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Updated Sunday 15 May, 2011 12:18 PM |
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This Day in Alternate History Blog
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Japanese
Surge 1871 66 Okinawan sailors strand on Taiwan. Only 12 survive a massacre by the aborigines. 1874 Japanese troops invade northern Taiwan and
massacre a good number of aboregenes as revenge for earlier atrocities against
Japanese sailors. Over Chinese protests, the Japanese stay there. 1875 In Russian-Japanese talks, it is agreed, that Japan will annex the rest of the Kurile islands (it already possesses Iturup, Kunashir and Habomai) in return for Japan renouncing all claims to southern Sakhalin island. Japan forces Korea to open up to foreign, especially Japanese, trade and to declare itself independent from China in its foreign relations 1876 The Bonin islands are annexed by Japan. The annexation is acknowledged by the USA and Great Britain, who had both earlier made claims to the islands. 1879 The Ryukyu islands are annexed by Japan. 1881 During a state visit of king Kalakaua of Hawaii to
Japan, he puts forth a proposal to form a union between the two islands under
the Japanese emperor, to be the beginning of a greater Asian union. At the same
time, he also expresses much interest in Buddhism, and in importing it to
Hawaii. The Japanese jump at this opportunity, and a
treaty is quickly signed, whereby the union comes into effect. Separate clauses
see Japanese Buddhist monks go to Hawaii for missionary work and the building of
shrines. Another clause sees an agreement to give Japanese workers free entrance
to the Hawaiian islands (something like this was proposed by the Hawaiian king,
but never put through). 1884 A group of pro-Japanese reformers attempt to
overthrow the Korean government, but Chinese troops under Gen. Yüan Shih-k'ai
rescue the King, killing several Japanese legation guards in the process. A
Sino-Japanese war seems imminent. Germany acquires New Britain, New Ireland and the
Northeast Coast of New Guinea Great Britain under pressure from the Queensland
colonialists declares a protectorate over southeast New Guinea. 1885 War between Japan and China over Korea is avoided, when both countries sign the Li-Ito Convention, in which both nations agree to withdraw troops from Korea. It essentially establishes a joint Sino-Japanese protectorate over the country. Japanese make up 25% of the Hawaiian population. 1887 Japan and Hawaii sign a treaty, that gives Japan
monopoly on the use of Pearl Harbor (such a treaty was signed between Hawaii and
the US in reality this year). 1889 Joint German-British protectorate over Samoa (this
happened at the time, but with the US included as protector. Thanks to the loss
of Hawaii as a US interest sphere, I have let her become less of a power in the
Pacific, and thus not let her become a protector). 1893
Britain declares a protectorate over part of the
Solomon Islands 1894 When China sends troops to Korea to help prop up
the Korean king during the Tonghak-rebellion, the Japanese see this as a break
of the Li-Ito convention of 1885. They send in their own navy and troops, and
score a series of quick victories on land and at sea. 1895 With Japanese troops standing in Korea, Manchuria and Shantung, China is forced to sue for peace. In the treaty of Shimonoseki, China cedes to Japan Formosa (already 20 years under defacto Japanese control), the Pescadores islands and the Liaotung peninsula, agrees to pay a large indemnity, and to open up to Japanese trade. Though pressure applied by the European powers later force retraction of the demand for Liaotung peninsula, it is a solid Japanese win. 1896 Russia and China conclude a treaty against Japan. At the same time, Russia is granted permission to extend the Trans-Siberian Railway to Port Arthur. The Philippine revolution against the Spanish begins, one year after the Cuban. Japan lends all the help it can. 1898 As the Spanish are busily wiping out the last
nationalist resistance in Cuba, the Filipino nationalists finally confine the
last Spanish troops to Manila and parts of Luzon. Russia forces China to lease the harbor of Port
Arthur and the Liaotung peninsula, that it just recently had helped prevent
Japan from getting, from China. 1899 Aguinaldo leads the Filipino juntas in declaring
the Philippines' independence from Spain. Japan, the USA and Spain recognize
Filipino independence, while the other Western colonial powers refuse to accept
such a potentially dangerous precedent as a colonial unilateral declaration of
independence. The Muslims of Mindanao grumble. A provisional government over Samoa is formed,
consisting of the German and British consuls. 1900 In China, the Boxer rebellion holes up the foreign
embassies in Peking. They are later relieved by an army of some 20.000 European,
American and Japanese troops, over half being provided by Japan. Both Tientsin
and Peking are looted. As the young Filipino First Republic begins to
