Everything about Sino-japanese War 1894-1895 totally explained
Genesis of the war
1 June 1894 : The
Tonghak Rebel Army moves towards
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
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,
Otori 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 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.
3 July 1894: Otori proposes reforms of the Korean political system, which is rejected by the conservative and pro-Chinese Korean government.
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.
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 firstly to blockade the Chinese at Asan 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 convoying a transport toward Asan. After a brief, one hour engagement, the cruiser
Tsi-yuan escaped while the
Kwang-yi became stranded on rocks, where its powder-magazine exploded.
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 and the gunboat
Tsao-kiang were on their way to Asan to reinforce Chinese forces there - 1200 troops plus supplies and equipment were onboard the vessel. A German artillery officer, Major von Hanneken, acting as an advisor to the Chinese was also onboard, the ship was due to arrive on 25 July.
The cruiser
Naniwa(under the command of Captain Togo Heihachiro) intercepted the two ships. The gunboat was eventually captured, the Japanese then ordered the
Kow-shing to follow the
Naniwa and requested that the Europeans onboard be transferred to the
Naniwa. However the 1200 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. The Europeans jumped overboard only to be fired upon by the Chinese, the Japanese managed to rescue many of the crew. 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.
Conflict in Korea
Commissioned by the new pro-Japanese Korean government to expel the Chinese forces from Korean territory by force,
Major-General Oshima 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.
On
28 July 1894, the two forces met just outside Asan in an engagement that lasted till 0730 hours the next morning, 29 July. 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.
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. However, taking advantage of heavy rainfall and using the cover of darkness, the remaining troops marched out of Pyongyang and headed northeast towards the coast and the city of Uiju. Casualties were 2000 killed and around 4000 wounded for the Chinese while the Japanese lost 102 men killed, 433 wounded and 33 missing. The whole Japanese army entered the city of Pyongyang on the early morning of
16 September 1894.
Defeat of the Beiyang fleet
The
Imperial Japanese Navy destroyed 8 out of 10 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 however were able to land 4,500 troops near the Yalu River.
Invasion Of Manchuria
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
Jiuliangcheng. After receiving reinforcements, the Japanese 10 October then quickly pushed north towards
Manchuria.
On the night of
24 October 1894, the Japanese successfully crossed the Yalu undetected, by erecting a
pontoon bridge. The following afternoon of
25 October at 5.00pm, they assaulted the outpost of Hushan east of Jiuliangcheng. At 10.30pm the defenders deserted their positions and by the next day they were in full retreat from Jiuliangcheng.
With the capture of Jiuliangcheng, General Yamagata's 1st Army Corps proceded to occupy 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 4 killed and 140 wounded.
The Japanese 1st Army Corps would then split into two groups with General
Nozu Michitsura's 5th Provincial Division advancing towards the city of
Mukden and Lieutenant General
Katsura Taro's 3rd Provincial Division, west along towards the
Liaodong Peninsula pursuing fleeing Chinese forces.
By December the 3rd Provincial Division would capture the towns of
Ta-tung-kau,
Ta-ku-shan,
Xiuyan,
Tomu-cheng,
Hai-cheng, and
Kang-wa-seh. The 5th Provincial Division would march against a severe Manchurian winter heading towards Mukden.
The Japanese 2nd Army Corps under
Oyama 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.
Fall of Lushunkou
By
21 November 1894, the Japanese had taken the city of
Lüshunkou (Port Arthur). The Japanese army allegedly massacred thousands of the city's civilian Chinese inhabitants, in an event that came to be called the
Port Arthur Massacre.
By 10 December 1894, Kaipeng (modern Gaixian, Liaoning Province, China) fell to the Japanese 1st Army Corps.
Fall of Weihaiwei and Aftermath
The Chinese fleet subsequently retreated behind the
Weihaiwei fortifications. However, they were then surprised by Japanese ground forces, who outflanked the harbor's defenses. 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 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, however numerous skirmishes would occur. The Battle of Yinkou fought outside the port town of Yingkou, Manchuria On 5 March 1895.
Invasion of Formosa(Taiwan) and the Pescadores
On 26 March 1895 Japanese forces invade and occupy the Pescadores Islands off Taiwan without casualties and 29 March 1895 Japanese forces under Admiral Motonori Kabayama land in northern Taiwan and proceed to occupy it.
End of the war
The
Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed on
17 April 1895. China recognized the total independence of Korea, ceded the
Liaodong Peninsula (In present-day south of
Liaoning Province),
Taiwan/Formosa and the
Pescadores 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).
War Reparations
After the war, according to the Chinese scholar, Jin Xide, the Qing government paid a total of 340,000,000 taels silver to Japan for both the reparations of war and war trophies, equivalent to (then) 510,000,000 Japanese yen, about 6.4 times the Japanese government revenue. Similarly, the Japanese scholar, Ryoko Iechika, calculated that the Qing government paid total $21,000,000 (about one third of revenue of the Qing government) in war reparations to Japan, or about 320,000,000 Japanese yen, equivalent to (then) two and half years of Japanese government revenue.
Aftermath
The Japanese success during the war was the result of the modernisation and industrialisation embarked on 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 and as the dominant power in Asia.
The war for China revealed the ineffectiveness of its government, its policies, the corruption of the administration system and the decaying state of the Qing dynasty (something that had been recognized for decades). Anti-foreign sentiment and agitation grew and would later accumulate in the form of the
Boxer Rebellion five years later. Throughout the 19th century the Qing dynasty was unable to prevent foreign encroachment—this together with calls for reform and the Boxer Rebellion would be the key factors that would lead to 1911 revolution and the downfall of the Qing dynasty in 1912.
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 shouldn't gain Port Arthur, for they'd 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.
In 1898 Russia signed a 25-year lease on
Liaodong Peninsula and preceded to set up a naval station at Port Arthur. Although this infuriated the Japanese, they were more concerned with Russian encroachment towards 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 number 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 wouldn't 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, thereby threatening 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.
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