Springtime of Nations: 1783 to 1785
Higashiyama, May 1770 -
The continued successes of Japanese armies in England and Mexico had a sobering effect on Britain's allies. For almost the entire duration of the war to date their ambassadors had been attempting to blackmail the Empire into paying them large sums in return for peace. However, this had been to no avail as their lack of commitment to their ally was also reflected in the non-appearance of any of their troops or ships.
With the successes of generals Miura and Kitabatake, not to mention the swift defeat of Qin, the ambassadors' approach had changed markedly. When the foreign minister mentioned that the Emperor was minded to grant them peace without conditions should they withdraw from the war immediately they jumped at the chance.
Her allies having deserted her, Britain was left to face the Japanese alone. For the first time in the war Japan now fielded more troops than the enemy, and her control of the sea remained unchallenged. Over the following year, her generals were to put this superiority to good use.
English campaign
The campaign season started badly for the Japanese when Irish rebels rose against the forces beseiging Ulster. Already critically weakened by a failed assault on the fortess, the three regiments which had been left to capture the province bore the brunt of a rebellion which, if circumstances had been kinder, they would have happily supported.
In a single battle the Irish managed what the entire might of Britain had been unable to achieve - the total destruction of a Japanese army. On hearing the news General Kitabatake, fresh from defeating the remants of the 6,000 British reinforcements which had landed at the end of 1783, embarked his troops for Ireland where the by-now reinforced rebels were defeated in a series of engagements.
The Irish revolt marked a change in Kitabatake's strategy. No longer would small groups be left to besiege fortresses. These would now be taken by storm. Lacking in guns, the Japanese were forced to improvise, employing sappers and digging trenches as close to the walls as possible. Losses were heavy, but while Northumberland and Kent were reduced by starvation the forts guarding rest of England were assaulted. Even the grim fortress of Wessex - better constructed than anything Kitabatake's men had yet encountered - fell to an assault in the closing days of 1784.
With all England under his control, Kitabatke crossed the Channel to subdue England's remaining European possession, the province of Holland. Thus the European campaign was brought to an end.
Mexican campaign
In contrast to the European theatre, the Mexican campaign continued to see heavy fighting. General Miura's conquest of Tlapanec had opened the route into central Mexico, but he was reluctant to divide his forces due to his shortage of infantry regiments. Military historians still dispute the wisdom of this decision, but there was no denying that his combined army made short work of any opposition.
The arrival of General Ikeda's Great Eastlands Division tilted the balance decisively in favour of the Japanese. Although the British periodically received reinforcements from north America, their merchant navy was much reduced and could not hope to deliver troops quickly enough to regain the initiative.
With almost 40,000 Japanese soldiers in Mexico the region swiftly fell under imperial control. The guns of Miura's Siege Force made short work of the British forts and the Empire's disciplined troops reigned supreme on the battlefield. The war appeared to be drawing to a close.
Liberty and Fraternity
Even as Japan was beating Britain, trouble was developing again on the home front. Lan Xang - a former vassal which was still ruled by a junior branch of the Yamato dynasty - was attacked by Khmer. Despite the greater conflict that was underway, Higashiyama was not one to stand by while a relative was being threatened.
The war itself was somewhat of a formality. Khmer's armies still fought in the style of the previous century and were no match for Japan's hardened armies. The transport fleet carried a division directly to the Khmer capital and these immediately began an assault against the shocked defenders.
The result was a foregone conclusion. Khmer's troops melted away everywhere the Japanese encountered them and soon the whole country had been subdued. In the resulting peace settlement Lan Xang took the border province of Khorat as a buffer against future aggression. Although out of tune with Higashiyama's rhetoric about national self-determination, the Emperor showed only delight at his kinsman's success.
More in keeping with official policy were the terms of Japan's peace settlement. In past years a punitive war such as this would have seen territory change hands, or at least see the loser forced to recognise the divinity of the Emperor. Now the chief demand was liberty for the nation of Ayutthaya and modest financial reparations.
Journey's end: Japan triumphant
The brief campaign against Khmer did nothing to interupt the wider war with the British. By 1785 Japan had won victory after victory, with the only setback being the a naval battle off the coast of South America where 20 of the Empire's threedeckers had been forced to retreat back to Mexico by a similarly-sized British squadron.
Although this did not change the course of war itself, it safeguarded British possessions in North America against Japanese landings. Seeing little chance of expanding the war beyond its present boundaries and having in any case little more that could be demanded from Britain, the Emperor turned his mind to the post-war settlement. The result was encompassed in the Declaration of Nanking, in which Higashiyama reiterated Japan's justification for the conflict:
Higashiyama said:
Japan today stands as a a beacon of liberty in a world of tyranny and oppression, offering freedom to the downtrodden and justice to the beleaguered. When I assumed the throne I said we must make ourselves strong. We have. But this is not the strength of the bully, the slave driver or the conqueror. Rather, it is the loving power of the parent and protector.
Japan today stands victorious in its war against British expansionism and aggression. Had the roles been reversed, Britain would demand a heavy price in land and free Japanese citizens would fall under the heavy yoke of foreign tyranny. It is to the benefit of the world that this is not the case. That Japan's victory has been a victory for liberty and freedom.
Japan will not demand a single acre of land from those we have at our mercy. Instead, we will give life to those held in Britain's dead grip, give voice to those made dumb by force. Britain must relinquish its hold on those nations which it imprisons and Japan will forever act as a guardian of their freedom.
The Declaration of Nanking has a long and controversial history. To Japanese patriots it was proof of the civilising nature of Japan's mission and the basic decency of its rule. To others, it was the worst kind of hypocrisy, made all the more obvious for its having been made in the capital of a once-free nation now under Japanese control. Higashiyama had also failed to mention that Japan would not return any of the coastal colonies she had seized and had extracted a heavy financial toll from the defeated British.
At the time, however, the victory had a profound impact on world affairs. Japan's invasion of Britain proper had shown a capacity to act far beyond her borders and across Europe nations speculated what this would mean for the future balance of power.