Regions China

Survey Articles (Regional)

• China

  By Klaus Mühlhahn

  

  This article discusses China’s role in the First World War with a focus on the country’s contribution to the war and the role of the war in shaping Chinese development and its place in the world. … READ MORE

  Regional

Regional Thematic Articles

• Centenary (China)

  By Zhang Yan and Ernest Ming-Tak Leung

  

  Modern Chinese collective remembrance of the First World War is composed of three main pillars – the injustices of imperialism, humiliation due to the sell-out of Chinese rights, and the popular … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Civilian and Military Power (China)

  By Lin-Chun Wu

  From 1916 to 1928, the Republic China was divided among military cliques in the regions of mainland China. Provincial military power holders, by proving the impotence of Beijing, undermined the … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Governments, Parliaments and Parties (China)

  By Lin-Chun Wu

  China’s attempt to participate in the European war was complicated by domestic turbulence. Japan’s bid for supremacy in China compelled President Yuan Shikai to propose the Twenty-one Demands in … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Historiography 1918-Today (China)

  By Xin Fan

  The First World War has been a neglected topic in Chinese historiography from 1918 to today. Although it was a point of attention among contemporaries, both nationalists and communists did not want … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Labour (China)

  By Guoqi Xu

  

  This essay studies Chinese workers on the Western Front during the First World War with focus on their lives and experiences in Europe and their roles in Chinese and world history. Given the fact … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Making Sense of the War (China)

  By Yan He

  Historically, scholars largely disregarded China’s First World War involvement, since the country did not formally declare war until August 1917. I argue that we must re-examine the issue to … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Occupation during and after the War (China)

  By Lukas K. Danner

  

  This article surveys the occupation of the formerly German-leased territory around the Jiaozhou Bay with Qingdao as its capital city by the Japanese during and after the First World War. It first … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Propaganda (China)

  By Andreas Steen

  

  After China had declared its neutrality in the European conflict, the foreign powers quickly employed an increasing variety of propaganda forms to influence public opinion in China. Until 1917, and … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• War Aims and War Aims Discussions (China)

  By Lukas K. Danner

  

  This article discusses China’s war aims during the First World War, as well as the intra-Chinese discussion over which side to enter the war on. It surveys the extent of the different aims, most of … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• War Losses and Reparations (China)

  By Chi-hua Tang

  China’s war losses during World War I were primarily composed of 1) public and private losses amounting to approximately 21.5 million yuan, caused by the Japanese army during its passage across … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

• Wartime and Post-war Economies (China)

  By Hajo Frölich

  China, which joined the Allied cause in 1917, profited economically from the First World War. This was due less to the young Republic’s direct involvement in the hostilities than the increased … READ MORE

  Regional Thematic

Encyclopedic Entries

• Chinese Workers in Russia

  By Olga Alexeeva

  During the war, the Tsarist government imported large groups of Chinese to the Russian Empire to work behind the front lines. Despite their important contribution to the Russian war effort, Chinese … READ MORE

  Entry

• Empire

  By Erez Manela

  

  World War I was not simply a conflict among European states but a global war of empires. The fighting took place not only in Europe, but also in Africa, Asia, and across the Middle East, and it … READ MORE

  Entry

• Koo, V. K. Wellington

  By Stephen G. Craft

  

  During World War I, V. K. Wellington Koo worked in the Chinese foreign ministry before becoming Chinese minister to the United States and a member of the Chinese delegation at the Paris Peace … READ MORE

  Entry

• Portuguese Macau

  By Célia Reis

  During World War One, Macau's main problem was its relationship with China. This stemmed from the consequences of its internal tensions and the lack of recognition of the Portuguese borders. However, … READ MORE

  Entry

• Qingdao, Siege of/German-Japanese War

  By Sven Saaler

  

  Japan declared war on Germany in August 1914 and, after a two-month siege, captured the German-leased territory of Jiāozhōu in China. Notwithstanding the limited scope of what Japan called the … READ MORE

  Entry

• Wilsonian Moment

  By Erez Manela

  

  The wake of the Great War saw mobilizations against empire across the world, with many adopting the language of self-determination popularized by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. While Wilson and the … READ MORE

  Entry

See also

• Bereavement and Mourning

  By Manfred Hettling and Tino Schölz

  

  In the modern era, new forms of mourning and meaning-making for fallen soldiers emerged. The human losses of the First World War were largely mourned, honoured and remembered within … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Centenary (Historiography)

  By Jost Dülffer

  Innovative historical scholarship played an important role in the shaping of memory during the centenary of the First World War. It guided international public memory, was part of it and as such … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Extra-European Theatres of War

  By Michelle Moyd

  

  The extra-European theatres of World War I have received far less scholarly attention than the war in Europe. This state of affairs is hardly surprising given the sheer magnitude of the Western Front … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Imperialism

  By Boris Barth

  

  This article focuses on the extent to which imperialism contributed to the outbreak of the First World War. The first part describes the emergence of specific imperialist cultures and attitudes in … READ MORE

  Thematic

• International Law and the Laws of War

  By Jean H. Quataert

  

  The article examines international efforts to curb states’ war-making prerogatives in the second half of the “long” 19^th century. It captures new humanitarian sentiments circulating … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Negotiating and Mediating Conduct of War

  By Matthew Stibbe

  

  Many issues surrounding the conduct of war in the years 1914-1918 were impervious to international negotiation or mediation, due either to a complete lack of consensus or to an absence of trust and … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Post-war Economies

  By Dietmar Rothermund

  

  Post-war economies were beset with problems, ultimately leading to the Great Depression that ruined the world economy and resulted in “beggar-thy-neighbour” national policies. Roosevelt’s … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Raw Materials

  By Pierre Chancerel

  

  Raw materials were vital during the First World War. Due to the armaments production, the belligerents’ needs increased significantly, while the available resources fell. Each country intended both … READ MORE

  Thematic

• The Paris Peace Conference and its Consequences

  By Alan Sharp

  

  This article offers an overview of peacemaking after the First World War from the armistices of 1918 until 1923. It considers the outcomes of the five Parisian treaties (Versailles, Saint-Germain and … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Willingly to War. Public Response to the Outbreak of War

  By Jean-Jacques Becker

  

  It may surprise us to learn that some sectors of the European public were in favour of the war in 1914. The impact of modern weapons was not well understood and many people in the government, … READ MORE

  Thematic

• Women War Reporters

  By Stephanie Seul

  

  Female war reporters from belligerent and neutral countries were present in the major war theatres in Europe and the Middle East throughout 1914 to 1918. While admission of journalists to the war … READ MORE

  Thematic