Napoleon's Victory [LONG]
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Map of Asia in 1900, at the outbreak of the Great War
General Overview
Postwar Asia was marked by disappointment and aspirations by the two leading Asian powers, China and Japan. In a parallel of Europe, the Far East was divided into two camps, those for China and those for Japan. However, both nations had their fair share of setbacks. Japan was clearly the victorious power in Asia during the Great War and only the failure of her European allies stripped Japan of her great victories. China was disappointed in its own half-victory, propped up by its victorious European allies. Admittedly, China had won against Russia on its own but Japan had crushed the Chinese navy and occupied numerous coastal cities. Neither country was particularly pleased in the postwar years and vowed to change their luck in the coming years. The only problem was that the other country stood in the way.
Almost immediately after the Congress of Copenhagen was signed, Japan renounced it and refused to limit her navy. This earned her the ire of her wartime ally, Britain, but also the admiration of an ambitious Russian officer in the Far East named Anton Morchenko. French power in the Far East was severely limited and the Philippines were sold to Japan after the war if Japan promised to limit her navy. Unable to resist imperial expansion, Japan agreed, albeit temporarily. The Imperial Japanese Navy still expanded and modernized and became one the greatest navies in the world, rivaling the French Navy and far outclassing the small American Pacific Fleet. The Royal Navy, heavily limited by postwar restrictions, nevertheless kept up a heavy presence in the Far East, to protect its interests in India and the Indies.
The Japanese Emperor during the Great War, Nomihito, was a great proponent of expansion, modernization and industry. In spite of this, in the years after the Great War he followed a temporary path of modernization, knowing that the time was not yet ripe for another war. His greatest enemy was nearby imperial China, a country he viewed with contempt. As Japan continued to modernize and industrialize, the more appealing expansion into China became. In a 1916 letter to a major Kyoto newspaper, “Colonel Suribachi” stressed the importance of expansion overseas to keep the rapidly growing Japanese population supplied with natural resources. He praised the emperor for wanting to spread Japanese power and listed the order in which Japan would come to dominate the world: Korea, then northern China, then all of China, then all of Asia, then the entire world. It was a bold letter and there was speculation to its author, but it struck a nationalist chord in the hearts of many Japanese.
China was undergoing its own rapid modernization attempts. Defeats in the Great War had shown its military to be vulnerable and under the Emperor Yongzhi, the imperial budget spent millions on new weapons, uniforms and training. The imperial system continued to prosper and millions of men continued to take the civil service exams that had been a part of Chinese culture for thousands of years. Supported by French investment, and increasingly by American and even British investors as well, China enjoyed good relations with the West. However, a resurgent Russia to its north, though focused on Europe, was still threatening to the Chinese. This changed in 1925 when Russia and China signed a non-aggression pact for respective reasons. Russia was indeed Eurocentric and no longer had large interests in the Far East (as evidenced by its giving away of the Siberian coastline to Japan in the years following WWI). China, on the other hand, wished to focus its energies against its upstart Asian neighbor.
The Imperial Chinese Navy was a weak force, nearly totally destroyed in the Great War. In the 1910s, Emperor Yongzhi knew it might become necessary to rebuild its navy in a new war against Japan and set about finding advisors, engineers and officers for his new navy. Among them were numerous British officers who were out of work due to Copenhagen's limitations on Versailles. American and French officers also joined the high-paying jobs offered by the Chinese Navy and under their joint leadership, the Chinese navy modernized and grew. In fact, in 1924 China launched one of the largest battleships in the world, the Ching Yuen. This only furthered the naval arms race in the Far East, an epic battle between China and Japan that only fueled their rivalry. The Imperial Japanese Navy already had a great head start, but massive expenditure in naval expansion by the Chinese gave it a massive boost in the 1910s and 1920s.
Overall, China learned from its mistakes in the Great War and continued to further its interests by copying and leaning on European powers. France remained a staunch Chinese ally and still retained great influence in the imperial court. However, the aggressiveness of Japan drew Britain toward China since the British viewed the imperialist Japanese a threat to Britain's own interests in Asia. The Far East was a very different world, with an entirely different set of agendas and players, than in Europe, half a world away.
Elsewhere in Asia, the French-dominated Empire of Indochina became a prosperous, modernizing country. The local court, ruled by Emperor Duy Tan, was increasingly the scene of fighting between a French faction, Chinese faction and Japanese faction. Though nominally independent and still controlled by France, China and particularly Japan had seized on the opportunity to spread their influence in the wealthy area, beginning in the imperial court. Indochina, as the last major French holding in the Far East, was an important military base for France. The French Far East Fleet was based in Indochina, as well as several thousand French regulars whose purpose was to train local Indochinese to form their own military.
The rest of the Far East was effectively under the control of Europeans. The numerous Pacific islands were about evenly split between France and Britain, with British holdings extending all the way to the Sandwich Islands. Asia and the Pacific was Britain’s stronghold but this was quickly being threatened by the growing power of China and particularly Japan. The alliance the British and Japanese had during the Great War quickly faded away with Japanese disappointment at the postwar settlement. Camaraderie gave way to rivalry and the clouds of war soon darkened the Far East.
Korean War (1926-28)
The rivalry between modern Japan and China stretched back into the 1850s and in some way began as a result of Franco-British rivalry. Britain befriended and allied Japan and in response France began to court the Chinese. Both relationships seemed to benefit all involved parties until in the postwar era when conservative Japanese leaders embraced aggressiveness and a “with us or against us” attitude. China, on the other hand, remained close to France and increasingly Britain. The Chinese depended heavily on foreign investment and power and with threats from Russia and Japan, they needed all the help they could get.
The Korean War was the manifestation of all the negative feeling between China and Japan that developed after the Great War. The outbreak of the war was caused by numerous reasons such as each country’s view of the other. To China, Japan was a threat, a militaristic power of barbarians that threatened the Chinese way of life. Japan was like an uncouth younger brother who time and again beat the older brother in physical fights. To Japan, China was a vast, sprawling opportunity. Its millions of peasants would look beautiful in Japanese-run industries and its natural resources would excellently benefit Japan. China was like an old, distant relative, uncultured and without manners that needed to be thrown out of the family tree at once. China and Japan also fought because of the recent arms race. Japan was clearly the largest naval power in Asia and wished to leave it that way. The recent, rapid increase in the Imperial Chinese Navy was viewed as a direct threat. Lastly, the Korean War was fought as a direct result of imperialism. More immediately, it was a direct result of Japanese imperialism, who viewed (and according to the letter by “Colonel Suribachi”) Korea as the first step toward world domination. However, more subtly, the Chinese desire to hold onto Korea was a sign of Chinese imperialism. They would not let go of Korea without a fight.
