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1853: the Black Ships open Japan
From the early 1600s to the mid-1800s the Pacific island nation of Japan was a closed society. To keep out "dangerous influences," such as European missionaries, foreign ships weren't allowed to enter Japanese ports.The "black ships," as the Japanese described them at the time, had come to open trade with other nations. -
1860s japan: a strong and independent country
In the 1860s the ruling shogun was overthrown, and a 15-year-old emperor named Mutsuhito took the throne. He chose the name Meiji, meaning enlightened reign, for his rule.
The new Japan understood that being a strong and prosperous nation was the only way to preserve its independence and unique culture. -
1898 america becomes a pacific power
Until the late nineteenth century, very few Americans cared about creating an overseas empire. In 1898, the U.S. and Spain fought a brief war. The direct cause was that the U.S. supported rebels on the Caribbean island of Cuba who wanted independence from Spain. -
1937 china in flames
In 1937, China and Japan went to war. Although Chinese forces resisted, Japan advanced farther and farther into China. The conflict brought great suffering to the Chinese people.In September 1939, Germany and Russia attacked Poland. France and Britain declared war in return. World War II had begun. When Germany defeated France the following year, Japan moved quickly to seize military bases in Indochina, France's Southeast Asia colony. -
1940 The tripartite pact
Japan responded to America's actions by joining Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy in the Tripartite (three-part) Pact. In this agreement, the two European dictators approved Japan's goal for an Asian empire. -
Fall 1941 war waring
In late 1941 Japanese army general Hideki Tojo became the nation's prime minister.Even as they prepared for war, the Japanese continued to negotiate for a better economic agreement with the U.S. Two Japanese diplomats. -
December 1, 1941 The day of infamy
On December 6, the Japanese government began sending a long message to its diplomats in Washington. The last part of that message arrived in the early-morning hours of December 7. -
Pearl harbor
World War II is raging, but the United States is at peace on this calm evening of December 6, 1941. It's just another ordinary Saturday night at Pearl Harbor, the naval base of the U.S. Pacific fleet on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Some of the thousands of soldiers and sailors stationed at Pearl Harbor have gone ashore to clubs and parties, while others have gone to Honolulu. Young families, like U.S. Navy commander. -
1929 The great depression
The 1929 New York Stock Exchange crash and the failure of important European banks plunged the entire world into an economic depression. Japan was hit especially hard. As Japan's economy grew worse, the country became more aggressive. One way Japan could gain greater access to raw materials and markets was to increase the amount of territory under Japanese control.
