1937

1937 was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. It was marked by major geopolitical conflicts, notable disasters, and significant cultural productions that would influence the coming decades.

In Asia, the Marco Polo Bridge Incident on July 7 sparked the full-scale conflict of the Second Sino-Japanese War. Japanese forces advanced into China, and the city of Nanjing fell to them in December, leading to the Nanjing Massacre and a broader war that persisted into the late 1930s.

In Europe, the Spanish Civil War continued, including the bombing of Guernica on April 26 by German and Italian air forces. The conflict would endure until 1939. Across the Atlantic, the United Kingdom crowned King George VI on May 12, 1937, following the abdication crisis of 1936. In the United States, the year featured ongoing effects of the Great Depression alongside landmark events in transportation and culture.

Aviation and infrastructure milestones included the Hindenburg disaster of May 6 near Lakehurst, New Jersey, and the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge to traffic on May 27 in San Francisco. The year also saw the disappearance of Amelia Earhart on July 2 while attempting to circumnavigate the globe, a mystery that remained unresolved for decades.

In the arts and politics, the Soviet Union intensified the Great Purge in 1937, with high-profile political trials and widespread repression. Picasso produced Guernica in response to the bombing, a powerful anti-war statement created during the year. Disney released Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs on December 21, 1937, the first full-length animated feature and a milestone in cinema.