The History of~The Sino Japanese Wars

The history of the the relationship between China and Japan has always been..........................unusual to say the least. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad. But blows were exchanged a few times in their history, these were the The Sino-Japanese Wars.

This is what this page will try to cover. There were 2 Sino-Japanese Wars so this page will try to cover both of them at the same time.

## The First Sino-Japanese War

The relationship between China and Japan were deteriorating in the decades before the First Sino-Japanese War. One of the reasons is that Japan was the first Asian country to fully modernize as it re-opened it's doors to the west (especially after nearly 300 years of isolation). While China didn't embrace modernization thanks in large part to the Opium Wars.

Eventually something would happen that would light a long, smoldering fuse. On March 28, 1894 a Korean revolutionary named  Kim Ok-gyun was assassinated while visiting Shanghai, this would cause a revolution to erupt in what would known as Korea. But 3 months later, the Japanese would capture the Korean King and a town called Gyeongbokgung not far from Seoul, this was not met warmly by China.

One thing that you must keep in mind that Korea was a part of the Qing Dynasty (one of China's many ruling empires) who by the 19th century were seeking independence from the Dynasty itself especially after the Opium Wars. But the Qing Dynasty wanted to keep the Korean Peninsula whereas Japan wanted to take it for itself, so Korea will be caught in the Middle of this conflict.

The Imperial Japanese Army was one of the better armies in the Far East, it also had a good Navy to boot as it too was modernized just like the Army.

The Qing Imperial Army was coming off a humiliating defeat in the second Opium War where it had to surrender a lot of things over to the west, especially losing Outer Manchuria to Russia, it also wasn't very modernized especially in comparison to Japan using some of the basic weapons and equipment, and some of them also stick to using swords and bows which would considered to be useless against a modernized Japanese army.

### Battle of Pungdo

The first battle of the First Sino-Japanese War would be the Battle of Pungdo which would be off of the Western Korean Coast, eventhough the battle would only last a few hours, but the Japanese Navy which was modernized and modeled off the Royal Navy at the time and it outclassed the Chinese Navy by destroying virtually their entire fleet.

### The Battle of Seonghwan

One of the first land battles would be in Seonghwan where 4,000 Japanese troops would face off against 3,800 Chinese troops. The Japanese would attack early in the morning on July 28, 1894 which surprised the Chinese defenders which had to retreat to Asan which is 10 miles southwest, but the Japanese would overtake Asan in the afternoon of July 29. This would open up the gates for the Japanese to be within range of Pyongyang (now the capital of North Korea).

### The Battle of Pyongyang

On September 15, the Japanese invaded the city, the Japanese this time being outnumbered (11,000 challenging China's 15,000) but still determined to take the city from the Chinese, after 12-Hours, the Chinese would repel them, but were forced to retreat to the nearby Yalu River, allowing the Japanese to enter the city almost unopposed, 2 days later the Japanese would pursue the retreating Chinese army all the way back to the Yalu River where the Chinese were setting up defenses around the river, but just as much as they were defeated at Pyongyang, the Japanese would hand the Chinese another crushing defeat by sinking 5 of China's ships.

Japan has successfully driven the Chinese out of Korea, now the time to really humiliate China was at hand as Japan now sets its eyes on the Chinese held island of Taiwan.

### The Battle of Lushunkou

On November 21, the Japanese invaded another Chinese port town called Lushunkou (AKA Port Arthur which would play a vital role in the upcoming Russo-Japanese War) not far from the Chinese-Korean Border. This nearly 24 hour long battle resulted in the Japanese stormed the important defenses of the port town, forcing the Chinese to retreat. But the Chinese had a surprise for the Japanese, as the Japanese invaded the now abandoned city, some Chinese forces (some in civilian clothing) picked off Japanese forces, forcing the Japanese to search every house for these lingering armymen, in some incidences, even civilian people were killed.

### The Battle of Weihaiwei

By January 20, 1895 the Japanese wanted to take one last port town from China which would create a highway for the Japanese forces to take Taiwan, they founded one of those port towns in Weihaiwei, The Japanese divided their forces into 2 columns which marched towards the port town on January 26, they arrive 3 days later. In Blizzard conditions, the Japanese would use a 3-pronged attack to invade the port town, the Chinese would hold out for around 9 hours before retreating allowing the Japanese would invade the port town.

The attention would now be turned to the sea as the Chinese fleet is ready to take back the city, and the Japanese would use the artillery the Chinese left behind against the Chinese Fleet, and in just 2 weeks, the Chinese Port Town was under Japanese control, the Chinese leaders committed suicide as a result of their surrender. This was a crucial victory for the Japanese (who has China's number by this point) as they now can take the island of Taiwan.

### The Pescadores Campaign

By March of 1895, Japan was now within striking distance of Taiwan after they take Weihaiwei from the Chinese. By March 23, they would take the island in a series of small battles against the Chinese. Despite being again outnumbered, the Japanese were able to defeat the Chinese forces on the island and take Taipei by March 26.

### Aftermath

The Treaty of Shimonoseki ended the First Sino-Japanese War on April 17, 1895, and because this conflict was one-sided in favor of Japan, the terms they came up for the Chinese were quite harsh, but this was mostly about territory, China would have to give up Korea, and Taiwan to Japan and pay around 17 Million pounds of Silver as a part of War Reparations.

Japan (as said in previous wiki pages) would go on to expand its sphere of influence as they would defeat another declining empire in Russia 10 years later in the Russo-Japanese War. It would also fight (somewhat) in World War 1 and took the islands of Micronesia which was previously owned by Germany. By 1931 and in the midst of the Great Depression, it took Manchuria as they believe that their rail-line was attacked by the Chinese.

