Chapter 20 Chapter 16 China and Japan

The Far East was the last major area of ​​Eurasia to be affected by European expansion.The reason why China and Japan came to this effect after Russia, the Near East and India is due to various factors.The first and most obvious fact is that the Far East is unequivocally the part of Eurasia that is farthest from Europe.China and Japan were not adjacent to Europe like Russia and the Ottoman Empire; they were further east and north than India.Perhaps the political unity of the two countries in the Far East is more important than the geographical isolation.European invaders could not implement a divide and conquer policy in China and Japan that worked so well in India.In China and Japan, there are no independent local rulers who can turn against the central governments in Beijing and Tokyo.And, because of the hardline autarky policies of both governments, there is no potential fifth column here for the Europeans to exploit.A large number of Christian converts in Japan were ruthlessly wiped out in the 17th century, and the trade between China and Japan and the outside world was also rigidly reduced, thus preventing the development of a large merchant class in China and Japan as in India, because Chinese and Japanese businessmen have more ties to foreign companies than to their own governments.

The two countries of the Far East were thus able to limit their links with Europe to strictly supervised, intermittent trade.But by the middle of the nineteenth century, the situation had changed suddenly and dramatically.First China, and then Japan, were forced to open their doors to Sivan merchants, missionaries, consuls, and gunboats.The onslaught was not so overwhelming as in India, where a conquered people had little opportunity to pick and choose what they wanted in a foreign culture.However, both Far Eastern countries were fundamentally affected, but in completely different ways.Japan was able to adopt and use the principles of Western powers and use them for self-defense and later expansion of power.China, by contrast, cannot reorganize itself in a changed Western way.On the other hand, China is too big and too cohesive to be completely conquered like India and Southeast Asian countries.In this way, China was still in a state of turmoil until the First World War, and even in the decades after that.

For more than 4,000 years, the Chinese developed a unique, autonomous society at the easternmost tip of Eurasia.This society, like others in Asia, was based on agriculture rather than commerce, and ruled by landowners and bureaucrats rather than merchants and politicians.It is this apparently self-sufficient, self-sufficient society that sees the rest of the world as inferior, subordinate societies. In 1514, when the Portuguese appeared in the sea off the southeast coast, the Chinese began their first direct communication with the West.After the Portuguese came the Dutch and the British, who also reached China by sea; and the Russians appeared in the north, who arrived in the Amur River Basin by land.The Chinese resolutely avoided getting close to all these invaders (see Chapter 4, Section 4).They restricted trade relations to a few ports and refused to establish diplomatic relations on the basis of complete equality.In fact, the Chinese have no interest in the outside world.This manifests itself in their ignorance of Europe and Europeans.They know little about the location of Europe, and very little of it.With regard to the various peoples of Europe, they are completely confused, and they only call them "long-nosed barbarians" in general.They did not see any need for European products; this was at pains to be made by the Qianlong emperor in his famous letter to George III in 1793 (cited in Chapter 9, Section 3).

Because the Chinese were closed and self-contained and complacent, they were greatly stimulated by three disastrous wars: the first war with Britain in 1839-1842, the second war with Britain and France in 1856-1858, and the war with Britain and France in 1856-1858. The third time was the war with Japan in 1895.The humiliating defeat in these wars forced the Chinese to open the door, end their condescending attitude towards the West, and reevaluate their traditional civilization.The result was a chain reaction of invasions and counter-invasions; it produced a new China, with repercussions that have rocked the Far East and the globe to this day.

Britain was able to open the door to China first because it had a strong base in India and controlled the oceans.The main purpose of the British forcibly provoking the dispute is to remove the numerous obstacles that China has placed in the way of doing business.It should not be forgotten that by the middle of the nineteenth century the British had almost come to believe in a divine right to do business in all parts of the world, and that it was unnatural and reprehensible for some governments to prohibit their countries from free trade. The immediate problem that drove China and Great Britain to war was the opium trade. In the 17th century, European sailors introduced the habit of smoking opium to China, and the habit spread rapidly from various ports.The Chinese demand for opium solved the problem of British payment for Chinese products.Until then, the British had always had to pay mostly in gold and silver, as the Chinese showed little interest in Western goods.But now the opium market completely changed the balance of trade in favor of the British.The Beijing government issued decrees in 1729 and 1799 to ban the import of opium.But the trade is so lucrative that Chinese officials accept bribes to allow smuggling.By 1833, this sinister trade was worth $15 million a year.

The First Sino-British War, commonly known as the Opium Wars, broke out when the Chinese tried to forcibly ban the opium trade.The emperor appointed Lin Zexu as imperial envoy, and he proved to be a man of staunch integrity.Lin Zexu seized 20,000 boxes of opium worth US$6 million and destroyed them in public.Disputes over this move led to clashes between Chinese warships and British warships. In November 1839, war broke out.The course of the subsequent war clearly demonstrated the hopeless military inferiority of the Chinese.With only a squadron and thousands of men, the British can occupy port after port at will.The Chinese fought valiantly, and their guards often fought to the last man.But the power gap between Britain and China was much wider than the power gap between the Spanish conquistadors and the Aztecs. In the 16th and 17th centuries, European warships and cannons had been greatly developed, while Chinese military technology remained at a level not much higher than that of the Aztecs. In 1842, the Beijing government surrendered, accepting the Treaty of Nanking, the first in a long series of unequal treaties that would eat away at much of China's sovereignty.

According to the "Nanjing Treaty", China ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain and opened five foreign trading ports - Guangzhou, Fuzhou, Ningbo, Xiamen and Shanghai.British consuls can reside in these ports, and British merchants can also lease land here for residence and business.China also agreed to a flat tariff fixed at 5 percent of the value, with changes to this tariff subject to mutual agreement.This clause deprived China of its customs autonomy and thus controlled its national revenue.In addition, a supplementary treaty was concluded the following year recognizing the extraterritoriality of the British in criminal cases; the treaty also included a most-favored-nation clause guaranteeing the British any additional privileges that China would grant to other nations in the future.At the time, perhaps neither side fully realized that these terms would eventually lead to a complex situation in which foreign settlements and concessions spread throughout the country, all of which became foreign cities under the jurisdiction of foreign governments.

