Back to the full dot-point answer
NSWModern HistoryQuick questions
Section II (National Study): China 1927-1949
Quick questions on The Japanese invasion of Manchuria 1931: HSC Modern History National Study China
8short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.
What is manchuria before 1931?Show answer
Manchuria (the three north-eastern provinces of Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang) covered around 1.3 million square kilometres with around 30 million people. Japan held the Kwantung Leased Territory (Liaodong peninsula) and the South Manchurian Railway zone since the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905. The Kwantung Army (a Japanese garrison of around 10,000) guarded the railway.
What is the Mukden Incident?Show answer
On 18 September 1931 Japanese officers of the Kwantung Army (Colonels Itagaki Seishiro and Ishiwara Kanji) detonated a small charge on the South Manchurian Railway just north of Mukden (Shenyang). The explosion did not even derail a train, but the Kwantung Army used the pretext to attack the Chinese garrison and seize Mukden.
What is conquest of Manchuria?Show answer
Zhang Xueliang's forces (around 250,000) outnumbered the Kwantung Army many times over but did not resist; Chiang ordered non-resistance, gambling that internationalisation would save Manchuria. By early 1932 the Kwantung Army had taken Mukden, Changchun, Jilin, Qiqihar, and Harbin. The conquest was effectively complete by February 1932.
What is manchukuo?Show answer
The puppet state of Manchukuo ("Manchu State") was proclaimed on 1 March 1932. Henry Puyi, the last Qing Emperor, was installed as Chief Executive; he was elevated to Emperor of Manchukuo (in the Kangde reign era) on 1 March 1934. The real authority was the Kwantung Army's commander, who doubled as Japanese ambassador.
What is chiang's "internal pacification first" policy?Show answer
Chiang's strategic doctrine (jiao gong, kang ri: "suppress the Communists, then resist Japan") rested on three assumptions: China was militarily too weak to fight Japan; international intervention would eventually constrain Tokyo; the CCP threat had to be eliminated to permit unified resistance.
What is q1?Show answer
Source A is an extract from the Lytton Report (October 1932). Using Source A and your own knowledge, explain the international response to the Japanese invasion of Manchuria. [5 marks]
What is q2?Show answer
Evaluate the extent to which the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 shaped Chinese politics in the 1930s. [25 marks]
What is q3?Show answer
Compare the views of Louise Young and Rana Mitter on the impact of Manchuria on China. [10 marks]