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First Sino-Japanese War
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First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War (1 August 1894 – 17 April 1895) was fought between Qing Dynasty China and Meiji
Japan, primarily over control of Korea. After more than six months of continuous successes by the Japanese army
and naval forces, as well as the loss of the Chinese port of Weihai, the Qing leadership sued for peace in February
1895.
The war was a clear indication of the failure of the Qing dynasty's attempts to modernize its military and fend off
threats to its sovereignty, especially compared with Japan's successful post-Meiji restoration[1] For the first time,
regional dominance in East Asia shifted from China to Japan; and the prestige of the Qing Dynasty, along with the
classical tradition in China, suffered a major blow. The humiliating loss of Korea as a vassal state sparked an
unprecedented public outcry. Within China, the defeat was a catalyst for a series of revolutions and political changes
led by Sun Yat-Sen and Kang Youwei. These trends would later manifest in the 1911 Revolution.
The war is commonly known in China as the War of Jiawu (simplified Chinese: 甲 午 战 争; traditional Chinese:
甲 午 戰 爭; pinyin: Jiǎwǔ Zhànzhēng), referring to the year (1894) as named under the traditional sexagenary
system of year reckoning. In Japan, it is commonly known as the Japan-Qing War (Nisshin sensō (日 清 戦 争)).
Background
After two centuries, the Japanese policy of seclusion under the shoguns of the Edo period came to an end when the
country was forced open to trade by American intervention in 1854. The years following the Meiji Restoration of
1868 and the fall of the Shogunate had seen Japan transform itself from a feudal society to a modern industrial state.
The Japanese had sent delegations and students around the world in order to learn and assimilate western arts and
sciences; this was done not only to prevent Japan from falling under foreign domination but to enable Japan to
compete equally with the Western powers.[2]
Conflict over Korea
[3]
Satirical drawing in Punch Magazine (29
September 1894), showing the victory of "small"
Japan over "large" China.
As a newly emergent power, Japan turned its attention toward Korea.
In order to protect its own interests and security, Japan wanted to either
annex Korea before it was seized by another power, or at least ensure
Korea's effective independence by developing its resources and
reforming its administration. As Prussian advisor Major Klemens
Meckel put it to the Japanese army, Korea was "a dagger pointed at the
heart of Japan". Japan felt that another power having a military
presence on the Korean peninsula would have been detrimental to
Japanese national security, and so resolved to end the centuries-old
Chinese suzerainty over Korea. Moreover, Japan realized that having
access to Korea’s coal and iron ore deposits would benefit Japan's
growing industrial base.
On February 27, 1876, after certain incidents and confrontations involving Korean isolationists and the Japanese,
Japan imposed the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876; forcing Korea to open itself to Japanese and foreign trade and to
proclaim its independence from China in its foreign relations.
Korea had traditionally been a tributary state and continued to be so under the influence of China's Qing dynasty,
which exerted large influence over the conservative Korean officials gathered around the royal family of the Joseon
Dynasty. Opinion in Korea itself was split; conservatives wanted to retain the traditional subservient relationship
with China, while reformists wanted to establish closer ties with Japan and western nations. After two Opium Wars
First Sino-Japanese War
in 1839 and 1856 against the British Empire and the Sino-French War, China had become weak and was unable to
resist political intervention and territorial encroachment by western powers (see Unequal Treaties). Japan saw this as
an opportunity to replace Chinese influence in Korea with its own.
1882 crisis
In 1882 the Korean peninsula experienced a severe
drought which led to food shortages, causing much
hardship and discord among the population. Korea
was on the verge of bankruptcy; the government
was not able to pay its debts, particularly to its
military. There was deep resentment amongst the
soldiers of the Korean army who had not been paid
for months. On July 23 a military mutiny and riot
broke out in Seoul; troops, assisted by the
The flight of the Japanese Legation in 1882
population, sacked the rice granaries there. The
next morning the royal palace and barracks were attacked. The crowd then turned on the Japanese legation. The
Japanese legation staff managed to escape to Chemulpo and then Nagasaki via the British survey ship Flying Fish.
In response the Japanese sent four warships and a battalion of troops to Seoul to safeguard Japanese interests and
demand reparations. The Chinese also deployed 4,500 troops to counter the Japanese. Tensions subsided, however,
with the Treaty of Chemulpo which was signed on the evening of August 30, 1882. The agreement specified that the
conspirators involved would be punished and 50,000 yen would be paid to the families of the Japanese killed. The
Japanese government would also receive 500,000 yen, a formal apology, and permission to construct barracks and
station troops at their diplomatic legation in Seoul.
