Introduction.

Considering that it has now been one hundred years since the Japanese gave Imperial Russia such a mauling in the Russo-Japanese War, surprisingly little has been written concerning the anniversary of this, one of the most world shaping events in modern history. Not only was Russia humiliated in the eyes of her European neighbours, but also the outcome of the war itself was to transform the hitherto stereotype Western opinions of Asiatic complacency when challenged by the might of modern technology and imperialistic expansion.

The rise of Japanese imperialism can be traced back to the overthrow of the Shogunate in 1868, which restored power to the Emperor (Tenno or Mikado). Before this event Japan had endeavoured to pursue a policy of sublime isolation, which suppressed all contact with the West. This policy, however had been steadily eroded since American President Fillmore, after attempting to negotiate a treaty of friendship with Japan in 1853, and being refused, had then sent a naval squadron of seven ships which forced the signing of the treaty virtually at the mouth of the ships’ cannon. Thus trade with America was soon followed by demands from other nations such as Great Britain, Russia, Holland, France and Prussia for the same privileges. This in turn had caused Japan itself to consider its own expansionist policy. In 1894-1895, with a navy trained to a high standard by the British, and an army fully modernised along German lines, she fought a small but successful war against China, which secured Korea as part of the Mikado’s domains. Her other acquisitions from China, and in particular the Liaotung Peninsula in South Manchuria, which included Port Arthur, were soon wrenched from her grip by strong pressure from both France and Germany who had conspired with Russia for their return to Chinese control. Thereafter, in 1897, Russia, playing at diplomacy through the back door, undertook to pay off China’s war indemnity to Japan in return for concessions in South Manchuria. The result of these manoeuvres led to Russia, who desperately needed an ice free base for her navy, being allowed to build a continuation of its Trans-Siberian Railway to Vladivostok across Manchuria, with yet another agreement for the building of a spur line down the Liaotung Peninsular that would connect with Port Arthur.

 Port Arthur before the war.

At this particular period Russia must have felt supremely confident in its achievements. She was now able to influence economic control over Manchuria, while the outside world was, to all intent and purpose, unable, or unwilling, to oppose her from at last having a warm seaport.

The Boxer (“Patriotic Harmonious Fists”) rising of 1900 had seen an international force, which included Russian and Japanese contingents, used in the relief of the foreign legations in Peking. The Japanese therefore had first hand knowledge of the problems Russia faced when attempting to deploy and supply a large army in the field in the Far East. Also, in 1902, the English, who like the Japanese after their war with China, had found themselves isolated owing to European condemnation for waging war on the Boers in South Africa, were only too happy to sign a defensive alliance with Japan. A condition of this treaty was that England would go to war with any country that joined Russia in a war against Japan. To add more weight to Japanese security, the American President, Theodore Roosevelt, gave a firm warning to France and Germany that any further bullying on their part towards Japan would result in America coming out firmly on her side.

Confronted by the proposition of having no allies, and the possibility of incurring the wrath of both America and Britain, The Tsar (Nicholas II) agreed to a staged withdrawal of his forces from Manchuria. By 1903 however this had been watered down with Russian troops still remaining ostensibly to guard their newly constructed railways, and also by the creation of the Russian Far East Timber Company which saw the potential of lucrative lumber concessions along the borders of Korea and China.

This proved to be the last straw for the Japanese, who now decided that further Russian duplicity and encroachments must be dealt with by armed intervention. In June 1903 the Emperor of Japan agreed to a war with Russia.