Wanpaoshan, 1931 : Japanese imperialism, Chinese nationalism and the Korean problem in Northeast China on the eve of the Manchurian Incident

In June and July of 1931 a problem over the farming rights of a group of Koreans near Wanpaoshan in Kirin Province, Manchuria, led to a major diplomatic conflict between Japan and China. The Wanpaoshan Incident, as this problem and events surrounding it became known, has been cited, along with the Nakamura Incident shortly after, as one of the proximate causes of the Sino-Japanese crisis which culminated in the Manchurian Incident of September 18, 1931.

It was at Wanpoashan that Chinese nationalism and Japanese imperialism had their final confrontation before the Manchurian Incident. The problems the Korean farmers faced at Wanpaoshan embodied many of the tensions existing in Sino-Japanese relationsóthe questions of residence and land lease rights, jurisdiction, and extraterritoriality. Both countries stood their respective grounds on these issues. China was fighting for her survival, Japan to maintain her status as an imperial power. Caught in the middle were the 200 Wanpaoshan farmers who, like their compatriots in other parts of Manchuria, were struggling to earn a livelihood as best they could from their fields.

Digitization of this thesis was made possible by a generous grant from the Jefferson Trust, 2015.

Thesis originally deposited on 2016-03-14 in version 1.28 of Libra. This thesis was migrated to Libra2 on 2017-03-23 16:35:17.