Gapsin Coup
In 1884 a group of pro-Japanese reformers briefly overthrew the pro-Chinese conservative Korean government in a
bloody coup d'état. However, the pro-Chinese faction, with assistance from Chinese troops under General Yuan
Shikai, succeeded in regaining control with an equally bloody counter-coup. These coups resulted not only in the
deaths of a number of reformers, but also in the burning of the Japanese legation and the deaths of several legation
guards and citizens in the process. This caused an incident between Japan and China, but was eventually settled by
the Sino-Japanese Convention of Tientsin of 1885 in which the two sides agreed to (a) pull their expeditionary forces
out of Korea simultaneously; (b) not send military instructors for the training of the Korean military; and (c) notify
the other side beforehand should one decide to send troops to Korea. The Japanese, however, were frustrated by
repeated Chinese attempts to undermine their influence in Korea.
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First Sino-Japanese War
Kim Ok-gyun affair
On March 28, 1894, a pro-Japanese Korean revolutionary, Kim Ok-gyun, was
assassinated in Shanghai. Kim had fled to Japan after his involvement in the
1884 coup and the Japanese had turned down Korean demands that he be
extradited. Ultimately, he was lured to Shanghai where he was killed by a
fellow Korean, Hong Jong-u, at a Japanese inn in the international settlement.
His body was then taken aboard a Chinese warship and sent back to Korea,
where it was quartered and displayed as a warning to other rebels. The
Japanese government was outraged, taking this as a direct affront to its stature
and dignity.[4]
The situation became increasingly tense later in the year when the Chinese
government, at the request of the Korean king, sent troops to aid in
suppressing the Tonghak Rebellion. The Chinese government sent General
Yuan Shikai as its plenipotentiary at the head of 2,800 troops. The Chinese
government did not inform the Japanese government of its decision to send
Kim Ok-gyun photographed in Nagasaki
troops to the Korean peninsula, and in doing so failed to comply with the
in 1882. His assassination in China
Convention of Tientsin.[5] In the face of China's violation of the convention,
would contribute to tensions leading to
the First Sino-Japanese War.
the Japanese countered and sent their own 8,000-man expeditionary force (the
Oshima Composite Brigade) to Korea. This Japanese force subsequently
seized the king, occupied the Royal Palace in Seoul by early June 1894, and replaced the existing government with
members from the pro-Japanese faction. Though Chinese troops were already leaving Korea, finding themselves
unwanted there, the new pro-Japanese Korean government granted Japan the right to expel the Chinese troops
forcefully, while Japan shipped more troops to Korea. The legitimacy of the new government was rejected by China,
and the stage was thus set for conflict.
Nagasaki Incident
The Nagasaki Incident was a riot in Nagasaki caused by Qing Dynasty Beiyang Fleet soldiers stopping by the port
city in 1886. Several Japanese policemen confronting the rioters were killed. After the incident, the Qing did not
apologize to Japan, and behaved with confidence in the great power of their navy. At that time, the Qing possessed
the newest model of navy battleships, the Dingyuan, and thought that the Japanese navy was no match, and even at
the time of the Gaspin coup 2 years previous, Japan was defeated by the Qing, so at that time, the Qing dynasty did
have superior military power.
Status of combatants
Japan
Japan's reforms under the Meiji emperor gave significant priority to naval construction, and the creation of an
effective modern national army and navy. Japan sent numerous military officials abroad for training, and evaluation
of the relative strengths and tactics of European armies and navies.
Imperial Japanese Navy
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First Sino-Japanese War
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Major Combatants
Protected Cruisers
Matsushima (flagship)
Itsukushima
Hashidate
Naniwa
Takachiho
Yaeyama
Akitsushima
Yoshino
Izumi
Cruisers
Chiyoda
Armored Corvettes
Hiei
Kongō
Ironclad Warship
Fusō
The Imperial Japanese Navy was modeled after the British Royal
Navy, which at the time was the foremost naval power in the
world. British advisors were sent to Japan to train, advise and
educate the naval establishment; while students were in turn sent
to the United Kingdom to study and observe the Royal Navy.
Through drilling and tuition by Royal Navy instructors, Japan was
able to possess a navy expertly skilled in the arts of gunnery and
seamanship.[6]
At the start of hostilities, the Imperial Japanese Navy contained a
fleet of 12 modern warships, (Izumi being added during the war),
one frigate (Takao), 22 torpedo boats, and numerous
auxiliary/armed merchant cruisers and converted liners.
Japan did not yet have the resources to acquire battleships and so
planned to employ the Jeune École doctrine which favoured small,
fast warships, especially cruisers and torpedo boats, with guns
powerful enough to destroy larger craft.
Itō Sukeyuki was the Commander-in-Chief of the
Combined Fleet.
Many of Japan’s major warships were built in British and French
shipyards (eight British, three French and two Japanese-built) and
16 of the torpedo boats were known to have been built in France and assembled in Japan.
First Sino-Japanese War
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Imperial Japanese Army
The Meiji era government at first modeled the army on the French
Army. French advisers had been sent to Japan with two military
missions (in 1872–1880 and 1884; these were the second and third
missions respectively, the first having been under the shogunate).
