How Manchuria Changed the World –

The 20th century began with disputes and wars that would ultimately change the order of the world. The Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, marked the appearance on the scene of a new power, Japan. This war meant international prestige for the Japanese Empire thanks to its Imperial Navy and its military power, this supremacy would end up leading to another terrible bloody war, World War II. Manchuria was the seed of the entire conflict, which is why we have entitled this article How Manchuria Changed the Worldwe will know what happened and what consequences it had.

manchurian background

To understand what happened in Manchuria, we must know the background of this conflict. after the first war Sino-Japanese Between the years 1894-1895, Japan annexed the Island of Taiwan, the Liaodong Peninsula (where the important base of Port Arthur was located) and the Korean protectorate. Japan was later forced to cede Port Arthur to Russia.

Russia also wanted the Korean peninsula, different meetings were prepared in order to reach a good conclusion in the negotiations between both nations, Russia and Japanbut these did not bear fruit, so Japan, fearing lose their dominance in koreadecided to go to war.

The dispute ended with the Imperial Japanese Army Victory, who obtained convincingly, victories that made Japan a world powerit was the first time that an Asian country defeated a European power.

Japan had just established itself as an important country in the world order. On the contrary, the defeat provoked in the Russian Empire, a mood of dissatisfaction and rejection towards a corrupt government, causing what was called Russian Revolution of 1905.

Invasion of Manchuria

With this situation we arrive at September 18, 1931. Near the town of Mukden, in Manchuria, where an incident took place where a section of the South Manchurian Railway, was dynamited. The railway was owned by the Japanese railway company. This railway attack was the pretext to occupy Manchuria.

Japan accused from incident to Chinaalthough suspicions hovered among the international community that in reality it had been a sabotage of the Japanese army itself that guarded the line to occupy the region and annex the territory under Chinese control.

In 1932, Japan had expelled Chinese troops from the region, proclaiming the Republic of Manchukuo. Despite granting it the status of an independent country, it was really a japanese protectorate with a government under the orders of Japan, headed by the last Emperor of China Puyi, who had been removed from the throne after being overthrown after the Chinese Revolution of 1912.

In the year 1934, Puyí Was proclaimed Emperor of Manchukuo, a title that it would hold until 1945, when Japan was defeated in World War II.

Japan invades China

The protests that China raised before the Society of nations and after listening to the explanations given by Japan, about the anarchy that prevailed in China after the revolution, and the need it had to defend its interests, the League of Nations condemned the Japanese country, in addition to not recognizing the new state of Manchukuo. Japan abandoned its post in the League of Nations in 1933.

The reasons for the Japanese invasion of Manchuria, was due, among other things, to Japan’s dependence on trade with the US. The crack of 29, which caused the US stock markets to fall, also affected Japan. The only solution to save this dire situation was territorial expansion, raw materials were needed and Manchuria was famous for its abundant coal mines.

The Chinese situation favored Japan’s imperialist plans. Manchukuo was the beginning of a strategic plan invasion of all China.

The presence of the former Chinese Emperor in Manchukuo legitimized the expansion to the south. In the year 1937, Japan was immersed in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Despite everything, he had conquered French Indochina, the Dutch Antilles and Malaysia.

Japan in World War II

Japan had annexed all the territories that had been European colonies and that after the prevailing economic crisis in Europe, as a result of the American crisis, had been abandoned.

In the year 1940, Japan had become an ally important for a conflict that seemed to be about to explode. Tokyo signed on September 27, 1940, the Tripartite Pact, by which joined the terrible Berlin-Rome axisafter signing a non-aggression commitment with the Soviet Union.

Japan went like this, to have the primacy and control in Asia, something that worried the United States, this fact was the germ of World War II. It had all started 10 years earlier, with the explosion of a small railway section. In 1948, after the end of World War II, the Manchuria region became part of the People’s Republic of China. In the year 1959, Manchuria was divided between Mongolia and China.

Consequences of the invasion of Manchuria

With the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931the tension between Japan and the United States began to grow. In 1937, in the midst of the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese attack on a US ship the Panay, together with the massacre of Nanjing where Japanese troops annihilated the population of Nanjing, it turned the international community against Japan, now alarmed by Japanese expansion.

This fear made countries like the United States, the United Kingdom and France finance the purchase of weapons for the armies of the Republic of China.

When Japan annexes the French Indochina In order to control the supplies arriving in China, the Americans stopped sending supplies. Little by little, relations grew tense until they ended with the attack on Pearl Harbour.

The attack sought neutralization of the Fleet that the United States they had in their Pacific base, in this way the route would be clear for Japan’s advance towards the british malaysia or the Dutch Indies, where he would gain access to the important oil and rubber resources.

But the Japanese plan was truncated, the conflict ended after the US attack. It entered the war with a clear objective that it would fulfill in 1945, with the two atomic bombs.

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How Manchuria Changed the World | Photo report