The Treaty of Nanking did not end the friction between Chinese and Europeans.Europeans were disappointed that the opening of the treaty ports did not lead to as great a trade expansion as they had hoped.The remedy, they believed, was to acquire more concessions.The Manchester Chamber of Commerce declared: "Our trade with China cannot be fully developed until the power of sale and purchase extends beyond the ports to which we are now confined." Non-fulfillment of obligations under the treaty.Moreover, European merchants and many notorious adventurers flocked to the treaty ports at the time, which aroused strong xenophobic sentiments among the Chinese. In 1841, a notice was put up in the Canton area expressing this feeling in strong terms.After protesting against the "formidable savage dogs and sheep," the proclamation asked rhetorically: "Although you have invaded our inland rivers . . . what are you capable of? . . . Yes, rockets are powerful, do you have any other skills?" Then, the secretary threatened the foreigners that if they continued to stay in China, the consequences would be the most dire. "If we don't completely wipe out you pigs and dogs, we are not brave Chinese people standing up to the sky.... We must kill you, chop off your heads, and burn you to death."

With such sentiments on both sides, it was no surprise that war broke out again in 1856.The war started when Chinese officials imprisoned Chinese sailors on a British-flagged Chinese ship.When the Beijing government refused to release the sailors, the British bombed Guangdong.The French joined the war on the pretext that a French priest had been killed.The action of the British was delayed for some time by the outbreak of mutiny in India.However, when the reinforcements arrived, the British and French allied forces were as irresistible as they were in the first Opium War. In June 1858, the Chinese were forced to sign the Treaty of Tianjin, but they refused to implement the terms, delaying formal ratification.Anglo-French forces attacked again and captured the capital in 1860, forcing China to sign the Treaty of Peking. The "Tianjin Treaty" and the "Beijing Treaty" opened several coastal and inland treaty ports, once again clarified and expanded extraterritoriality, and allowed the establishment of foreign embassies in Beijing and the establishment of Christian missions throughout the country.It should be recalled that it was also at this time that the Russians, taking advantage of China's peril, acquired through diplomatic means large tracts of territory in the Amur Valley and along the Pacific coast. (See Chapter 13, Section 3)

The third defeat suffered by China was the most humiliating, because this time it was at the hands of the small neighboring country Japan.As we will see later in this chapter, the Japanese, very different from the Chinese, had the ability to adapt Western technology to their needs and to build an effective military force.After reaching a level that other Eastern countries could not achieve at the time, Japan now forced North Korea to accept some not-so-clear demands.The Koreans have traditionally recognized Chinese suzerainty, but they also regularly pay tribute to Japan.So, in 1894, when North Korea asked for aid to suppress an uprising, and China sent a small force there for that purpose, a Japanese naval detachment also landed.The two armies clashed, and in August 1894, China and Japan officially declared war.The Chinese army was easily routed again, and in April 1895 Beijing had to accept the Treaty of Shimonoseki.The terms of the treaty required China to pay reparations, recognize the independence of Korea, cede the island of Taiwan, the Penghu Islands, and the Liaodong Peninsula to Japan, and reopen the Siding Treaty Port.Certain European powers were extremely dissatisfied with the emergence of a new concession competitor in China.Therefore, Russia, France and Germany jointly proposed to return the strategically important Liaodong Peninsula to China, and Japan reluctantly accepted this request.

The Japanese war dealt a devastating blow to Chinese arrogance and complacency.This great empire appears impotent in the face of its despised neighbors equipped with modern weapons of war.And, in the early years, European powers took advantage of China's weakness to annex outlying regions that traditionally recognized Beijing's suzerainty.Russia invaded and occupied the Amur River Basin and coastal provinces, and for a while also occupied the Ili River area in Central Asia.France and Britain occupied Indochina and Burma respectively, and Japan asserted its superiority over China in Korea before annexing the country entirely in 1910.In addition to acquiring these territories, the Western powers divided China itself into spheres of influence within which the political and economic supremacy of the great powers was recognized.In this way, the border areas of Yunnan and Indochina became the spheres of influence of France, Guangdong, the Yangtze River valley and the vast area between them became the spheres