China on the other hand was (once again) left humiliated, the Qing Dynasty's prestige was all but gone, and their defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War would see the acceleration of the Decline of the Qing Dynasty which would eventually see it's complete downfall in 1912 and even see China turn into a Republic which was unstable and eventually lead to a Civil War in 1927.

The one nation that shouldn't go unmentioned is Korea, because they were hoping that the defeat of the Qing Dynasty would grant them independence they were longing for, but this wouldn't be. After the war, Korea would be annexed by Japan (this was actually mixed since there were a lot of Koreans at the time that held pro-Japanese sentiments), Japan's victory in the Russo-Japanese War would see Korea become officially a part of Japan.

But the treaty did not solve the problems between the 2 countries, after an incident which saw a Japanese train in Manchuria get sabotaged and blown up, this was an excuse Japan needed to go after its hated neighbor once more and took Manchuria in 1931, for he next 6 years things were relatively quiet, that is until the Japanese decide to invade the rest of China at the Marco Polo Bridge, thus beginning the Second Sino-Japanese War.

## The Second Sino-Japanese War

In the decades following the First Sino-Japanese War, things were coming up Japan, as they were expanding their empire to even greater lengths and eventually into Manchuria in 1931, but not so much with China as even after turning into a republic in 1912 things weren't so "honky dory" for China as it was ruled by a year long empire which collapsed and allowed the republic to come back into power but with an unstable Nationalist Government and a rising Communist movement in the country would eventually lead to a civil war in 1927. But Japan was not done with expanding its sphere of influence it wanted more, and by 1937 it invaded the Chinese Capital of Beijing and Chinese Forces moved quickly to stop the invasion on July 7, around 100 Chinese men were sent to defend the bridge and were able to hold out until reinforcements arrived, but still they lost, this led to the Japanese wanting the Chinese to agree with their terms of a ceasefire, though agreed upon this would lead to some misunderstandings and even to the Battle of Beiping-Tianjin.

### Battle of Beiping-Tianjin

As soon as the Marco Polo Bridge incident, the Japanese began to invade more Chinese cities, like Beiping and Tianjin. The Japanese outnumbered the Chinese as they had 180,000 men challenging China's 75,000. On July 29, the Japanese attacked the port town of Tianjin, after a days battle the Chinese were forced to retreat from the port town, On August 4 the Japanese successfully took Beiping as well.

### Taking the cities and war crimes

By August of 1937 the Japanese were within striking distance of the Chinese city of Shanghai and have exchanged small arms fire at the beginning of the battle, it then turned into a full fledged urban battle that would last for around 3 months with both sides suffering immense casualties. The Battle would have an impact on Japanese morale and were shocked that the Chinese can put up a good defense for their own city as the Japanese believed that China hadn't moved on from the first Sino-Japanese War and would be a push over and would allow Japan to conquer China in a matter of months.

Just a few weeks after the Japanese take Shanghai, they also were able to take other towns in China, but on December 1, they came close to the ancient capital of China; Nanking, This battle would go on for nearly 2 weeks with the Japanese suffering nearly 10 times the casualties the Chinese did but were still able to capture the city.

But it's what the Japanese did after they captured Nanking is where the despicable acts against humanity had occurred. Innocent people murdered all around, women raped, even children were not spared, nobody was safe from the wrath of the Japanese army.

### Battle of Wuhan

By 1938, the Japanese have been winning more battles against the Chinese, but the Chinese are being quite stubborn towards the Japanese advance and not relenting. Though the Japanese were facing a coalition of Nationalist and Communist forces who were before fighting against each other. Now the Japanese are within striking distance at another city, this time the city of Wuhan by June 11. This was another hard fought battle on both sides, but once again the Japanese would take another Chinese city after nearly 4 months of fighting as the Chinese again would be forced to retreat from the city.

### Absorbed into World War 2

For the next few years the Chinese and Japanese would fight against each other, but of course the official start to World War 2 would begin in Europe when the Nazis invade Poland on September 1, 1939. But Japan wanted to perform what the Nazis did in Western Europe, and that is a quick and effective invasion of the southern regions held by either European nations or the United States. As the USA cut off Japan's supply to oil, they decide to go to war (again), but they have to take out the USA's ability to respond to Japan's territorial expansion.

That is when on December 7, 1941 Japan decides to attack the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, not only would this get Japan into World War 2, but the Second Sino-Japanese War would be absorbed into the bigger conflict.

Nevertheless, Japan's war with China continues, though by the 1940s, everything has pretty much slowed to a halt, but it comes with a twist, Japan is now fighting a 2-front war against China and the United States, this would prove disastrous for Japan as they're now facing an enemy that they have no hope of defeating.

Japan would continue to grab more territories in the South Pacific including the Philippines, French Indochina (modern-day Vietnam , Laos, and Cambodia) Thailand, Burma (modern-day Myanmar), and even parts of New Guinea.

After Japan's defeat at Midway, they began to fallback into a permanent defensive position as they begin to lose ground to the United States, first the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and then the island nation itself, and Japan must defend itself with the occupied islands which are close to the main islands of Japan.

Back in China, things have slowed with neither side making little gains on the ground, but the Japanese still hold many of China's cities.

It wouldn't be until after the United States drops its Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki when fighting iin China would seize, but it wouldn't be until September 9, 1945 when all fighting in China would seize.

### Aftermath

After the Japanese surrendered in 1945, China was still in political turmoil as the Chinese Communists were given a power base from the Soviets who invaded Manchuria on August 8, and this would be the many events that would lead to the second part of the Chinese Civil War where the Communists would come out on top.

Japan was left in ruins after the American bombing raids, but was occupied by the United States to help rebuild the nation and within 20 years would become one of the world's largest economies.

Well, that'll do it for this page. Don't forget to check out my Games and Movies wikis too. Until next time, this is JohnnyOTGS signing out.