Nationwide conscription was enforced in 1873 and a western-style
conscript army was established; military schools and arsenals were
also built.
In 1886 Japan turned toward the German Army, specifically the
Prussian model as the basis for its army. Its doctrines, military
system and organisation were studied in detail and adopted by the
IJA. In 1885 Jakob Meckel, a German adviser, implemented new
measures, such as the reorganization of the command structure of
the army into divisions and regiments; the strengthening of army
logistics, transportation, and structures (thereby increasing
mobility); and the establishment of artillery and engineering
regiments as independent commands.
The French-built Matsushima, flagship of the Imperial
Japanese Navy during the Sino-Japanese conflict.
By the 1890s Japan had at its disposal a modern, professionally
trained western-style army which was relatively well equipped and supplied. Its officers had studied in Europe and
were well educated in the latest tactics and strategy. By the start of the war, the Imperial Japanese Army could field a
total force of 120,000 men in two armies and five divisions.
Imperial Japanese Army Composition 1894–1895
1st Japanese Army
3rd Provincial Division (Nagoya)
5th Provincial Division (Hiroshima)
2nd Japanese Army
1st Provincial Division (Tokyo)
2nd Provincial Division (Sendai)
6th Provincial Division (Kumamoto)
In Reserve
4th Provincial Division (Osaka)
Invasion of Formosa (Taiwan)
Imperial Guards Division
First Sino-Japanese War
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China
Although the Beiyang Forces — Beiyang Army and Beiyang Fleet —
was the best equipped and symbolized the new modern Chinese
military, corruption was a serious problem. Military leaders and
officials systematically embezzled funds, even during the war. As a
result, the Beiyang Fleet did not purchase any battleships after its
establishment in 1888. The purchase of ammunition stopped in 1891,
with the funding being embezzled to build the Summer Palace in
Beijing. Logistics were a huge problem, as construction of railroads in
Manchuria had been discouraged. The morale of the Chinese armies
was generally very low due to lack of pay and prestige, use of opium
and poor leadership which contributed to some rather ignominious
withdrawals, such as the abandonment of the very well-fortified and
defensible Weihaiwei.
Beiyang Army
Empress Dowager Cixi took a portion of military
Qing Dynasty China did not have a national army. Following the
fund for palace renovation
Taiping Rebellion the army had been segregated into separate Manchu,
Mongol, Hui[7] (Muslim) and Han Chinese armies, which were further divided into largely independent regional
commands. During the war, most of the fighting was done by the Beiyang Army and Beiyang Fleet; pleas calling for
help from other Chinese armies and navies were completely ignored due to regional rivalry. The Huai and Anhwei
armies made up the larger Beiyang Army.
Qing Muslim General Zuo Baogui (左 寶 貴) (1837–1894), from Shandong province, died in action in Pingyang in
Korea from Japanese artillery in 1894 while securing the city. A memorial to him was constructed.[8]
Another General, Ma Yu-kun, who commanded a separate unit, was believed to be the son of the Muslim General
Ma Rulong by the Europeans. Ma Yu-kun fought with some success against Japan at Pingyang during the war and
after the war went on to fight in the Boxer Rebellion.[9][10]
Beiyang Fleet
The Beiyang Fleet was one of the four modernised Chinese navies in the late Qing Dynasty. The navies were heavily
sponsored by Li Hongzhang, the Viceroy of Zhili. The Beiyang Fleet was the dominant navy in East Asia before the
first Sino-Japanese War. However ships were not maintained properly and indiscipline was common.[11] Sentries
spent their time gambling, watertight doors were left open, rubbish was dumped in gun barrels and gunpowder for
explosive shells was sold and replaced with cocoa. At the Yalu river, a battleship had one of its guns pawned by
Admiral Ting .[12]
Dingyuan, the flagship of the Beiyang Fleet.
Beiyang Fleet
Zhenyuan.
Major combatants
First Sino-Japanese War
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Ironclad battleships Dingyuan (flagship), Zhenyuan
Armoured cruisers King Yuen, Lai Yuen
Protected cruisers
Cruisers
Coastal warship
Corvette
Chih Yuen, Ching Yuen
Torpedo Cruisers – Tsi Yuen, Kuang Ping/Kwang Ping | Chaoyong, Yangwei
Pingyuan
Kwan Chia
13 or so torpedo boats, numerous Gunboats and chartered merchant vessels
Foreign Opinions of Chinese and Japanese forces
The prevailing view in the West was that the modernized Chinese armies and navies would crush and defeat the
Japanese. Chinese armies like the Anhui Army and Beiyang Fleet were commended and admired by the Western
observers. They perceived China as militarily stronger.[13]
Japan looked like it would lose, according to the German General Staff. A British advisor to the Chinese military,
William Lang, was interviewed by Reuter. He praised the state of the Chinese armed forces and its training, modern
ships, guns, and equipment. He stated that "in the end, there is no doubt that Japan must be utterly crushed", and
viewed Japan as fated to lose the war.[14]
Contemporaneous wars being fought by China
At the same time China was fighting the First Sino Japanese War, other parts of the Chinese army were fighting in
the Dungan revolt (1895–1896) against rebels in Northwestern China, in which thousands were killed.