And fight they did. On June 4th, 1926 the Prince of Korea (a member of the Chinese family who ruled over the Korean Peninsula in the name of the Empire) was assassinated by pro-Japanese Korean activists and immediately installed their own leader as the rightful King of Korea. A mere puppet for Japan, he invited them to take over the defense of the new Korean nation to protect against potential Chinese aggression. Furious, the Emperor Yongzhi ordered elements of the Chinese army to occupy Korea and oust the usurper. However, at the same time, the Japanese embassy in Nanking sent a letter to the imperial court, letting it known that any Chinese soldier that stepped foot in Korea would be violating the rights of a Japanese ally. Japan would not stand for that. Even more enraged, Yongzhi ordered an immediate declaration of war on Japan. “Let us see how they like our new guns” he said. Hundreds of miles away in Tokyo, when word reached Emperor Nomihito, he merely scoffed “this will be easy”. War between the two great Asian powers thus began on June 7th, 1926.
The beginning of the war was fought mainly on water. The Chinese strategy involved blocking off Japanese troop ships before they even got to Korea. This failed spectacularly because of two naval battles, the Battles of Busan Strait and Tsushima Strait, fought on June 23rd and July 2nd respectively. In these battles, the Imperial Japanese Navy soundly defeated the Imperial Chinese Navy. However, in both battles, the Chinese managed to escape with most of their ships and lost the battles with minimal losses. The newest ships of the ICN performed well but were simply outclassed by the Japanese firepower and seamanship. Though they survived, Chinese ships were forced back to their home ports, allowing Japanese soldiers to pour into Korea and into the arms of their puppet.
The land war took up the majority of the fighting of the Korean War. The initial Japanese invasion was met with popular support from the Korean people and with their aid, the Japanese advanced quickly up the peninsula, albeit with minimal Chinese resistance. The main Chinese defensive lines lay on the Han River, with the largest concentration of troops located in Seoul. The Battle of Han River and the Battle of Seoul were large-scale battles fought in September and October of 1926. The bloody stalemate of the battles required further reinforcements and millions of Chinese and Japanese men converged onto Korea. The Japanese were unable to seize the local capital, Seoul, which had the largest concentration of Chinese troops. Instead, in December of 1926, the Japanese launched an offensive on the eastern side of the peninsula and drove northward, effectively bypassing Seoul. For much of early 1927, the Battle-cum-Siege of Seoul was ignored, as Japan’s armies pressed north, then northwest from the eastern side of the peninsula. In May of 1927, bold Chinese commanders launched a daring offensive west from Seoul which aimed to cut off the advancing Japanese to the north. The Chinese were initially extremely successful; for two weeks the Japanese forces in Korea were cut into two parts. They were eventually beat back into Seoul, however, in extremely heavy fighting that cost hundreds of thousands of lives. By now, the regular, professional armies of China and Japan were exhausted. An October, 1927 Japanese offensive reached the Taedong River and there the Japanese began to build defenses against an impending Japanese attack. Further attacks consolidated Japanese control of the large river. Meanwhile, in Seoul, the Imperial Japanese Army effectively surrounded the city but the armies had reached a stalemate. In February, 1928 an attempt to re-supply the city via the ICN was beat back by the IJN. As Seoul starved, Chinese resolve for the war began to wane. The Emperor was disillusioned in his armies and through neutral countries sought a peace agreement.
When the war broke out, all major nations declared neutrality. As the war dragged on, various countries offered to mediate the conflict but repeatedly China and Japan refused. Finally, in March, 1928 they accepted Australia’s offer and delegations met in Adelaide to discuss the terms of peace. The negotiations were stiff and angry but the Chinese delegation knew it was a defeated country. However, Japan simply demanded Korea up to the Taedong River with minimal reparations. Shocked at their modest demands, the Chinese agreed. The Treaty of Adelaide was signed on March 29th, 1926, thus ending the Korean War.
Japan was exultant. China was not nearly as exultant but were pleased at the easy terms. Nevertheless, the war has cost some 80,000 Japanese, 130,000 Chinese and approximately 250,000 Korean civilian lives. It was a bloody affair, as wars tend to be, but greatly stroked the growing ego of the Empire of Japan. More land was added onto its growing empire and Japan’s foreign policy got even bolder and aggressive. Its tough victory over China was a great morale booster for the entire nation. The death of Emperor Nomihito the following year was a time of great sadness for the Japanese nation. He has ruled for thirty-seven years, a time in which Japan truly entered the world stage as a Great Power and added land in the Philippines, Russia and Korea to its power. Nomihito’s son, Mitsuhito, took the reigns of the Empire, and almost immediately set about a new, bold policy to expound upon the imperial glories of his father.
In China, the old Emperor Yongzhi died in 1931 amidst another military reform movement. Military leaders studied the defeat in Korea closely and the entire Chinese military was reformed from the top to bottom beginning in 1928. The Navy, a defeated branch, was built upon and it continued to grow despite the threat from Japan. The defeats at Bosan and Tsushima were looked upon as opportunities as mistakes and the Chinese Navy grew to even greater heights. Yongzhi’s successor was his youngest child and only son, Guangxu. He was an enthusiastic and intelligent young man, born before the Great War. He grew up in a strong anti-Japanese time and he itched to get revenge against the eastern devils.
Japanese Aggression in the Indies and Indochina
To say that the Japanese victory in the Korean War emboldened the Empire of the Rising Sun would be an understatement. In 1928, Japan was on top of the world. The ascension of Emperor Mitsuhito, a young, hot-headed man, to the imperial throne, was a further breath of fresh air to the Japanese. Although hardly a constitutional monarchy, political parties still dominated the Japanese Diet and the 1928 elections swept the conservative, imperial traditionalists to power. In fact, the major split in Japanese politics was not between left and right but between those in power who wished to wage all-out war with the west soon and those who wished to wait. The latter group won and the Japanese continued to build up their military, particularly the navy.
