Overview
The Nanjing massacre first started when the Japanese wanted to Japanese saw themselves as the superior race. They had industrialized efficiently as opposed to China who did not at all. They had conquered places as opposed to China who was in civil war between the Kuomintang and the Communists. As a combination of Japan's success and China's historical failure, and Japan's resentment of Chinese History, they took the Chinese to be a barbaric species no better than animals. The Japanese started out by taking over Beijing, then were to move on to take over Nanjing, the Capital of China at the time. The Japanese were hungry for power and were willing to do whatever it took to get it. This included taking over China. Beside the craving Japan had for power, their really was no cause for this genocide.
The Population
The population of Nanking before the massacre was around 475 00, after the massacre the population had decreased to around 275 000.