Interwar Period China and Japan

Which of these best describes the political situation in China between World War I and World War II?

• a democracy that had undergone reforms of its government

• a theocracy based on Confucian and Buddhist principles

• a fascist regime centered on and led by the Chinese emperor

• a conflict between nationalist (Kuomintang) and communist movements

The Chinese Revolution of 1911 led to the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1912. The main purpose of the revolution was to overthrow the Chinese monarchy and establish a modern republic. In doing so, many people in China hoped to

• close its borders and protect itself from the Soviet Union.

• get rid of European and Japanese influences in China.

• establish closer relations with the European colonists.

• enter into trade agreements with Japan and Korea.

After the Japanese kicked Europeans out of Japan and quickly began industrializing in the first decade of the 20th century, they expanded their influence in Asia by defeating the Russians and Chinese in a grab for territory around the Korean peninsula. By 1939, Japan had occupied much of eastern China and Manchuria. Which of the following is a reason for the rapid expansion of Japanese imperialism in the 1930s?

• They feared the Chinese military was planning an invasion of Japan.

• The Soviet Union was threatening Japanese fishing fleets in the Pacific.

• Japan feared it would have to accept refugees from China's poorest areas.

• They thought an empire would help improve their economy and gain them new resources.

Which of the following best fits the diagram?

• The Holocaust

• The Opium Wars

• The Battle of the Bulge

• The Nanking Massacre

In 1937 Japan invaded ____________ and although Japan had much early military success against them, due to this nation's large size and population it held on and continued resist Japan's invasion for the next eight years.

• the Soviet Union

• the United States

• China

• Vietnam

In the 1920s and 1930s the _________ dominated Japan's government and set Japan on path of expansion.

• Japanese business community

• Japanese military

• Japanese communist party

• Chinese military