Nationalism, Communism, and Imperialism in China and Japan

Nationalism, Communism, and Imperialism in China and Japan Mr. White’s World History

Objectives • After we finish this section, we should be able to: • Explain how nationalist and communist forces struggled in China • Describe how Japanese political, economic, and social pressures resulted in Japanese militarism and expansionism

Chinese nationalists and communists struggled to take power in China; an invasion by the Japanese forced them to work together. Part I: China

Sun Yat-Sen • Sun Yat-Sen was the leader of the Kuomintang, or the Chinese Nationalist Party • In 1912, Sun took power in China and tried to establish a democratic republic • Held power for a few months, then was overthrown by Yuan Shigai • Sun organized resistance to Yuan, but failed to overthrow him and fled to Japan

Kuomintang • Yuan died in 1916, and China descended into civil war • Sun returned from Japan, and with the help of the Soviet Union and an officer named Chiang Kai-Shek, the Kuomintang took power in China • Even though Sun wanted a republic, the Kuomintang government was undemocratic • It improved infrastructure in the nation, but did not improve the lives of the peasants

Communists Rising • In 1927, communists who had helped Sun and the Kuomintang tried to take over the party, but failed • Chiang Kai-Shek, fearing the communists, decided to purge them from the Kuomintang • The communists fled to the southern part of China and formed the Chinese Red Army • Worked for the support of the peasants • Overthrew local landholders and redistributed land to peasants

The Long March • A civil war between the nationalist Kuomintang and the communist Red Army began • By 1934, the Red Army was almost defeated • The Red Army escaped through a year-long forced march, pursued by the Kuomintang army – known as the Long March • Japan’s invasion of Manchuria would force the Kuomintang and Red Army to work together

Japan’s military gradually took power from the democratic government of Japan. Part II: Imperialist Japan

Japan and the West • Japanese relations with the western nations after World War I were mixed • On the positive side: • Japan gained Germany’s Pacific colonies north of the equator • Japan was allowed, by an agreement, to build the nation’s third-largest navy (U.S. and Great Britain) • On the negative side: • The League of Nations had refused to accept a Japanese proposal for a statement of racial equality in the League charter – insult • The United States had banned Japanese immigration • The western nations opposed Japanese influence over China, which Japan had basically made into a protectorate

Population Pressures • Japan had experienced a population explosion between the 1870s and the 1920s – from around 35 million to 60 million people • Social, political, industrial, and military factors, plus this population explosion, encouraged Japan to expand or for its people to move by one of three ways: • Immigration • Imperial expansion • Capitalism and world markets

Industrialization • Japan had rapidly industrialized during the late 19th and early 20th centuries • Because the U.S. would allow no immigration, the Japanese focused on manufacturing and trade to provide employment for people • Heavy industry expanded in the hands of rich industrialists known as zaibatsu, and the government • Increased manufacturing spurred a desire for cheap raw materials - colonies

Social Changes • Social changes placed more pressures on Japan that could be relieved by expansion • Overpopulated rural areas and land scarcity drove many Japanese into the cities to work in industrial jobs • In those cities, western customs and culture were adopted – clash of cultures with traditional • More and more Japanese had the right to vote, so there was growing democratic representation

Power and Leadership • Even though more and more were voting, political power in Japan was concentrated in the hands of nobles, zaibatsu, and the military • Emperor Hirohito and the people, in theory, were supposed to have power, but didn’t • When the Great Depression caused prices to drop in Japanese manufacturing, many unemployed and desperate Japanese began to call for strong leadership

Militarism • Militarism began to influence many aspects of Japanese life • The military opposed western lifestyles and promoted Japanese culture • The military leaders thus were wary of the western customs that many people were adopting

Growing Military Power • September, 1931 – without government approval, the Japanese military invaded Manchuria in China – government had lost control • The military gradually took more power in the government, and by 1937 basically was the government • The emperor, fearing a strong stance would result in his overthrow, didn’t take a stand against the militarists • As Japan invaded other nations, western criticism of Japan led to many Japanese backing the military • With this, the support for militarism in the nation grew

Nationalism, Communism, and Imperialism in China and Japan