Two Wars and a New Republic 1894-1912 Flashcards
In this new global order, how do the three East Asian nations interact with each other?
19th Century Developments in Japan and China
Japan’s path: Widespread adoption of modern/Western ideas, practices, technology; combined with establishment of modern state in Meiji era after 1868
China’s path: Limited adoption of modern/Western ideas, practices, technology; with the aim to revive Qing dynasty
Late 19th/Early 20th Century Developments
Meiji Japan: Increasingly establishes itself as imperial power equal to western imperial nations
Qing China: Slowly being ripped apart by imperialist powers
Joseon Korea: Struggle for sovereignty is doomed to fail. Central power succumbs first to China-Japan rivalry, then Russia-Japan rivalry, and then Japanese colonialism
Russia: Far Eastern expansionism leads to encroachment in Manchuria and increased influence in Korea
China late 19th Century: Can Qing Dynasty survive?
Tongzhi Restoration 1862-1874
- Attempt at response to foreign and domestic challenges
- Response not entirely unsuccessful
- Goal: stop dynastic decline of the Qing
Self-Strengthening Movement 1861-1895
Important figures in the late Qing dynasty
- “Empress Dowager” Cixi 1835-1908
- Guangxu Emperor 1871-1908
- Puyi 1906-1967
- Li Hongzhang 1823-1901
Li Hongzhang 1823-1901
- Most important politician in late Qing
- Associated with Self-Strengthening Movement
- Concerned about China’s challenges in new world order
- Came to prominence during Taiping Rebellion
- Encourages western learning and international contacts
- In charge of foreign policy 1860s-1890s
- Military modernisation
- Conflict with conservatives and decentralised bureaucracy
Self-Strengthening Movement 1861-1895
- Probably prolonged Qing Dynasty for decades after humiliation of Opium Wars and Taiping Rebellion, but…
- Despite power of Li Hongzhang, conservatives at court remained opposed to reform
- Disorganized reform: for example only armies controlled by Li Hongzhang modernised
- “Empress Dowager” Cixi main obstruction
- “Self-strengtheners” had little interest in social reform
- Defeat Sino-Japanese War in 1895 means humiliating end for Li Hongzhang
Self-Strengthening Movement 1861-1895
Modernisation of the military:
- Modern Navy: Beiyang Navy
- Modern Army: Beiyang Army
- Important: Beiyang army is part of Qing Army controlled by Li Hongzhang, not whole army!
Industrial enterprises:
- Railways, Coal Mines, Cotton Mills, Ironworks factories, Imperial Telegraph Administration
Tongzhi Restoration v. Meiji Restoration
China
- “Self-Strengthening Movement”: to stop the dynastic decline
- No system change
- Biggest challenge: decentralisation of late Qing
Japan
- Meiji Restoration = overthrow of Tokugawa Shogunate
- Creation of new state
- Biggest asset: centralised state established in few decades
Meiji Restoration 1868
Japan late 19th Century: how will successful modernisation impact the region and the world?
Itō Hirobumi 1841-1909
- One of the Genrō (founding fathers of Modern Japan)
- Prime Minister 1885-1901
- Resident-General of Korea 1905-1909
- Central in crafting Meiji Constitution and devising modern political system
- Associated with first steps of Japanese imperial expansion
- Assassinated by Korean nationalist An Jung-geun in 1909
Fukuzawa Yukichi
- Leaving Asia
1880s National Security Debate in Japan: Increasingly focused on Korea
Two ideas dominate Japanese strategic thinking:
- No third power should control Korea (esp. Russia or China): because of strategic location and resources
- Korean coal and iron ore deposits need to fuel Japanese industrialization
Korea from the 1880s: conservatives and reformers under King Gojong
King Gojong (1852-1919)
Conservatives: cling to China-dominated world order and resist the West. But also: imitate Chinese self-strengthening and gradual reform.