of influence of Britain, and Manchuria, Shandong and Fujian became the spheres of influence of Russia, Germany and Japan respectively. China's situation at the end of the nineteenth century was roughly the same as that of the Ottoman Empire.Just as the European powers annexed the formerly dependent territories of Turkey, the Transdanubian region, southern Russia, Egypt, and North Africa, so these powers co-existed with the formerly dependent territories of China, such as Indochina, Burma, Korea, and the Amur valley.Moreover, Western control over the remaining provinces of the Chinese Empire was more direct and more extensive than control over the rest of the Ottoman Empire.European gunboats patrolled the Chinese rivers, while the Turks controlled their straits.While the Europeans enjoyed extraterritoriality in the Ottoman Empire, they never violated the suzerainty of the Turks to the extent that they violated the suzerainty of the Chinese in the Chinese concessions, especially in the Shanghai International Settlement. China is controlled in the same way, but this control is more direct and extensive in China.On the other hand, China is not completely conquered and directly ruled by foreigners like India.The main reason for this distinction is that by this time China's defenselessness had become so evident that more than one great power was interested in the country, and therefore none had the kind of freedom of action that Britain enjoyed and took advantage of in India in the early nineteenth century right. The humiliation and disasters suffered by China in the second half of the 19th century caused the traditional self-centered China to undergo painful self-reflection, re-evaluation and re-organization.Below we will follow the trajectory of this process and see how the Chinese slowly and reluctantly tried to emulate the Western model first in the military sphere, then in the economic sphere, then in the social and cultural sphere, and finally in the political sphere. During the Sino-British Opium War, a military general who was a relative of the Chinese emperor came up with a plan to defeat the barbarians in the West.He suggested hanging firecrackers on the monkey's back and throwing the monkey onto the deck of a British warship anchored off the shore.After the plan was approved, 19 monkeys were taken in cages to the Chinese headquarters, but no one was found who dared to come within range of the British warship to throw the monkeys. This event reflects the bizarre differences between mid-nineteenth-century and Western military technology.The Chinese governor, Lin Zexu, had tried to ban the flow of opium into the country and withstood the first British onslaught, but he also recognized the superiority of foreign military power.In a letter to a friend, he wrote that it was impossible to compete with the British warships, and concluded: "ships, artillery and naval forces are absolutely indispensable." But Lin Zexu was never willing to spread these views. "I just ask you to keep this secret," he told his friend. "Don't tell anyone." His reluctance to make these views public reflects his fear of a hostile reaction among peers and superiors.This concern is by no means unfounded.The scholar-bureaucrats who rule China still loathe and despise everything in the West, except for a few.While failed strikes forced them to take some steps to emulate Western weapons and technology, in reality they were only showing.Officials are hopelessly incompetent in mechanical matters, even if they sincerely want to imitate the West - which they don't want to imitate at all.Thus, in the dozen years between the two wars of 1842 to 1858, China did little to face the challenge of European expansionism. The second defeat at the hands of the Western powers made China's few far-sighted intellectuals once again reconsider their traditional norms and policies.Their countermeasure was the so-called "self-strengthening" movement.The term itself comes from Confucian classics and was used in the 1860s to refer to the preservation of Chinese civilization by transplanting Western mechanical manufacturing.At this point, China's leaders were now ready to move beyond the purely military sphere to broadly include railroads, steamship lines, machine factories, and applied science.In the words of one reformer of the time, "China should acquire the superiority of the West in arms and machinery, but retain the supremacy of Chinese Confucian morality." This "self-government" movement was doomed because it was based on The idea is absurd.Westernization cannot be an incomplete process, either completely copied or completely negated.Westernization in terms of tools will inevitably lead to Westernization in thought and system.Therefore, Western science cannot be used to maintain Confucian civilization, on the contrary, it will definitely weaken this civilization. The fallacy of partial modernization was obvious to China's conservative literati, who therefore rejected total Westernization.Since they constitute the vast majority of China's ruling