What were the main reasons for China's defeat in the Sino-Japanese War?

1. Lack of foresight and inadequate preparation for the possible war of aggression are the cognitive reasons for the failure of the war.

/kloc-In the late 20th century, major capitalist countries have completed the transition to the imperialist stage, and capital export is of great significance, which will inevitably lead to more intense colonial competition. Lenin analyzed that the imperialist powers "not only periodically re-divide the divided world, but also the competition for semi-independent countries will inevitably become particularly tense." As a result, semi-feudal and semi-colonial China, with vast territory and abundant resources, became a piece of fat meat in the eyes of imperialist powers. Since the Opium War, the imperialist aggression against China has never stopped. However, after the Sino-French War of 1884, it was relatively calm for about 10 years due to the busy struggle among the great powers, and the nerves of French politicians relaxed a little. When people rejoice at the "friendliness" of western powers, a neighboring country in the East is eyeing it.

After the Meiji Restoration in Japan (65438+ 1960), capitalism developed rapidly and combined with the feudal bushido spirit, resulting in a militaristic freak, which was extremely expansionary and predatory.

Invading and defeating China is an established national policy of modern Japan. As early as 1855, Yoshida Shouyou, a Japanese reformist politician, thought: "Once the warship cannon is slightly enriched, it is easy to exploit shrimp. Light rain Ryukyu, making it the same pilgrimage; Accuse North Korea of paying tribute; Cut all the land in South China, take Taiwan Province Province and Luzon Islands, occupy all China and come to India. " Yoshida's thoughts had a far-reaching influence on his disciples, such as Ito Bowen (Prime Minister of the Cabinet) and Yamagata Aritomo (Speaker of the Senate), who later became Japanese politicians, and became the mainstream thoughts of Japanese politicians. At the beginning of Meiji Restoration, Japan laid the mainland policy. Minister Tanaka said in his memorial: "The legacy of Emperor Meiji is to conquer Taiwan Province Province in the first stage, Korea in the second stage, Manchuria in the third stage, zhina in the fourth stage and the world in the fifth stage." If these arguments are still a "blueprint", they will be very specific in 1887. The Japanese government formulated the General Plan of the Qing Army's Conquest and decided to complete the preparations for the war against China before 1892. The attack direction is Korea, Liaodong Peninsula, Shandong Peninsula, Penghu Islands, Taiwan Province Province and Zhoushan Islands. Seven years later, Japan launched a war of aggression according to this timetable and road map, and almost achieved all its goals.

Japan has consistently implemented the above-mentioned national policy for decades, made full preparations in all aspects, and implemented eight "military expansion for the record" before and after. In the years before the Sino-Japanese War, the average annual military expenditure was as high as 365,438+0% of the total income. 1887, the emperor ordered 300,000 yuan from the royal funds as a naval subsidy. Although the money is not much, it expresses the determination of the supreme ruler and is bound to have a great incentive effect on the whole country. Sure enough, under the inspiration of the emperor, rich people all over the country donated money in succession, with more than 6.5438+0 million yuan a year. This not only increased military expenditure, but also greatly boosted people's morale. While expanding its army, Japan sent a large number of spies to China and North Korea. Before the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, it drew a detailed map of every hill and road, including Korea and Liaodong Peninsula of China, Shandong Peninsula and Bohai Sea. Japan is like a well-made war machine, which keeps running. Once the time is right, it will not hesitate to resort to force. In contrast, the Qing government's judgment on the national security situation was very insufficient, and it lacked due foresight and vigilance against aggression.

Some people of insight, such as Shen Baozhen, Governor of Liangjiang River and Liu Mingchuan, Governor of Taiwan Province, saw that "the Japanese should not be underestimated", but the understanding of Japan by the imperial court and most politicians remained at the stage of "being a small country with few people" and "not caring about the Japanese". Li Hongzhang, who has an important responsibility for national defense, also believes that "the Japanese people are suffering from long-term worries rather than short-term worries." At the critical moment when Japan was fully expanding its army and the danger of war approached, the Qing government relaxed its national defense construction, cut its military budget on the grounds of financial shortage, stopped buying warships from 1888 and stopped allocating funds for naval equipment and ammunition from 189 1. It was in this unconscious state that China ushered in a fateful war.

Second, blindly relying on foreign mediation and not focusing on one's own strength is the external reason for the failure of the war.

Although the defeat in the Korean battlefield caused some passivity, it did not affect the overall situation. At this time, if the Qing government can clearly understand the situation, resolutely invest in the anti-aggression war and adopt correct strategies, it will certainly defeat the enemy's attack. It's a pity that Empress Dowager Cixi and Yi, the supreme rulers of China, are peacemakers, and Li Hongzhang also insists on "harmony is the best". From the beginning of the war to the defeat and surrender, they have been striving for the mediation of Britain, Russia, Germany, France and the United States to achieve the goal of peace.

