Cabinet at the end of the Qing Dynasty
After noon, Korea was forced by Japan to change its name to the Korean Empire, but South Korea's real power was controlled by Japan. After the Russo-Japanese War, Japan took full control of Korea. South Korea, on the other hand, did not perish at once, but Japan fought steadily step by step. As the situation of South Korea's demise became clearer, the Qing government's sense of crisis gradually strengthened. Although it is clear from time that the government has announced reforms after the eight countries invaded China, but that is just empty words, when the Qing government saw that south Korea really has a crisis of national subjugation and extinction today, it launched a strong reform.
South Korea after the merger of Japan and South Korea
Before the official destruction of Korea, Japan encroached on Korea
Before the Sino-Japanese War, Japan gradually controlled the Korean Central Committee by virtue of various unequal treaties with Korea. At the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War, the Qing government was ineffective in battle and lost the Korean royal city, so Japan took control of the Korean royal family, and Japan was able to send a telegram to the whole country of Korea in the name of the Korean king, stating that it was the Korean royal family that requested the Japanese army to send troops to expel the Qing army, and that Japan was not here to invade, but to help the Korean people restore independence. After the Sino-Japanese War, the Chinese forces completely withdrew from the Korean Peninsula, but the Russian forces immediately followed. Japan and Russia were inseparable over the Korean issue, and eventually the Russo-Japanese War broke out, Russia was defeated, and Japan finally dominated Korea.
Japan's demise of Korea was not something that could be achieved all at once by the 1910 Treaty of Annexation between Japan and South Korea, and before that, Japan had already encroached on Korea's powers as an independent state. In other words, Korea has the prestige of the Korean Empire, and in fact, the actual masters of important departments of the entire country are all Japanese. Japan's encroachment on South Korea's sovereignty was carried out through the three Japan-South Korea agreements since the first sino-Japanese war.
Second and third Japan-South Korea agreements
On August 22, 1904, Japan and South Korea signed the first Japan-Korea Agreement, in which Japan asked Korea to hire Japanese to serve as advisers to The Korean state's finances and diplomacy. The titular Minister of Finance and Foreign Minister is Korean, but this is superficial. In fact, these two powers were in the hands of Japanese advisers, who, as the prime minister of the two ministers, monopolized financial and diplomatic powers. In this way, Japan seized the most important diplomatic and financial rights of South Korea as an independent country. South Korea's foreign exchanges, who to communicate with, and who to sign treaties with need to be approved by Japanese advisers; and South Korea's state financial arrangements are clear to Japan.
On November 17, 1905, shortly after the end of the Russo-Japanese War, the Second Japan-Korea Agreement was signed, which truly deprived Korea of its diplomatic powers, and the foreign minister of Korea was no longer Korean, but as a subject of the Great Japanese Empire, how could he be a subordinate to the Korean Emperor? Therefore, Japan has set up a special government in Korea to "help" South Korea manage diplomacy, but although the office is nominally only in charge of diplomacy, in fact, its hand has reached out to various departments of the South Korean government and has become the Taishang government of the South Korean government. Ito Hirobumi was the first governor of the Governor's Office.
Hirobumi Ito
On July 24, 1907, the Third Japan-Korea Agreement was signed, disbanding the Korean army, and Korea was protected by the Japanese army; the judiciary was also handled by Japanese judges. At this point, several other military and judicial powers, which were symbols of national independence, were also deprived. The Korean Empire was really empty, completely in Japan's pocket.
Treaty of Annexation between Japan and South Korea
The reason why Japan is slow to truly destroy South Korea is the lack of a reasonable excuse. On October 26, 1909, the leader of the invasion, Ito Hirobumi, was assassinated by Shishi Ahn Jung-geun, which gave Japan a perfect excuse, and the Japanese government and opposition frantically advocated the annexation of Korea. In 1910, after the "petition" of the Korean traitors, they cried and shouted that Korea should join the Great Japanese Empire, and we Koreans are also Japanese (Japan and Korea). Japan had no choice but to accept the "united states demand" put forward by the "people" of South Korea. On August 22, 1910, Japan and South Korea signed the Treaty of Annexation between Japan and South Korea, and Korea collapsed and became part of the Great Japanese Empire. (Therefore, there were Koreans in the Japanese army invading China, and the northeast generally called them "two devils"))
Third, the destruction of South Korea, China's reaction
We can know from the above that Japan's destruction of South Korea was a step-by-step, steady and steady attack, not overnight, so as the Crisis in South Korea deepened, China was bound to react. Although the talent of the Qing government at that time withered, Li Zhongtang died, and Zhang Zhidong was in danger, the political situation in the late Qing Dynasty was devious and changeable, and the power of the Han scholars, who had risen since the Rebellion of the Tianping Heavenly Kingdom, began with the invasion of Huawei by the Eight Kingdoms, and was suppressed by the Manchurian nobility. Therefore, at this time, the influence of the able people among the scholars (the enlightened Manchu scholars) was not as great as in the Li Hongzhang era, and the leaders of the political situation at this time were the Manchurian nobles (Yi Li, ZaiFeng and other princes, and the ordinary Manchu flag people were not).
Governor of the Qing Dynasty
These princes, in order to maintain their rule, are really not smoking opium and visiting brothels all day, they are also people who really want to be good to the Qing Dynasty. Therefore, in the face of the crisis in South Korea, the lips are cold, and the central government of the Qing Dynasty must have reacted, and its reaction is the real implementation of the New Deal at the end of the Qing Dynasty.
