The Chino-Japanese War 1894–1895
Belligerents
Japan.
China and Korea.
Cause
Japan adopting Western ideas developed into a powerful state with surprising rapidity during the last fifty years of the nineteenth century. The growth of her armaments and an ambition for expansion necessarily followed. China, on the other hand, did not welcome the influence of the West, which rapid transit and communication had brought into Asia. The weakness and misgovernment of Korea was a perpetual temptation to her neighbours. Japan invited China to co-operate in demanding reforms in Korea, but China refused and Japan acted alone.