In 1931, Japan signed a treaty of alliance with Russia and Prussia. This increased their ‘Bond of Trust’ and the three nations became known by a number of names, including the Triplet, BOT, and the League of Conservatism. The Triplet was the most popular international name for the alliance, though in 1934 the name was changed to The Quadruple as Sweden joined the alliance.
With new allies and a powerful military, Japan effectively severed its formerly strong ties with Britain by involving itself in the British East Indies. A British colonial enterprise throughout most of the nineteenth century, it had recently been entered into the Imperial Parliament under Dominion Status in 1926. The Dominion of the East Indies was one of the first members of the Imperial Parliament and a highly prized British colony due to its richness in natural resources. Japan, however, looked hungrily at the massive archipelago. Beginning in 1931 the Imperial Japanese Navy began to steam boldly throughout the East Indies, ignoring the few Royal Navy ships in the area. It was a clear violation of the area’s territorial rights but Japan ignored the Dominion’s complaints. The forays into the Dominion’s maritime territory served to undermine its national integrity and also show the locals that the British were not entirely in charge. For the most part, the British were forced to ignore the Japanese since their naval capabilities in the Far East were far outclasses by the full might of the Japanese Navy.
The two countries reached a crisis when, on May 17th 1933, several hundred Japanese marines landed on Biak, a small island north of large New Guinea. It was a blatant act of aggression but the British, rather than declare war, resorted to diplomacy. Negotiations lasted for nearly a year and the initial anger the British felt when the Japanese first landed gave way to apathy as negotiations dragged on and on. The Japanese argued that Biak was technically not British territory and was open to colonization from any power. The British disagreed and proved the Japanese wrong time and again but the invaders refused to withdraw from the small island. Eventually, the British agreed to sell the island to the Japanese. The Biak Crisis was crucial in the Pacific because it under-minded British authority. To locals, the British weakness was a sign of cracks in the new British imperial system, especially in distant frontiers like Biak. The acquisition of Biak was important to Japan because it gave them their southernmost port, an important area for future operations. They also gained the respect of many East Indian locals.
By 1934, British and Japanese relations had soured to the point that there were hardly any diplomatic ties at all. The British knew of the impending Japanese threat to its east and sent thousands of men and many ships to the area. They even signed a treaty of friendship with China. All of this occurred with French blessing, who oddly found it, for the first time, allied with Britain. Both European powers looked at the hotheaded Japanese Emperor as a prime threat to their Far Eastern interests. On July 14th, 1935, France and Britain signed the Saigon Accords, a defensive alliance limited to the Far East. It was a monumental step in their foreign affairs and admittedly the new allies looked at each other suspiciously after generations of animosity.
While Saigon was the scene of the forging of a new relationship between France and Britain, a few hundred miles to north in the imperial capital of Hue, the imperial Indochinese court was the scene of much intrigue. The Emperor of Indochina, Duy Tan, was a member of the Nguyen family, the royal family of Vietnam. Indeed, he was a puppet of the French, but he still presided over his own court and day after day was sucked into drama that mainly involved the pro-Japanese faction of his court. Led by Ngo Duc, the pro-Japanese faction was openly anti-French, anti-Chinese and secretly advocated the removal of Duy Tan. Ngo Duc, as a distant relative to Duy Tan, would then place himself on the throne and advocate joining the Japanese Empire. It was a plan that had worked to some extent in Korea. The Japanese secretly supported the endeavor and supplied Ngo Duc with various small arms to launch his coup.
Left:Ngo Duc. Right: The pompous court of Duy Tan (pictured) was often farcical since the French still retained a huge amount of power.
When Ngo Duc’s plot was discovered in November, 1935 he was immediately arrested and thrown in jail. Tried in a French court, he was convicted of treason and sentenced to death. Early on the day of his execution, however, his followers stormed the jail and after a vicious firefight, managed to rescue Ngo Duc. He was shot in the process and was forced to have an arm removed later. During the battle, a staunch pro-Japanese follower of Duc planted a Japanese flag on the roof of the jail. This, coupled with the sound of gunfire, prompted an inexperienced group of local Indochinese militia to believe that the Japanese were attacking Hue. Rather than wait for orders or clarification, the militiamen surrounded the Japanese consulate and burned it to the ground killing the entire staff including the consul. Understandably, the Japanese were furious. France again and again sent apologies to Tokyo but again and again were rebuffed. Asia reached a crisis point.
British Dominions
The British Empire, also known as the Union of Dominions, was indeed a union of various dominions. They included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, the East Indies, East Africa, Central Africa and the Sandwich Islands. The British Isles themselves were equal to the other Dominions in the Imperial Parliament, although they were not of Dominion status. They were simply the British Isles. The consolidation of the empire into a Union that met regularly was a great success for many in the empire who viewed the system as more beneficial to the former colonies. The consolidation lasted from 1914 with the Cape Town Agreement to 1933 with the addition of the Sandwich Islands as a Dominion.
The Imperial Parliament was comprised of a fluctuating number of members that changed with every meeting. In the 1935 meeting, for example, the Parliament had 428 members, compared to the original number in 1919 of just 84. Each Dominion had a different manner of choosing their MPs into the Imperial Parliament. Canada, the Sandwich Islands and New Zealand had the most democratic method of choosing, with candidates winning seats in the Imperial Parliament in direct elections that always coincided with regional and national elections. They were nationally elected candidates and in both Dominions the voters would have to choose from a long list of names. (Candidates would often joke that those with names at the beginning of the alphabet had a greater chance of being chosen just because of the sheer list of names would overwhelm the voter). In Australia, East Africa and South Africa, members were chosen by the local Parliament, often from among themselves. The Imperial Parliament was seen as prestigious and an opportunity so often Imperial Parliament membership was designated for the more senior Australian and South African Parliament members. Central Africa and the East Indies probably had the least democratic method. In Central Africa, members of Parliament were chosen directly by the Prime Minister of the Dominion. In the East Indies, members were chosen by a small committee comprised of the Prime Minister, his cabinet and members of the opposition (the latter just to ensure that no cronyism existed). India had an interesting method and as the largest Dominion in population, often resulted in confusion. People wishing to enter the Imperial Parliament first had to enter a petition with 2,000 signatures and they ran in local elections, then regional elections. The maximum number of MPs from India was set every year by the Imperial Parliament and they were chosen from the top winners of the regional elections; either one, two, or three from each region.
