In the turbulent years of modern history, China was repeatedly invaded by foreign powers, and its territory was constantly divided and ceded. The German Empire, as one of the great powers of the time, also occupied a corner of Qingdao on the Shandong Peninsula on the mainland. After the end of the First World War, the defeated Germany seemed to want to pay for its past mistakes and offered to return Qingdao to China, on such simple terms - as long as China agreed to one thing. Surrounded by foreign powers, why did China finally reject Germany's "generous concessions"? What kind of historical origins and international rivalry are hidden behind this? Let us find out.
The historical origin of the German occupation of Qingdao
In the middle of the Qing Dynasty, the Western powers set off a new wave of aggression, and while they coveted the splendid civilization of China, they also coveted the fertile land and rich resources of the mainland. As a latecomer, although the influence of the German Empire in China was far less than that of the old colonizers such as Britain and France, its ambitions were not diminished in the slightest.
In 1897, Germany was in a period of high capitalist development, with rapid industrial expansion and an increasingly urgent need for foreign trade and foreign markets. In order to pursue greater interests, the German rulers decided to follow the example of Britain and France and find their own colonies in China. After repeated expeditions to China's eastern coast, they finally set their sights on Qingdao on the Shandong Peninsula.
Qingdao is located in Jiaozhou Bay and has unique geographical advantages. Not only does it have a pleasant climate, but it also has excellent shipping conditions, making it an ideal naval base and commercial port. At that time, although the population of Qingdao was not too large, it had an abundant labor force, which was suitable for German colonial rule. More importantly, Qingdao, as an important naval base of the Qing government in the north, already had certain military facilities that could prepare for future German expansion.
Germany has coveted Qingdao for a long time, but has not been able to find an opportunity. It was not until November 1897 that a "Juye Teaching Case" occurred that shocked the world, and Germany finally waited for a reasonable excuse.
At that time, there were quite a few German missionaries in Shandong, not only spreading Christian teachings, but also secretly collecting intelligence for the German government. The actions of these missionaries caused strong resentment among the local population, and finally a violent incident against foreign missionaries broke out in Juye County, in which two German missionaries were brutally killed.
Germany took the opportunity to make a big fuss, believing that this was a blatant provocation by the Chinese against the majesty of the German Empire and that it should be punished militarily against China. In November 1897, the German fleet sailed to Shandong and launched a frenzied bombing of Qingdao. In the face of the threat of force from the Germans, the Qing government retreated one after another, and finally signed the "Jiaoao Lend-Lease Treaty" in March 1898, which humiliated the country, and leased Qingdao to Germany for 99 years.
In this way, the fertile land of Qingdao was forcibly plundered by Germany and became Germany's first colony in the Far East. The Germans soon built a military facility in Qingdao and turned it into a modern naval fortress. At the same time, the economic plundering of Qingdao by the Germans continued, and they monopolized the mineral resources of Shandong and controlled the economic lifeline of the entire peninsula.
Germany's aggression was undoubtedly a flagrant violation of China's sovereignty, but the Qing government at that time was at the end of its power and was powerless to resist. In this turbulent era, China had to survive under the iron heel of the great powers, allowing its territory to be carved up. The fall of Qingdao is a microcosm of the history of modern shame, witnessing the humiliation and suffering suffered by the Chinese nation in that dark era.
The First World War and Germany's "voluntary restitution"
The smoke of the First World War ignited on the European continent in August 1914. This unprecedented war has spread a wide range and has an unprecedented destructive power. The German Empire, one of the instigators of the war, soon became embroiled in protracted wars.
At first, Germany made some progress on the Western Front with sophisticated weaponry and strict strategic deployment. However, as the war continued, Germany's front was constantly stretched, and logistics and supplies became increasingly tight. At the same time, the allied forces of Britain, France, Russia and other countries were gradually gathering strength, forming a strong encirclement of the German army.
By 1917, the tide of the war in Germany had begun to turn around. The October Revolution broke out in Russia, and the Provisional Workers' Power withdrew from the war, but the United States joined the anti-German alliance and sent large quantities of arms and supplies to Britain and France. The situation of the German army on the eastern and western fronts deteriorated, and finally in November 1918 they were forced to surrender to the Allies, and the First World War ended.