Early stages of the war
Genesis of the war
1 June 1894 : The Tonghak Rebel Army moves toward Seoul. The Korean government requests help from the
Chinese government to suppress the rebellion.
6 June 1894: The Chinese government informs the Japanese government under the obligation of the Convention of
Tientsin of its military operation. About 2,465 Chinese soldiers were transported to Korea within days.
8 June 1894: First of around 4,000 Japanese soldiers and 500 marines land at Jemulpo (Incheon) despite Korean and
Chinese protests.
11 June 1894: End of Tonghak Rebellion.
13 June 1894: The Japanese government telegraphs the commander of the Japanese forces in Korea, Ōtori Keisuke,
to remain in Korea for as long as possible despite the end of the rebellion.
16 June 1894: Japanese Foreign Minister Mutsu Munemitsu meets with Wang Fengzao, Chinese ambassador to
Japan, to discuss the future status of Korea. Wang states that the Chinese government intends to pull out of Korea
after the rebellion has been suppressed and expects Japan to do the same. However, China also appoints a resident to
look after Chinese interests in Korea and to re-assert Korea’s traditional subservient status to China.
22 June 1894: Additional Japanese troops arrive in Korea. Japanese Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi tells Matsukata
Masayoshi that he did not think that negotiations would work, and since the Qing appeared to be making military
preparations, there was probably "no policy but to go to war." Mutsu tells Ōtori to press the Korean government on
the Japanese demands.
26 June 1894: Ōtori presents a set of reform proposals to Gojong, which the Korean government rejects, and in
return insists on troop withdrawals.
First Sino-Japanese War
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7 July 1894: Mediation between China and Japan arranged by the British ambassador to China fails.
19 July 1894: Establishment of Japanese Joint Fleet, consisting of almost all vessels in the Imperial Japanese Navy,
in preparation for upcoming war. Mutsu cables Ōtori to take whatever steps he thought necessary to compel the
Korean government to carry out a reform program,.
23 July 1894: Japanese troops enter Seoul, seize the Korean emperor and establish a new pro-Japanese government,
which terminates all Sino-Korean treaties and grants the Imperial Japanese Army the right to expel the Chinese
Beiyang Army troops from Korea.
Events during the war
Opening moves
By July 1894 Chinese forces in Korea numbered 3000–3500 and could only be supplied by sea through the Bay of
Asan. The Japanese objective was first to blockade the Chinese at Asan (south of Seoul, South Korea) and then
encircle them with their land forces.
Sinking of the Kow-shing
On 25 July 1894, the cruisers Yoshino, Naniwa and Akitsushima of the
Japanese flying squadron, which had been patrolling off Asan, encountered
the Chinese cruiser Tsi-yuan and gunboat Kwang-yi. These vessels had
steamed out of Asan in order to meet another Chinese gunboat, the
Tsao-kiang, which was escorting a transport toward Asan. After a brief,
hour-long engagement, the Tsi-yuan escaped while the Kwang-yi became
stranded on rocks, where its powder-magazine exploded.
Depiction from the French periodical Le
Petit Journal (1894) of the sinking of the
Kow-shing and the rescue of some of its
crew by the French gunboat Le Lion.
The Kow-shing was a 2,134-ton British merchant vessel owned by the
Indochina Steam Navigation Company of London, commanded by Captain T.
R. Galsworthy and crewed by 64 men. The ship was chartered by the Qing
government to ferry troops to Korea; the Kow-shing was on her way to Asan
to reinforce Chinese forces there: 1,200 troops plus supplies and equipment
were on board the vessel. A German artillery officer, Major von Hanneken,
acting as an advisor to the Chinese, was also aboard. The ship was due to
arrive on 25 July.
The cruiser Naniwa (under the command of Captain Tōgō Heihachirō)
intercepted the two ships. The gunboat was eventually captured. The Japanese
then ordered the Kow-shing to follow Naniwa and requested that the
Europeans on board be transferred to Naniwa. However the 1,200 Chinese on board desired to return to Taku, and
threatened to kill the English captain, Galsworthy, and his crew. After four hours of negotiations, Captain Togo gave
the order to fire upon the vessel. A torpedo fired from the Naniwa missed the Kow Shing; Naniwa then fired a
broadside which hit the Kow shing; this was enough to distract the Chinese guarding the Europeans and allowed
some of the Europeans to jump overboard, only to be fired upon by the Chinese. The Japanese rescued three of the
43 crew (the captain, first officer and quartermaster) and a German passenger, and took them to Japan; the rest died
in the sinking. The sinking of the Kow-shing almost caused a diplomatic incident between Japan and Great Britain,
but the action was ruled in conformity with international law regarding the treatment of mutineers. Only three ships
rescued any Chinese troops. The German gunboat Iltis rescued 150 Chinese soldiers. The French gunboat Le Lion
rescued 43 Chinese soldiers. The British Cruiser HMS Porpoise also rescued an unknown number of troops. No
Japanese ships rescued Chinese troops in the water and it is estimated over 900 died in the sinking.[15]
First Sino-Japanese War
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Conflict in Korea
Commissioned by the new pro-Japanese Korean
government to expel the Chinese forces from
Korean territory by force, Major-General
Ōshima Yoshimasa led mixed Japanese brigades
numbering about 4,000 on a rapid forced march
from Seoul south toward Asan Bay to face 3,500
Chinese troops garrisoned at Seonghwan Station
east of Asan and Kongju.
