Printed by The Commercial Press in Changsha in 1938, this book was a teaching manual for secondary school teachers teaching the history of China. Such books were used by teachers of Chinese-medium schools in Singapore who taught Chinese history as part of the curriculum. Founded in 1897, The Commercial Press was the oldest modern publishing house in China. After the Japanese invaded China in 1937, The Commercial Press moved its operations to Changsha the same year and to Chongqing in 1941. Remarkably, this particular book was printed when China was at war and The Commercial Press was located in Changsha.The Commercial Press also opened a branch in Singapore in 1915 and was the first local Chinese bookstore. Together with Chung Hwa Book Company, they produced most of the Chinese textbooks in Singapore before World War II.