Germany paid a heavy price in this catastrophe. Millions of soldiers and civilians have been killed or wounded, the country's strength has been severely damaged, and large swathes of territory have been occupied. In the final moments of the war, Germany was even in danger of being completely partitioned.
It was at this juncture that the German government made a seemingly "generous" decision to voluntarily return Qingdao, a colony on the Shandong Peninsula, to China. The decision came as a surprise and shock.
What was the reason for Germany's decision to be so "generous"? What is the secret behind it?
In fact, Germany's offer to return Qingdao was not done in good faith. Rather, it was just an elaborate conspiracy to draw China into the German camp and add leverage to the impending peace talks.
At that time, Germany had seen through the situation of the war that was becoming more and more unfavorable to itself, and in order to gain more say in the peace conference, it urgently needed to find allies in Asia. As an important country in Asia at that time, China naturally became the object of Germany's favor.
As a result, Germany offered the bait of "returning Qingdao" in the hope of winning over the Chinese government. As long as China agrees to join the German camp, Germany will return Qingdao, which it has occupied for nearly 20 years.
However, conditions in Germany are not so simple. It also attached two extremely demanding requirements: first, China must pay for the "buyback" of Qingdao for up to 200 million gold marks, and second, China must send a large number of troops to fight alongside Germany in the European theater.
These two unreasonable demands are undoubtedly exploiting and squeezing China. Germany not only wanted China to pay for the recovery of its territory, but also wanted to use China's human resources to build up its forces for the war in Europe. It can be said that Germany's so-called "voluntary restitution" is nothing more than a well-packaged trap.
In the face of Germany's "generous concessions," the Chinese government naturally handled it appropriately. Although the desire to reclaim Qingdao is extremely strong, the cost is equally high. Joining the German camp would undoubtedly plunge China into the whirlpool of war, and it would also have to bear a heavy economic and military burden. This was undoubtedly worse for China at that time.
The Paris Peace Conference's protest against China's representatives
After the end of World War I, China, one of the victorious powers, went to Paris to attend the peace conference with the hope of regaining lost territory. However, on the occasion of what has been called "the greatest diplomatic conference in modern times", the Chinese delegation has suffered unprecedented humiliation and humiliation.
On January 18, 1919, the Paris Peace Conference was officially opened. France, as the host, in order to curry favor with Britain and the United States and other major powers, went so far as to downgrade the status of the Chinese delegation to "second-class countries" at the beginning of the meeting. Our delegates had to sit in the corners of the room, denied even the right to speak.
In the face of such humiliation, the Chinese delegation protested collectively for the first time, but it was ruthlessly suppressed. US President Wilson, who presided over the meeting, said bluntly: "China is only an inferior country and should not have the same right to speak." ＂
Under these circumstances, the head of the Chinese delegation, Gu Weijun, a well-known patriot, resolutely refused to attend the meeting. In a letter of protest, he wrote: "China, as one of the victorious powers, deserves an equal say." If this is not even possible, then China's participation in this conference is meaningless. ＂
Gu Weijun's protest immediately caused an uproar in Paris. For a time, the media of various countries reported on this incident one after another, and public opinion was in an uproar. In China, Gu Weijun's behavior has also won the support and praise of the people of the whole country.
However, the Western powers turned a blind eye to this. Not only did they ignore the protests of the Chinese delegation, but they also made an outrageous decision at the meeting to transfer Qingdao, a German colony on the Shandong Peninsula, directly to Japan.
When this decision reached the ears of the Chinese delegation, all the delegates were shocked and angry. As the victorious power, China was supposed to take back Qingdao, which had been occupied by Germany, but the great powers gave it to Japan for nothing. This is simply an open humiliation and trampling on the Chinese nation!
Faced with such humiliation, Gu Weijun did not hesitate to refuse to sign the treaty. He shouted: "We refuse to sign! Please remember that the Chinese will never forget this painful day!"
Gu Weijun's roar completely angered the powers. They not only expelled the Chinese delegation from the venue, but also directly signed China's name on the treaty.
In this way, despite the vigorous resistance of the Chinese delegation, the Paris Peace Conference still passed a resolution to cede Qingdao to Japan. This is undoubtedly a flagrant violation of China's sovereignty and a wanton humiliation of the dignity of the Chinese nation.