Japanese soldiers of the Sino-Japanese War, Japan, 1895.
On 28 July 1894, the two forces met just outside
Asan in an engagement that lasted till 0730
hours the next morning. The Chinese gradually
lost ground to the superior Japanese numbers,
and finally broke and fled towards Pyongyang.
Chinese casualties amounted to 500 killed and
wounded, compared to 82 Japanese casualties.
War between China and Japan was officially
declared on 1 August 1894.
The remaining Chinese forces in Korea, by
August 4, retreated to the northern city of
Pyongyang, where they eventually joined troops
sent from China. The 13,000–15,000 defenders
made extensive repairs and preparations to the
city, hoping to check the Japanese advance.
Korean soldiers and Chinese captives
The Imperial Japanese Army converged on
Pyongyang from several directions on 15
September 1894. The Japanese assaulted the city
and eventually defeated the Chinese by an attack
from the rear; the defenders surrendered. By
taking advantage of heavy rainfall and using the
cover of darkness, the remaining troops marched
out of Pyongyang and headed northeast toward
the coast and the city of Uiju. Casualties were
2,000 killed and around 4,000 wounded for the
Chinese, while the Japanese lost 102 men killed,
433 wounded and 33 missing. The entire
Japanese army entered the city of Pyongyang on
the early morning of 16 September 1894.
The battle of the Yalu river
Defeat of the Beiyang fleet
The Imperial Japanese Navy destroyed 8 out of ten warships of the Chinese Beiyang Fleet off the mouth of the Yalu
River on 17 September 1894. Japan's command of the sea was assured. The Chinese were able to land 4,500 troops
near the Yalu River.
First Sino-Japanese War
Invasion of Manchuria
<(need more background – see talk page)> With the
defeat at Pyongyang, the Chinese abandoned northern
Korea and instead took up defensive positions in
fortifications along their side of the Yalu River near
Jiuliancheng. After receiving reinforcements by 10
October, the Japanese quickly pushed north toward
Manchuria.
On the night of 24 October 1894, the Japanese
Japanese illustration depicting the beheading of Chinese captives in
successfully crossed the Yalu River, undetected, by
October 1894.
erecting a pontoon bridge. The following afternoon of
25 October at 5:00 pm, they assaulted the outpost of
Hushan, east of Jiuliancheng. At 10:30 pm the defenders deserted their positions and by the next day they were in
full retreat from Jiuliancheng. With the capture of Jiuliancheng, General Yamagata's 1st Army Corps occupied the
nearby city of Dandong, while to the north, elements of the retreating Beiyang Army set fire to the city of
Fengcheng. The Japanese had established a firm foothold on Chinese territory with the loss of only four killed and
140 wounded.
The Japanese 1st Army Corps then split into two groups with General Nozu Michitsura's 5th Provincial Division
advancing toward the city of Mukden (now Shenyang, China) and Lieutenant General Katsura Tarō's 3rd Provincial
Division pursuing fleeing Chinese forces west along toward the Liaodong Peninsula.
By December the 3rd Provincial Division had captured the towns of Ta-tung-kau, Ta-ku-shan, Xiuyan, Tomu-cheng,
Hai-cheng and Kang-wa-seh. The 5th Provincial Division marched during a severe Manchurian winter towards
Mukden.
The Japanese 2nd Army Corps under Ōyama Iwao landed on the south coast of Liaodong Peninsula on 24 October
and quicky moved to capture Kin-chow and Talienwan on 6–7 November. The Japanese laid siege to the strategic
port of Lushunkou.
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First Sino-Japanese War
Fall of Lüshunkou
By 21 November 1894, the Japanese had taken
the city of Lüshunkou (Port Arthur). The
Japanese army massacred thousands of the city's
civilian Chinese inhabitants in an event that
came to be called the Port Arthur Massacre (note
that the scale and nature of the killing continues
to be debated). By 10 December 1894, Kaipeng
(modern-day Gaixian) fell to the Japanese 1st
Army Corps.
