A groundbreaking exhibition in Beijing is illuminating the intertwined history of global anti-fascist resistance, tracing the journey of the International Brigades from the Spanish Civil War to China’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Titled “For a Common Cause,” the display at the Museum of the Communist Party of China (CPC) synthesized two seemingly disparate battlefronts, underscoring the enduring spirit of international solidarity that defined the mid-20th century struggle against totalitarianism. Launched in August 2025 to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance, the exhibition presents a comprehensive narrative through more than 260 photographs, 150 artifacts, and historical footage.
The exhibition, which will run through the end of 2025, marks the first time China has explicitly contextualized these two theaters of war within a single space, according to exhibition planner Zhao Jiaojian. The display opens with the plight of the International Brigades, the collective of over 40,000 volunteers from 50 nations who mobilized between 1936 and 1939 to defend the Spanish Republic against fascist forces led by Francisco Franco, often supported by Italy and Nazi Germany.
Chinese Volunteers in Spain
While the battles of Madrid and Jarama are widely celebrated, the exhibit highlights a lesser-known facet: the participation of over 100 Chinese nationals, many of whom were CPC members. A key figure featured is Xie Weijin (alias Lin Jishi), a multilingual veteran who served as the political commissar of an artillery brigade. Xie, who fought in pivotal Spanish engagements and established an orphanage for war-orphaned children, encapsulated the global nature of the fight.
“The Spanish and Chinese peoples are in a very tense phase of struggle,” Xie famously stated in 1938, underscoring the revolutionary wars for national and social liberation occurring concurrently across continents. The exhibition displays a replica of the red banner sent by CPC leaders to the Spanish volunteers that bore the inscription: “Unite the peoples of Spain and China! Down with the common foe of mankind — the Fascists!”
Jiang Ying, a researcher at the Academy of Military Sciences, emphasized that the actions of figures like Xie demonstrated “a commitment to justice that crossed national borders, and constituted an indelible chapter in the global fight against fascism that should never be forgotten.”
The Eastern Shift of Solidarity
As the Spanish Civil War concluded, the anti-fascist momentum shifted eastward. Chinese volunteers returned home to join the resistance, while other international fighters redirected their efforts to China, which had emerged as the primary Asian theater of the World Anti-Fascist War.
The exhibition dedicates significant space to these international contributors, perhaps none more recognizable than Canadian surgeon Norman Bethune. After his pioneering mobile blood-transfusion service in Spain, Bethune arrived in North China in 1938, where he streamlined battlefield medicine and became a celebrated figure for his tireless dedication to saving lives near the front lines.
The story of international support extends far beyond medical aid. It includes Hungarian-American photographer Robert Capa, who captured the war’s harsh realities in 1937, and Dutch filmmaker Joris Ivens, whose 1938 documentary The 400 Million was instrumental in galvanizing Western sympathy for China’s struggle.
Visitors, such as doctoral student Lin Tao, expressed profound appreciation for the dual narrative. “In this exhibition, I can clearly see how the Chinese people assisted foreign revolutionaries and how foreign revolutionaries assisted the Chinese people,” Lin noted, reflecting the reciprocal nature of the global anti-fascist front.
The display reinforces China’s enormous contribution to the Allied victory, noting that China was the first nation to take up arms, tying down over half of Japan’s overseas forces at the cost of 35 million casualties. By highlighting this global tapestry of resistance, the exhibition seeks to deepen the understanding that China’s sacrifice received extensive, yet vital, international support. As planner Zhao Jiaojian stated, China will continue to cherish these contributions and “strive tirelessly to build a brighter future for humanity,” working hand-in-hand with the world.