Russo-Japanese War
At the turn of the century, Russia was the largest nation in Europe, both in terms of population and land area. It also had a powerful army and navy, which in addition to its vast territory made it almost unthinkable for any nation to attempt to wage a war against it. Why then had Russia not only been defeated, but suffered tremendous and uneven casualties compared to the Japanese in the Russo-Japanese War? This loss, which later had dire consequences for the Russian empire, occurred because of inadequate preparation, poor leadership, and simply bad luck which plagued the Russian military forces in the Pacific.
Prior to the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railroad, “Russia held a position inferior to that of China in the Far East,” it’s efforts characterized by “haphazard measures of colonization, unstable means of communication and passive diplomacy.”<<1
Malozemoff, Andrew. Russian Far Eastern Policy 1881-1904. (Berkley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1958), 19.>> However, at its completion, Russia had a means of deploying a significant military force in Manchuria. Manchuria, of course, was home to the nearly ice-free Port Arthur; Russia’s other naval ports were frozen for a large part of the year. In addition, “control of Port Arthur gives [Russia] a large measure of control over the water approaches to Peking.”<<2
Asakawa, K. The Russo-Japanese Conflict. (Port Washington: Kennikat Press, 1970), 49.>> Moreover, by controlling the southern coast of Korea, “Russia would not merely possess a truly ice-free, and the best naval port to be found in East Asia, but also at last feel secure in Manchuria and complete her Far Eastern design of absorbing Korea and China and pressing down toward India.”<<3
Ibid, 50>> At the same time, “for Japanese, too, Port Arthur possessed importance beyond its strategic significance, fought for and won as it had been by their troops in the Chinese War and then wrestled from them by the Europeans.”<<4
Walder, David. The Short Victorious War. (London: Hutchinson & Co Ltd, 1973), 89-90.>> The Boxer Rebellion of 1900 was used by Russia “as a welcome pretext for taking outright possession of most of Manchuria, as a preliminary to turning it into an additional Russian province.” <<5
Busch, Noel F. Th...
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...other 590 wounded. <<32
Walder, 286
Select Bibliography
Asakawa, K. The Russo-Japanese Conflict. Port Washington: Kennikat Press, 1970.
Busch, Noel F. The Emperor’s Sword. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1969.
Hargreaves, Reginald. Red Sun Rising: The Siege of Port Arthur. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1962.
Malozemoff, Andrew. Russian Far Eastern Policy 1881-1904. Berkley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1958.
Walder, David. The Short Victorious War. London: Hutchinson & Co Ltd, 1973
White, John Albert. The Diplomacy of the Russo-Japanese War. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1964
>> Admiral Rozhestvensky himself was taken prisoner.
As we can see, the Russo-Japanese War proved to be a complete and total failure for Russia. A combination of bad luck, poor leadership and utter lack of preparedness for war has proved to be a disaster for its military and the navy in particular. It would also drastically alter the world’s perception of this empire; the defeat at Tsushima proved that it’s not as invulnerable as some western powers made her out to be.
End Notes
Japan led a ruthless assault in the Pacific for fifteen years. This small island was able to spread imperialism and terror to neighboring countries through means of force and brutality. Japan even attempted to combat and overcome European and Western countries such as Russia and the United States. Even with an extreme militaristic government, Japan was unable to achieve the glory it was promised and hoped for. The Pacific War analyzes Japan’s part in the war and what the country could have done to prevent such a tragedy.
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Hester is a youthful, beautiful, proud woman who has committed an awful sin and a scandal that changes her life in a major way. She commits adultery with a man known as Arthur Dimmesdale, leader of the local Puritan church and Hester’s minister. The adultery committed results in a baby girl named Pearl. This child she clutches to her chest is the proof of her sin. This behavior is unacceptable. Hester is sent to prison and then punished. Hester is the only one who gets punished for this horrendous act, because no one knows who the man is that Hester has this scandalous affair with. Hester’s sin is confessed, and she lives with two constant reminders of that sin: the scarlet letter itself, and Pearl, the child conceived with Dimmesdale. Her punishment is that she must stand upon a scaffold receiving public humiliation for several hours each day, wearing the scarlet letter “A” on her chest, represe...
Cressman, Robert J.; et al. (1990). "A Glorious page in our history", Adm. Chester Nimitz, 1942: the Battle of Midway, 4–6 June 1942. Missoula, Mont.: Pictorial Histories Pub. Co.ISBN 0-929521-40-4.
Gallen, James M. "THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR." THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Feb. 2014.
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7) Vernadsky, George. A History of Russia: Fourth Edition, Completely Revised. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1954.
Riasanovsky, Nicholas V., and Mark D. Steinberg. A History of Russia. 7th ed. Oxford: Oxford, 2005. Print.
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