Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Maps
- Acknowledgments
- Part I The Clash of Two Orders: The Far East on the Eve of the War
- Part II The War: The Dividing Line Between Two Eras
- 4 The Beginning of the End: The Outbreak of Hostilities
- 5 Japan Triumphant: The Battles of P'yôngyang and the Yalu
- 6 China in Disgrace: The Battles of Port Arthur and Weihaiwei
- Part III The Settlement: The Modern Era in Far Eastern Diplomacy
- Epilogue: Perceptions, Power, and War
- Bibliographic Essay
- Bibliography
- Index
5 - Japan Triumphant: The Battles of P'yôngyang and the Yalu
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 16 January 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Maps
- Acknowledgments
- Part I The Clash of Two Orders: The Far East on the Eve of the War
- Part II The War: The Dividing Line Between Two Eras
- 4 The Beginning of the End: The Outbreak of Hostilities
- 5 Japan Triumphant: The Battles of P'yôngyang and the Yalu
- 6 China in Disgrace: The Battles of Port Arthur and Weihaiwei
- Part III The Settlement: The Modern Era in Far Eastern Diplomacy
- Epilogue: Perceptions, Power, and War
- Bibliographic Essay
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The Chinese have sent an army to Korea …But it would be as reasonable to match brave men armed with pitchforks against brave men armed with rifles, as to pit, man for man, the Chinese in their present condition against the Japanese.
The Times of London, September 1894The Japanese by their victories have drawn the attention of Europe and it is now acknowledged that they have become a great Power. An insular Empire on the Pacific, she has in a generation made herself a strong nation with an army and navy which have won victories over a proud enemy.
The Japan Weekly Mail, September 1894Between the outbreak of the war in late July and the early fall of 1894, there was no heavy fighting, only some preliminary skirmishes. Two of the four major battles of the war would be fought in a three-day period in mid-September. The final two would be fought in late November of 1894 and early February of 1895. The first of these important battles took place at P'yôngyang, the former capital of Korea and the fiiture capital of North Korea. The outcome of this battle would determine which country would control the Korean Peninsula. If the Chinese forces could not hold P'yôngyang, they would probably be expelled from the country since the next defensible position was on their bank of the Yalu River, which forms the border with Manchuria. If this happened and the Japanese army crossed the Yalu River, the rest of the war would be on Chinese territory.
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- Information
- The Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895Perceptions, Power, and Primacy, pp. 165 - 196Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2002