The "Augmentation of the Sages" reads: "The grace of dripping water, when the spring repays." "When we encounter difficulties, if others reach out unconditionally, even if it is only a little favor, we must remember it and repay it in the future."
83 years ago, a German saved the lives of 250,000 Chinese free of charge, his kindness, we Chinese toothless unforgettable, when everyone learned of his death in his later years, spontaneously held a fundraising, sent 100 million yuan to him, this person is the great Mr. John Rabe.
John Rabe (John Rabe), born in 1882 in Hamburg, Germany, a wealthy family, the father is a captain, under his cultivation, Rabe from childhood is a brave, responsible boy, but the weather is unpredictable, at the age of 14, the father unfortunately died of illness, the whole family fell into difficulties, Rabe had to drop out of school, work everywhere to subsidize the family.
By chance, Rabe came to Beijing, China, and married his wife in Beijing, thus forming a deep relationship with China, Rabe also fell deeply in love with this beautiful place, whenever in his spare time, Rabe and his wife Dora together to collect photos of old Beijing, all aspects of modern Beijing society.
In 1911, Rabe also successfully obtained the job of accountant of the German Siemens branch in Beijing, and the family's life got better and better. However, this happy life was completely broken after 20 years.
In 1931, the Japanese forcibly opened the gates of China with strong ships and cannons, and committed countless heinous crimes here, and by chance, Rabe was appointed deputy director of the Nanjing branch of the German Nazi Party, and it was precisely because of this "special status" that Rabe had the opportunity to save the lives of countless Chinese in the days to come.
In 1937, with the defeat of the defense of Nanjing, the Kuomintang troops withdrew from here one after another, leaving hundreds of thousands of innocent people with nowhere to escape, and the whole of Nanjing fell into the hands of the Japanese army, and then Matsui Ishigen and Hasegawa Issued a criminal order:
Kill all the captives
For the next 6 weeks, the invading Japanese army carried out organized, planned, and premeditated massacres in Nanjing and nearby areas, as well as bloody atrocities such as rape, arson, and robbery. The once beautiful and prosperous city of Nanjing has become a hell on earth overnight, a nightmare for all Chinese.
Rabe, who witnessed all this, was heartbroken, and he must do something for Chinese! Later, he made a German flag and hung it in his yard to tell the Japanese his identity, and then he took in more than 600 Chinese refugees in his home, but he knew that his home was far from large enough.
So he used his authority to set up a 3.86 square kilometer "Nanjing Safe Zone" in the work area as a refugee shelter, and later he contacted more than 10 foreign friends to join the operation, and soon, 25 refugee shelters came into being, about 250,000 Chinese thus escaping the massacre of the Japanese! It was also at this time that Rabe began to write The Rabe Diary.
Soon, the Japanese discovered Rabe's "betrayal" (Japan and Germany were allies), and Siemens headquarters was under pressure to forcibly recall Rabe in February 1938, but even when he returned home, Rabe never gave up helping Chinese, he wrote down what he saw and heard in Nanjing, as well as the atrocities of the Japanese, and wrote to Hitler, hoping that Germany would restrain Japan's atrocities.
However, where would the German government take care of this little man, because Raabe repeatedly held briefings, the Gestapo directly arrested him and did not release him until the end of World War II. However, Rabe, who had just been released, was isolated and investigated for his former "Nazi" status, and Siemens immediately expelled him, and the life of Rabe's family fell into embarrassment.
By 1948, the Life of the Rabe family was so difficult that they could only drink vegetable soup and were on the verge of starvation! Fortunately, the news reached China, and as soon as the citizens of Nanjing heard the news, they immediately held a fundraising campaign, and in just a few days, they raised 100 million yuan, which was approved by the National Government to be remitted to Germany for 2,000 US dollars to aid Rabe. In this way, the Rabe family survived.
On January 5, 1950, Rabe suddenly suffered a stroke and died that night, before his death, Rabe gave important materials such as "Rabe's Diary" to his family for safekeeping. For some special reason, Rabe's tombstone was stored in the garage of her granddaughter in Berlin, and when the Chinese side learned of this, it requested the German side to give the tombstone to Nanjing.
In 1997, the tombstone of Mr. John Rabe was moved from Berlin to Nanjing, and to this day, there are still countless Chinese to worship, and the name of Mr. John Rabe will be remembered forever.