In the 1920s and 1930s the Imperial Parliament was very exclusive and was limited to white, land-owning men. This was the de facto law and very few native men or women wished to run. The de jure law said that any man could run and in 1944 this changed to anyone, including women. However, in the early days of the smaller Imperial Parliament, only white men were allowed to enter.
In the 1800s, there were numerous anti-British movements in India with a variety of goals that included the lowering of taxes to kicking the British out all together. Independence movements existed but were typically disorganized and lacked national unity. There were oftentimes disagreements in independence movement groups that ran on the lines of religion, race and wealth. The most successful was called the National Movement for India, led by Chandra Chatterjee. It even advocated terrorist attacks on British targets, though such things never occurred. India was still comprised of a number of princely states that stressed loyalty to the British crown. They were more or less opposed to total independence and many Indians followered their lead, though probably for different reasons. The numerous princes benefited from British rule and did not wish to see them go. Most independence groups were silenced in 1924 when India was upgraded to Dominion status and Indians essentially gained independence in domestic affairs. There was slight trouble from fringe Muslim and Buddhist groups because the Dominion of India included all South Asia. They feared oppressive rule from the Hindu majority. The British united them all, however, by retaining final authority in the entire Dominion.
The first non-white member of the Imperial Parliament was an Indian that became a member in the 1935 meeting. Penchayat Pratap was a fiercely popular native of Calcutta who was elected even though many Indians could not vote in the local and regional elections. It is said that even the whitest of the British were moved by his oratorical skills. Pratap set a precedent and in the 1937 meeting, five more Indians were elected. This was a huge move for the British Empire and the foundation for a multi-colored Imperial Parliament was set.
The Dominion of the East Indies, with its capital at Singapore, remained a vast collection of islands, cultures, languages and degrees of reception toward British rule. Many people were outright rebellious toward British rule and as a result the East Indies was the most draconian of the Dominions. The welfare of British-owned plantations and businesses were put before the health of the natives with limited reforms. As such, the East Indies remained a sort of backwater in the empire until the Japanese began to look at the area keenly in the early 1930s. The Biak Crisis opened British eyes to the vulnerability to this Dominion and the ineptitude of the East Indian military. To the south, Australia and New Zealand plodded on their own quiet paths. As Dominions, they carried pull in the Imperial Parliament and often brought Pacific issues to light. Both Dominions were generally unreceptive to the concerns of their respective indigenous populations and consequently remained racist societies.
Map of Asia in 1930. The expansion of Japan is evident, despite their loss in the Great War.
The previous series of maps generated 500 views and one comment. This is a very sad ratio! I hope you all enjoy this update on Asia! Coming soon: Middle-East, Africa and Americas.
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Asia: 1905-1935
Map of Asia in 1900, at the outbreak of the Great War
General Overview
Postwar Asia was marked by disappointment and aspirations by the two leading Asian powers, China and Japan. In a parallel of Europe, the Far East was divided into two camps, those for China and those for Japan. However, both nations had their fair share of setbacks. Japan was clearly the victorious power in Asia during the Great War and only the failure of her European allies stripped Japan of her great victories. China was disappointed in its own half-victory, propped up by its victorious European allies. Admittedly, China had won against Russia on its own but Japan had crushed the Chinese navy and occupied numerous coastal cities. Neither country was particularly pleased in the postwar years and vowed to change their luck in the coming years. The only problem was that the other country stood in the way.
Almost immediately after the Congress of Copenhagen was signed, Japan renounced it and refused to limit her navy. This earned her the ire of her wartime ally, Britain, but also the admiration of an ambitious Russian officer in the Far East named Anton Morchenko. French power in the Far East was severely limited and the Philippines were sold to Japan after the war if Japan promised to limit her navy. Unable to resist imperial expansion, Japan agreed, albeit temporarily. The Imperial Japanese Navy still expanded and modernized and became one the greatest navies in the world, rivaling the French Navy and far outclassing the small American Pacific Fleet. The Royal Navy, heavily limited by postwar restrictions, nevertheless kept up a heavy presence in the Far East, to protect its interests in India and the Indies.
The Japanese Emperor during the Great War, Nomihito, was a great proponent of expansion, modernization and industry. In spite of this, in the years after the Great War he followed a temporary path of modernization, knowing that the time was not yet ripe for another war. His greatest enemy was nearby imperial China, a country he viewed with contempt. As Japan continued to modernize and industrialize, the more appealing expansion into China became. In a 1916 letter to a major Kyoto newspaper, “Colonel Suribachi” stressed the importance of expansion overseas to keep the rapidly growing Japanese population supplied with natural resources. He praised the emperor for wanting to spread Japanese power and listed the order in which Japan would come to dominate the world: Korea, then northern China, then all of China, then all of Asia, then the entire world. It was a bold letter and there was speculation to its author, but it struck a nationalist chord in the hearts of many Japanese.
China was undergoing its own rapid modernization attempts. Defeats in the Great War had shown its military to be vulnerable and under the Emperor Yongzhi, the imperial budget spent millions on new weapons, uniforms and training. The imperial system continued to prosper and millions of men continued to take the civil service exams that had been a part of Chinese culture for thousands of years. Supported by French investment, and increasingly by American and even British investors as well, China enjoyed good relations with the West. However, a resurgent Russia to its north, though focused on Europe, was still threatening to the Chinese. This changed in 1925 when Russia and China signed a non-aggression pact for respective reasons. Russia was indeed Eurocentric and no longer had large interests in the Far East (as evidenced by its giving away of the Siberian coastline to Japan in the years following WWI). China, on the other hand, wished to focus its energies against its upstart Asian neighbor.
The Imperial Chinese Navy was a weak force, nearly totally destroyed in the Great War. In the 1910s, Emperor Yongzhi knew it might become necessary to rebuild its navy in a new war against Japan and set about finding advisors, engineers and officers for his new navy. Among them were numerous British officers who were out of work due to Copenhagen's limitations on Versailles. American and French officers also joined the high-paying jobs offered by the Chinese Navy and under their joint leadership, the Chinese navy modernized and grew. In fact, in 1924 China launched one of the largest battleships in the world, the Ching Yuen. This only furthered the naval arms race in the Far East, an epic battle between China and Japan that only fueled their rivalry. The Imperial Japanese Navy already had a great head start, but massive expenditure in naval expansion by the Chinese gave it a massive boost in the 1910s and 1920s.
