Thursday, March 8th

[6Freund]

Japan

 

Dictatorship also came to Japan

          -not through a political party but the military

 

History

 

*Rich military tradition

•           -feudal clans fought each other for dominance in Japan

 

*The Emperor presided over the Japanese government

•           -came form divine origin
•           -descendent of the Sun Goddess
•           -played minor role in the government
•           -he was above politics
•           -shogun had the political power
•                    -ruled in the name of the Emperor

 

*Japanese society

• 1.      Landowning clans dominated

*Protected by the samurai

• 2.     Wealthy merchant class 
• 3.      Peasants

*Most of the people of Japan

 

 

*Japan was very isolated until 1853 when US Commodore Matthew Perry sailed in to Japan and forced them to open their ports

 

*In the late 1800’s many Japanese were tired of being controlled by foreign countries.

*Adopted western ways in hopes to keep Western Powers out of their country

• 1.     heavy industry
• 2.     modern army
• 3.     strong navy

*Showed off new power in several wars

• 1.     Sino-Japanese War

*1894-95

*Japan won

• 2.     Russo-Japanese War

*1904-05

*Japan shocked the world by beating Russia

*gained partial control of Manchuria

• 3.     World War I

 

*Allied with the US

*Gained German Islands in the Pacific after the war

 

1920’s

 

• -gave all men the right to vote
• -signed the 4, 5 and 9 Power Pacts
• -joined the League of Nations
• -signed the Kellog-Briand Pact

 

 

1930’s

 

• -Great Depression changed everything
• -people blamed the government for tough times
• -military leaders stepped in and took control
•           -said Japan had to expand in to Asia to help economy
•           -assassinated political leaders that opposed them
•           -took away people’s rights

 

 

Japanese Military Honor

• 1.     fight to the death
• 2.     commit suicide rather than surrender
• 3.     gekokujo

*Open defiance of superior officers by junior officers

•      -seen as a positive thing
•      -shows the spirit of the soldier

 

 

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Pearl Harbor

 

*In July, 1941, Japan invaded French Indochina

 

*In response, the US stops trading with Japan

 

*Due to embargo, Japan felt it had three options:

• 1.     abandon ambitions in South East Asia
• 2.     compromise with the US
• 3.     attack Dutch and British possessions in the Pacific and US bases in the Pacific

 

*Yamamoto felt that if Japan had any chance of winning a war against the US it must destroy the US Pacific fleet in a surprise attack

 

*A surprise attack would give Japan at least six months to dominate SE Asia unopposed

 

*Japan thought that the US then would face a long, bloody struggle and would settle for a negotiated peace that would allow Japan to do as it pleased in Asia

 

*Tojo replaces Konoye as Premier of Japan.  Konoye wanted to negotiate with the US. Tojo didn’t and had a low regard of the US

 

*Tojo wanted war but Emperor Hirohito wanted on last peace attempt.

*Japan offered this:

• 1. Open door policy everywhere and Japan would withdraw from French Indochina
• 2. US would stop Lend-Lease Aid to China and start trading with Japan again
• 3. Japan would start peace talks with China

 

*US refused plan on November 29^th

 

*US took a hard line stance with Japan now because we had deciphered their diplomatic code(Magic) and knew that they had some type of attack plan. 

 

*Magic Information

•           “November 29^th is the deadline”
•           “things are automatically going to happen”

 

 

*Japan felt that the key to success in the Pacific was air and sea power

• -especially launching airplanes from aircraft carriers and submarines attacking enemy ships

 

*Japan had ten aircraft carriers to our three in the Pacific(based in Pearl Harbor)

*Japanese Pearl Harbor Attack Plan

• 1.     destroy three aircraft carriers, eight battleships, seven cruisers and other small ships
• 2.     attack Wake Island and Guam
• 3.     attack Malay and Hong Kong
• 4.     attack Philippines, Dutch East Indies and Burma

 

*Japanese attack force consisted of:

• Six aircraft carriers
• 360 airplanes
• Kate High level bombers
• dive and torpedo bombers
• Zero fighters
• Two battleships, three cruisers, eight destroyers

 

*Admiral Nagumo commanded the force

 

*To succeed, Japan had to travel 3,500 miles without being detected.  That meant absolute radio silence and travelling through a vast, lonely expanse of the Pacific Ocean.  This attack had to be a complete surprise.

 

“Backdoor to War” Conspiracy