collapse into a morass of corruption, the Muslim Moros of Mindanao declare their
sovereignity under the Sulu Sultanate. Japan buys from Spain the Mariana Islands
(including Guam). Germany buys from Spain Palau, the Caroline and
Marshall islands. Germany exchanges its rights to the remainder of
Solomons islands for the British rights in Samoa, which is annexed to Germany. 1902 Japan and Great Britain sign a treaty on mutual
cooperation, that sees them protect common interests in China and Korea, along
with independence of said two countries. China, the European powers, Japan and the USA sign
the Boxer Protocol, whereby the foreign powers
get the right to maintain military forces in the capital, thus placing the
imperial government more or less under arrest. It also suspends the civil
service examination, demands a huge indemnity to be paid by China for the losses
suffered, and requires government officials to be prosecuted for their role in
the rebellion. In addition, the Protocols suspend all arms imports into the
country. 1903 Mindanao successfully bottles up Filipino forces
in their garrisons, with any patrols that venture out into the surrounding
countryside being ambushed. The Aguinaldo government in Manila is overthrown
by outraged oligarchs and the Manila mob, and warlordism begins to develop
rapidly, with Antonio Luna, Aguinaldo's Director of War, and Vincente Lukban
soon emerging as the strongest among the warlords. Aguinaldo flees to Hong Kong. Russia reneges on an agreement to withdraw its
troops from Manchuria. Japan is infuriated. 1904 Using a pirate incident as a casus belli, the
German navy states that since the Sulu sultanate apparently can not maintain
control and order on Mindanao, someone else must do so. Mindanao is quickly
occupied by German troops. As Davao is made into a German naval base, Moro death
tolls rise rapidly. Great Britain assumes protector status over the
remainder of the Sulu sultanate. Japan launches a surprise attack on Port Arthur,
and lands an army on the Liaotung peninsula, that quickly begins to besiege the
city. Another army lands in Korea, quickly overrunning the country and then
proceeding into Manchuria, where the Russians are pushed back to Mukden. Though
the Russians subsequently try a counter-offensive, it is ineffectual. To relieve
some of the pressure on Port Arthur, Russia sends its Baltic Sea fleet to Asia. 1905 Port Arthur surrenders early in the year, and when
the Russians suffer further defeats in Manchuria, where they abandon Mukden, and
in the Tsushima strait, where most of the Baltic Sea Fleet is either sunk or
captured, domestic troubles begin in Russia, and she sues for peace. With British mediation, a peace treaty is finally
concluded, giving Japan control over Korea, the Liaotung peninsula including
Port Arthur and the Southern Manchurian Rail Road. In addition, Russia cedes
southern Sakhalin and fishing rights around northern Sakhalin to Japan, and
agrees to evacuate Manchuria. (in reality, it was American mediation that did
the trick, but given less American influence in the Far East, I have let
Britain, a Japanese ally, do it). Though Japan has seized considerably more
territory than what is awarded her, she goes along, being given secret British
agreement that she can seize what is left of the Filippines in return. Later in the year, China signs a treaty with Japan
acknowledging the transfer of rights from Russia to Japan. Fearful that any number of potential imperialist
powers – perhaps Germany, perhaps the United States, perhaps even France --
might descend on the Philippines and commit the same atrocities that are
currently taking place in Mindanao, a group of Filipino politicians go to Tokyo,
capital of the victorious Japanese Empire, with an intriguing proposition ... 1907 To the surprise of the world and the anger of the
Germans, Japan announces that it has established a protectorate over the
Filipino Republic, with the full consent of the Filipino government. As the
Japanese navy establishes itself in bases outside Manila, and the Japanese army
begins to engage in some costly confrontations against anti-government armed
groups, tensions increase with Germany. Russia and Japan divide Manchuria into spheres of
influence. 1908 Japan disarms the Korean army. Guerilla war
against the Japanese begins. 1910 Japan formally annexes Korea. 1911 The Chinese revolution begins, with province after
province pledging its allegiance to the revolutionaries 1912 The last Chinese emperor abdicates. 1914
WWI begins. Japanese vessels help the Royal Navy
to hunt the German Asian Squadron from its home base at Tsingtao. At the same
time, in a joint effort with a few British troops, the Japanese storm the German
concession Tsingtao, and gradually increase the territories held in Shantung
province, wherein the city lies. Further south, Japanese troops occupy the Marshall
and Caroline islands, Samoa and the Bismarck Archipelago, and land in Mindanao.