Fall of Weihaiwei
The Chinese fleet subsequently retreated behind
the Weihaiwei fortifications. However, they
were then surprised by Japanese ground forces,
who outflanked the harbor's defenses. The battle
of Weihaiwei would be a 23-day siege with the
major land and naval components taking place
between 20 January and 12 February 1895.
After Weihaiwei's fall on 12 February 1895, and
an easing of harsh winter conditions, Japanese
First Sino-Japanese War, major battles and troop movements.
troops pressed further into southern Manchuria
and northern China. By March 1895 the
Japanese had fortified posts that commanded the sea approaches to Beijing. This would be the last major battle to be
fought; numerous skirmishes would follow. The Battle of Yinkou was fought outside the port town of Yingkou,
Manchuria, on 5 March 1895.
Occupation of the Pescadores Islands
On 23 March 1895, Japanese forces attacked the Pescadores Islands, off the west coast of Taiwan. In a brief and
almost bloodless campaign the Japanese defeated the islands' Qing garrison and occupied the main town of Makung.
This operation effectively prevented Chinese forces in Taiwan from being reinforced, and allowed the Japanese to
press their demand for the cession of Taiwan in the negotiations leading to the conclusion of the Treaty of
Shimonoseki in April 1895.
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First Sino-Japanese War
12
End of the war
The Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed on 17 April 1895. China
recognized the total independence of Korea and ceded the Liaodong
Peninsula (in the south of the present day Liaoning Province), Taiwan
and the Penghu Islands to Japan "in perpetuity". Additionally, China
was to pay Japan 200 million Kuping taels as reparation. China also
signed a commercial treaty permitting Japanese ships to operate on the
Yangtze River, to operate manufacturing factories in treaty ports and to
open four more ports to foreign trade. The Triple Intervention,
however, forced Japan to give up the Liaodong Peninsula in exchange
for another 30 million Kuping taels (450 million yen).
Revisionist depiction of Chinese delegation, led
by Admiral Ding Ruchang and their foreign
advisors, boarding the Japanese vessel to
negotiate the surrender with Admiral Itō
Sukeyuki after the Battle of Weihaiwei. In reality,
Ding had committed suicide after his defeat and
never surrendered.
After the war, according to the Chinese scholar, Jin Xide, the Qing
government paid a total of 340,000,000 taels ( 13,600 tons ) of silver to
Japan for both the reparations of war and war trophies. This was equivalent to (then) 510,000,000 Japanese yen,
about 6.4 times the Japanese government revenue.
Japanese invasion of Taiwan
Several Qing officials in Taiwan resolved to resist the cession of Taiwan to Japan under the Treaty of Shimonoseki,
and on 23 May declared the island to be an independent Republic of Formosa. On 29 May Japanese forces under
Admiral Motonori Kabayama landed in northern Taiwan, and in a five-month campaign defeated the Republican
forces and occupied the island's main towns. The campaign effectively ended on 21 October 1895, with the flight of
Liu Yung-fu, the second Republican president, and the surrender of the Republican capital Tainan.
Aftermath
The Japanese success during the war was the result of the
modernization and industrialization embarked upon two decades
earlier. The war demonstrated the superiority of Japanese tactics and
training as a result of the adoption of a Western-style military. The
Imperial Japanese Army and navy were able to inflict a string of
defeats on the Chinese through foresight, endurance, strategy and
power of organization. Japanese prestige rose in the eyes of the world.
The victory established Japan as a regional power (if not a great
power) on equal terms with the West[16] and as the dominant power in
Asia.[17]
Japan-China Peace Treaty, 17 April 1895.
The war for China revealed the ineffectiveness of its government, its policies, the corruption of the Qing
administration. Traditionally China viewed Japan as a subordinate outlier of the Chinese cultural sphere. Although
Qing China had already been defeated by European powers in the 19th century, a defeat at the hands of fellow
Asians and a former tributary state was a bitter psychological blow. Anti-foreign sentiment and agitation grew and
would later culminate in the form of the Boxer Rebellion five years later.
First Sino-Japanese War
Although Japan had achieved what it had set out to accomplish,
namely to end Chinese influence over Korea, Japan reluctantly had
been forced to relinquish the Liaodong Peninsula, (Port Arthur), in
exchange for an increased financial indemnity. The European powers
(Russia especially), while having no objection to the other clauses of
the treaty, did feel that Japan should not gain Port Arthur, for they had
their own ambitions in that part of the world. Russia persuaded
Germany and France to join her in applying diplomatic pressure on the
Japanese, resulting in the Triple Intervention of 23 April 1895.
13
Convention of retrocession of the Liaotung
peninsula, 8 November 1895.
In 1898 Russia signed a 25-year lease on the Liaodong Peninsula and
proceeded to set up a naval station at Port Arthur. Although this
infuriated the Japanese, they were more concerned with Russian encroachment toward Korea than in Manchuria.
