Manchuria:The growth in Japans economy slowed down in 1920. Factory workers earned low wages and they started following the socialist teachings of Karl Marx and Lenin. Although all Japanese men won the right to vote, socialist were elected to the diet, a legislative assembly. Meanwhile because Japan had modernized the younger generation began to revolt against tradition. New fashion and fads from the west started pushing family away for the idea of individual freedom from the west. In 1929 when the Great Depression, the fall of the U.S. stock market struck Japans lifeline –trade, Japan’s trade was weakened by this fall of the stock market. Foreign buyers were not able to afford Japanese goods which included silk. Prices for exports rose and so did unemployment in cities and the countryside was even worse. This fueled the militarist and nationalist; they were mad about the supplying of western demands and mad at the policies in U.S., Canada, and Australia that didn’t allow Japanese immigrants. Nationalist found an empire which was a Chinese province that would provide the Japanese with the needed raw materials for the rapid growing population. This was the Chinese province of Manchuria. In 1930 the Japanese army officers went behind the governments back and blew up Japanese train tracks claiming that the Chinese had done it. Without consulting the government the Japanese attacked the Chinese province and took over Manchuria which becomes the Japanese puppet state renamed Manzhouguo. Japan then continued to withdraw from the League of Nations. The Japanese government disagreed with military actions of the people of Japan. The government later became tougher with socialist and democratic freedoms. The Japanese government built a cult around its empire and the emperor was thought to be the sun god. |
Washington Post Article: "On Sept 24th, Japanese government issued a statement claiming that China had sabotaged railway and attacked Japanese on the midnight of Sept 18th, emphasizing the contrast of 10,400 Japanese soldiers versus 220,000 Chinese troops. Further, it claimed that Japanese action was for protecting million Japanese citizens inside of Manchuria; that the occupation of outlaying cities were rumors.” |
Review Questions:
1. What was the Japan's main goal regarding Manchuria?
2. Why were Japan's military leader's turned into Nationalist?
1. What was the Japan's main goal regarding Manchuria?
2. Why were Japan's military leader's turned into Nationalist?