RUSSIAN-JAPANESE war: causes, development and consequences [SUMMARY and MAP]

The clashes between Russia and Asian nations have been a constant for decades, being the closeness between them and the distance with the countries which has caused nations like China and Japan to have constant struggles with the giant Russian. To talk about one of the main wars in this regard, in this lesson from a Teacher we are going to offer you a summary of the Russo-Japanese war.

The Russo-Japanese War was a military conflict in which the great powers of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire, taking place between February 1904 and September 1905.

The main reason for the war is one of the oldest reasons for the confrontation between Russia, China and Japan: control of Manchuria and Korea, one of the most repeated reasons in the confrontations between them.

The Russo-Japanese War took place mainly on the Chinese Liaodong Peninsula and in the Korean and Japanese seas. The war was very uneven, since the Japanese were able to defeat the Russians in all battles causing Tsar Nicholas II will end up surrendering Given the situation.

As for the participants in the war, we must bear in mind that both nations had support, although most of the military power was theirs. Russia's allies were Montenegro, a small Balkan nation almost powerless, were his allies only in theory, since they did not send a single man. On the Japanese side, no ally joined, although there was an approach of some enemy powers of Russia.

To understand the Russo-Japanese war we must talk about the causes that started it, taking into account that the The context of the time was that of an Asia that was beginning to be attacked by the European powers for colonialist and Of how Japan and Russia were looking in this climate to get new territorys.

The importance of ports

Russia knew that, to enhance her power and increase her colonial chances, she needed a port. renowned, important and located in the Pacific, since the ones it had used to freeze in winter. The port that interested the Russians was that of Port Arthur, located in China and that, a few years before, it had been from Japan, giving the Chinese government permission to Russia to use it as long as the Russians protected China from Japan. The Japanese, very angry that the Russians had the port, broke all diplomatic relations with the Tsar's government.

Manchuria

The Chinese area of ​​Manchuria It has historically been very important in terms of the Asian wars and in this conflict it also played an important role. In 1900 the Russians invaded the area of ​​Manchuria and, although they promised China that they would leave the area, they never did, causing anger and fear in Japan.

Korea

Korea's position and influence on maritime trade made both Japan and Russia want to control the area. Although at first both powers agreed to divide the region, this never happened, due to the taking of Manchuria by the Russians.

Imperialism

Both Russia and Japan were in a conversion to imperialism pIt belonged to the Western powers and, therefore, both wanted to take colonies in order to improve their unfavorable economy. Therefore, both regions knew that they needed Manchuria and Korea to open new markets.

To continue this summary of the Russo-Japanese war, we must talk about what the war itself was, to see the enormous superiority that Japan had and the reasons why a war between two great powers was so short duration

• In 1903 the Japanese and Russians negotiated an accordor not to have to go to war, but Japan's requests were to control Korea and Manchuria, so Russia completely broke the negotiations.
• In 1904, and without warning, Japan attacked Port Arthur destroying most of the Russian ships in the area. Two days later Japan attacked a Russian post in Korea, but they did not react as they were not yet formally at war.
• On February 10, Japan officially began the war against Russia, which he thought that his greater number would give him the victory.
• During the war, the japanese won all the battles, taking Korea in a year and a half, occupying Port Arthur with ease and forcing the Russians to continually withdraw.
• After all these victories, Japan sent its troops to Mukden, the capital of Manchuria, being the only important area in Russian hands. In three weeks Japan defeated the Russian troops, taking the capital of Manchuria and ending a war in which Japan had had no rival.

The Japan win made it the Japanese country that had the greatest benefits after the war and, on the other hand, the consequences were quite negative for Russia. The benefits that Japan received were relevant for the following years, creating a great power that would be key on the Second World War. The main consequences of the Russo-Japanese war were the following:

• Russia had to prioritize Japan in the control of Korea.
• Russia had to leave Port Arthur and renounce Manchuria, which returned to the hands of China.
• Japan received no financial reward for their victory, being the reason for the attacks they carry out on new colonies in later years.
• Russian society protested numerous times for the war, blaming the tsar for the deaths of thousands of Russians, thus being a cause of the Russian Revolution.
• Japan maintained its imperialist campaign throughout Asia, since her victory against Russia suggested that she could even defeat the Western powers.
• In need of more money, the Japanese began to military their population, since they considered that the Japan's future lay in its army.