Similarities Between China And Japanese Imperialism

Leading up to the First World War, Japan began pursuing modernization and imperialism. Before the wars however, Japan was isolationist for much the same reason China was isolationist. Both China and Japan viewed themselves as superior to other countries but acted differently on this idea. China was focused on defense while Japan began to plan for world conquest. Arguably while China was focused on self-stabilization, Japan was focused on projecting their imperialism towards the rest of Asia. This lead to the invasion of the North Easter Chinses province of Manchuria in September 1931 which was occupied by Japan until the end of the Second World War. The invasion was the first step of Japan’s plan to conquer China and ultimately the world. The Japanese planned to take Manchuria for its resources to build its army then attack each province

at a time. The Japanese counted on the fact that China was separated and would not fight back if a neighboring provinces were attacked which is exactly what happened. China is much larger than Japan but is a disorganized nation. Japan however, is a unified country, determined to capture China. Japan also didn’t want to start a war with China but take as much as China with as little conflict as possible. Leading up to the invasion of Manchuria, Japan rapidly expanded and modernized its military. The tanks and ships of the modern Japanese military easily defeated the Chinese.
The Nanjing Massacre in December 1937 resulted in the death of an estimated 300,000 Chinese by the hands of the Japanese imperialists.

This atrocity is partially the result of extreme colonialism. Imperialism and colonialism are similar but not exactly the same. Whereas colonialism is the colonization of countries for exploitation and control, imperialism is the means of projecting nationalism and influence onto other countries. According to Dr. Lanza, the “ideological justification for the Japanese was Asianism.” The Japanese believed themselves to be superior to the rest of Asia which was their justification for invading China, much of the South Pacific and later Pearl Harbor. This is not dissimilar to Britain as they colonized China and India to both exploit resources and assert their power and superiority. Japan is simply both intentionally or unintentionally emulating the colonialist tendencies of the West and slightly modifying it into imperialism. Arguably, the difference is Britain generally initially viewed China as equal trading partners whereas Japans interests were in total control over China and

Asia.
India was shaped very differently by colonialism compared to China and Japan. India did not adopt Asianism or Social Darwinism or even isolationism. China eventually emerged from isolationism in part because of the influence of British colonialism but unlike China, India would have likely industrialized without the influence of British railroads and colonialism. India did not want to conquer other Asian countries like Japan or remain isolated like China. India did however provide Britain with wealth and soldiers as a result of colonialism. The effects of British colonialism on India were not as idealistic and abstract as China and Japan. India was exploited for natural resources and became a market for Britain. The effects of British colonialism on India were more industrial for the benefit of the British but not as conceptual as with China and Japan.
Nationalism is the idea that justifies the act of colonialism. Without Nationalism and subsequently patriotism, nations have no principles to give to other countries. Colonialism requires the colonizers to be superior to the colonized but if the colonized do not have a clear national identity, they cannot project their unified authority onto others. Instead they would assimilate into the country they have conquered. For example, if the British had no national pride or identity, they would have mixed with Indian people when they colonized India because they would not see themselves as a separate, and superior nation.