Figure 1.--Japan at the turn of the 20th century was the only indutrial country in Asia, although the Home Islands had few natural resources needed for an industrial economy. Japan was only the first Asian country to found a European-style public school system. The curiculum included miiitary drill and training. This stereoscope card from the Whiting Brothers was captioned, "9047. Japanese school boys with dummy guns, the nation's future defense ." The photogrph is undated, but was made sometime around the Russo-Japndse War. Notice the boys' Prussian caset caps ad school bags.

The Shogun finding foreigners to be a destabilizing to stabilize force, decided to isolate Jaoan. The United States forced Japan to open up to the outside world (1850s). This soon led to the Meiji Restoration (1870s). The Japanese began moderizing Japan economically and technologically, but not culturally. Japan isolated itself with the Mejii Restoration began to build a modern industrial economy. It is interesting that the first Asian industrial power was a country with limited natural resources. And along with a modern economy, Japan began building other important institutions like a public school system. Japan thus entered the 20th century as the only state in Asia wih a developng inustrial economy or an educated population. Along with a modern economy they created a modern army based in the Prussian Army and a navy based on the British Royal Navy. And with declining Chinese power because of a refusal to modernize, Japan began to build an empire. This began with the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-95). Japan acquired Formosa (Taiwan) and began to expand economically into Korea and Manchuria. Manchuriahad been part of the Chinese Empire and Korea and Chinese tributary state. Here the Japanese came into conflict with the Russians. The British concerned about Russian exopansion had fought a war with Russia in the Crimea to prevent the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire (1850s). The Britih were also concerned anout Russian expansion into central Asia, threatening India. The British saw the Japanese as a potential ally against further Russian expansion and signed a naval treaty (1902). The British thus played a major role in helping Japan build a modern navy. And after acquiring Formosa, the resource-poor Japanese also began expanding economic and commercial interests in Korea and Japan.

Created: 3:47 AM 10/31/2012
Last updated: 3:47 AM 10/31/2012