Graph of World War II casualties

[LurkerBaba]

Found this floating on the web. Not sure of it's accuracy. I was surprised at the 'civilian deaths' figure for India

 

[W.G.Ewald]

I think there have been several posts about deaths from starvation in India during WWII.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengal_famine_of_1943

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_casualties

Recent historical scholarship

Recent historical scholarship has shed new insight into the topic of Second World War casualties. Research in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union has caused a revision of estimates of Soviet war dead.[2] Estimated USSR losses within postwar borders now stand at 26.6 million.[3] In August 2009 the Polish Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) researchers estimated Poland's dead at between 5.6 and 5.8 million.[4]

The German Army historian Dr. Rüdiger Overmans published a study in 2000 that estimated German military dead and missing at 5.3 million.[5] War dead totals in this article for the British Commonwealth are based on the research of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.[6] Casualties listed here include about 4 to 12 million war-related famine deaths in China, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, India that are often omitted from other compilations of World War II casualties.[7][8]

 

[LurkerBaba]

I think there have been several posts about deaths from starvation in India during WWII.

Yes, but I expected the military death figures to be much higher.

btw I'm not surprised by the statistics on Soviet Union and China

 

[Son of Govinda]

Yes, but I expected the military death figures to be much higher.

btw I'm not surprised by the statistics on Soviet Union and China

That's what happens when a country turns Bolshevik...

Stalin's brutality was 100x worse than anything the Wehrmacht/Waffen-SS could inflict upon the Soviets.

 

[trackwhack]

Yes, but I expected the military death figures to be much higher.

btw I'm not surprised by the statistics on Soviet Union and China

I am surprised by the Chinese numbers. It is inflated.

 

[amoy]

I am surprised by the Chinese numbers. It is inflated.

For China the war started from 1931 when Manchuria fell, far ahead of 1939 when WW2 broke out in Europe. and in the graph much more civilian death than military due to starvation, bombardment, and resistance in occupied areas...

For example in the wartime capital Chongqing, which was far away from the frontline, around 10,000 civilians died in bombardments, due to China virtually having lost air defense capability. BTW, Soviet Union sent a "voluntary" air force to help China during 1937-1939, particularly in defence of Nanjing and Wuhan. The advent of America's "Flying Tigers" (American Volunteer Group) reversed the situation since 1941.

 

[trackwhack]

For China the war started from 1931 when Manchuria fell, far ahead of 1939 when WW2 broke out in Europe. and in the graph much more civilian death than military due to starvation, bombardment, and resistance in occupied areas...

For example in the wartime capital Chongqing, which was far away from the frontline, around 10,000 civilians died in bombardments, due to China virtually having lost air defense capability. BTW, Soviet Union sent a "voluntary" air force to help China during 1937-1939, particularly in defence of Nanjing and Wuhan. The advent of America's "Flying Tigers" (American Volunteer Group) reversed the situation since 1941.

I am aware of when the war started but 20 million dead is as believable as Santa Claus.

 

[Tolaha]

I am surprised by the Chinese numbers. It is inflated.

I thought the military numbers were deflated! China lost little less than twice the Japanese military causalities. I was under the impression that it being a military rout, the casualties would be far worse. Civilian deaths do look very high though.

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Soviet Union sent a "voluntary" air force to help China during 1937-1939...

1.JmA - Sovjet Military aid to China

Significant aspects of Soviet-Japanese rivalry in the late 1930s remain in shadow like the massive Soviet military aid to the Quomingtang government in China during the Sino-Japanese war, although it was precisely the Soviet involvement which strenghened Chinese defence capabilities significantly. Diplomatic relations between Quomintang government and the USSR were resumed on December 12, 1932, opening way for further cooperation after years of hostility and confrontation. After the non-agression pact between China and USSR was signed on the 21st of August 1937, a rapid intensification of the military cooperation followed, boosted by the unprecedented aid package of 250 mln USD spearheading the Soviet involvement into the raging war. The first negotiations of the high-ranked military experts of both sides took place in Moscow on September 9, 1937—October 4, 1937, where the Soviet side agreed to begin the immediate supply of the Chinese airforce with desperately needed hardware, namely with 225 fighter planes. It was rather unusual for contemporary international practice to begin deliveries before actual agreements on the military aid loan were signed: thus the first agreement on the initial aid packege of 50 mln USD was signed on March 1, 1938, and by that time 282 Soviet aircraft were delivered to the Chinese. As a matter of fact, by late 1937 only some 20 Chinese planes remained serviceable, compared with 500 available at the beginning of the year. This fact underlines the importance of Soviet engagement for the military planning of both sides...