Other powers, such as France, Germany and Great Britain, took advantage of the situation in China and gained port
and trade concessions at the expense of the decaying Qing Empire. Tsingtao and Kiaochow was acquired by
Germany, Kwang-Chou-Wan by France and Weihaiwei by Great Britain.
Tensions between Russia and Japan would increase in the years after the First Sino-Japanese war. During the Boxer
Rebellion an eight-member international force was sent to suppress and quell the uprising; Russia sent troops into
Manchuria as part of this force. After the suppression of the Boxers the Russian government agreed to vacate the
area. However, by 1903 it had actually increased the size of its forces in Manchuria. Negotiations between the two
nations (1901–1904) to establish mutual recognition of respective spheres of influence (Russia over Manchuria and
Japan over Korea) were repeatedly and intentionally stalled by the Russians. They felt that they were strong and
confident enough not to accept any compromise and believed Japan would not dare go to war against a European
power. Russia also had intentions to use Manchuria as a springboard for further expansion of its interests in the Far
East.
In 1902 Japan formed an alliance with Britain, the terms of which stated that if Japan went to war in the Far East and
that a third power entered the fight against Japan, then Britain would come to the aid of the Japanese. This was a
check to prevent either Germany or France from intervening militarily in any future war with Russia. British reasons
for joining the alliance were also to check the spread of Russian expansion into the Pacific arena, which would have
threatened British interests.
Increasing tensions between Japan and Russia as a result of Russia's unwillingness to enter into a compromise and
the prospect of Korea falling under Russia's domination, therefore coming into conflict with and undermining Japan's
interests, compelled Japan to take action. This would be the deciding factor and catalyst that would lead to the
Russo-Japanese war of 1904–05.
Notes
•
This article incorporates text from The living age ..., Volume 226, by Eliakim Littell, Robert S. Littell, Making
of America Project, a publication from 1900 now in the public domain in the United States.
•
This article incorporates text from Eclectic magazine: foreign literature, by John Holmes Agnew, Walter
Hilliard Bidwell, a publication from 1900 now in the public domain in the United States.
[1] "Japan Anxious for a Fight; The Chinese Are Slow and Not in Good Shape to Go to War," (http:/ / query. nytimes. com/ mem/ archive-free/
pdf?res=950DEEDE1531E033A25753C3A9619C94659ED7CF) New York Times. July 30, 1894.
[2] Jansen, p.335
[3] www.ocu.mit.edu (http:/ / ocw. mit. edu/ ans7870/ 21f/ 21f. 027j/ throwing_off_asia_01/ punch. html)
[4] Jansen, p.431
[5] James McClain, "Japan a Modern History," 297
[6] "The skills of the Japanese officers and men was [sic] astronomically higher those of their Chinese counterparts." (http:/ / www. steelnavy.
com/ HasegawaMikasa. htm)
First Sino-Japanese War
[7] Michael Dillon (1999). China's Muslim Hui community: Migration, settlement and sects (http:/ / books. google. com/
?id=hUEswLE4SWUC& pg=PA72& dq=ma+ anliang#v=snippet& q=hui officers and men 1894 sino japanese war& f=false). Richmond:
Curzon Press. p. 72. ISBN 0-7007-1026-4, 9780700710263. . Retrieved 2010-06-28.
[8] Aliya Ma Lynn (2007). Muslims in China (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=s4Lp8tgr3esC& dq=ma+ wanfu+ exile+ xinjiang& q=ma+
fuxiang#v=onepage& q=zuo baogui killed sino-japanese war& f=false). Volume 3 of Asian Studies. University Press. p. 44.
ISBN 0-88093-861-7. . Retrieved 2010-06-28.
[9] The living age ..., Volume 226 (http:/ / books. google. com/ ?id=uEoTAAAAMAAJ& pg=PA757& dq=ma+ julung+ tung+ fu#v=onepage&
q=ma julung tung fu& f=false). BOSTON: The Living Age Co. Inc.. 1900. p. 757. . Retrieved 2010-06-28.(Original from the University of
Michigan)
[10] The Eclectic magazine: foreign literature (http:/ / books. google. com/ ?id=TmnfUKQTym8C& pg=PA620& dq=ma+ julung+ tung+
fu#v=onepage& q=ma julung tung fu& f=false). Leavitt, Throw and Co.. 1900. p. 620. . Retrieved 2010-06-28.(Original from the University
of Michigan)
[11] Naval Warfare, 1815–1914, Lawrence Sondhaus, p.168/170
[12] Geoffrey Regan, Naval Blunders, page 28
[13] John King Fairbank, Kwang-Ching Liu, Denis Crispin Twitchett, ed. (1980). Late Ch'ing, 1800-1911 (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=pEfWaxPhdnIC& q=Liu+ Chin-t'ang's+ big+ German+ guns+ Pai+ Yen-hu+ without+ resistance#v=onepage& q=eve
Sino-Japanese War respectable praise favourable comment advantage& f=false). Volume 11, Part 2 of The Cambridge History of China
Series (illustrated ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 268. ISBN 0-521-22029-7. . Retrieved 2012-01-18. "On the eve of the Sino-Japanese
War, China appeared, to undiscerning observers, to possess respectable military and naval forces. Praise for Li Hung-chang's Anhwei Army
and other Chinese forces was not uncommon, and the Peiyang Navy elicited considerable favourable comment.179 When war between China
and Japan appeared likely, most Westerners thought China had the advantage. Her army was vast, and her navy both out-"
[14] John King Fairbank, Kwang-Ching Liu, Denis Crispin Twitchett, ed. (1980). Late Ch'ing, 1800-1911 (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=pEfWaxPhdnIC& q=Liu+ Chin-t'ang's+ big+ German+ guns+ Pai+ Yen-hu+ without+ resistance#v=onepage& q=german general
staff considered japanese victory improbably interview reuter william lang predicted defeat for japan& f=false). Volume 11, Part 2 of The
Cambridge History of China Series (illustrated ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 269. ISBN 0-521-22029-7. . Retrieved 2012-01-18.