However, Gu Weijun and the Chinese delegation did not stop there. They insisted on writing to the governments of the Allied countries, accusing the powers of their hegemonic behavior. At the same time, they also launched a tremendous "May Fourth" patriotic movement in China, calling on the people of the whole country to fight together and defend state sovereignty.
Under double pressure at home and abroad, the Great Powers had to make some concessions. Although Qingdao was eventually still occupied by Japan, China at least retained the principle of "sovereignty over Shandong" in the treaty.
Although this arduous struggle, which lasted for several months, failed to completely turn the situation around, it demonstrated the tenacity of the Chinese nation in its unremitting self-improvement. It is precisely by virtue of this national integrity that the Chinese people have finally won the respect of the international community and laid a solid ideological foundation for regaining lost territory in the future.
The deep reasons for China's rejection of German conditions
In the smoke of World War I, although Germany was finally defeated, its colony of Qingdao in the Far East was never taken away. On the contrary, Germany saw China's weakness at that time, and even played a conspiracy - using the "voluntary return" of Qingdao as a bait in an attempt to win China into its camp.
On the surface, Germany's terms seemed generous – as long as China agreed to join the German camp, Germany would return Qingdao, which it had occupied for nearly 20 years. However, a closer look at the hidden facts shows that Germany's "good intentions" actually have hidden traps.
First of all, although Germany ostensibly "took the initiative to return" Qingdao, in essence it demanded that China "buy back" this territory that belonged to itself. Germany's "payout" was as high as 200 million gold marks, which was undoubtedly a heavy economic burden for China at that time.
Second, Germany has attached an unreasonable military demand - asking China to send a large number of troops to the European theater to fight alongside Germany. This was undoubtedly to extract China's human resources and build up Germany's forces for the war in Europe.
It can be said that Germany's so-called "voluntary restitution" is nothing more than a carefully packaged trap whose purpose is to exploit and squeeze China's economic and human resources. In the face of such an unreasonable demand, the Chinese government naturally took a sense of proportion, and finally chose to refuse.
But the underlying reasons for China's rejection of German conditions were not solely based on economic and military considerations. More importantly, the memory of modern humiliation is deeply rooted in the hearts of the Chinese people, making it impossible for China to easily accept Germany's "generous concessions."
During the Opium Wars in the mid-19th century, China was forced to sign a series of unequal treaties under the threat of force from foreign powers. Since then, China's territory has begun to be divided and ceded, and its sovereignty has been violated like never before.
As a member of the Western powers, Germany forcibly leased Qingdao for 99 years in 1897 under the pretext of the "Juye Teaching Case". Over the next 20 years, Germany built a modern naval fortress in Qingdao by building military installations. At the same time, the economic plundering of Qingdao by the Germans continued, and they monopolized the mineral resources of Shandong and controlled the economic lifeline of the entire peninsula.
This series of actions by Germany is undoubtedly a flagrant violation of China's sovereignty. Under these circumstances, Germany suddenly "took the initiative to return" Qingdao, and the Chinese naturally suspected a conspiracy.
After all, at the recent Paris Peace Conference, Germany, in collusion with other powers, ceded Qingdao directly to Japan. This decision is undoubtedly an wanton humiliation of the dignity of the Chinese nation, and it also thoroughly exposes the wolf ambitions of Germany and other powers.
Therefore, when Germany offered the condition of "voluntary restitution", the Chinese naturally associated it with the memory of modern shame. In their view, Germany's so-called "generosity" was just another well-packaged trap.
It can be said that the shadow of modern shame has taken deep root in the hearts of the Chinese people. In the face of Germany's "good intentions", the first thing that the Chinese people think of is how to defend the country's sovereignty and dignity, rather than the economic and military advantages and disadvantages.
It is precisely on the basis of this national pride and deep memory of the humiliation of modern times that China resolutely rejected Germany's conditions, preferring to temporarily lose Qingdao rather than become the object of exploitation and oppression by the great powers again.
This national spirit of unremitting self-improvement is exactly the tenacious character of the Chinese nation in that dark era. It is precisely with this spiritual strength that the Chinese people have finally won the respect of the international community and laid a solid ideological foundation for regaining lost territory in the future.