Among the airplanes shipped to China with the Soviet crews in 1937 were the formidably maneuverable I-15 and I-16 fighter planes, high-speed bombers of the SB type, heavy TB-3 bombers and long-range DB-3 bomber planes, which allowed the Soviet command to counter massive Japanese air attacks with superb equipment and manpower, with the pilots having fought for several years in Spain and possessing combat experience the Japanese could hardly boast. In 1937—1940 the Soviet side delivered 563 fighter planes (I-15, I-15bis, I-16 and I-153) and 322 bomber planes (292 SB bombers, 24 DB-3 bombers and 6 heavy TB-3 bombers).

 

[LETHALFORCE]

Yes, but I expected the military death figures to be much higher.

btw I'm not surprised by the statistics on Soviet Union and China

Just speculation but maybe Indian civilian deaths are Indian soldiers being counted as civilians
since India was part of the British empire and not an independent nation at that time? Many sites
have different numbers for civilian and military..

 

[blueblood]

Just speculation but maybe Indian civilian deaths are Indian soldiers being counted as civilians
since India was part of the British empire and not an independent nation at that time? Many sites
have different numbers for civilian and military..

They were part of the British Raj which included North East and Burma and also Singapore. These places saw some of the most grueling battles during the entire war.

My two cents.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

They were part of the British Raj which included North East and Burma and also Singapore. These places saw some of the most grueling battles during the entire war.

My two cents.

I agree that is why I am questioning why Indian civilian death is more than military Death. Indians also won major
battles in north africa and Italy.

 

[blueblood]

I agree that is why I am questioning why Indian civilian death is more than military Death. Indians also won major
battles in north africa and Italy.

Japanese war crimes in these areas, especially Burma.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

Other numbers I have seen say 4 million Indian military deaths fighting for the queen in 2 world wars.

 

[civfanatic]

Other numbers I have seen say 4 million Indian military deaths fighting for the queen in 2 world wars.

I think that is the total number who served. There definitely weren't that many military deaths.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

I think that is the total number who served. There definitely weren't that many military deaths.

You are right I am starting to think that maybe parts of Burma was in india for the high civilian number .
My Grandfather was in Burma and Bengal at that time as a contractor for the British I wish I could have heard some
Of those stories.

 

[Koovie]

over 20 MILLION death in 6 years for the Soviet Union :shocked:

 

[Ray]

Nepal 6,000,000 Included with British Indian Army

India
1939 Population of India included the present day India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The war dead listed here are those reported by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, total deaths were 87,032.[6] The 'Debt of Honour Register' from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission lists the men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died during the two world wars.[233] Gurkhas recruited from Nepal fought with the British Indian Army during the Second World War. Gurkha casualties with the British Indian Army can be broken down as: 8,985 killed or missing and 23,655 wounded[234] The preliminary 1945 data for Indian losses was, killed 24,338, missing 11,754, wounded 64,354 and POW 79,489.[133] Out of "60,000" Indian Army POWs taken at the Fall of Singapore, 11,000 died in captivity[64] The pro-Japanese Indian National Army lost 2,615 dead and missing.[155]
Sources for total Indian civilian war dead range from 1.5 to 2.5 million as detailed below.
John W. Dower estimated 1.5 million civilian deaths in the Bengal famine of 1943.[235] Amartya Sen currently the Lamont University Professor at Harvard University has recently estimated that a figure of 2.0 to 2.5 million fatalities may be more accurate.[236]
Werner Gruhl estimates the civilian death toll due to the Bengal famine of 1943 at 2,000,000.[62]

World War II casualties - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia