The Beginnings of Imperialist Japan Additional Reading: “Expressions of Imperialism”
1854 – Commodore Matthew Perry opens trade with Japan to Western Countries U.S. wanted: Coaling stations More trading partners Safe port for ship-wrecked sailors
Why Change? In 1862, just before the start of the Meiji period, a group of Japanese officials and scholars were sent to China to study the situation there. One official recorded in his diary from Shanghai… “The Chinese have become servants to the foreigners. Sovereignty may belong to China but in fact it's no more than a colony of Great Britain and France.” http://cleanvideosearch.com/media/action/yt/watch?videoId=nPhi7mZmsSY
Meiji Reforms Land Redistribution Westernize the School System (Fr. & Ger.) Abolition of the feudal system Modern Banking System Modernize the Army (Prussian) Meiji Reforms Written Constitution (Germans) Build a Modern Navy (British) Human Rights & Religious Freedom Emperor Worship Intensified
Meiji “Enlightened Rule”
“Japanese spirit; Western technology!” European Goods “Japanese spirit; Western technology!”
Expansionism & the Rise of Military Power New players on the block?
Soldiers on the Battlefield During the Sino-Japanese War The Treaty of Shimonoseki ended the war.
Exit Ticket Why did Japan decide to become an imperial power?