Japan remained a closed kingdom until Commodore Matthew Perry of the U. S. Navy sailed into Tokyo Bay in 1854. Unable to resist the superior technology of the West, Japan signed treaties opening the islands to trade with the United States. More treaties with Great Britain, France, and Russia followed. Humiliated by the sudden revelation of their technical inferiority, powerful Japanese clans overthrew the feeble government of the Shogun and restored the Emperor as head of government. Then, they embarked upon a campaign of rapid “westernization.” Within a few decades, Japan had established a constitutional democracy, with a modern economy and a modern military. In the eyes of her leaders, Japan was ready to take her place as an equal partner with the Western powers as a leading “player” in Asian affairs.
Russo-Japanese War In 1904, Japan went to war with Russia over shared ambitions to control Manchuria, a province of northeastern China. In 1905, the Japanese inflicted a stunning defeat on the Russian Navy at Port Arthur (Dairen). President Theodore Roosevelt negotiated a peace treaty, the Treaty of Portsmouth , between the two nations which gave Japan a protectorate in Korea as well as banking and commercial interests in Manchuria. Japan had “arrived.”
World War I When war erupted in Europe in 1914, Japan wanted to come into the war on the side of her ally, Great Britain, but the British politely rebuffed Japan’s offer. The British feared that Japan would use the war as an excuse to grab more territory in China—and thus increase competition against British interests there. Eventually, the Japanese did enter the war as an ally (with British approval) but never played a majormilitary role.
Versailles Conference In 1919, Japan, along with other victors, gathered in Paris to divide up the spoils of war. However, the “Big Four”—the U.S., Great Britain, France, and Italy—met in private to hammer out terms, and only later presented the terms to the Japanese and other nations (including the losers, Germany) as a fait accompli. Japan received almost nothing for her efforts in the war. Her leaders felt humiliated by what they saw as a snub by the West.
Militarism and Nationalism Having failed to received recognition as an equal by the Western powers, Japan’s civilian government lost credibility with the voters. A new generation of military leaders rose to power, preaching an extreme form of nationalism. They said the Japanese were a superior race and as such were destined to rule Asia. Secret military societies plotted to destroy the civilian government, assassinating government leaders and destabilizing the country.
Above: Photos of slain Japanese leaders; backdrop is a photo
of one of their funerals.
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