Overall, China learned from its mistakes in the Great War and continued to further its interests by copying and leaning on European powers. France remained a staunch Chinese ally and still retained great influence in the imperial court. However, the aggressiveness of Japan drew Britain toward China since the British viewed the imperialist Japanese a threat to Britain's own interests in Asia. The Far East was a very different world, with an entirely different set of agendas and players, than in Europe, half a world away.
Elsewhere in Asia, the French-dominated Empire of Indochina became a prosperous, modernizing country. The local court, ruled by Emperor Duy Tan, was increasingly the scene of fighting between a French faction, Chinese faction and Japanese faction. Though nominally independent and still controlled by France, China and particularly Japan had seized on the opportunity to spread their influence in the wealthy area, beginning in the imperial court. Indochina, as the last major French holding in the Far East, was an important military base for France. The French Far East Fleet was based in Indochina, as well as several thousand French regulars whose purpose was to train local Indochinese to form their own military.
The rest of the Far East was effectively under the control of Europeans. The numerous Pacific islands were about evenly split between France and Britain, with British holdings extending all the way to the Sandwich Islands. Asia and the Pacific was Britain’s stronghold but this was quickly being threatened by the growing power of China and particularly Japan. The alliance the British and Japanese had during the Great War quickly faded away with Japanese disappointment at the postwar settlement. Camaraderie gave way to rivalry and the clouds of war soon darkened the Far East.
Korean War (1926-28)
The rivalry between modern Japan and China stretched back into the 1850s and in some way began as a result of Franco-British rivalry. Britain befriended and allied Japan and in response France began to court the Chinese. Both relationships seemed to benefit all involved parties until in the postwar era when conservative Japanese leaders embraced aggressiveness and a “with us or against us” attitude. China, on the other hand, remained close to France and increasingly Britain. The Chinese depended heavily on foreign investment and power and with threats from Russia and Japan, they needed all the help they could get.
The Korean War was the manifestation of all the negative feeling between China and Japan that developed after the Great War. The outbreak of the war was caused by numerous reasons such as each country’s view of the other. To China, Japan was a threat, a militaristic power of barbarians that threatened the Chinese way of life. Japan was like an uncouth younger brother who time and again beat the older brother in physical fights. To Japan, China was a vast, sprawling opportunity. Its millions of peasants would look beautiful in Japanese-run industries and its natural resources would excellently benefit Japan. China was like an old, distant relative, uncultured and without manners that needed to be thrown out of the family tree at once. China and Japan also fought because of the recent arms race. Japan was clearly the largest naval power in Asia and wished to leave it that way. The recent, rapid increase in the Imperial Chinese Navy was viewed as a direct threat. Lastly, the Korean War was fought as a direct result of imperialism. More immediately, it was a direct result of Japanese imperialism, who viewed (and according to the letter by “Colonel Suribachi”) Korea as the first step toward world domination. However, more subtly, the Chinese desire to hold onto Korea was a sign of Chinese imperialism. They would not let go of Korea without a fight.
And fight they did. On June 4th, 1926 the Prince of Korea (a member of the Chinese family who ruled over the Korean Peninsula in the name of the Empire) was assassinated by pro-Japanese Korean activists and immediately installed their own leader as the rightful King of Korea. A mere puppet for Japan, he invited them to take over the defense of the new Korean nation to protect against potential Chinese aggression. Furious, the Emperor Yongzhi ordered elements of the Chinese army to occupy Korea and oust the usurper. However, at the same time, the Japanese embassy in Nanking sent a letter to the imperial court, letting it known that any Chinese soldier that stepped foot in Korea would be violating the rights of a Japanese ally. Japan would not stand for that. Even more enraged, Yongzhi ordered an immediate declaration of war on Japan. “Let us see how they like our new guns” he said. Hundreds of miles away in Tokyo, when word reached Emperor Nomihito, he merely scoffed “this will be easy”. War between the two great Asian powers thus began on June 7th, 1926.
The beginning of the war was fought mainly on water. The Chinese strategy involved blocking off Japanese troop ships before they even got to Korea. This failed spectacularly because of two naval battles, the Battles of Busan Strait and Tsushima Strait, fought on June 23rd and July 2nd respectively. In these battles, the Imperial Japanese Navy soundly defeated the Imperial Chinese Navy. However, in both battles, the Chinese managed to escape with most of their ships and lost the battles with minimal losses. The newest ships of the ICN performed well but were simply outclassed by the Japanese firepower and seamanship. Though they survived, Chinese ships were forced back to their home ports, allowing Japanese soldiers to pour into Korea and into the arms of their puppet.
The land war took up the majority of the fighting of the Korean War. The initial Japanese invasion was met with popular support from the Korean people and with their aid, the Japanese advanced quickly up the peninsula, albeit with minimal Chinese resistance. The main Chinese defensive lines lay on the Han River, with the largest concentration of troops located in Seoul. The Battle of Han River and the Battle of Seoul were large-scale battles fought in September and October of 1926. The bloody stalemate of the battles required further reinforcements and millions of Chinese and Japanese men converged onto Korea. The Japanese were unable to seize the local capital, Seoul, which had the largest concentration of Chinese troops. Instead, in December of 1926, the Japanese launched an offensive on the eastern side of the peninsula and drove northward, effectively bypassing Seoul. For much of early 1927, the Battle-cum-Siege of Seoul was ignored, as Japan’s armies pressed north, then northwest from the eastern side of the peninsula. In May of 1927, bold Chinese commanders launched a daring offensive west from Seoul which aimed to cut off the advancing Japanese to the north. The Chinese were initially extremely successful; for two weeks the Japanese forces in Korea were cut into two parts. They were eventually beat back into Seoul, however, in extremely heavy fighting that cost hundreds of thousands of lives. By now, the regular, professional armies of China and Japan were exhausted. An October, 1927 Japanese offensive reached the Taedong River and there the Japanese began to build defenses against an impending Japanese attack. Further attacks consolidated Japanese control of the large river. Meanwhile, in Seoul, the Imperial Japanese Army effectively surrounded the city but the armies had reached a stalemate. In February, 1928 an attempt to re-supply the city via the ICN was beat back by the IJN. As Seoul starved, Chinese resolve for the war began to wane. The Emperor was disillusioned in his armies and through neutral countries sought a peace agreement.
