history of the far east asia circa august 15, 1945
TRANSCRIPT
History of the Far Eastcirca August 15, 1945Jeeyoung Kim ([email protected])
Intro
● 1911 ~ 1953● 3 Main Countries: China(s), Korea(s), and
Japan.● 2 Other countries: USA and Russia, along
with Joseon Korea, Russian Empire, Qing Dynasty.
● 4 wars - 2 Sino-Japanese, Russo-Japanese, World War II
● 3 Civil Wars - 2 Chinese Civil War, Korean War
1911 - Xinhai Revolution
● Qing Dynasty - weak and corrupt by 1800s. Many wars happened: First Sino-Japanese war, Opium Wars, and Boxer Rebellion.
● Fall of Qing Dynasty, lead by a Chinese Revolutionary Sun Yat-sen.
● Birth of modern China - ROC and PRC.
1927 ~ 1936 - First Chinese Civil War
● Turmoil after Xinhai Revolution.● Chiang Kai-shek's KMT and Mao Zedong's
CPC fought to control China.● Armistice after Japanese Invasion.
1931 - Mukden Incident and Manchukuo
● Japanese Invasion of Manchuria.● Manchukuo - a puppet state backed by
Japanese is formed, with Puyi as head of state.
1937 ~ 1945 Second Sino-Japanese War
● Japanese invasion of China.● Superior military power of Japan,
eventually lead to a stalemate.● Japanese War Crimes & Millions of
Chinese casualties.
December 7th, 1941 - Pearl Harbor
● Japan declares war on USA with a surprise attack.
● Japanese declaration of war not decrypted and communicated on time.
● Beginning of the Pacific War
March 9th 1945 - Firebombing of Tokyo
● 334 B-29s bombed Tokyo with incendiary bombs.
● 100,000 deaths.● Most destructive raid in history.
August 9th, 1945 - Operation August Storm
● Soviet-Japan Neutrality Pact - Until April 1946.
● Soviet Invasion of Manchuria.● Japan loses the entire Manchuria within
11 days.
August 15, 1945 - Japan Declares Surrender
● Emperor Hirohito announces the unconditional surrender of Japan.
● September 2, 1945 - Surrender is officially signed @ USS Missouri, Tokyo Bay.
● Douglas MacArthur becomes Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.
38th Parallel
● North and South Korea are occupied by USSR and USA.
● Temporary border - never meant to split Korea in two countries
March 1946 ~ May 1950 - Chinese Civil War
● Chinese Civil War resumes after WW II.● Chiang's KMT lost its initial upper hand
and ultimately lost the war.● KMT evacuates to Taiwan, forming two
Chinas which continues to date.
June 15, 1950 - Korean War
● Kim Il-sung's North Korea invades South Korea on June 15, 1950.
● USA and UN intervenes to support the South.
● USA's 7th fleet sent to Taiwan, preventing PRC from invading ROC.
● China intervenes to support the North.● Continues till 1953