chapter 5 - outbreak of ww2 in asia-pacific Flashcards
what were the developments of asia and the western powers?
western european powers colonised many parts of asia. for example, britain colonised india, the netherlands and france had trading posts, military bases and colonies in asia
how did japan emerge as a rising power?
modernisation of japan , japan’s strong beliefs and ambitions, divide between civillian politicians and military leaders.
how did japan modernise themselves?
in 1868, japan begaan a restoration programme known as the meiji restoration. industries underwent rapid expansion and a new constituition was implemented, transforming japan to a rising power. japan won wars against china and russia with their newly acuquired military might. they also developed close alliances with britain. japan was also a member of the LON and was well respected on the international stage. in 1921, they signed the washington naval treaty, promising to reduce the building of warships, reducing their naval strength, therefore many saw this as an unfair treaty, fuelling their desire to establish themselves as an equal to the west. they also signed trade deals with britain and US to expand their trade.
how did japan’s ambitions lead to japan developing into a rising power?
ultranationalism was promoted within the country, and these beliefs seemed popular amongst the public as they strongly approved of the conquest of korea in 1910 and supported the idea of japan expanding their empire. these beliefs were driven by natural limitations of japan as they had little farm land to grow food to feed a rapidly growing population. also, they had no raw materials like iron ore or coal. therefore, in the 1920s, japan depended on importing raw materials from china, but the nationalists felt that japan had to expand itself to get the resources they needed.
how did the divide between civillian politicans and military leaders lead to japan feeling the need to expand?
the moderate civillian politicians who were in charge of government policies wanted to advance japanese interests by peaceful means, therefore, they tried to expand through trade and international co-operation, and also cut the military’s budget. however, the military leaders were unhappy with that decision as they felt that it disrespected the military. they felt that countries might go back on trade deals and that a war with the western powers was inevitable,and that japan should start preparing the resources needed for it.
what did japan’s expansionist foriegn policy consist of?
rise of japanese militarism, japan’s relations with the western powers, the great depression
how did the japanese military rise to power?
the tensions between the civillian politicians and military worsened as the ultranationalistic military commanders grew in prominence and influence in japan’s politics. they believed military service was an honour and felt that it was japan’s destiny to remove the western powers from asia. these beliefs were extremely popular in japan, especially of the annexation of manchuria. the civillian politicians slowly lost the people’s trust and people began to see them as weak. in 1930 the military became prominent and they took over in 1936.
what was japan’s relations with western powers?
japan had used its education system and media to encourage and develop a strong sense of nationalist pride among its people. ultranationalism also involved a wariness towards foriegners. the japanese saw britain, russia and US as obstacles and rivals. they felt that the US had abandoned them with its economic policies against japan in the 1930s, causing the rise of unemployment in japan. the USSR was also seen as a threat due to their communist ideology which was dangerous to japan. in 1936, japan signed the anti-commitern pact with italy and nazi germany to resist against communism. japan and britain had co-operated under the anglo-japanese alliance to prevent the USSR from advancing. however, their relationship deteriorated when japan invaded manchuria.
how did the great depression affect japan?
the great depression damaged japan’s economy due to japan’s heavy reliance on foreign trade. the unemployment increased the pressure on the civillian politicians, and the economic crisis convinced the ultranationalistic politicians that democracy was failing, as none of the problems were being solved. the US’s introduction of tariffs also hurt japan’s export trade as the taxes made japanese goods more expensive in the US. this actions convinced the ultranationalists that other countries could not be relied on and japan had to rely on themselves.
what was japan’s public opinon on the manchurian crisis?
by 1931, the idea that influence should be extended over manchuria had gained alot of ground in japan, as manchuria was rich with coal and iron that japan lacked. even japan’s then foriegn minister, shidehara kijuro, a civillian politician also agreed with the expansion on japan. shidehara was a firm supporter of the LON and had taken part in negotiations to limit arms. on top of him, there was ishiwara kanji, a colonel in the kwantung army who was a strong ultranationalist and believed japan should rule over manchuria.
how did the instability in china benefit japan?
the chinese nationalist party (guomindang) was under chiang kai-shek, but he faced serious threats to his rule as many local warlords did not fully accept his authority, and some were even prepared to collaborate with the japanese in exchange for economic and military support. he was also in rivalry with the CCP. china’s instability gave japan the perfect oppurtunity to expand furthur and annex manchuria.
how did japan conquer manchuria?
ishiwara’s forces blew up a aprt of a railway track at mukden aka the mukden incident, and blamed it on the chinese government. by december 1931, ishiwara’s forces controlled most of the region. there was very little opposition in japan and the commanders felt encouraged to continue. the civillian government ordered the army to withdraw, but was ignored, showing how the army was the one in charge of japan’s foriegn policies
how did the LON respond to the manchurian crisis?
china appealed to the LON for help, and in october 1931, japan was called to withdraw their its troops. however, the japanese claimed that there were not invading china, but only acting as a form of self-defence to keep peace. in september 1932, the lytton report clearly showed that japan acted unlwafully and manchuria should be returned to china. however , in february 1933, japan announced that they intended to occupy more of china, as it was “necessary to defend their territories”. in march 1933, japan rejected the lytton report and resigned from the league. the league’s economic sactions were powerless without the US, but they were japan’s main trading partner. britain also wanted to maintain a positive relationship with japan. britain and france would not risk their armies to stop japan in a war , and the only countries that had the resources to stop japan (US and USSR) was not part of the league.
tarnished pristiege
what were the consequences of the manchurian crisis?
it tarnished the pristeige of the league, demonstrating that the league was helpless in the face of agressor countries like japan, and also undermined the confidence of league officials to tackle future crises. it encourgaed japan to furthur expand into asia. japan now had access to the resources and raw materials it needed for growing its industries. the annexation was extremely popular in japan, resulting in the rising influence of the ultranationalists and military, and the weakening of the civillian government and their democratic politics.
what was the relationship of japan and united states?
a a result fo the great depression, US introduced a range of tariffs in 1930 to protect their own economy. furthurmore, their relations were even more strained when japan invaded china, as the US condemned their actions and provided military and economical support to chiang kai-shek. however, while the US disapproved of their actions, japan was strongly anti-communist, which could help US hold back the spread of communism in asia.
