting, rape, and slaughter have consumed the city. In a small house on Hankow Road, another woman is about to suffer the same fate. Her husband’s body is in a coffin in one room, while a Japanese soldier throws her to the floor in the other. But suddenly a man arrives. He bursts through the door, shouting in his foreign tongue, and grabs the rapist. He drags the soldier out of the room and throws him out of the house. The soldiers disappear into the streets while the woman tearfully thanks the man who saved her. She has never met him before, but everyone left in Nanking knows who he is. His name is John Rabe, and he is totally unarmed. His only protection from the monstrous violence of the Japanese is his red armband, emblazoned with the Swastika of his beloved Nazi Party.
Today on A Day In History, we’re revealing the story of how the Nazi John Rabe became a hero for the people of Nanking during one of the darkest moments in human history. Rabe and Nanking On the surface, there was nothing that remarkable about John Rabe. The 55 year old German worked for the appliance company Siemens AG where he ran the company’s Nanking office, selling telephones and other appliances to the Chinese government. A father and grandfather, he was reasonably wealthy and quite social, which made him a well-known face among Nanking's small German community. Like many Germans, he embraced the rise of the Nazis and became an outspoken supporter of Hitler, eventually becoming the leader of the city’s Nazi Party chapter. Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan were allies, so when fighting intensified between Japan and China in late 1937, Rabe didn’t have to worry. He was wealthy and connected enough to easily find a way out of Nanking before Japanese troops arrived, and the Japanese would not attack a member of Hitler’s party anyway. As most of Nanking’s residents fled the city, Rabe remained.
Sources:
Iris Chang, The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II, (1997) John Rabe, translated by John E. Woods, The Good Man of Nanking: The Diaries of John Rabe, (1998),
Copyright © 2025 A Day In History. All rights reserved.
DISCLAIMER: All materials in these videos are used for entertainment purposes and fall within the guidelines of fair use. No copyright infringement intended. If you are, or represent, the copyright owner of materials used in this video, and have an issue with the use of said material, please send an email to adayinhistory2021@gmail.com