(all this took place, save the Japanese occupation of Mindanao (of obvious
reasons) and Samoa, as New Zealand troops beat them to the punch). 1915 Japan presents China with a series of 21 demands,
ordered in 5 groups. These provided that -
Japan assume Germany’s position in Kiaochow -
Manchuria and Mongolia be reserved to Japan for
exploitation and colonization -
Japan control the main coal deposits of China -
the other powers be excluded from further
territorial concessions -
Japan guide China’s military, commercial, and
financial affairs In the end, the last group of demands is dropped,
and the Chinese agree to the other 4. Japan agrees to commit warships to convoy- and
search and destroy duty in both the Pacific and Indian Oceans. 1916 Japanese commitments are further increased, and
Japanese vessels also appear in both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. (the
former in OTL only happened in 1917, the latter never. This helps to remove
somewhat the feeling that Japan acted the role of a jackal in WWI, and also
acquaints the Japanese with convoy- and anti-submarine warfare). An attempt by Yuan Shih-Kai to install himself as
emperor of China fails. As a result, China descends into a period of warlordism.
1917 A Japanese corps of 4 divisions is promised for
the western front. The Russian Revolution. 1918 The Japanese corps arrives early in the year in
France, and manages to take part in the final offensives, that drive back the
Germans. Some lessons are learned. WWI ends. Some 70.000 Japanese troops in tandem with about
4.000 American and some thousand French, British and Italian ones land at
Vladivostok, officially to safeguard Allied supplies there. They push as far as
Lake Baikal. (I cut the American contingent in half, as US interests in Asia are
smaller). Japan begins to aid the White Russian government
established at Omsk. 1919 The main white army in Siberia under Kolchak is
defeated. He manages to flee east to Vladivostok, where he begins to gather men
for a new White Army. While this is happening, the Japanese hold a line running
in the region of Lake Bajkal, thus providing him with a safe haven to train his
army. (in reality Kolchak was arrested and shot by the Soviets). Japanese troops enter Mongolia. Meanwhile the remaining White Armies around Russia
are beaten one by one. Only Denikins forces in the Crimea hold out. 1920 At the Versailles peace conference Japan is
awarded all the territories she took from the Germans. The German part of New
Guinea goes to Australia. Kolchaks White Army returns to man the line. With
the collapse ended, a process begins, where order behind the lines is slowly
beginning to be reinstated. The warlords, upon which the Japanese have relied
for so long, are hunted down, and their men put into Kolchaks army. Massive
supplies from the Japanese manage to make the Whites hold against repeated
Soviet attacks. With the Polish-Soviet War ended, the Soviets are
free to turn against the last remnant of white armies in the west, Wrangels
forces in the southern Ukraine and the Crimea. They are forced to evacuate by
November. A Japanese puppet state is established in outer
Mongolia. 1921 Convinced by Kolchak, and transported by the
Japanese, the White army of Wrangel comes to eastern Siberia, adding three corps
to Kolchaks army, strengthening it enormously. The Soviets are still held on the
western side of Lake Bajkal. (in reality, some chose repatriation to the USSR,
while some went to Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and elsewhere. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is established.