class, they effectively thwart attempts to modernize China's economy, just as they thwarted earlier attempts to modernize the military.Their influence is exemplified by the fate of a group of 120 robed students abroad; in 1872, China sent these students to study at a school in Hartford, Connecticut.To prepare China's would-be modernists for exams in traditional classics—still a prerequisite for careers—the students are accompanied by old-fashioned Chinese teachers.And every step they took was to ensure that this unprecedented contact with the West would not tarnish the Confucian morals of these young students.Notwithstanding their careful precautions, great apprehensions arose as to the wisdom and necessity of pursuing the enterprise, and finally, in 1881, the Conservative forces recalled the entire corps before the study program could be completed. A similar attitude also hinders attempts at industrialization by a very small number of people.For example, in 1872, China Merchants Steamship was established in order to build ships to transport rice from the Yangtze River Delta to the northern capital.Because the fleet needed coal, in 1878, the Kaiping Mining Bureau, north of Tianjin, opened.In order to transport these coals, China's first permanent railway was put into use in 1881.Combined, these several enterprises have a good economic foundation and might have prospered.However, according to the traditional Chinese way, their executives do not consider people for the enterprise, but for their own family.They appointed poor relatives and greedy cronies to various positions, and as a result, these businesses became heavily indebted and eventually controlled by foreigners. China's failure to revitalize its economy and rebuild its military will inevitably lead to increasing Western penetration and control.European powers have extended many loans to the Beijing government, often under pressure to grant creditors control of parts of the Chinese economy.The acquisition of concessions by the European powers in Chinese ports was another means by which they exerted economic influence.The largest concession is the Shanghai "Public Settlement", which has grown into a self-contained city-state; there, Chinese laws do not apply and Chinese courts and police have jurisdiction.These concessions greatly affected China's economy.China's economy, traditionally self-sufficient and based on fields, is now increasingly dependent on foreign-controlled coastal cities, notably Shanghai.The Western powers controlled some of the great inland waterways as well as the coastal ports, and they maintained several fleets of gunboats that patrolled the 1,500-mile-long Yangtze River that cuts through the center of China from Shanghai to Chongqing.In fact, there is an officer in the British Navy who also holds the title of "Rear Admiral of the Yangtze River", which is quite telling. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, China's response to Western challenges expanded from the military and economic to the social and cultural.This expansion is reflected in a change in the categories of Western books that the Chinese choose to translate.During the period from 1850 to 1899, the number of works translated by the Chinese in natural sciences, especially applied sciences, exceeded that of social sciences and classical literature, with a ratio of four to one; from 1902 to 1904 In two years, the latter outnumbered the former by two to one; and between 1912 and 1940, more works in the social sciences and classics were translated than in the natural and applied sciences. Twice as many works. One reason for this shift in interest was the Japanese defeat of China in 1894-1895, which dealt a devastating blow to the arrogance and complacency of the ruling Tufu class.Another reason was the massive, seemingly irresistible invasion of the West.In the years following the Sino-Japanese War, this invasion reached such a scale in all areas that China's very existence seemed threatened.As a result, more and more Chinese leaders have been forced to conclude that major changes are necessary for survival, and that such changes cannot be limited to military and economic aspects.In addition, the West created forces and conditions conducive to change in the process of penetration. The expansion of foreign commerce into the interior of China contributed to the development of a Chinese merchant class, who soon took over the sale of Western goods.As early as 1869, a British official said: "Because of superior language, market possession, and lower expenditure, the Chinese have almost monopolized commercial operations." Later, Chinese manufacturers began to build match factories, flour mills, and yarn mills and spinning mills.These new economic leaders are often an independent political force.They dislike European domination, which confers privileges on foreign commercial competitors.But they also didn't like Beijing's reactionary imperial court very much, because it neither effectively resisted foreigners nor understood the nature and needs of a