Diplomacy, like military affairs, is an important means of national political behavior. It is understandable that Li Hongzhang wants to use the conflict of interests between countries to contain Japan and lift the military confrontation between China and Japan. However, he obviously expected too much of the possibility of successful intervention by foreign powers, relied too much on diplomatic mediation and relaxed his military efforts. He thought that "a big country must have a place and an end" and ordered his men to "stay where they are" and "protect the ship", which almost missed the military plane and affected morale.

Li Hongzhang first asked Britain for mediation. He believes that Britain has the most vested interests in China, and the Japanese invasion of China "the British will not agree". However, I didn't expect that Britain and Japan had already conducted behind-the-scenes transactions. Britain pointed out to Japan: "Shanghai in China is the center of British interests, so the Japanese government must admit that it is not a war movement in this port and its vicinity." When the Japanese government promised that Britain's rights and interests in the Yangtze River basin would not be affected, Britain not only gave up its intervention, but also signed the Japan-Britain Treaty of Commerce and Navigation to show its support. British Foreign Secretary Kimberly said: "The nature of this treaty is far more beneficial to Japan than defeating China's army." Britain even kept silent about Japan sinking its merchant ship. In this way, China was betrayed by Britain.

Li Hongzhang turned to Russia to intervene, because Russia's sphere of influence is mainly in the northeast, which has conflicts of interest with Japan. But at this time, the Russian Siberian Railway has not yet been built, and the chips in the Far East are insufficient. I didn't want to fall out with Japan, just had a quarrel. Hurd, an Englishman who is the director of taxation in China, commented: "The Russians flirted in Tianjin, and after two weeks, they suddenly shirked. Li Hongzhang had a boring discussion with his boss. " The Qing government also asked Germany and France to mediate, which was even more futile and a waste of time.

Third, believing in "weapon determinism" is the ideological reason for the failure of the war.

In modern wars, the role of weapons and equipment is far more important than in ancient times. Among politicians and militarists in the late Qing Dynasty, Li Hongzhang paid special attention to weapons and equipment. Because of his vigorous advocacy and operation, he promoted the Westernization Movement and formed the Beiyang Navy and the New Army, which was conducive to enhancing military strength. However, due to Li Hongzhang's extreme and absolute role of weapons, "weapon determinism" leads to pessimism and defeatism.

When the Korean battlefield was defeated, Li Hongzhang stated his point of view when reporting to the imperial court: "Where marching wins, naval battles only rely on ship guns, and land battles only rely on guns. With a slight advantage, the profits will be very different. The navy clippers have too few fast guns and just keep their mouths shut, so naval battles are really difficult. Pyongyang was defeated because it was outnumbered and its equipment stopped, not because the war was invalid. The danger of naval battle is even more serious than that of the army. In the battle at sea, ship speed, ship age and gun size are divided into strength and weakness. China's Clippers lost, so it's not a chance to win at sea. Don't rush to find a way to buy more. " Li Hongzhang's conclusion is that "his weapons are better than mine, and his skills are better than mine". Therefore, China's military equipment is "more than civil strife and insufficient defense against foreign invasion." As soon as Li Hongzhang's theory came out, the courtiers immediately refuted that the Westernization Movement had been going on for 30 years, which cost the country a huge sum of money. Why can't it be a world war It's just a fight with Britain, France, Germany and Russia. Why can't even beat Japan? Emperor Guangxu was very angry. He rebuked Li Hongzhang for "cowardice to escape and drag out an ignoble existence" and asked Beiyang Navy to concentrate its forces and go out quickly. However, Li Hongzhang was unmoved and still insisted that "Beiyang is a thousand miles away, and it is no less than a throw." Ordered the navy to "save the ship as long as the camera advances and retreats."

4. Giving up and losing the right to control the sea is the strategic reason for the failure of the war.

Comrade Mao Zedong once said, "Measures follow principles. When the principle is not resistance, all measures reflect non-resistance. " The guiding ideology of the Qing government to avoid war and seek peace and passive defense is highlighted in the strategic mistake of ignoring and giving up the right to control the sea, which is an important reason for the failure of the Sino-Japanese War.

In modern wars, it is very important to master the right to control the sea. The so-called sea power simply means that one party can sail freely in a certain sea area, while the other party cannot sail freely. Whether we can master the right to control the sea depends on the strength and correct strategy of the navy. The sea power in the Sino-Japanese War mainly refers to the Yellow Sea. The Yellow Sea is connected with the maritime traffic of the Korean Peninsula, Liaodong Peninsula and Shandong Peninsula, so the sea control right of the Yellow Sea is very important.

The main battlefield of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 was on the side of North Korea and China. The Japanese army fought across the sea, and the supply line was very long, so it had to be transported by sea. Although China is fighting on interior lines, disrupting and cutting off the enemy's maritime traffic is an important measure to defeat the enemy. Therefore, it is necessary not only to concentrate the main force of the navy, find favorable opportunities to take the initiative to attack, but also to fight a decisive battle when necessary to contain the enemy navy. At that time, it was also powerful and possible. From 65438 to 0893, China's navy ranked ninth in the world, behind Britain, Germany, France, Russia, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and Turkey, and before the United States and Japan. If the strategy is correct and the command is proper, we should be able to win some victories and achieve great results.