After the Meiji Restoration, although Japan achieved nirvana, not only escaped the fate of becoming a colony but also became a great power, but after that, the thinking of this nation was rapidly polarized, intending to conquer the world. Even China, which was extremely weak, could not swallow it, and eventually went to provoke the United States, which had a big waist and a round waist, and was finally "enlightened" by the United States, and it has not eased up until now.
Note: "Hachiren Yiyu", the national motto of the Japanese militarism period, the interpretation of the Japanese government's propaganda department is the meaning of one world under one roof and the world, but in the atmosphere at that time, it was essentially to serve the military's aggressive expansion policy and mobilize from the aspects of armaments, political system, diplomatic relations, and ideology. The picture shows the Hachiren Ichiyu Pagoda in Heiwadai Park (known as "Hachi-kodai" before World War II) in the central part of Miyazaki Prefecture. After World War II, Japan was taken over, and in 1946 (Showa 21), the "Yachihi Kazuyu" script and the Aragami Soul Statue (Samurai Elephant) were cut off for a time, and the name of the tower was changed to "Tower of Peace". With the end of the Allied occupation, the Statue of the Aragami Washi was rebuilt in 1962 (Showa 37). By 1965 (Showa 40), the "Hachiren Ichiyu" script was also restored.
But where did Japan's approach come about? Is it just the poor soldiers of some chaebols and military leaders? More than 300 years ago, another Japanese person also had this idea, which was Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
In the second half of the 16th century, after Toyotomi Hideyoshi unified Japan in name, he had ambitions, which were actually very early, before the capture of Kyushu Island, when Japan had not yet taken it, he had ideas: first send troops to occupy Korea; cross the sea to the Ming Dynasty himself, stay in Ningbo; then occupy Tianzhu; then send Toyotomi Hideji to occupy the capital of the Ming Dynasty, Beijing, and then send Toyotomi Shuji to occupy the capital of the Ming Dynasty, and emperor Fengzheng Tokinmachi moved the capital to Beijing.
Generation Of toyotomi Hideyoshi
After the unification of Japan, he felt that he was the chosen son of heaven, and he sent emissaries to Korea, Ryukyu, Luzon (present-day Philippines, then a Spanish colony), The Mountain Kingdom (Taiwan's indigenous group), Siam, lancang kingdom (Laos), Dayue, Quang Nam, Champa, the Mughal Empire, Portuguese India (present-day Goa, India), and Portuguese Macao, asking them to submit to Japan and assist Japan in attacking Daming!
Of course not with him! Among them, Emperor Narisuan, who ruled Siam, was even more angry after receiving Japan's arrogant state letter, and sent a mission to the Ming Dynasty, saying that he planned to send an elephant army to assist Daming and Korea to resist Japan (of course, because Siam coincided with the invasion of the neighboring Burmese Donggu Dynasty, coupled with the opposition of Xiao Yan, the governor of Liangguang, this plan was later abandoned, but there were symbolic Thai and even Javanese troops in the Ming army), and the Ryukyu King Shangning sent people to report the matter to Daming, suggesting that the Ming Dynasty take precautions in advance (Ryukyu is actually not easy, japan wants to fight Ryukyu is very simple, So Ryukyu actually took a lot of risks to fulfill its vassal duties.)
"Now the sea is governed, the people are rich and rich, and the imperial capital is prosperous, and the ancient times are incomparable." Lady's residence, less than a hundred years old since ancient times, Can Ann live here for a long time? I want to pretend to be your country, to transcend the mountains and seas, to enter Yuming, and to make its four hundred states full of customs, so as to administer the king's government in the year of billions of people, and it is Hideyoshi Sushiya. - Toyotomi Hideyoshi then ordered Tsushima Daimyō Yoshichi to inform King Seonjo of Joseon of the state letter of Ri Mun in June 1591.
The Ming Dynasty, Korea and Japan at the end of the 16th century
The problem is that this is not a secondary disease, Toyotomi Hideyoshi really did it! In 1592, 140,000 troops were sent to fight Korea, and Korea was indeed vulnerable, but it later triggered the intervention of the Ming Dynasty, and the Japanese army was defeated by the Ming army. This is known as the "Wanli Korean War".
Do you think it looks ridiculous? A small Japan, at that time, actually wanted to conquer the world? I can't measure up! But if you think about it, Japan's conquest route three hundred years later seems to be the same. However, this time the progress is smoother, and three hundred years ago, before North Korea could be defeated, it was shot to death by the Ming Dynasty.
And what about the Japanese army attacking Korea at the end of the Qing Dynasty? The Qing intervention failed, and Japan successfully took control of Korea.
Why is there such a strange and paranoid obsession in such a small country as Japan? In fact, this can be considered geographically, sending out the smallest Ryukyu, the four countries of the Han cultural circle, China, Japan, North Korea, and Vietnam. Let's analyze and analyze these four.
Wanli Korean War
China: The core hegemon of East Asia, the territory is vast, almost to the borders that can be expanded, so it is the center of East Asian civilization, thinking that it is in the heavens and the earth.
Korea: China has close geopolitical ties, deeply influenced by Chinese civilization, although it has retained its independence, but the heart of "Muhua" prevailed, and in ancient times it was extremely pro-China, with "big things" as the national policy.
Vietnam: Deeply influenced by Chinese culture, the geographical connection with China is not as close as that of Korea (guangxi in ancient Yunnan was a rather marginal area), and the process of achieving independence was very difficult, so although it also accepted Han culture and was also a subject to China, it was very self-conscious, calling itself emperor within itself, and bullying the weak and small peoples around it.
North Korea and Vietnam, whether humble or arrogant, have not reached the point where they want to conquer the world, even Vietnam just wants to be the hegemon of Southeast Asia, at most some covetous of the two Cantons, never dared to fight Beijing.
East Asian Cultural Circle
What's going on in Japan? In fact, Japan's geography is more special.
After all, Japan and China are separated by the sea and belong to the isolated overseas, so the "self-consciousness" of Japan and the mainland is very heavy, especially after the end of the Tang Dynasty, the official ties between Japan and China are basically severed, and there has been a large-scale invasion of Japan in the Yuan Dynasty, so Japan has not had a complete surrender mentality towards China.
Japan has long had the idea of a little China, which sees its own island as a whole. The Yamato people consider themselves east China and call themselves yi in the unconquerated areas of the Japanese archipelago. In the Nara period, Fujiwara Hiroshi said to the Japanese Emperor: "Northern Di Ezo, Nishiei Hayabusa (Hayato) customs, wolf nature is chaotic, ambition is difficult to tame." In ancient times, China had holy rules and then obeyed, and if the court changed, it rebelled first." Such references to Japan as China and China, such as "Through China, then the Beginning", "Huaxia Zai", "Silla does not do China", and so on, and so on. After the Yuan-Japanese War, Japan preached that it was a divine kingdom, and even criticized China from time to time for no longer being Chinese.
So Japan is a very special existence, on the one hand, it knows that China is very powerful and central; on the other hand, it does not want to completely obey the System centered on China, but within the territory of Japan, There is also a small-scale Huayi order in Japan: the Yamato nation is the center, and the other small ethnic groups (Ezo, Kyushu aborigines) are barbarians.
In other words, Japan also considers itself to be the center, but what? Japan knows that its position in this center is unstable (there is China), so once Japan is a little stronger, it will become extreme, unlike China, which is far away, but conquers everywhere, trying to turn the "false center" into a "real center", of course, it has never succeeded, and it is impossible to succeed in the future.
Author: Yun Fan