IB History The Impact of Japanese Nationalism and Militarism on Foreign Policy Notes

The Meiji Restoration and Modernisation

1. Until the mid-19th century, Japan was largely isolated from the outside world under the Tokugawa Shogunate (1603-1868).
2. In 1853, US Commodore Matthew Perry arrived with warships and forced Japan to open its ports through the Treaty of Kanagawa (1854).
3. The Shogunate's failure to resist Western pressure discredited it; the Meiji Restoration (1868) restored nominal imperial authority.
4. Meiji leaders adopted the slogan "rich country, strong army" (fukoku kyohei), pursuing rapid industrialisation modelled on Western powers.
5. The government built railways, telegraph lines, and modern factories; by 1900, GNP grew by over 3% per year.
6. From the 1880s, the state sold industries to powerful private conglomerates called zaibatsu (Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Sumitomo), which dominated commerce and industry.
7. The Meiji Constitution (1889) created a bicameral Diet, but sovereignty rested with the Emperor, and the military reported directly to him.
8. Only 1-2% of men could vote initially (tax-based suffrage), and the oligarchy retained real political control behind parliamentary structures.
9. Japan had only 20% arable land and lacked iron, oil, and rubber, creating a structural dependence on imported raw materials.

Early Japanese Expansionism 1894-1910

1. The First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895) was fought over influence in Korea; Japan's decisive victory shocked Western powers.
2. The Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895) gave Japan Taiwan (Formosa), the Pescadores, and the Liaodong Peninsula, plus Chinese recognition of Korean independence.
3. The Triple Intervention (1895) by Russia, France, and Germany forced Japan to return the Liaodong Peninsula, fuelling deep resentment.
4. The Anglo-Japanese Alliance (1902) was the first military alliance between a Western and non-Western power, boosting Japan's international status.
5. The Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) began over rival claims to Manchuria and Korea; Japan defeated Russia at Mukden and Tsushima.
6. The Treaty of Portsmouth (1905) gave Japan the southern half of Sakhalin and Russian concessions in Manchuria, but no indemnity, causing nationalist protests.
7. Japan formally annexed Korea in 1910, establishing colonial rule that would last until 1945.

Japan and the First World War