"numbered and outweight Japan's. The German general staff considered a Japanese victory improbable. In an interview with Reuters, William
Lang predicted defeat for Japan. Lang thought that the Chinese navy was well-drilled, the ships were fit, the artillery was at least adequate,
and the coastal forts were strong. Weihaiwei, he said, was impregnable. Although Lang emphasized that everything depended on how China's
forces were led, he had faith that 'in the end, there is no doubt that Japan must be utterly crushed'.180"
[15] Sequence of events, and numbers of rescued and dead, taken from several articles from The Times of London from 2 August 1894-25
October 1894
[16] Paine, The Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895: Perception, Power, and Primacy.
[17] "A new balance of power had emerged. China's millennia-long regional dominance had abruptly ended. Japan had become the dominant
power of Asia, a position it would retain throughout the twentieth century". Paine, The Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895: Perception, Power,
and Primacy.
References
• Jansen, Marius B. (2000). The Making of Modern Japan. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 10-ISBN
0674003349/13-ISBN 9780674003347; OCLC 44090600 (http://www.worldcat.org/title/
making-of-modern-japan/oclc/44090600&referer=brief_results)
• Chamberlin, William Henry. Japan Over Asia, 1937, Little, Brown, and Company, Boston.
• Colliers (Ed.), The Russo-Japanese War, 1904, P.F. Collier & Son, New York.
• Kodansha Japan An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1993, Kodansha Press, Tokyo ISBN 4-06-205938-X
• Lone, Stewart. Japan's First Modern War: Army and Society in the Conflict with China, 1894–1895, 1994, St.
Martin's Press, New York.
• Mutsu, Munemitsu. (1982). Kenkenroku (trans. Gordon Mark Berger). Tokyo: University of Toyko Press.
10-ISBN 0860083063/13-ISBN 9780860083061; OCLC 252084846 (http://www.worldcat.org/title/
kenkenroku-engl/oclc/252084846)
• Paine, S.C.M. The Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895: Perception, Power, and Primacy, 2003, Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge, MA, 412 pp.
• Sedwick, F.R. (R.F.A.). The Russo-Japanese War, 1909, The Macmillan Company, NY, 192 pp.
• Theiss, Frank. The Voyage of Forgotten Men, 1937, Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1st Ed., Indianapolis & New York.
• Warner, Dennis and Peggy. The Tide At Sunrise, 1974, Charterhouse, New York.
14
First Sino-Japanese War
• Urdang, Laurence/Flexner, Stuart, Berg. The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, College
Edition. Random House, New York, (1969).
Filmography
• Dugo sa Kapirasong Lupa A 1930- Philippine film
• Saka no ue no kumo (2009)
• the Martyrdom of Deng Sichang-A chinese film about the battle in yellow sea.
Further reading
• Military Heritage did an editorial on the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 (Brooke C. Stoddard, Military Heritage,
December 2001, Volume 3, No. 3).
External links
• 程 映 虹︰從"版 畫 事 件"到 《 中 國 向 西 行 進 》Peter Perdue 濮 德 培 和 中 國 當 代 民 族
主 義 (http://ncn.org/view.php?id=74846) (Chinese)
• Detailed account of the naval Battle of the Yalu River (http://www.navyandmarine.org/ondeck/
1894YaluBattle.htm) by Philo Norton McGiffen
• Under the Dragon Flag — My Experiences in the Chino-Japanese War by James Allan (http://www.gutenberg.
org/etext/16407) at Project Gutenberg
• Print exhibition at MIT (http://ocw.mit.edu/ans7870/21f/21f.027/throwing_off_asia_02/index.html)
• The Sinking of the Kowshing – Captain Galsworthy's Report (http://www.russojapanesewar.com/galsworthy.
html)
• SinoJapaneseWar.com A detailed account of the Sino-Japanese War (http://SinoJapaneseWar.com)
15
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