- Slogan: “Eastern Way, Western Technology”
Reformers: more pro-Japanese, follow Meiji Restoration model and more extensive reforms
Korea from the 1880s: Chinese, Japanese, and Russian encroachment
- 1884: Gapsin Coup by pro-Japanese army officers
- Failure reduces Japanese influence
- Outcome: more direct Qing interference from 1884-1894
- Uneasy peace between pro-Japan and pro-China forces in Korea
- This is considered a problem in Japan due to strategic interest
- Russians also beginning to take an interest in the region
Domestic unrest: Donghak Peasant Revolution 1894
- “Donghak” = Eastern Learning
- Followers of Donghak religion (syncretic blend of Confucianism, Christianity, Daoism, and Buddhism) used underground network of churches to revolt against central government
- Donghak rebels occupied most of Jeolla province
- Qing China responded to King Gojong’s pleas for assistance
- Japan sends troop as well “to help”
- Donghak rebels suppressed but fighting between Qing and Meiji forces erupted, resulting in the First Sino-Japanese War
First Sino-Japanese War (25 July 1894 - 17 April 1895)
Expectation: Modernized Chinese army will win
- Army large with provincial units (Beiyang Army)
- Formidable navy
Reality:
- Japanese forces are quickly revealed to be much more effective
Treaty of Shimonoseki 1895
Signed by Li Hongzhang and Ito Hirobumi
- Taiwan ceded to Japan
- Japan now gains privileges in China similar to other imperial powers
- Ends all Qing China influence in Korea
- This cements Japan’s arrival as imperial power
- But annexation of Liaodong peninsula in China is blocked by Western powers (creates resentment in Japan)
Aftermath of the War in China: “Scramble for Concessions” (1896-98)
Qing Dynasty now so weak that the imperialist powers take advantage and divide it in “spheres of influence”
- Germany: Shandong
- Britain: New Territories, Guangdong
- Russia: Liaodong (and large parts of Manchuria after 1901)
- France: Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong
- Japan: Taiwan
- U.S. Open Door Policy: “respect political independence and territorial integrity”
Last Attempts to Save the Qing Dynasty
- Hundred Days Reform 1898:
Guangxu Emperor finally gives free rein to the bright reformers that wanted to change Qing into constitutional monarchy - Boxer Rebellion 1899-1901:
Anti-foreign peasant uprising in any countryside, finally backed by court conservatives around Cixi, official declaration of war to all foreign powers
Hundred Days’ Reform (11 June - 21 September of 1898)
- Guangxu Emperor chooses path of reform
- Led by the “Six Gentlemen” of the Hundred Days’ Reform
- Beyond Self-Strengthening: also institutional and ideological change
- Institutional reform and new educational system to strengthen China’s defense against Western imperialism
- The political system re-organized: greater degree of efficiency
- All this very unpopular among conservatives
Hundred Days’ Reform (11 June - 21 September 1898)
The end:
- Guangxu Emperor fails to gain the support of the conservative elite or the masses
- Cixi moves against reformers with help of army leader Yuan Shikai
- Guangxu Emperor under house arrest until death in 1908
- “Six Gentlemen” executed
Boxer Rebellion 1899-1901
- Indicator of devastation Qing Dynasty: economic ruin in countryside
- Anti-foreigner and anti-Christian peasant uprising
- Unwisely, Empress Dowager Cixi chooses their side: declares war on all foreign powers
- Li Hongzhang and Yuan Shikai oppose this
- Attacks on foreigners lead to calls for foreign intervention
Boxer Rebellion 1899-1901
Eight Nation Alliance
- German Empire, Russia, Japan, Great Britain, France, Austro-Hungarian Empire, Italy, US
- Extremely brutal crackdown
- Foreign troops occupy and loot Beijing for months
- Massive reparations to be paid
- Foreign troops in China to stay
- Cixi and Guangxu Emperor flee to Xian
- Li Hongzhang has to clean up the mess
- Only reason that Qing survives: foreigners need a central government to exploit China more easily
Meanwhile in Korea: Japan and Russia compete for influence 1895-1905
- Treaty of Shimonoseki expelled Qing Chinese presence
- Korea now in Japanese “sphere of influence” but resentment grows
- Oct 1895 assassination of Queen Min and coup leading to restoration of pro-Japan officers
- Feb 1896 King Gojong sought Russian influence to counter Japanese influence
- Increased Russian influence in Korean court inflamed Russo-Japanese rivalry
