Site where revolutionary martyrs were killed and injured during the April 12th Incident

The site where revolutionary martyrs were killed and injured during the April 12th Incident is now a Shanghai Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Site where revolutionary martyrs were killed and injured during the April 12th Incident

In the early morning of April 12, a signal was raised above the warships docked at Shanghai's Gaochang Temple. Several hundred fully armed members of the Green Gang and Red Gang, along with secret agents—around several hundred in total—dressed in blue shorts and wearing white armbands with black "Worker" characters, set out from the French Concession in multiple cars and spread out across different areas. From 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., they attacked workers' picket teams in Zhabei, Nanshi, West Shanghai, Wusong, and Hongkou districts. The workers' picket teams resisted hastily, leading to fierce clashes. The National Revolutionary Army’s 26th Army (formerly Sun Chuanfang’s troops, which had been taken over by Chiang Kai-shek) arrived under the pretext of mediating a “workers’ internal conflict” and forcibly disarmed them. Over 2,700 armed workers’ picket team members in Shanghai were stripped of their weapons. More than 120 workers were killed and 180 injured in the process. That same morning, the headquarters of the Shanghai General Labour Union and the stations of the workers’ picket teams in various districts were occupied. Within both the foreign concessions and Chinese-administered areas, foreign forces—along with Chiang Kai-shek’s troops—arrested over 1,000 Communists and workers, handing them over to Chiang’s authorities. On the morning of April 13, workers from tobacco factories, tram companies, silk mills, municipal services, postal services, shipping companies, and various trades held a strike, with as many as 200,000 participants. The Shanghai General Labour Union convened a mass rally at Qingyun Road in Zhabei attended by 100,000 people. The rally passed resolutions demanding: 1. The return of workers’ weapons; 2. Severe punishment for those who undermined the unions; 3. Compensation for the families of the martyrs who died; 4. A serious protest to the imperialists in the concessions; 5. A call to the central government and the entire nation—and the world—for support; 6. The military authorities to ensure the protection of the Shanghai General Labour Union. After the rally, the crowd, despite the rain, marched to the headquarters of the 2nd Division of the 26th Army on Baoshan Road, demanding the release of arrested workers and the return of the picket teams’ weapons. The protest stretched for one kilometer. When the march reached near Sandi Lane on Baoshan Road, soldiers of the 2nd Division, who had been lying in ambush in the alleys, suddenly rushed out and opened fire on the crowd. Over 100 people were killed on the spot, with countless others injured. The street ran red with blood. Later that afternoon, the military forces occupied the Shanghai General Labour Union and the general command post of the workers’ picket teams. They then sealed up or disbanded revolutionary organizations and progressive groups, carrying out frenzied arrests and massacres. Within three days of the incident, more than 300 Communists and revolutionary masses were killed, over 500 were arrested, and more than 5,000 went missing. Outstanding Communists such as Wang Shouhua, Chen Yannian, and Zhao Shiyan sacrificed their lives heroically.

The April 12th counter-revolutionary coup marked a major shift in China’s class relations and revolutionary situation. The Kuomintang right-wing faction, led by Chiang Kai-shek, completely transformed from representing the right wing of the national bourgeoisie into representatives of the big landlords and big bourgeoisie. From then on, Chiang Kai-shek and his followers were completely ousted from the revolutionary united front. The revolution suffered a major setback in some regions.