Manchurian Crisis (1931-33) Flashcards
What was the Mukden Incident?
18th September 1931.
There was an explosion on the South Manchurian Railway and the Japanese claimed China was responsible.
This gave Japan an excuse to invade Manchuria, the Japanese thought this would be easy as China’s government was weak and divided.
Why did Japan want to invade Manchuria?
Due to the Great Depression, Japan struggled economically: most of their economy relied on the sale of silk. The Great Depression meant that not a lot of people could afford it. By 1931, silk was worth 1/5 of it’s original price in the 1920s. Population and employment rates decreased by 30%.
Japan had little farmland to grow food due to high mountain terrain. They had a large population to feed.
They did not have raw materials: coal, iron, oil, needed to make weapons.
They already owned large industries such as the South Manchurian Railway. This meant they could get food and raw materials from China.
What was the Lytton Report?
By February 1932, most of Manchuria had been invaded by Japan, leading to China to turn to the League of Nations for help in March.
In response, the League of Nations sent Lord Lytton to Manchuria to start the Lytton Report - the League of Nations did not want to immediately make any decisions on one of their leading groups, Japan.
The report took 13 months and whilst it is being written, Japan are invading more of Manchuria. The Lytton Report was published in October, revealing that Japan was truly responsible for the Mukden Incident. The League of Nations condemned Japan and ordered them to leave Manchuria.
In response, Japan left the League of Nations in February 1933. Japan traded with the USA so the League couldn’t place harsh economic sanctions on Japan as they would be still able to trade with the USA (who weren’t members).
What happened after Japan left the League of Nations in 1933?
By July 1937, Japan started invading the rest of China and by 1938, most major Chinese cities had been conquered.
What was the consequence of the Manchurian Crisis?
This incident was catastrophic for the League.
It made them look weak and sent a message to other aggressive dictators that they could get away with what they wanted.
This incident gave Mussolini and Hitler the confidence that if they acted in a similar way, they were likely to get away with it.