After the merger of Japan and South Korea, according to the "Compilation of Historical Materials on Modern Sino-Korean Relations", the regent Zaifeng summoned the important ministers Natong and Yulang at that time
"Confidential Treatment"
, emphasizing the study of Han,
"The will of the people must not be scattered"
He also hurriedly summoned Xi Liang, the governor of the three eastern provinces, to Beijing to discuss countermeasures. Of course, after the merger of Japan and South Korea, it is also deeply stimulating for ordinary officials. Yun Yuding could serve as a representative of general officials, he wrote in his diary
"Japan destroyed Korea, the three eastern provinces have no defense, and the Beijing division is also difficult to sleep. This is the time when my monarchs are lying down and trying their best to protect the country."
。 (The Diary of Yun Yu Ding Cheng zhai)
At that time, the specific countermeasures of the Qing government were: 1. Handle well the border and overseas Chinese issues, the specific demarcation of the Sino-DPRK border, and the nationality of the Koreans. 2. Intends to protest against Japan in accordance with the principles of international law, as the Treaty of Maguan provides for the independence of Korea. However, in that modern era, when the weak preyed on the strong, the weak countries had no diplomacy, and protests were naturally ineffective, so the Qing government changed it
"I will handle how countries respond."
(The Complete Book of Diplomatic Historical Materials of the Qing Dynasty) with the wind of the great powers.
Japanese troops in Korea
Fourth, the New Deal at the end of the Qing Dynasty really began
The Qing Dynasty's response to the fall of Korea, in addition to the aftermath in the northeast, the most direct stimulus was military reform.
In modern times, repeated wars and defeats are indeed due to China's military backwardness. South Korea's annihilation of the country is even more because South Korea's military is not good, so the training of troops and strengthening the army has been put on the agenda again. The New Deal and the Qing government planned to train a new army and rebuild the navy. A few days after Japan officially destroyed South Korea, military advisor ZaiTao Shangshu requested that troops be trained to raise salaries to strengthen national defense. He believes that the reason why the great powers are rich and powerful is because the great powers attach importance to the military, and the great powers can even spend half of the national income as military expenses, so if China wants to maintain its rule internally, it must also strengthen its military forces to safeguard its national rights externally, he said
"Therefore, all expenses can be saved, but the training of troops, no matter how tight, should always be at their disposal." （
"Management of military advisory office affairs Zai Tao Song for the training of troops to raise salaries to plan national defense respect Chen Guan Guan see things"
）
Minister of the Navy Zaixun and Sa Zhenbing put forward a plan to rebuild the navy: due to the emptiness of the national treasury, it was hoped that small boats could be purchased first and a template could be established; the Admiralty would be formed at an early date, modeled on the military system of the great powers; and proposed to follow the model of Japan's combined fleet, divide China's territorial waters into regions and guard the sea frontiers.
The Japanese army suppressed the anti-Japanese movement in Korea
If we say that the military accounts for most of the energy of the whole country's efforts, it is natural that we must not be sloppy in our internal affairs. Its manifestation is the acceleration of constitutionalism. This call for acceleration came not only from the people, but even the Qing government officials began to call for the acceleration of constitutionalism. At this time, there were three converging tendencies in petitioning for constitutionalism, namely, the petition of the bourgeois constitutionalists to open the National Assembly, the support of local governors, and the support of envoys stationed abroad. Total number of high-ranking officials who support the constitution:"
Chen Kuilong, governor of Huguang, Duan Fang, governor of Liangjiang, Lin Shaonian, governor of Henan, and Zhao Erxun, governor of Sichuan, all spoke of asking for a congress. Among the envoys, Sun Baoqi, Hu Weide, and Li Jiaju, please set the age limit quickly" (
Monson: Constitutionalism
The joint efforts of the constitutionalists, local governors, and envoys stationed abroad were all based on Japan's destruction of Korea
"The death of South Korea, this is all a few deaths in our country"
("Minutes of the Second Meeting of the Fujian Consultative Bureau") This put tremendous pressure on the Central Committee of the Qing Dynasty.
After three petitions to open the National Assembly, in November 1910, the Central Committee of the Qing Dynasty issued an edict agreeing to open the National Assembly for a limited time, which also accelerated the reform of the Qing government based on the demise of Korea.
Modernization at the end of the Qing Dynasty
Wen Shijun said:
Shortened the original nine-year preparatory constitutional period to three years, that is, advanced the time of the National Assembly to five years after the declaration of reunification (1913). This is undoubtedly the helpless move of the Qing government in the increasingly pressing crisis because of the demise of South Korea. In this way, the lesson of the demise of Korea accelerated the pace of the Qing Dynasty's constitution-making, and the Qing government also wanted to make up for it. By May 1911, a cabinet was organized for the Qing Dynasty, but this cabinet was known as the "Imperial Cabinet", and the Qing Dynasty was still unwilling to abandon the dictatorship, destroying the last bit of the people's attachment to the Qing Dynasty. As the minister who went abroad to investigate, Yu Shimei, said: ?
"(Constitutionalism) is the restoration of Japan if it is done well; If it does not work well, it is the French revolution. ”
That's it!
bibliography
1. Han Zhengxue, "On the Adjustment of Manchu-Han Relations in the New Deal Period at the End of the Qing Dynasty", Journal of Nanyang Institute of Technology, September 2019
2. Li Xizhu, "The Merger of Japan and South Korea and the New Deal of the Qingming Dynasty", Studies in Modern History, July 2011
3. Xin Dongming, "Kang Liang's Commentary on the Merger of Japan and Korea", Collected Papers in Korean Studies, April 2011
(Author: Haoran Wenshi Purple Orange)
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