modern economy.Therefore, these Chinese businessmen saw no need for allegiance to the Manchu regime in Beijing, just as Indian businessmen had earlier considered no need for loyalty to the Mughal regime in Delhi.As a result, it was they who provided the impetus for the revolutionary nationalist movement that developed at the turn of the century.It is no accident that the first xenophobic campaigns were launched in the coastal cities where the 1911 revolution that overthrew the Manchu dynasty also broke out. This dangerous situation in China also affected the ruling literati, but they were forced to lean toward reform rather than revolution.Because of their official positions and vested interests, they only need "reforms within the scope of tradition." They still believe that reforming China's Confucian civilization can meet modern needs.A well-known exponent of this view was the radical Cantonese scholar Kang Youwei (1858-1927), who shocked his colleagues with his treatise "Confucius Reformation".This iconoclastic work portrays Confucius as a defender of people's rights rather than imperial power.A disciple of Kang Youwei articulated this radical point of view in the following passage: This idea of ​​supporting people's rights and advocating people's participation in politics is new to China.Yizhu, it is clear that Western concepts of democracy and nationalism have never existed in China.Instead, China's emphasis is on the family; in terms of broader loyalties, it takes the form of "culturalism" rather than nationalism.The so-called culturalism, which refers to a sense of closeness to native cultural traditions, is simply considered by the Chinese to be the only acceptable way to deal with foreign barbarism.China's literati ruling class indulged in this tradition, and many of them still openly declared that they "would rather see the nation perish than see its way of life changed."However, in contrast to this traditional culturalist conservative policy, the reformist leaders at this time affirmed the concept of revolution in the West. "What is nationalism?" asked one reformer. "Nationalism is: in all places, people of the same race, same language, same beliefs, and same customs regard each other as brothers, and strive for independence and self-government, to establish a society that works for the common good and opposes the encroachment of other races. Better government. . . . If we want to promote nationalism in China, there is no other way than through people's revolution." After China's defeat by the Japanese in 1895, the spokesmen of the Reformers found their voice.They made them listen to the young Emperor Guangxu, who for a while escaped the influence of the Empress Dowager Cixi.Cixi had been dictating Chinese policy since 1860, but now the reformers had won the emperor to their side.The emperor was so impressed by their oral and written memorials that in the summer of 1898 he issued a series of sweeping reform decrees; a period known as the "Hundred Days of Reform."These decrees will enable fundamental reforms in most aspects of Chinese society.Many idle jobs will be eliminated; local government will be more centralized under the leadership of Beijing; new schools will spread the European style of study Western-style production methods will be encouraged, and the country will build an army of conscripts in the Western style . However, these measures remain on paper.The reformers were inexperienced, and their decrees had to be implemented by conservative bureaucrats who deeply disapproved.Convinced that their plan would fail unless the opposition leaders were removed, the reformers conspired to remove the empress dowager and the diehards around her.However, the empress dowager was one step ahead, deposing the hapless emperor in a coup d'état with the support of the army.Then declared her own regency, repealed all reform decrees, and killed six Reformist leaders. The failure of the "Hundred Days Reform" gave the conservatives all the power.They actively and enthusiastically channel social and political discontent with foreigners.Instigated by court conservatives and local rulers, xenophobic secret groups organized local militias to oppose foreign aggression.The most famous of these groups was the Boxer Group, commonly known as Boxers.With official acquiescence, the Boxers began attacking foreigners, and by 1900 many Chinese Christians and foreigners in North China had been killed.When European naval contingents began to land in Tientsin, the Boxers declared war on all foreigners and surrounded foreign embassies in Peking.But within months, the Eight-Power Allied Forces rescued the legation personnel, and the imperial court fled the capital.China was once again forced to accept a humiliating peace treaty whose terms included further recognition of commercial concessions and $333 million in reparations. The failure of the "Hundred Days Reform" and the Boxer Rebellion clearly demonstrated the futility of trying to modernize China through top-down improvements.The only way out was a revolution from below; this revolution broke out in 1911, which finally overthrew the Manchu dynasty and replaced it with a republic. The leader and thinker of the revolutionary faction was Dr. Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925).Compared with the famous reformist leaders of the past, Sun is a strange figure.He was not a man of letters in the upper class, and in fact his Western education was no less than his Chinese education, so his knowledge of traditional classics was weak.Sun Yat-sen was born in the Guangdong Delta; it has been under foreign influence longer than any other part of China.He came to live with his older brother in Honolulu when he was 13 and lived there for five years, finishing secondary school at an Anglican boarding school.Then, he entered the Queen's College of Hong Kong, and after graduation, he studied in the Hong Kong College of Western Medicine and obtained a medical degree in 1892.Therefore, Sun Yat-sen received a good and scientific education, and he could gain wealth and status by virtue of this; but he was with the poor, and he was always concerned about the welfare of the poor. "I am a coolie, a coolie's son," he declared once. "I was born poor and I am still poor. I have always sympathized with people who are struggling to make ends meet." With this feeling in mind, Sun Yat-sen soon left his profession. China's crushing defeat by Japan in 1895 convinced him that the country's government was so corrupt that only revolution could provide the cure.So he began a career as a revolutionary, going first to Japan, then to America, and then to London.He was kidnapped in the streets of London and sent to the Chinese legation; there he was held for 12 days.However, he got in touch with James Cantley, who had been his teacher at the Hong Kong College of Western Medicine and now lived near the Chinese Legation in London.Cantlie immediately informed the British authorities.set him free.This undoubtedly saved Sun Yat-sen's life, as Chinese legation officials planned to smuggle him back to China, where he would surely be executed. After his release, Sun Yat-sen traveled to the European continent and spent several years studying social and political systems.It was at this time that Sun Yat-sen clearly became a republican in his thinking.He had been a revolutionary in the past, hoping to overthrow the Manchu dynasty.But in the past his constructive advice has been limited to developing capable people and implementing technical improvements.At this time he decided that the goal of the revolution should be to establish a democratic republic. In 1905, at a meeting in Tokyo, Sun Yat-sen organized the Tongmenghui.The program of the Tongmenghui advocated the establishment of a republican government through "national" elections, and at the same time advocated the distribution of land to farmers.It is worth noting that no one has ever raised the issue of land distribution as a legitimate component of self-improvement or reform before.The reason is that no one has seriously considered a fundamental revolution in the Chinese way of life.Before Sun, no one had advanced the idea that peasant masses could be transformed into literate, property-rich, politically active citizens. Sun Yat-sen was mainly supported by Chinese businessmen and laundry workers overseas.In China, only a few students and businessmen were influenced by his ideas, while the general public was still ignorant and indifferent.When the revolution of 1911 came, it was partly a matter of the landed gentry and businessmen of the provinces who opposed the Manchu regime's belated efforts to nationalize the railway buildings. effort.These local leaders fomented strikes and riots, ostensibly on the grounds that nationalization would lead to foreign control, but in fact feared that nationalization would preclude them from profiting.Regardless, the revolutionaries took advantage of this discontent and did effective work among students and soldiers.In Canton, a small revolutionary uprising was crushed, but in Hankow, on October 10, 1911, an accidental explosion at a revolutionary bomb factory led to a mutiny among imperial troops nearby.Despite the lack of cooperation, the revolutionary movement quickly spread throughout the country.Sun Yat-sen, who was in the United States at this time, returned to China immediately, and was elected as the provisional president of the Republic of China by the Provisional Revolutionary Assembly on December 30, 1911. Clearly, this movement to overthrow Manchu rule embodied much more than just the revolutionary leadership provided by Sun Yat-sen.Therefore, even though Sun Yat-sen was the nominal leader, he failed to control the whole country.Actual power was in the hands of Yuan Shikai (1859-1916), an able and ambitious imperial official, who commanded China's most combat-ready army.Unwilling to risk a civil war that would inevitably invite foreign intervention, Sun Yat-sen ceded the presidency to Yuan Shih-kai in February 1912; the latter agreed to work with Congress and a responsible