- Must be seen in context of Russian expansionism in Far East, especially Manchuria
- Gojong declares himself Emperor in 1897 to emphasize independence
Russian Empire in the Far East
- Strong culture of eastward expansionism in Russia
- In 19th century Russian Far East more important and accessible: because of railways
- Extending Empire’s territory increases status and legitimacy for a Tsar
- Russian Empire feared and respected as largest land-empire in Eurasia
By late 19th century:
- Increasing influence in Manchuria (railways)
- Strive for control over Liaodong peninsula: naval base in Port Arthur
- After 1895 Russia extends its influence into Korea
Russian Empire in the Far East
Tsar Nicholas II 1868-1918
- Old-fashioned autocrat: delays necessary reforms, very religious, not smart, hates Jews
- Saw eastern expansionism as easy win, even as it meant confrontation with Japan
- But, his East Asian endeavours are beginning of his downfall
- Had no real understanding of East Asia
Russia-Japan tension
- Japan offers “sphere of influence” deal: you Manchuria, we Korea
- Russia: no way… we want Northern Korea to be a neutral buffer zone between us
- Often overlooked fact: Anglo-Japanese alliance in 1902 meant that no other country could take Russia’s side in case of war: if two countries go to war with Japan, Britain will side with Japan
- What is happening here? Russia totally underestimates Japanese power
Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)
- Japan attacked Russian forces in Port Arthur on Liaodong Peninsula
- Japanese defeats Russian troops in battle after battle for about a year, destroys Eastern Fleet
- After initial success, Japan offers peace talks
- Tsar Nicholas II refuses: gambles entire navy by sending Baltic Fleet around the world
- Battle of Tsushima: Baltic Fleet battleships all destroyed
- Result: even more total victory for Japan
Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905)
Treaty of Portsmouth (1905):
- Russian possessions ceded to Japan in Northeast China (Liaodong peninsula, railways in Manchuria) and southern half of Sakhalin island
- Russia accepted Japanese influence in Korea and promised non-interference in Korea’s affairs
- So Russia loses all in Manchuria and Korea
- Completely changes balance of power on East Asian mainland
Beginning of the End for the Russian Empire
- First nail in the Romanov coffin: tremendous loss of prestige for Tsar
- Downhill from here
- Shock waves around world: first time a white western imperial nation is defeated by Asian power
- It is clear: Japan is now an imperial power
Korea becomes “Protectorate” of Japan 1905-1910
- Japan-Korea treaty 1905
- No more diplomatic sovereignty for Korea
- Emperor Gojong opposes this and spends years trying to get outside help
- 1907: secret mission to The Hague Peace Convention fails (museum)
- Ito Hirobumi becomes “Resident-General” and in 1907 forces Korea to give up internal affairs as well
- 1910: the most traumatic event in Korean history
Annexation 1910
Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty 1910
“Emperor of Korea makes the complete and permanent cession to the Emperor of Japan of all rights of sovereignty over the whole of Korea”
Last Decade of the Qing Dynasty: Constitutional Reform or Revolution?
- After Boxer Rebellion many Chinese reformers now favour overthrow of Qing
- Helped by fact Qing Dynasty was Manchu, not Han Chinese
- Some desperate attempts by Cixi at reform are too little too late
- Early 1900s Republicanism grows
- Among many Chinese anti-Qing organisations abroad, one is strongest: Tongmenhui “National Alliance”
- Led by revolutionary: Sun Yat-sen
Last Days of the Qing
- Both Cixi and Guangxu Emperor die in 1908
- Last Emperor: Puyi on throne at two years old
- Anti-Qing sentiment everywhere
- Rise of Republicanism
- The men to watch: Sun Yat-sen (exiled Republican leader) and Yuan Shikai (head of powerful Beiyang Army)
The Fall of the Qing: Xinhai Revolution
- Wuchang Uprising 10-10-1911
- Qing turns to army leader Yuan Shikai, who focuses mostly on establishing his power within army
- Qing quickly loses control of large parts of China
- Republic of China 01-01-1912
- Sun Yat-sen first President
- Official abdication Qing Emperor 12-2-1912
Republic of China (ROC) 1-1-1912
Republican period in mainland China: 1912-1949
Republic of China still exists today in Taiwan