They begin building power in an alliance with the Chinese nationalists in the
Kua-Min-Tank (KMT) The Washington Naval Treaty, setting limits upon
the size of the Great Power Navies is signed. The size of the navies is set at 1
for Italy and France, 2,4 for Japan and 3 for Great Britain and the US. The
treaty is to expire 15 years from now, in 1936. (in reality the sizes outlines
were 1,8 for Japan, but given that I have made Japan a somewhat more
“active” power and transferred all of the Asian possessions of the US to
Japan, I though it would be OK if I also increased the ships allowed Japan. I
dont think the US is going for anything less that Great Britain) 1922 Seeing there is no possibility of reclaiming the
rest of Russia, the Whites resolve to construct a state in eastern Siberia. The
Far Eastern Czardom is proclaimed. Treaties of economic and military cooperation
are signed with the Japanese, who manage to get northern Sakhalin, the remaining
Kurile Islands and basing rights in Vladivostok out of the Whites before they
begin to withdraw some of their troops.
1923 The Whites, the Soviets and the Japanese agree on
a peace treaty. The Whites and Soviets are essentially to leave each other
alone. The Far Eastern Czardom begins to exert a certain draw on emigre Russians
and their fortunes. Japan gains several large mine concessions in the
Far Eastern Czardom. The Japanese economy received a severe shock by
the Kanto earthquake, that levels large parts of Tokyo. This weakens the
Japanese economy already 6 years before the Depression. As a result of the
earthquake, some funding is sent into industries in the Philippines, Korea,
Taiwan, even Manchuria, Mongolia and the Far Eastern Czardom.
1924 The remaining claimant to the throne actually
arrives in the Far Eastern Czardom. 1927 The KMT-CCP alliance comes to an end, when KMTs
leader, Chiang Kai Shek lets thousands of communist be executed. The survivors
withdraw to Kiangsi province, where they establish several rural soviets. 1929 The Depression hits Japan hard. Over the following
years, this helps to but a series of weak governments in power in Japan, that
effectively lets the Japanese army on the Asian mainland conduct its own policy.
1930 The Soviets finish the Turksib railway. Coupled
with a government in Sinkiang province, otherwise known as Eastern Turkistan,
that is wary of connections with KMT-controlled China, this quickly leads to
increasing Soviet influence over Sinkiang. 1931 Japanese troops occupy Manchuria. It is declared
an independent empire under the former Chinese emperor, but in reality remains a
Japanese puppet. The League of Nations sends a commission to
investigate. The Japanese troops in Manchuria begin to hunt the
Korean guerillas, that for years have sought refuge there. A Moslem rebellion in Chinese-controlled Sinkiang
is put down with Soviet help. It simmers on in the northern regions of the
province, though, and get increasing amounts of help from the Japanese puppets
in Mongolia. 1932 Moslem rebellion, supported by the Japanese,
becomes widespread in N-Sinkiang 1933 As the League of Nations commission submits a
report not 100% to the liking of the Japanese, Japan withdraws from the League
of Nations. Japan invades Jehol province of China. At the same
time, the penetration of the Chinese provinces that make up Inner Mongolia
begin. The Moslem rebels of Sinkiang finally take over
power in the province. Splits soon emerge, though, and infighting between the
Turkic Moslems and the Moslem Chinese, the Dungans begin. By the end of the
year, the "Turkish-Islamic Republic of Eastern Turkestan" (TIRET) is,
heavily aided by Japan, in power in Sinkiang. Purges of pro-Soviet elements are
carried out. A Japanese army corps, in all some 50.000 men, are stationed in the
