History of the Far Eastcirca August 15, 1945Jeeyoung Kim (jeeyoungk@gmail.com)

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

(1) Pre-World War II

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.

(2) World War II

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

(2) August 15, 1945

March 9th 1945 - Firebombing of Tokyo

● 334 B-29s bombed Tokyo with incendiary bombs.

● 100,000 deaths.● Most destructive raid in history.

August 6th, 1945 - Hiroshima & Nagasaki

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.

(4) 1945 ~ 1953

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

Aftermath

Aftermath (1953)

● Republic of China● People's Republic of China● North Korea● South Korea● Japan