cabinet.However, this arrangement did not really solve the fundamental problem, that is, what kind of regime should replace the overthrown Manchu regime.Yuan Shikai greatly appreciated Western military technology and management methods, but he disapproved of Western political systems, including the system of people's representatives supervising the executive branch; he believed that this was contrary to Chinese tradition and undoubtedly contrary to his personal ambitions. This matter immediately caused controversy.Sun Yat-sen founded a new political party, the Kuomintang.Yuan Shikai founded the Progressive Party to organize his followers. When the Congress was elected in April 1913, the Kuomintang won a majority of seats.But this setback did not limit Yuan Shikai too much, because he had the support of the army, bureaucracy and foreign powers.In fact, the final contest centered on this loan of 25 million pounds; this money was borrowed by Yuan Shikai from the five great powers.Realizing that Yuan Shih-kai might use some of this money to strengthen his control over the government, the Nationalist leaders warned governments that our Constitution requires Congress to approve all kinds of loans; since Congress will never approve this particular loan, It will not be protected by law.But the great powers preferred to support the dictator Yuan Shikai, just as they had supported the Manchu dynasty in earlier years.So Yuan Shikai got the money and, as the Kuomintang feared, he used it to strengthen his position.The measures he took at this time included the assassination of a key leader of the Kuomintang; these measures led to Sun Yat-sen's armed uprising in the summer of 1913.But the uprising was still immature, and it was easily suppressed by Yuan Shikai. Sun Yat-sen was in exile in Japan with his main followers, while Yuan Shikai was preparing to realize his ulterior ambition of proclaiming himself emperor. In October 1913, he had himself elected permanent president; then, he ordered the dissolution of the Kuomintang and Congress.In order not to face opposition, he planned a "spontaneous" petition demanding that he fulfill his duties to the state and become emperor. 1915年12月，袁世凯宣布，他将于1916年1月1日接受皇帝的称号。中国一位哲学家已预料到反对派极其强烈的反应，当时他这样写道： 结果如他所提示的一样。1915 年12月，云南爆发了起义，并迅速蔓延开来。袁世凯发现，首先有必要推迟称帝的时间；1916年3月，他终于放弃了恢复君主制的野心。同年6月，袁世凯在耻辱和痛苦中死去。他死后。手下的各军队首领将中国分割成各自的势力范围。1926年以前，这些军阀几乎一直无视名义上在北京统治这个国家的民国政府。他们残酷地掠夺农村，把中国拖进了野蛮的无政府动乱状态中。民国初期若干年是中国历史上最坏的时期之一。 以下几个因素可解释对西方作出反应的几十年中所产生的这一悲惨结果。首先，中国幅员辽阔，这使得中国内地许多年来未受到与西方交往的影响。内地相当于一个巨大的贮藏所，几十年来注重传统的文官候选人一直是从那里产生。他们组成的官僚阶层由知识分子构眈而这些知识分子专心于儒家经典著作，因而，他们更强调的是伦理原则，而不是手工技艺或战争技术。这一统治阶级因以下事实而进一步受到约束：陈佛教外，中国没有或几乎没有借用国外东西的传统。因此毫不奇怪，尽管19世纪后半叶中国的确发生了变化，但它的变化速度却远远落后于对西方作出反应的其他国家。 不过，不能让官僚承担中国失败的全部责任。年轻的、受过西方教育的中国人也应负部分责任。他们中的一些人虽然在民国初期起了主要作用，但他们却试图在中国建立一些与他们从国外，尤其是从美国观察、学习到的制度完全一样的制度。他们所建立的制度自然对中国人民毫无意义。很快就在中国的政治现实面前土崩瓦解。美国一位权威人士对这些不老练的政治家的这一失败作了生动的描写： 历史学家所提出的几个因素可解释中国和日本对西方的挑战所作的不同反应。日本诸岛地理位置的紧凑既促进了民族团结，又促进了新价值观和新知识在全国的传播。它也使这个国家容易遭受和认识到外国的压迫。佩里的舰队在能看得见首都江户的地方航行；几星期内，全日本便都知道了这一重大事件。相反，面积辽阔、人口稠密的中国内地诸省长期以来很难受到或不受西方的影响，反而充当传统观念和传统势力的贮藏地。此外，由于日本有向伟大的中国文化世界借用某些东西的悠久传统，因而，19世纪在同样地借用西方世界的东西时，发生的冲突较少、痛苦较小。过去，日本以“日本精神、中国知识”为口号，适应了经过挑选的中国文化的某些方面。现在，日本又以“东方道德、西方技艺”为口号，向西方借用了它所盼望的东西。因此，同中国帝国的铁板一块的特点相比，日本的政体和社会结构具有多元化的特点。地理上的分隔。即起伏不平的山区地形加强了日本的氏族传统和地区独立主义。日本的商人阶级拥有更大的自治权和更强的经济实力，而且如我们将要看到的那样，在西方入侵的紧要关头迅速扩大了它的势力。日本军人在社会的最高层，而不象中国军人那样在社会的最底层。这意味着日本拥有一个比中国的文人阶层更易受西方军事技术的影响、并对此反应更迅速的统治阶层。总之，地理环境、文化传统和多元化的体制诸因素，都使日本比中国更易遭受西方的入侵，且能更快地对这一入侵作出反应。 尽管有这些基本差别，日本却同中国一样，19 世纪中叶以前一直与世隔绝。不错，16世纪日本人曾欢迎过葡萄牙人，而且许多人还皈依了基督教（见第四章第八节）。但德川幕府发觉，西方的宗教和贸易是一股威胁他们的权力、使人不安的力量。为此，他们逐一地断绝了日本同西方世界的联系。到17世纪中叶时，唯一保留的是和少数荷兰商人的接胁他们被限制在九州岛上经商，甚至受到了最为严厉、最为屈辱性的控制。 德川幕府领导人的目的是要使日本与世隔绝、一成不变，以便使他们的统治永存。但是，尽管他们作出种种努力，还是有了某些发展；这些发展渐渐改变了这个国家的力量对比，打破了现状。德川幕府治下的长期和平促使人口增长、经济发展和商人阶级的实力增强。人口从1600 年的1，8O0万猛增到1725年的2，600万。城市不均衡地发展21700年，江户人口接近100万，大皈和京都的人口各达到30万。人口的剧增增加了商品的需求量，鼓励商人和富农将剩余资本投于新的生产方式——包括家庭包工制即分散在家庭加工的制度。他们向农民和工匠提供原料和设备，而将制成品拿到市场上出售。到德川幕府统治末期，似乎某些地区的这一工业发展已达到了创办工厂的水平，以可利用的原料和地方技术为基础的地区专业化开始普遍起来，因此，某些地区以其漆器、陶器、组织品或米酒而闻名。 产品的增加导致了商品的广泛交换，这种交换又促进了货币经济的发展。货币最初是从中国和朝鲜引进的，但在17 世纪，日本建造了一座金币制造厂。贵族开始靠经纪人把他们的稻米变成货币，依靠商人来满足他们的消费需求。在这些交易中，由于商人通过垄断操纵了价格，由于稻米价格跟不上其他商品价格的飞涨，贵族失败了。此外，贵族尝到了奢侈生活的甜头，往往在浮华的生活上互相攀比。最终结果是，他们一般都欠商人的债，尽管后者的社会地位远比他们的低。但是后来，商人家族通过通婚或继嗣等手段获得了贵族头衔。这些家族不仅控制了经济，而且支配了18世纪和19世纪早期的文学和艺术。 应该指出，这些变化不但影响了最高层的贵族，而且影响了武士阶级，因为在这一长久的和平时期，并不那么大量地需要武士的服务。广大农民也因稻米价格下降而损失惨重。他们中的许多人流入城市，但不是所有的人都能找到工作，因为国民经济的增长始终跟不上人口的增长。 因此，日本社会正处于转变之中。它正经历着深刻的经济变化和社会变化，而这又酿成了政治上的紧张局势；这种紧张局势在海军准将佩里迫使日本打开贸易大门时达到极很。日本人之所以很乐于在西方的影响下改造他们的社会，原因之一就在于他们中的许多人已充分认识到这个社会需要改造。 19 世纪初期以来，由于北太平洋水域的商业活动日益增加，外国对日本的压力也不断加大。从事捕鲸和毛皮贸易的船只需要停靠港口，以获得食物和进行维修，但它们都被拒绝靠岸。相反，日本人常常杀害或虐待那些在其沿海失事的外国船员。到19世纪中叶时，由于采用汽船需要创建煤港，因而使局势更为恶化。最后，美国政府决定采取主动，强迫日本表态。1853年7月8日，海军准将马修·佩里在江户港抛锚，转交了菲尔莫尔总统的一封信，信中要求经商特权、开放装煤港和保护失事船上的美国人。一星期内佩里的舰队离开日本时警告说，他来年春天来听答复。1854年2月，当他再次来到日本时明确表示，要么签定条约，要么交战，二者任择其一。日本人被迫让步，于3月31日签定了《神奈川条约》。条款规定，开放下田和函馆港口，用于美国船只的维修和补充给养；向美国失事船员提供适当的待遇并将他们护送回国；在日、美两国中的任何一方认为必要时允许选派领事，并答应给予美国以最惠国待遇。 依照这一条约的条款，美国将非常能干的汤森·哈里斯作为第一任领事派往日本。哈里斯凭借他那非凡的机智和耐心渐渐赢得了日本人的信任，并于1856年签定了《通商条约》。