Chapter 4 Vocab

thank you king jason

Republic

A state in which political power is held by representatives of the people rather than a monarch.

Warlord

Regional chieftains who led private armies and competed with each other for control over territory.

Dynasty

A line of hereditary rules of a country.

Purge

To purify, to “purify” in a political context means to remove people who are considered undesirable or harmful.

Boxer Rebellion

Anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China in 1899-1901, near the end of the Qing dynasty.

Sun Yat-Sen

Graduated as a doctor of medicine. He became professional revolutionary, touring Europe and USA to raise funds for the Save China League. Risking imprisonment and possible execution, he returned to China several times to campaign for a revolution against the Manchu dynasty, but he was in the USA when the revolution finally took place in 1911.

WESTERN EDUCATED POLITICAL LEADER FORMED THE KMT

Yuan Shi-Kai

A warlord and general in the Chinese army, He gained considerable influence within the Manchu dynasty, helping to defend it against rebellions. When the Manchu dynasty ended, he became president of the Republic of China, but was forced to resign when he lost the support of the army in 1915. He died shortly afterwards.

TOOK OVER AFTER THE FALL OF THE MANCHU DYNASTY

Beiyang Army

The imperial Chinese army established by the Manchu Dynasty in the 19th century.

Kuomintang

A Chinese political party, sometimes known as the Nationalist Party of China, formed after the Wunchang uprisings in 1911. It was founded by the Sun Yat-sen and Sung Chaio-Jen (Song Jiaoren).

Military Dictator

Someone whose total control over a country’s affairs is made possible by personal control over the armed forces.

Twenty-One Demands

Commands that were presented by Japan to China in 1915, sought to increase Japanese influence in China during World War I.

Peasant

Agricultural laborers and (usually small-scale) farmers.

New Culture Movement

A Chinese intellectual and social movement in the 1910s and 1920s that aimed to promote modernization, democracy, and science, while rejecting traditional Chinese values and promoting new ideas in literature, art, and social norms.

Manifesto

A written statement of the beliefs, aims, and policies of a person or group of people

May Fourth Movement

A cultural and political movement in China sparked by protests on May 4, 1919, against the Treaty of Versailles and foreign interference. It advocated for modernization, cultural reform, and intellectual independence.

Chinese Communist Party

The ruling political party in China. It was founded in 1921 and has been in power since 1949. This party follows Marxist-Leninist ideologies and plays a dominant role in Chinese politics, overseeing the country's government, military, and economy.

Chiang Kai-Shek

Received military training in Japan before WW1. As a nationalist, he joined the KMT and quickly became influential. He was charged with developing the KMT’s military capabilities. He emerged as leader of the KMT following Sun Yat-sen’s death in 1925.

The Three Principles

Sun Yat-sen’s political philosophy and aims are most clearly expressed in his book “Fundamentals of National Reconstruction” published in 1923. Nationalism, Democracy, and Social and Economic Reform.

Northern Expedition

A military campaign launched by the Kuomintang in 1926 to unify China by defeating warlords and establishing a central government.

Mercenary

A soldier who joins an army purely for money rather than to support a cause.

Insurrection

An organized and violent attempt to overthrow those in a position of authority.

Martial Law

The imposition of a direct military control over civilian affairs in response to a temporary emergency.

Mao Zedong

The son of a wealthy peasant farmer, became well educated. While working in the library of the university in Peking, he was exposed to Marxist political philosophy. He became a communist, convinced that China’s future lay in the hands of the peasants and working classes. He was impressed by Lenin’s achievements following the Russian Revolution of 1917, and became convinced that China could follow a similar path. BIG FAT COMMIE

Xi’an Incident

This refers to the 1936 event where Chiang Kai-shek was kidnapped by his own generals. It led to the temporary truce between the Chinese Nationalists and Communists in order to fight against Japanese aggression.

Puppet State

A state that is nominally independent but actually under the control of another state.

Penal System

The punishments which people receive for breaking the law as defined in the legal system.

Eight Points for Attention

Mao's points were guidelines for the behavior of Red Army soldiers during the Chinese Civil War.

They included orders such as "Speak politely," "Pay fairly for what you buy," and "Return everything you borrow."

Proletarian

A term used to describe the urban working class people working in factories and other industrial activities in cities.

Diet

A national assembly, the lower house of the Japanese parliament, which first sat in 1890.

Inukai Tsuyoshi

A Japanese politician who served as the Prime Minister of Japan. He was important for his role in promoting democracy and advocating for constitutional government in Japan. ASSASSINATED FOR CRITICIZING THE INVASION OF MANCHURIA

Kwantung Army

Japanese army units deployed in the Japanese-controlled areas of Manchuria to protect Japan’s interests within the province.

They damaged a Japanese railway line near Mukden and blamed it on the Chinese. This provided the pretext for the full-scale invasion of Manchuria.

Emperor Hirohito

The SUPREME LEADER and emperor of Japan during World War II. He was important as he played a significant role in Japanese politics and military decisions during the war, including the decision to surrender in 1945. HE REIGNED UNTIL HIS DEATH IN 1989

Admiral Makoto Saito

A Japanese naval officer during World War II. He was important for his role in naval operations and command in the Pacific theater. REPLACED INUKAI AS LEADER OF GOVERNMENT MAKING IT A MILITARY DICTATORSHIP

Second Sino-Japanese War

A conflict between China and Japan from 1937 to 1945, primarily over control of China. It was a significant theater of World War II.

Japan invaded China, leading to widespread atrocities, such as the Nanjing Massacre, and fierce battles across China. The conflict resulted in millions of casualties and marked a significant chapter in World War II's history.

Marco Polo Bridge

Also known as Lugou Bridge, is a historic bridge located in Beijing, China. It gained significance due to the incident (Chinese and Japanese troops fought) in 1937, which marked the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War.

General Hideki Tojo

Prime minister (and effectively military dictator) of Japan during WW2. He was a great admirer of Hitler, believing that Japan’s future would be best served by adopting the type of government that the Nazis had imposed on Germany. He was subsequently found guilty of war crimes by an international tribunal and was sentenced to death. PRIME MINISTER OF JAPAN WHO WAS PUT TO DEATH FOR WAR CRIMES DURING WW2 and WAS APPOINTED PRIME MINISTER AFTER THE INVASION OF MANCHURIA IN 1932

French Indochina

A colonial territory in Southeast Asia controlled by France from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century, comprising modern-day Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.

Dutch East Indies

The Dutch colony in Southeast Asia that became Indonesia after World War II. It was known for its valuable spice trade and was a significant part of the Dutch colonial empire.

Pearl Harbor

A surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base in Hawaii on December 7, 1941. This attack led to the United States' entry into World War II.

Pre-Emptive Strike

An attack designed to destroy an enemy’s ability to respond. It is based on the assumption that the enemy is itself planning an imminent attack.