region to guard against any Soviet incursions. Jungaria, the northern part of Sinkiang, is split
off (minus some areas occupied by Turkic peoples), and is joined with Mongolia. With Japanese control over Sinkiang, one of the
main sources of supply for both the CCP and KMT is cut off. The last remnants of the Central Asian Turkic
anti-Soviet guerillas are saved from oblivion, when Japan begins sending massive
amounts of aid to them. Bases for them are established both in Sinkiang, but
also in Afghanistan, that sees Japanese military and economic missions arrive. 1934 In its fifth offensive against the CCP in Kiangsi,
the KMT finally manage to drive the communists out. They leave westwards on
their Long March. Japan begins to support Ma Zhongying, a Dungan
(Moslem Chinese) warlord of Gansu province, that nominally owes his allegiance
to the KMT. The aim is to help him attain his goal of a Moslem empire stretching
from Gansu province far into Central Asia. So far, his operations are confined
to Gansu, Qinghai and Ningxia provinces, though. 1935 A puppet government declares the independence of
Inner Mongolia. It promptly asks for permission to join the Japanese puppet
state of Outer Mongolia. Permission is granted, and the Khanate of Greater
Mongolia comes into existence. From over-populated Japan, Japanese settlers begin
streaming to the three puppet states on the Asia mainland at a rate of roughly
100.000 a year. These are mainly directed to Manchukuo and the Maritime
provinces of the Far Eastern Czardom. The Chinese communists reach Shaanxi province
after more than a year of marching, and establish the Yenan soviet. 1936 The attempt by several left-leaning Kuo-Min-Tang
officers to kidnap Chiang Kai Shek and force him into a common front with the
Communists against the Japanese fails horribly, as an accidental shot leads to a
firefight, in which Chiang is killed. As various factions jog for power in the
KMT, large parts of southern and central China again descend into warlordism. The Japanese begin expanding their fleet after the
limitations of the Washington Naval Treaty have run out. Aiding in the building
program are the massive shipyards constructed in Vladivostok. 1937 Japan uses the growing chaos in China to again
nibble away at her extremities: the island of Hainan is occupied. Industrial investments in Manchuria begin to pay
off. Josef Stalin starts a series of purges of his
army, that eliminate large parts of the officer corps. Japan, using the Far Eastern Czardom (FEC) as a
proxy, begins supplying anti-Communist guerillas in the USSR on a massive scale.
1938 As American protests over Japanese politics in
China grow stronger, Japan begins expanding the small base in Pearl Harbor in
the Hawaiian islands to a major base. Japanese/FEC provocations all along the Soviet
border leads to numerous clashes, that culminate in a divisional-sized
engagement immediately south of Lake Bajkal. Tibet is convinced to accept a Japanese
protectorate. 1939 WWII breaks out with the German invasion of
Poland. France and Great Britain, including all her dominions, are soon in the
war, too. Another season of provocations ends in a
corps-sized engagement in Jungaria, in which the Soviets, deploying large
numbers of tanks, get the better of the Japanese, and inflict some 30.000 dead
on them. This is a serious wakeup-call for the Japanese, and along with the
surprising success the Germans are having in Poland, things are set in motion to
actually learn from them. The US begins a slow rearmament. 1940 France is defeated by Germany, and much of it
occupied by German troops. British action shortly thereafter sinks a number of
French warships. The Matsuoka-Henry Pact allows the Japanese to
freely traverse French Indochina, and gives them basing rights in the southern
portions of the colony. The first 4 Japanese armored divisions are formed.
