After a brief period of peace and prosperity, Japan entered the new era of Showa through the Great Kanto Earthquake, the Financial Panic, and the weakening of international cooperation.
Basic Knowledge
The international order after World War I was formed by the Versailles system (1919) and the Washington system (1921-22). At the Washington Conference (1921-22), the Four-Power Treaty (abolition of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance in the Pacific), the Nine-Power Treaty (respect for China’s sovereignty), and the Naval Disarmament Treaty (capital-ship ratio of the United States, Britain, and Japan = 5:5:3) were concluded. In 1925, Japan established diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union through the Soviet-Japanese Basic Convention. On December 25, 1926, the Taisho Emperor died and the era name changed to Showa. In 1927, the Financial Panic occurred (a careless remark by Finance Minister Kataoka Naon, followed by the failure of Taiwan Bank and Suzuki Shoten), the Wakatsuki Reijiro cabinet resigned collectively, and the Tanaka Giichi cabinet was formed.
1920 League of Nations established (Japan became a permanent member; Nitobe Inazo became Under-Secretary-General)
1921-22 Washington Conference (Four-Power, Nine-Power, and naval disarmament treaties)
1922 Anglo-Japanese Alliance abolished; withdrawal from Siberia
1925 Soviet-Japanese Basic Convention
1928 Kellogg-Briand Pact, assassination of Zhang Zuolin
1930 London Naval Disarmament Treaty
In Depth (Background and Effects)
For about eight years after the Kato Takaaki cabinet in 1924, the constitutional convention continued, in which the majority party in the House of Representatives took turns governing. However, following the assassination of Zhang Zuolin in 1928 (the Kwantung Army bombed the train of Zhang Zuolin, a Manchurian warlord), the military began acting independently. When Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated in the May 15 Incident of 1932, party politics ended. Economically, the postwar depression, the Great Kanto Earthquake, and the Financial Panic occurred in succession, leading to the Showa Financial Crisis (1930-31) after the Great Depression of 1929. The free atmosphere of the Taisho period was gradually swallowed by the shadow of militarism in the early Showa period.
- League of Nations (1920) = Japan was a permanent member; Nitobe Inazo
- Washington Conference (1921-22) = naval ratio 5:5:3; Anglo-Japanese Alliance abolished
- Constitutional convention = party-cabinet practice from 1924 to 1932
- Financial Panic = 1927, Finance Minister’s careless remark, Taiwan Bank failure
- Taisho → Showa era change = December 25, 1926
- The Taisho Emperor was ill; Crown Prince Hirohito (later Emperor Showa) served as regent (1921-)
Points of Caution (Easily Confused)
① The Versailles system (peace with Germany, centered on Europe) and the Washington system (the East Asian and Pacific order) were different. ② Distinguish the Financial Panic (1927, domestic bank failures), the Great Depression (1929, originating in the United States), and the Showa Financial Crisis (1930-31, spreading to Japan) by year and cause. ③ The Anglo-Japanese Alliance was abolished by the Four-Power Treaty at the Washington Conference. ④ Distinguish Nitobe Inazo (Under-Secretary-General of the League of Nations, 『Bushido』, old 5,000-yen note) from Uchimura Kanzo (nonchurch Christianity, Lèse-majesté Incident).
Practice
- What was the capital-ship ratio of the United States, Britain, and Japan under the Washington Naval Disarmament Treaty?
- What economic crisis occurred in 1927 and was triggered by a careless remark by Finance Minister Kataoka?
- In what year and month did the Taisho Emperor die and the era name change to Showa?