Japanese Militarism And Expansionism

22 October 2004 (Lecture #24)

• 1853 – US sends Perry to entice Japanese to open their doors

o Show Japanese US military might and technology

o Treaty of Kanagawa – US recognizes Japanese as modern nation

§ In return Japanese adopt a western legal system and Constitution

o The Meiji Restoration – central religious figure (emperor) restored to rally Japan’s various religions

• Sino-Japanese War – Japanese fleets destroy China’s, moves forces inland

o Western powers largely ignore (yellow men beating up other yellow men)

• Russo-Japanese War – Japanese win because Russia cannot get its fleet to the eastern border until the war ends

o West takes some notice (Japanese beat old European power)

o West tries to negotiate expansion limits

• Imperialism

o Economic impetus – western depression

o Ideological impetus – wouldn’t weaker Asian powers rather have Japanese over them than white men?

• Manchuria – Japanese invade during the Chinese Civil War under the pretense that they were securing it for the Chinese

o Sets up a puppet state to feed the Japanese economy (boosts it 20%)

o League of Nations protests so the Japanese leave it

• Japanese want more economic boosts so they invade China

Conclusions

• Japanese become modern society but had big resentments vs. Western culture
• Conflict probably inevitable