Using German instructors, maneuvers soon begin taking place. At the same time,
license agreements are made for Japanese production of German tanks and motor
vehicles in Japan and Manchukuo. Japanese support to the guerillas inside the USSR
is doubled over to tie down Soviet forces. Japan mediates in the Thai-French war, giving
Thailand back some of the areas that France took from her over the preceding 80
years. 1941 Seeing the spread of WWII with the German invasion
of first the Balkans, then the USSR, Japan extorts further concessions from the
French during the summer. The Japanese are allowed basing rights in New
Caledonia, French Polynesia and Madagascar, and have their rights in French
Indochina further expanded. The expansion of Diego Suarez on Madagascar to a
major base area begins right away. Japanese/Far Eastern Czardom demonstrations
against the Soviet border are instrumental in holding forces along the border,
that would otherwise have been present for the defense of Moscow. As a
consequence, the Germans take the city by the end of the year. Japanese-Dutch negotiations to obtain larger oil
shipments from the Dutch East Indies fail. As a consequence, Japanese
preparations for entering WWII begin. US involvement in the naval war against Germany in
the Atlantic increases. 1942 Japan enters WWII on the Axis side. Starting out
in January, by the end of the year Japanese troops have not only conquered
Burma, Malaysia, the Netherlands East Indies, New Guinea and all of Polynesia,
leaving Australia and New Zealand isolated, but has also taken Ceylon and
heavily reinforced Madagascar, thus also severing the Allied LOCs to India and
the North African theatre. Though the Allies are able to funnel through some
supplies by sea and across Africa, even the Allied landing in French North
Africa is not enough to keep the Axis forces from taking Egypt. A row of Allied naval disasters also help the
Japanese greatly, beginning with the destruction of the US Pacific Fleet in the
Battle for Oahu and ending with that of the British Indian Ocean Fleet at the
battle of Ceylon. Everywhere, Japanese carrier air power makes the difference. On the Asian mainland, concentric Axis offensives,
coupled with a Central Asian rebellion, leads to the collapse of the Soviet
government, as Japanese/FEC troops enter Omsk and Aralsk. An armistice agreement
is hammered out, that will last until the ending of hostilities. It gives the
Germans an occupation zone, that goes to the line Arkhangelsk-Astrakhan and the
Japanese one that goes to the rivers OB, Tobol and Emba. 1943 With the finishing off of the USSR, all Axis
powers turn their full attention towards the remaining Allies. With the Allied
fleets swept from the Indian Ocean, the Japanese make several landings in the
Persian Gulf that, coupled with Italian/German from the west and northwest and
Japanese ones from the northeast brings the entire Middle East under Axis
control. Further action in the African theatre is left to Italy and Germany,
that not only throw the Allies back to Morocco, but also push down the Nile into
Sudan, and take back some ground in Ethiopia. With the realignment of forces from the USSR to
India, that region also comes under Japanese control. With the army stretched to
the limit, and increasingly relying on indigenous security forces, most
remaining action is left to the navy. With it, the Japanese begin a series of raids
designed to keep the Allies off balance and gain bases for the final showdown.
Durban, Cape Town, Mombasa and Port Elizabeth in Africa are raided, as are
Brisbane, Newcastle and Sidney in Australia and most of the US cities on the
west coast, slowing down US rebuilding of its fleet. Bases are seized in Alaska,
and troops put ashore in Australia and on the North Island of New Zealand. 1944 After additional Allied defeats in Morocco,
eastern Africa, Australia and New Zealand, a peace treaty is signed. Japan
evacuates the Persian Gulf, India including Burma, Australia and New Zealand,
but keeps most of the rest. A compromise is reached over the former USSR,
where the follow-on government after the communists merges its domain with the
FEC. The product is further joined by the Moscow region and the Volga basin that
Germany evacuates, and is freed from all political binding to the other great
powers (namely Japan). In exchange Japan is able to carve off some chunks of
former Russian territory, namely all of eastern Siberia (the country east of
Lake Balkal), that is joined to Japan, Tannu Tuva and Buryatia, that are joined
directly with Greater Mongolia, and Central Asia, that is established as a
Japanese puppet. With all Japanese needs in resources now covered,
the Japanese settle down to administer the gained and populate it all with
Japanese. By now some 2,0 million Japanese are residing on the Asian mainland,
another 2,5 million is residing in the outlying islands (Philippines, Taiwan and
the small island groups), and the resettlement of Japanese to the Asian mainland
is expanded radically, so that almost half a million go abroad annually.
Settlers still mostly go to Manchuria
and the Maritime provinces formerly belonging to Russia, but also to Korea,
Mongolia, the Philippines and Taiwan. 1945 The USA detonates its first nuclear bomb. Japan immediately doubles the amount of resources
spent in Japan on like research several times over. .
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