How did Japan Contribute to World War II
Japan was also being affected by the great depression. Like Italy and Germany because of this their democracy had lost control in their country and either militarists had taken over or nationalists. Then many of the people started to revolt against the government including their own navy. In one of the Japanese colonies over in China the militants there made a plan to kill the war Lord and they succeeded. The militants there thought that this would hopefully result in the government coming there, but instead this did nothing.
With the nationalists and militarists in control they had organized many pep rallies to get people in the spirit to go attack China. Japan was also running out of raw materials and they needed a more reliable source to provide them. Japan's resolution to this problem was trying to take over any islands in the Pacific Coast and China. The Japanese would not go right into a big country like China and start a war though. During World War I the Germans had taken over some parts of China and since the Treaty of Versailles stated that Germany would loose all of its land that territory was given to Japan. Japan had also gained control of many islands in the Pacific Ocean. Japan decided to increase their territory there in China. In the July of 1937, the Japanese set off various explosions at the Marco Polo Bridge. This led to a full on war between the Japanese and the Chinese military. Unfortunately for the Chinese, the Japanese had a much better military. At one of the battles the Japanese killed 300,000 civilians. In 1940 Japan agreed to sign the Tripartite Treaty why made an allied force between Berlin, Tokyo, and Rome (after 1943). While the Japanese's government was crumbling to the ground raw materials from China were being shipped to Japan to help them out. Japan was now looking at the attacking the United States because President Roosevelt asked Japan to take away their troops in China and Indochina. Japan refused to do this so the United States issued a oil embargo on Japan. Of course Japan was not happy about this so Japan bombed Pear Harbor in December of 1941. sources: World War II for Dummies, http://www.japanfocus.org/-Richard_J_-Smethurst/3825
|