该条约规定：日本要再开放四个通商口岸；双方互派外交代表；美国人享有民事治外法权和刑事治外法权；禁止鸦片贸易；给予外国人以宗教信仰自由。同美国签定这两个条约后不久，日本又同荷兰、俄国、英国和法国缔结了类似的条约。 这一系列条约在西方世界并没有引起极大的关注。但对日本来说，它们却是其历史的巨大分界线。几乎长达3个世纪的闭关自守结束了。不论好坏，日本同它之前的中国一样，这时也被迫遭受西方的入侵。但是，它对这一入侵的反应完全不同于中国。 西方入侵的主要影响是产生了促使德川幕府倒台的危机。由于签定了那些条约，幕府遭到了两种互相冲突的压力：一种来自要求履行条约各条款的外国列强；另一种来自竭力排外的日本人民。反德川幕府的氏族，尤其是萨摩、长州、服前和土佐四潘即通常所称的萨长集团，利用了人民的这一情绪。1858 至1865年间，他们以“尊王攘夷”为口号向欧洲人及其雇佣者发动了进攻。外国列强对此进行报复，于1863年轰炸了鹿儿岛上的萨摩港，于1864年轰炸了长州沿岸的防御工事。这一行动给氏族首领们留下了深刻印象，这时，他们丢开排外主义，企图得到西方的武器装备。两年后，天皇去世，德川幕府倒台，为所谓的“明治维新”扫清了道路。德川氏族的权力和封地被剥夺，他们的地位为萨长诸氏族所取代；萨长诸氏族从此以新的明治天皇的名义控制了全国。正是为这些氏族服务的青年武士们，这时为日本提供了卓越的领导，使日本能成功地实行现代化。 应该指出，这时的日本正象中国一样也已完全沦于西方的控制之下。外国在诸港口建立租界，这些租界利用其治外法权之类的种种特权，按照在中国通商口岸设立市政机构的方式在当地建立起市政机构。由于日本国内纷争四起，这些外国机构都希望日本能象亚洲其他国家一样，迅速沦于西方的统治之下。但是，与中国的文人学土完全不同，日本年轻的新领导人认识到，他们已在某些领域受到阻碍；更重要的是，他们愿意并能够对此做些事情，并且知道应该做些什么。 如果有人指出，即使在日本闭关自守的几个世纪中，日本领导人也不怕麻烦地去了解欧洲发展的情况，那丝毫不令人奇怪。事实上，允许荷兰人继续留在日本经商，主要是为了向他们打听外部世界的情况。幕府和诸氏族都提倡军事工业，维持学习外国语言和外国课本的学校。当时，总的知识水平已达到这样的程度：在自然科学方面，物理学已从化学中分离出来；在医学方面，学生们在诸如外科学、儿科学、产科学和内科学之类的专门领域里受到培养。在长崎海军学校，只是在数学，天文学和物理学的基础打牢之后，才开始教授航海和射击课程。换句话说，日本人对西方文化始终更具鉴别力，更易产生反应。这一点在下面这段赞扬美国的颂文中得到清楚说明；这篇颂文大约是在中国皇帝傲慢地通和乔治三世国王，说中国不需要西方蛮族的任何东西的同时，由一位日本学者撰写而成的。 根据上述背景，不难理解：为什么一旦西方人入侵，日本人的做法就完全不同于中国人。这种差别从一开始就很明显；当时的英国官员埃尔金伯爵在以下这段值得注意的话中对这种差别作了描述： 埃尔金伯爵的预言的正确性很快得到证实。1868 年，天皇颁布了一篇警文（即“五条誓文”），其目的在于平息全国骚乱，阐明新政权的目标。这个文件着重强调了两大点：“广兴会议，万机决于公论，”“破除旧习。…求知识于世界”。事实上，西方思想和西方物品在19世纪70年代已大为流行起来。吃牛肉、穿长裤、携带雨伞、炫耀手表和钻石戒指等现象开始风靡一时。1878年创作的一首儿歌是这种观念的最好说明。据G·B·桑塞姆说，“这首儿歌叫作'文明球歌'，创作它的目的是要使青年人深深感到西方文化的优越性。拍球时，他们通过背诵被认为最值得采纳的10种东西的名字即气灯、蒸汽机、马车、照相机、电报、避雷针、报纸、学校、信箱和轮船来计算球弹跳的次数。” 日本新领导人不赞成这种不加区别地奉承所有西方东西的做法。他们并不对西方文明本身感兴趣，而仅仅对其中增强了民族力量的那些组成成分感兴趣。在闭关自守时期（当印度的拉姆·莫汉·罗伊在启蒙运动的思想体系方面与孔多塞相一致时），日本人已了解欧洲人在数学、科学和经济学方面的成就，但没有注意文学、哲学和社会科学。同样，他们现在提出了一个非凡的改革方案，宗旨在于建立一个强大的日本，而不是完全模仿西方国家。 例如，在宗教领域，明治时期的政治家赞成神道教为国教，因为神道教认为国民性与天皇是一致的，认为天皇是太阳女神的后裔。换句话说，神道教促进了民族统一，激励了爱国主义精神；如果日本想在现代世界中保持原有的地位，这些属性恰恰是必不可少的。在教育方面，日本明确规定，其目的是促进国家利益，而不是发展个人。它颁布法令，实施义务初等教育，因为国家需要有文化的公民。大批外国教育家来到日本创办学校和大学；成千上万的日本人出国学习，回国后在新学校任教。但是，为了既确保行政管理的一致性又确保思想的一致性，国家对整个教育体系实行了严密的监督。1890年颁布的教育诏书告诫所有学生，“要勇敢地献身于国家；以此来保卫和维持我们的与天地同存的帝国王权的兴盛。” 在军事方面，日本人废除了旧时的封建征兵制，创造了以欧洲最新模式为基础的现代化军队。他们在德国军事代表团的帮助下征摹了一支陆军部队；在英国人的指导下建立了一小支海军部队。明治领导人预见到，这些新军队需要现代化经济为它们提供军需品。因此，他们通过发放津贴、购买原料或成立政府公司来确保所需工业的建立。为了促进工业的发展，他们首先致力于金融机构、商品交易所、航运公司，铁路和电报线路的建设。政府领导人不仅注意支持轻工业如纺织工业，而且注意支持重工业如采矿业、钢铁工业和造船业，因为后者是提供军需品所必不可少的。这些企业建成后，政府通常以极低的价格将它们出售给各种享有特权的私人行业。少数富贵人家，即通常所称的财阀，正是以这种方式扼制了国民经济的发展；这一情况一直持续到现在。可以补充说一下，这种工业发展所需的资本主要是从农业中获得的。日本人通过引进良种、改进土地使用方法、扩大排灌面积，以较低的成本使农业产量显著提高。1878年至1892年间，耕地面积憎加了7% ，产量增加了21% ，人口增加了15% 。由此产生的农业剩余产品被税收吸走了，而这些税收则为工业化提供了资本。 日本人还仔细检查了他们的法律制度。西方人到来时，日本的法律制度正处于使西方人对治外法权的要求至少是可理解的这样一种状态中。法律混乱而又苛刻，个人权利被轻视，警察专横且独掌大权，监狱的条件令人恶心。1871年，日本成立了司法部，随后几年来用了新的法规，并将司法部门和行政部门的权力区分开来。 与此同时，日本实行了各种政治改革，以便至少为自己提供议会制政体这种装饰品。首先成立了内阁和枢密院，然后，按正式仪式于1889 年颁布了宪法。这一宪法规定：不得随意逮捕公民，财产权受到保护，公民享有宗教、言论和结社的自由。但在每种情况下，政府只要愿意使有权制止这些权利。大体上说，这一宪法里从德国模式中借来的东西远多于从法国或英国模式中借来的东西。其原因在于：日本同德国一样，当时正处于巩固阶段，因而对增强国家实力比对保护公民自由更感兴趣。因此，这一宪法只为日本提供了议会制的门面，同时却维护了寡头政治的统治和天是崇拜。的确，宪法第一条规定：“日本帝国将由永不间断的一代代天皇统治和管辖，”同样第三条规定：“天皇是神圣不可侵犯的。” 由于采用这一宪法和实行法律上的改革，日本人能够迫切要求废除不平等条约。他们完全可以认为这时的日本已在文明的国际礼让中占有一席之地，不再需要治外法权，不再允许对其主权的其他侵犯。经过长期的外交努力之后，1894 年，他们说服英国和美国在五年之内结束其治外法权领事裁判权。同年，日本人出人意外地赢得了对中国帝国的惊人的胜利。从此以后，不再有任何理由将日本看作是一个劣势国家，其他列强也步英、美之后尘，很快放弃了他们的特权。到1899年时，日本已获得对其国土上的所有外国人的法定裁判权，在这情况下，它成为亚洲第一个砸碎西方控制的锁链的国家。 在完成自身的现代化之后，日本开始了向亚洲大陆扩张的生涯。只要看看日本的好战传统，看看它的军事领导人从最古时代起就享有的巨大威望，这一点也就毫不奇怪了。另外，很显然，远东当时是国际竞争和争夺地盘的地区。讲究实际的日本领导人得出了这一明确结论：每个民族必须为自己去掠夺，软弱和胆小者将一无所获。一位文职官员表达了如下这一观点：“这就象乘坐三等火车一样；最初这里有足够的座位，但是，当更多的旅客拥进来后，这里就没有位子给他们坐了。假如你在肩肩相擦、用双臂支撑自己时失去了自己的地方，那么，你就不可能再恢复原来的位置。……必然的逻辑要求人们既要站稳脚跟，又要将双肘伸向任何可能出现的空间；如果你不这样做，别人就会占据这块空间。” 日本首先对朝鲜发动了扩张主义运动。尤其是与中国相对照，日本政府起初对保护朝鲜的自主感兴趣。如本章前面所述，这一政策导致了1894 年挑起中日战争的武装冲突。战事的进程向受惊的世界揭示出日本在以往20年间取得了多么大的进步。中国军队虽英勇作战，但却无力对付一架现代化的军事机器。根据1895年的《马关条约》，日本获得了台湾岛、澎湖列岛和辽东半岛；不过，辽东半岛由于法国、俄国和德国的坚决要求而不得不归还给中国。如果注意到，在和平谈判期间，中国代表李鸿章和日本使节伊藤博文之间曾有过以下谈话，那是会有启发的。 在战胜中国之后，日本人面临着远为强劲的对手——俄国。俄国不仅同法国和德国一起迫使日本将辽东半岛归还给中国，而且这时还侵占了朝鲜和满洲。中日战争期间，朝鲜签订了一个条约，同意接受日本人的指导和资本。战争刚一结束，日本驻朝使节便开始了一项全面的改革计划，将日本官员安插在各主要的位置上。但是，领导保守派的朝鲜皇后却与日本使节对抗。结果，后者组织了一次反叛，谋杀了皇后，但这次政变是短命的。皇帝这时已转向俄国，用俄国人取代日本顾问，并授与俄国一家公司以伐木权。 俄国人在朝鲜取代日本人的同时，又在满洲获得了种种特许权。我们前面已提到，1896 年的“中俄密约”允许俄国敷设一条穿越满洲、直达符拉迪沃斯托克的铁路（见第十三章第三节）。我们还提到，1898年，俄国获得了辽东半岛的期限25年的租借权；两年后，即义和团运动期间，又占领了整个满洲。俄国的这些进展在东京统治集团内部引起了激烈的争论。有些人赞成以平分战利品为基础设法与俄国保持一致。另一些人则宁愿与英国联盟，因为日本同这个国家几乎具有共同的目标。如果有这样一种联盟撑腰，日本便能顶住俄国的扩张主义。 于是，试探者被同时派往英国和俄国的首都，很快便十分清楚，圣彼得堡难以对付而伦敦就易于为人所接受。对英国人来说，古老的、显赫一时的孤立政策这时已失去它的光辉。由于面临蓬勃兴起的德国和好战的俄国的挑战，他们欢迎在远东有一个能牵制俄国的盟友。1902 年1月30日，英、日缔结盟约，它规定中国和朝鲜独立，承认英国在华中、日本在朝鲜的特殊利益。日、英任何一方若对第三国作战，另一方应守中立；但如果有别国介入，那么，另一方则应援助它的同盟国。由于俄国和法国已结盟八年，因此，英、日同盟显然是为了防止法国在战时援助俄国。 这时，日本已能够迫使俄国作出决定。1903 年年中，日本提出，如果俄国承认日本在朝鲜的地位的话，日本就承认俄国在满洲的地位。谈判因自负的俄国人采取拖延和回避的做法而耽搁下来。日本人有充分的理由断定，俄国人毫无诚意谈判，于是，于1904年2月6日同俄国断绝外交关系。两天后，未经宣战和下最后通谋，日本人就袭击了俄国在辽东半岛旅顺港的基地。 如前面所提到的，日本人赢得了对俄国人的胜利，这一胜利甚至比10 年前他们对中国人的胜利更出人意外。根据《朴茨茅斯和约》（1905年9月5日），日本获得了库页岛南半部和俄国对辽东半岛的租借权，日本在朝鲜的特殊利益也得到了承认。回顾起来，这场战争是远东历史乃至世界历史的一个重要转折点。毫无疑问，它确立了日本的强国地位，改变了远东地区的力量对比。但更有意义的是，历史上第一次一个亚洲国家战胜了一个欧洲国家，而且是一个大帝国。这对整个亚洲产生着令人振奋的影响。它向诸殖民地民族的千百万人表明，欧洲的统治并不是神圣的、命中注定的。自征服者时代以来，白人第一次被打败，全球所有的非白人民族都充满了令人激动的希望。从这种意义上说，日俄战争是近代历史上的里程碑，是非欧洲民族充分觉醒的序幕；这种觉醒今日正震撼着整个世界。