When the war broke out, all major nations declared neutrality. As the war dragged on, various countries offered to mediate the conflict but repeatedly China and Japan refused. Finally, in March, 1928 they accepted Australia’s offer and delegations met in Adelaide to discuss the terms of peace. The negotiations were stiff and angry but the Chinese delegation knew it was a defeated country. However, Japan simply demanded Korea up to the Taedong River with minimal reparations. Shocked at their modest demands, the Chinese agreed. The Treaty of Adelaide was signed on March 29th, 1926, thus ending the Korean War.
Japan was exultant. China was not nearly as exultant but were pleased at the easy terms. Nevertheless, the war has cost some 80,000 Japanese, 130,000 Chinese and approximately 250,000 Korean civilian lives. It was a bloody affair, as wars tend to be, but greatly stroked the growing ego of the Empire of Japan. More land was added onto its growing empire and Japan’s foreign policy got even bolder and aggressive. Its tough victory over China was a great morale booster for the entire nation. The death of Emperor Nomihito the following year was a time of great sadness for the Japanese nation. He has ruled for thirty-seven years, a time in which Japan truly entered the world stage as a Great Power and added land in the Philippines, Russia and Korea to its power. Nomihito’s son, Mitsuhito, took the reigns of the Empire, and almost immediately set about a new, bold policy to expound upon the imperial glories of his father.
In China, the old Emperor Yongzhi died in 1931 amidst another military reform movement. Military leaders studied the defeat in Korea closely and the entire Chinese military was reformed from the top to bottom beginning in 1928. The Navy, a defeated branch, was built upon and it continued to grow despite the threat from Japan. The defeats at Bosan and Tsushima were looked upon as opportunities as mistakes and the Chinese Navy grew to even greater heights. Yongzhi’s successor was his youngest child and only son, Guangxu. He was an enthusiastic and intelligent young man, born before the Great War. He grew up in a strong anti-Japanese time and he itched to get revenge against the eastern devils.
Japanese Aggression in the Indies and Indochina
To say that the Japanese victory in the Korean War emboldened the Empire of the Rising Sun would be an understatement. In 1928, Japan was on top of the world. The ascension of Emperor Mitsuhito, a young, hot-headed man, to the imperial throne, was a further breath of fresh air to the Japanese. Although hardly a constitutional monarchy, political parties still dominated the Japanese Diet and the 1928 elections swept the conservative, imperial traditionalists to power. In fact, the major split in Japanese politics was not between left and right but between those in power who wished to wage all-out war with the west soon and those who wished to wait. The latter group won and the Japanese continued to build up their military, particularly the navy.
In 1931, Japan signed a treaty of alliance with Russia and Prussia. This increased their ‘Bond of Trust’ and the three nations became known by a number of names, including the Triplet, BOT, and the League of Conservatism. The Triplet was the most popular international name for the alliance, though in 1934 the name was changed to The Quadruple as Sweden joined the alliance.
With new allies and a powerful military, Japan effectively severed its formerly strong ties with Britain by involving itself in the British East Indies. A British colonial enterprise throughout most of the nineteenth century, it had recently been entered into the Imperial Parliament under Dominion Status in 1926. The Dominion of the East Indies was one of the first members of the Imperial Parliament and a highly prized British colony due to its richness in natural resources. Japan, however, looked hungrily at the massive archipelago. Beginning in 1931 the Imperial Japanese Navy began to steam boldly throughout the East Indies, ignoring the few Royal Navy ships in the area. It was a clear violation of the area’s territorial rights but Japan ignored the Dominion’s complaints. The forays into the Dominion’s maritime territory served to undermine its national integrity and also show the locals that the British were not entirely in charge. For the most part, the British were forced to ignore the Japanese since their naval capabilities in the Far East were far outclasses by the full might of the Japanese Navy.
The two countries reached a crisis when, on May 17th 1933, several hundred Japanese marines landed on Biak, a small island north of large New Guinea. It was a blatant act of aggression but the British, rather than declare war, resorted to diplomacy. Negotiations lasted for nearly a year and the initial anger the British felt when the Japanese first landed gave way to apathy as negotiations dragged on and on. The Japanese argued that Biak was technically not British territory and was open to colonization from any power. The British disagreed and proved the Japanese wrong time and again but the invaders refused to withdraw from the small island. Eventually, the British agreed to sell the island to the Japanese. The Biak Crisis was crucial in the Pacific because it under-minded British authority. To locals, the British weakness was a sign of cracks in the new British imperial system, especially in distant frontiers like Biak. The acquisition of Biak was important to Japan because it gave them their southernmost port, an important area for future operations. They also gained the respect of many East Indian locals.
By 1934, British and Japanese relations had soured to the point that there were hardly any diplomatic ties at all. The British knew of the impending Japanese threat to its east and sent thousands of men and many ships to the area. They even signed a treaty of friendship with China. All of this occurred with French blessing, who oddly found it, for the first time, allied with Britain. Both European powers looked at the hotheaded Japanese Emperor as a prime threat to their Far Eastern interests. On July 14th, 1935, France and Britain signed the Saigon Accords, a defensive alliance limited to the Far East. It was a monumental step in their foreign affairs and admittedly the new allies looked at each other suspiciously after generations of animosity.
While Saigon was the scene of the forging of a new relationship between France and Britain, a few hundred miles to north in the imperial capital of Hue, the imperial Indochinese court was the scene of much intrigue. The Emperor of Indochina, Duy Tan, was a member of the Nguyen family, the royal family of Vietnam. Indeed, he was a puppet of the French, but he still presided over his own court and day after day was sucked into drama that mainly involved the pro-Japanese faction of his court. Led by Ngo Duc, the pro-Japanese faction was openly anti-French, anti-Chinese and secretly advocated the removal of Duy Tan. Ngo Duc, as a distant relative to Duy Tan, would then place himself on the throne and advocate joining the Japanese Empire. It was a plan that had worked to some extent in Korea. The Japanese secretly supported the endeavor and supplied Ngo Duc with various small arms to launch his coup.
