Ganghwa Island incident

Ganghwa Island incident

The Ganghwa Island incident (Japanese: linktext|江|華|島|事|件 "Kōkatō jiken", Korean: 운요호 사건 "Unyo-ho sageon" meaning "Unyo incident") was an armed encounter between the Joseon Dynasty and Japan which occurred in the vicinity of Ganghwa Island on September, 20 1875.

Background

In the second half of the 19th century, Korea was the scene for a power struggle between several imperial powers including the Russians and the French, as well as the Chinese and the Japanese.

The Meiji Restoration of 1868 ended the 265-year-old feudalistic Tokugawa shogunate in Japan. The new government of Japan sent a messenger holding a letter with the sovereign's message which informed of the founding of a new administration of Japan to the government of the Joseon Dynasty of the Korean Peninsula on December, 19th 1868.

However, the Joseon Dynasty refused to receive the letter because it contained the Chinese characters and . [国史大辞典編集委員会編, ed. 國史大辭典. Vol. 9. Tokyo: 吉川弘文館, 1988, p 503 (Japanese)] According to the political system of the day, only the Chinese emperor was allowed to use these characters, as they signified the imperial authority of China in the region. [国史大辞典編集委員会編, ed. 國史大辭典. Vol. 9. Tokyo: 吉川弘文館, 1988, p 503 (Japanese)] Hence, their use by a Japanese sovereign was considered unacceptable to Joseon, as it implied he was an equal of the Chinese emperor. [吉田光男編『日韓中の交流』, 山川出版社, 2004, p 22 (Japanese)]

The Qing Dynasty prompted Joseon to receive the sovereign letter from Japan, because Qing knew the power of Japan at that moment.Fact|date=June 2007 Despite government-level negotiations held 1875 in Busan, no substantial progress was made. Instead, tension grew as Joseon continued to refuse to recognize Japan's claims of equality with China.

The incident

In 1875, the "Unyo", a small Japanese warship under the command of Inoue Yoshika, was dispatched to survey coastal waters without Korean permission.

On September 20 the ship reached Ganghwa Island, which had been a site of violent confrontations between Korean forces and foreign forces in the previous decade. In 1866, the island was briefly occupied during the French Campaign against Korea, and also in 1871 subject to an American intervention. The memories of those confrontations were very fresh, and there was little question that the Korean garrison would shoot at any approaching foreign ship. Nonetheless, Commander Inoue ordered a small boat launched – allegedly in search of drinkable water. The Korean forts opened fire. The Unyo brought its superior firepower to bear and silenced the Korean guns. Then it attacked another Korean port and withdrew back to Japan.

After the incident, the Imperial Japanese Navy blockaded the immediate area and demanded an official apology from the Joseon government, which was concluded with the dispatch of the Kuroda mission, and the signing of the Treaty of Ganghwa on February 27th, 1876, which opened the Korean Peninsula to Japanese and foreign trade.

References

ee also

*Treaty of Ganghwa
*Meiji period
*Joseon Dynasty
*Tribute


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ganghwa Island — Infobox Korean settlement imgcaption=Ganghwa in winter. hangul=강화도 hanja=江華島 rr=Ganghwado mr=Kanghwado pop=65500 popnote=(est.) area km2=302.4 mapwidth=250px mapcaption=Map showing location of Ganghwa Island.Ganghwa Island is an island in the… …   Wikipedia

  • Ganghwa County — Infobox Korean settlement title = Ganghwa gun hangul = 강화군 hanja = 江華郡 rr = Ganghwa gun mr = Kwanghwa kun area km2 = 411.2 divs = 1 eup, 13 myeon, 96 ri Ganghwa gun is a county in Incheon Metropolitan City, South Korea, where Ganghwa Island, as… …   Wikipedia

  • Treaty of Ganghwa — Infobox Korean name |300px hangul=강화도조약 hanja=江華島條約 rr=Ganghwado Joyak mr=Kanghwado Choyak The Treaty of Ganghwa, also known in Japan as Korea Japanese Treaty of Amity (Korean language 강화도조약, Japanese language: nihongo|日朝修好条規|Nicchō shūkōjōki|,… …   Wikipedia

  • Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 — Japan Korea Treaty of Amity Korean name Hangul 강화도 조약 …   Wikipedia

  • French Campaign against Korea, 1866 — Infobox Military Conflict conflict=French campaign against Korea, 1866 병인양요 (The byeong in yang yo ) date=October November 1866 place=Predominantly Ganghwa Island, some small engagements on the Korean Peninsula casus=Korean execution of 9 French… …   Wikipedia

  • Imperial Japanese Navy — (IJN) 大日本帝國海軍 (Dai Nippon Teikoku Kaigun) …   Wikipedia

  • United States expedition to Korea — Infobox Korean name caption=Koreans who died in Gwangseong Garrison. Albumen silver print by Felice Beato, 1871. hangul=신미양요 hanja=辛未洋擾 rr=Shinmiyangyo mr=Shinmiyangyo The United States expedition to Korea in 1871 also known as Shinmiyangyo (… …   Wikipedia

  • Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces — Special Naval Landing Force (SNLF) 海軍特別陸戦隊 Kaigun Tokubetsu Rikusentai The ensign of the Special Naval Landing Force Active …   Wikipedia

  • Donghak Peasant Revolution — Hangul 동학농민운동 Hanja 東學農民運動 Revised Romanization …   Wikipedia

  • Marine (military) — Peruvian Naval Infantry conducting exercises on the Amazon River …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”