Grains of conflict : the struggle for food in China's total war, 1937-1945 / Jennifer Yip.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Yip, Jennifer, 1993- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

World War, 1939-1945--Food supply--China.

World War, 1939-1945.

Food supply--China--History--20th century.

Food supply.

Food security--China--History--20th century.

Food security.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xvii, 270 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2025.

Summary:

China's war against Japan was, at its heart, a struggle for food. As the Nationalists, Chinese Communist Party, and Japanese vied for a dwindling pool of sustenance, grain emerged as the lynchpin of their strategies for a long-term war effort. In the first in-depth examination of how the Nationalists fed their armies, Jennifer Yip demonstrates how the Chinese government relied on mass civilian mobilization to carry out all stages of provisioning, from procurement to transportation and storage. The intensive use of civilian labor and assets-a distinctly preindustrial resource base- shaped China's own conception of its total war effort, and distinguished China's experience as unique among World War Two combatants. Yip challenges the predominant image of World War II as one of technological prowess, and the tendency to conflate total war with industrialized warfare. Ultimately, China sustained total war against the odds with premodern means: by ruthlessly extracting civilian resources.

Contents:

Introduction : China's total war

The militarization of a river : the Yangzi's cardinal role in grain provisioning

The institutions and individuals behind wartime grain management and military supply

Wartime granary networks and the 'science' of storing grain

Carrying 'the nation's thousand-jin burden' : Yiyun, China's wartime relay transport system

The three way tussle for food : blockades, guerrilla warfare, and the everyday struggle for survival.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 28 Aug 2025).

ISBN:

1-009-60136-9

1-009-60133-4

1-009-60134-2

OCLC:

1534803598