Left:Ngo Duc. Right: The pompous court of Duy Tan (pictured) was often farcical since the French still retained a huge amount of power.
When Ngo Duc’s plot was discovered in November, 1935 he was immediately arrested and thrown in jail. Tried in a French court, he was convicted of treason and sentenced to death. Early on the day of his execution, however, his followers stormed the jail and after a vicious firefight, managed to rescue Ngo Duc. He was shot in the process and was forced to have an arm removed later. During the battle, a staunch pro-Japanese follower of Duc planted a Japanese flag on the roof of the jail. This, coupled with the sound of gunfire, prompted an inexperienced group of local Indochinese militia to believe that the Japanese were attacking Hue. Rather than wait for orders or clarification, the militiamen surrounded the Japanese consulate and burned it to the ground killing the entire staff including the consul. Understandably, the Japanese were furious. France again and again sent apologies to Tokyo but again and again were rebuffed. Asia reached a crisis point.
British Dominions
The British Empire, also known as the Union of Dominions, was indeed a union of various dominions. They included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, the East Indies, East Africa, Central Africa and the Sandwich Islands. The British Isles themselves were equal to the other Dominions in the Imperial Parliament, although they were not of Dominion status. They were simply the British Isles. The consolidation of the empire into a Union that met regularly was a great success for many in the empire who viewed the system as more beneficial to the former colonies. The consolidation lasted from 1914 with the Cape Town Agreement to 1933 with the addition of the Sandwich Islands as a Dominion.
The Imperial Parliament was comprised of a fluctuating number of members that changed with every meeting. In the 1935 meeting, for example, the Parliament had 428 members, compared to the original number in 1919 of just 84. Each Dominion had a different manner of choosing their MPs into the Imperial Parliament. Canada, the Sandwich Islands and New Zealand had the most democratic method of choosing, with candidates winning seats in the Imperial Parliament in direct elections that always coincided with regional and national elections. They were nationally elected candidates and in both Dominions the voters would have to choose from a long list of names. (Candidates would often joke that those with names at the beginning of the alphabet had a greater chance of being chosen just because of the sheer list of names would overwhelm the voter). In Australia, East Africa and South Africa, members were chosen by the local Parliament, often from among themselves. The Imperial Parliament was seen as prestigious and an opportunity so often Imperial Parliament membership was designated for the more senior Australian and South African Parliament members. Central Africa and the East Indies probably had the least democratic method. In Central Africa, members of Parliament were chosen directly by the Prime Minister of the Dominion. In the East Indies, members were chosen by a small committee comprised of the Prime Minister, his cabinet and members of the opposition (the latter just to ensure that no cronyism existed). India had an interesting method and as the largest Dominion in population, often resulted in confusion. People wishing to enter the Imperial Parliament first had to enter a petition with 2,000 signatures and they ran in local elections, then regional elections. The maximum number of MPs from India was set every year by the Imperial Parliament and they were chosen from the top winners of the regional elections; either one, two, or three from each region.
In the 1920s and 1930s the Imperial Parliament was very exclusive and was limited to white, land-owning men. This was the de facto law and very few native men or women wished to run. The de jure law said that any man could run and in 1944 this changed to anyone, including women. However, in the early days of the smaller Imperial Parliament, only white men were allowed to enter.
In the 1800s, there were numerous anti-British movements in India with a variety of goals that included the lowering of taxes to kicking the British out all together. Independence movements existed but were typically disorganized and lacked national unity. There were oftentimes disagreements in independence movement groups that ran on the lines of religion, race and wealth. The most successful was called the National Movement for India, led by Chandra Chatterjee. It even advocated terrorist attacks on British targets, though such things never occurred. India was still comprised of a number of princely states that stressed loyalty to the British crown. They were more or less opposed to total independence and many Indians followered their lead, though probably for different reasons. The numerous princes benefited from British rule and did not wish to see them go. Most independence groups were silenced in 1924 when India was upgraded to Dominion status and Indians essentially gained independence in domestic affairs. There was slight trouble from fringe Muslim and Buddhist groups because the Dominion of India included all South Asia. They feared oppressive rule from the Hindu majority. The British united them all, however, by retaining final authority in the entire Dominion.
The first non-white member of the Imperial Parliament was an Indian that became a member in the 1935 meeting. Penchayat Pratap was a fiercely popular native of Calcutta who was elected even though many Indians could not vote in the local and regional elections. It is said that even the whitest of the British were moved by his oratorical skills. Pratap set a precedent and in the 1937 meeting, five more Indians were elected. This was a huge move for the British Empire and the foundation for a multi-colored Imperial Parliament was set.
The Dominion of the East Indies, with its capital at Singapore, remained a vast collection of islands, cultures, languages and degrees of reception toward British rule. Many people were outright rebellious toward British rule and as a result the East Indies was the most draconian of the Dominions. The welfare of British-owned plantations and businesses were put before the health of the natives with limited reforms. As such, the East Indies remained a sort of backwater in the empire until the Japanese began to look at the area keenly in the early 1930s. The Biak Crisis opened British eyes to the vulnerability to this Dominion and the ineptitude of the East Indian military. To the south, Australia and New Zealand plodded on their own quiet paths. As Dominions, they carried pull in the Imperial Parliament and often brought Pacific issues to light. Both Dominions were generally unreceptive to the concerns of their respective indigenous populations and consequently remained racist societies.
Map of Asia in 1930. The expansion of Japan is evident, despite their loss in the Great War.
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Dr. Strangelove
Banned
I just wanted to add to the general choir of praise. This is a great TL, indeed. 
Beautiful update as always Zach...
So The Quadruple (called it!) is getting a tad bit jumpy. Here's a question, what side will Britain be on in this new war?
So The Quadruple (called it!) is getting a tad bit jumpy. Here's a question, what side will Britain be on in this new war?
Brilliant as always. It's nice to finally find out what's going on in Asia. Just one question, what is going on in the Philippines? How are the Japanese running the place?
I really can't wait to see what's going on in the other parts of the world in your next updates. I hope you include what's going on in Persia and Arabia. Two nations I'd like to see play a bigger part ITTL than they did in OTL are Siam and Ethiopia. I hope you write about them too, Zach. Also waiting for that bit about culture and technology. Keep up the great work!
