Key Takeaways
- Commodore Perry's 1853 visit ended Japan's 200-year isolation, forcing it to open to the wider world.
- The Meiji Restoration rapidly transformed Japan into a modern industrial and military power through Western adoption.
- Japan's imperial ambitions led to territorial expansion, conquering Korea and defeating China and Russia.
- Engineered incidents and brutal atrocities, like the "Rape of Nanjing," characterized Japan's expansion into China.
- U.S. sanctions, particularly the 1941 oil embargo, cornered Japan, prompting its decision to wage war.
Deep Dive
- On July 4, 1853, four U.S. Navy vessels arrived off Japan, which had been isolationist for over two centuries.
- President Millard Fillmore sought relations for shipwrecked sailors, U.S. vessel provisioning, a coaling station, and trade.
- Commodore Matthew C. Perry's four "black ships" appeared in Edo Bay on July 8, 1853, intimidating the Japanese with their industrial might.
- On July 14, 1853, an armed American delegation presented President Fillmore's letter, demanding Japan open its doors to trade.
- The Tokugawa shogunate capitulated to the U.S., fueling internal discontent among samurai who viewed it as dishonoring Japan.
- Discontented samurai overthrew the shogunate by 1868, leading to the Meiji Restoration under Emperor Mutsuhito; the capital moved to Tokyo.
- The Meiji Restoration established an oligarchic elite focused on dismantling feudalism and transforming Japan into a modern industrial power.
- Under "Bunmei Kaika," Japan adopted Western practices, including new prefectures, social equality laws, and foreign expertise for railroads and factories.
- A modern Imperial Japanese army was established with conscription, suppressing the 1877 Satsuma Rebellion and consolidating government control.
- Following modernization, imperial military leader Yamagata Aritomo advocated conquering weak neighbors for resources and borders.
- This led to the annexation of Korea and victory in the First Sino-Japanese War in 1894, demonstrating Japan's military strength.
- Japan challenged Russia in 1904-1905, achieving a stunning victory in the Russo-Japanese War.
- Japan joined the Allies in World War I, capturing German territories and reinforcing its claim to great power status.
- On September 18, 1931, Japanese officers, including Colonel Itegaki Seiishiro, engineered an incident in Mukden, Manchuria.
- Officers Ishiwara Kanji and Itegaki Seiishiro planned to fabricate an incident by blowing up railroad tracks and blaming Chinese soldiers.
- Lieutenant Sue Mori Kawemoto planted explosives near Liaochoku on September 18, 1931, but they failed to derail the Mukden Express.
- Despite the failure, the Kwantung Army used the incident as a pretext to commence the Manchurian invasion.
- In 1931, the Japanese army seized power and invaded Manchuria with popular support and little international opposition.
- Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi's attempts at compromise led to his assassination in May 1932, and the army appointed a foreign minister.
- Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in February 1933 after the League called for the restoration of Chinese sovereignty in Manchuria.
- The Imperial Army declared its intention to disregard naval conference treaties, aiming for total control of East Asia and empire building.
- By 1936, China's Nationalist and Communist factions united under Chiang Kai-shek to form a united front against Japan.
- On the night of July 7, 1937, a Japanese garrison practicing maneuvers near Beijing and the Marco Polo Bridge initiated a tense standoff.
- The incident escalated when Japanese soldiers, responding to supposed gunfire and a missing private, faced Chinese troops opening fire.
- This confrontation at the city gates of Huangping on July 7, 1937, ignited the Second Sino-Japanese War.
- In Nanjing on December 17, 1937, missionary Minnie Votrane attempted to protect over 4,000 refugees at Jinling College.
- Japanese soldiers forcibly entered the college, assaulting Votrane and abducting women while she was held at gunpoint.
- The events are known as the "Nanjing Massacre" or "Rape of Nanjing," estimating hundreds of thousands of deaths.
- Businessman John Rabe and German physician John Rabe attempted to save lives amidst the brutal occupation.
- Japan faced a critical shortage of war materials and occupied French Indochina in September 1940 to secure resources.
- Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy, solidifying the Axis alliance.
- The U.S. escalated economic pressure due to Japan's alliance and expansion into Indochina.
- By July 1941, the U.S. froze Japanese assets and imposed an oil embargo, cutting off 90% of Japan's oil supply.
- Emperor Hirohito initially favored diplomacy, expressing concerns about war with Allied powers, but a U.S. deal deadline passed.
- Prime Minister Tojo Hideki's diplomatic efforts were rejected by U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull.
- With diplomacy failing and facing an oil deficit, Japan's leaders, including Tojo and Yamamoto, decided on war.
- On December 1, 1941, at an Imperial Conference, Tojo informed Emperor Hirohito that war with the United States was the only option for survival, and the Emperor assented.