Manchuria occupation
The occupation of Manchuria by Japan began in the late 19th century and escalated with the events of the early 20th century, notably following the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). Japan established significant economic and military presence in Manchuria and sought to maintain dominance amid rising Chinese nationalism in the late 1920s. On September 18, 1931, a staged explosion on a Japanese-controlled railway served as a pretext for a full-scale invasion, leading to Japan's complete control over the region by early 1932. The international response was limited; both the League of Nations and the United States failed to take effective action against Japanese aggression, although the U.S. issued the Stimson Doctrine, which refused to recognize territorial changes made by force. Japan subsequently created a puppet state, Manchukuo, led by the last Qing emperor, Puyi, to legitimize its occupation. This incursion into Manchuria sparked a national awakening in China, prompting a temporary alliance between Chinese Communists and Nationalists against the Japanese forces, which would culminate in the broader Sino-Japanese War starting in 1937. The occupation of Manchuria profoundly influenced Sino-American relations as tensions escalated leading up to World War II.
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Manchuria occupation
The Event Japanese invasion of northeastern China’s Manchuria provinces, which began a thirteen-year occupation
Dates 1932-1945
The Japanese takeover of Manchuria created a Sino-Japanese impasse and a challenge to U.S. decision makers. The aggression eventually led to a full-scale war between China and Japan and contributed to the outbreak of the U.S.-Japan conflict in World War II.
Manchuria is the northeastern territory of China, where Japan started its imperialist expansion in the late nineteenth century. Through the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 and the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, Japan seized extensive economic and political interests in the region, which Japan protected with troops stationed at strategic points. In the late 1920’s, as Chinese Nationalists campaigned to unify China, Japan maneuvered to maintain its dominant position in Manchuria. In June, 1928, Japanese militarists assassinated Zhang Zuolin, the Chinese warlord based in the region who had shown signs of resistance to Japanese demands. In reaction, Zhang Xueliang, son of Zhang Zuolin, declared allegiance to the newly established Nationalist government of China.
On September 18, 1931, officers of the Japanese Kwantung Army staged an explosion on the Japanese-controlled Manchurian railroad outside the city of Shenyang (Mukden). Using the incident as a pretext, Japanese forces attacked Chinese authorities and troops in Manchuria. By the beginning of 1932, Japan had brought the whole Manchurian region under its control.
Soon after Japan launched attacks in Manchuria, China appealed to the international community for intervention. The League of Nations, pressed by Japan and lacking serious support from the major world powers, could not take meaningful actions to stop Japanese aggression. The United States had no intention of confronting Japan. The Herbert Hoover administration chose simply to register disapproval of the events in Manchuria. In a note sent to both Japan and China in January, 1932, Secretary of State Henry L. Stimson declared that the U.S. government would not recognize the legality of any changes and arrangements that were brought about by aggression and that might impair U.S. treaty rights and violate the open-door policy. This constituted what came to be known as the Stimson Doctrine.
In October, 1932, the Lytton Commission, which the League of Nations had set up to investigate the conflict in Manchuria and was headed by the second earl of Lytton of Great Britain, put forward its discoveries. Among these findings was the conclusion that Japanese military operations in Manchuria could not be viewed as self-defense. In response, Japan withdrew from the League of Nations.
In the meantime, in an attempt to legitimize its actions, Japan created a puppet Manchurian state. To serve as the head of the newly established Manchukuo, Japan installed Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, the Manchu dynasty that had ruled China until its overthrow in the Chinese republican revolution of 1911.
Impact
The Japanese seizure of China’s northeastern territory caused a national awakening in China. Chinese Communists and Chinese Nationalists, who had been fighting in a civil war, moved to form a united front against Japanese aggression, an initiative that became reality after 1937, when Japan invaded China proper and started a full-scale Sino-Japanese war. The U.S. policy of nonrecognition of Japanese military conquests continued under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The outbreak of war in Europe in 1939 and Japan’s alliance with Germany and Italy deepened U.S. concerns over Japan’s position on the Asian continent. In November, 1941, in a communication to Japan, Secretary of State Cordell Hull called for the unconditional withdrawal of Japanese troops from China, a demand that Japan found unacceptable.
Bibliography
Borg, Dorothy. The United States and the Far Eastern Crisis of 1933-1938: From the Manchurian Incident Through the Initial Stage of the Undeclared Sino-Japanese War. Boston: Harvard University Press, 1968.
Howard, Harry Paxton. America’s Role in Asia. Reprint. Roselle, N.J.: Howard Press, 2007.
Liang, Ching-chun. The Sinister Face of the Mukden Incident. New York: St. John’s University Press, 1969.
The Verdict of the League: China and Japan in Manchuria, the Official Documents with Notes and an Introduction by Manley O. Hudson. Boston: World Peace Foundation, 1933.