Just one question, what is going on in the Philippines? How are the Japanese running the place?I really can't wait to see what's going on in the other parts of the world in your next updates. I hope you include what's going on in Persia and Arabia. Two nations I'd like to see play a bigger part ITTL than they did in OTL are Siam and Ethiopia. I hope you write about them too, Zach. Also waiting for that bit about culture and technology. Keep up the great work!
Neroon
Banned
Haven´t done that in a while. So DITO!I just wanted to add to the general choir of praise. This is a great TL, indeed.
Vault-Scope
Banned
The united states seems far less interventionistic in this TL. What happens with Hawaii & Taiwan?
Thanks all for the compliments. I do appreciate the kind words and support. It makes writing much more fulfilling.
To questions of which there were only three!
The USN is not small in total, as its Atlantic Fleet remains quite large (despite losing a bit of its Atlantic coastline during the Civil War). The Atlantic, remember, was the scene of some degree of fighting during the Great War so the majority of American ships had to stay in the Atlantic region to protect its merchant ships.
Although the United States expanded to the Pacific as early as the late 1820s, there were few large settlements until the late 19th century and hardly any ports or facilities to build or house large naval vessels. For a time, there was a feeling that the US had reached its limit at the Pacific and the USN Pacific Fleet was small simply because interest in the Pacific was merely a matter of coastal defense.
This changed in the early 20th century as the US became more active in world affairs and acquired Alaska in 1909. However, the Pacific Fleet remains much smaller compared to the full might of the IJN, though it is growing fairly quickly.
I can't tell you yet!
But as a hint, see the last update with aggressive Japanese moves in the Pacific toward British areas. This may indeed drive Britain to ally itself with France. Maybe. Probably. I guess I just told you.
Hawaii is a British Dominion, the Dominion of the Sandwich Islands. American interests in the archipelago are increasing but still not to the extent of OTL.
Taiwan remains a province of Imperial China.
To questions of which there were only three!
Faelin said:
The USN is not small in total, as its Atlantic Fleet remains quite large (despite losing a bit of its Atlantic coastline during the Civil War). The Atlantic, remember, was the scene of some degree of fighting during the Great War so the majority of American ships had to stay in the Atlantic region to protect its merchant ships.
Although the United States expanded to the Pacific as early as the late 1820s, there were few large settlements until the late 19th century and hardly any ports or facilities to build or house large naval vessels. For a time, there was a feeling that the US had reached its limit at the Pacific and the USN Pacific Fleet was small simply because interest in the Pacific was merely a matter of coastal defense.
This changed in the early 20th century as the US became more active in world affairs and acquired Alaska in 1909. However, the Pacific Fleet remains much smaller compared to the full might of the IJN, though it is growing fairly quickly.
Kriegdämmerung said:
I can't tell you yet!
But as a hint, see the last update with aggressive Japanese moves in the Pacific toward British areas. This may indeed drive Britain to ally itself with France. Maybe. Probably. I guess I just told you.
Vault-Scope said:
Hawaii is a British Dominion, the Dominion of the Sandwich Islands. American interests in the archipelago are increasing but still not to the extent of OTL.
Taiwan remains a province of Imperial China.
Dr. Strangelove
Banned
You already hinted in an earlier update that Britain and France would ally against Morchenko, IIRC.
Make that four!
Brilliant as always. It's nice to finally find out what's going on in Asia.
Ah, I am sorry
Japanese-occupied Philippines is an unpleasant place. The Japanese rule brutally with no account taken for quality of life or well-being of the Filipinos. The heavily Catholic country was ruled through censorship, fear and oppression. It was ruled directly by the Japanese. The Church was heavily opposed to Japanese brutalities and in some cases, churches were burned and priests were killed, earning the ire of the international Catholic community.
Japanese-occupied Philippines is an unpleasant place. The Japanese rule brutally with no account taken for quality of life or well-being of the Filipinos. The heavily Catholic country was ruled through censorship, fear and oppression. It was ruled directly by the Japanese. The Church was heavily opposed to Japanese brutalities and in some cases, churches were burned and priests were killed, earning the ire of the international Catholic community.
Ah, I am sorry
Japanese-occupied Philippines is an unpleasant place. The Japanese rule brutally with no account taken for quality of life or well-being of the Filipinos. The heavily Catholic country was ruled through censorship, fear and oppression. It was ruled directly by the Japanese. The Church was heavily opposed to Japanese brutalities and in some cases, churches were burned and priests were killed, earning the ire of the international Catholic community.
Are the Filipinos being thought/forced to speak the Japanese language? Also, is Korea officially part of the Japanese Empire or is it a client state? And do the Japanese treat them in the same brutal way as the Filipinos?
Another thing, how about letting the Chinese exercise their Imperial muscle and have them grab a colony of their own. Looking at the map, the only independent nations I see in Asia are nearby Siam and Afghanistan. Maybe those nations would look good under a Chinese flag?
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Herr Frage said:
A few reasons:
1. To consolidate control and to minimize resistance armed movements (which most certainly exist, especially the countryside).
2. It's what the Japanese did to Korea and China in OTL; I figure the same would go for ATL in a different country since the Japanese have similar ideologies/goals as OTL.
3. I need a boogeyman for TTL and Japan is the perfect bad guy.
Hamburger said:
Since the Philippines is being ruled by Japan directly, it's in the process of "Japanification". Learning Japanese is crucial but of course putting hundreds of thousands of potential (or actual) laborers into school is the Japans' last priority. It is mandatory in the schools.
Korea is part of the Japanese Empire. IIRC in OTL, the Korean royal family married into the Japanese family. In ATL, the Korean royal family was pretty much a Chinese puppet, so they live in exile in China. The Japanese rule brutally in Korea, as per ATL Philippines and OTL Korea.
While I think an expansionist China would be awesome, at this moment they are focused on domestic reforms and military modernization. Their performance in their last couple conflicts have been less than desirable and they itch for revenge against Japan, Asian domination, liberation of Korea, etc. They are focused to their east, not their south or west. Also, they don't share a land border with Siam, making it quite difficult to conquer, and if Afghanistan were to be conquered by anyone, it would be the Russians or British. However, they are pretty involved in Indochina. Something could happen there if the next war in Asia goes favorably for China.
Roberto said:
Looking at the map, that is a pretty significant piece of land. The Chinese would never let go of that without a fight. So the Korean border basically is where the battle lines were in March, 1928.