Hello and welcome to the History of Japan podcast.

Episode 167, The Mailstrom, Part 5.

We left things off with the Japanese pushing into Manchuria in the early summer of 1904.

The Russian fleet at Port Arthur was contained, and Japanese troops were pushing in two directions,

toward Port Arthur from landing sites in the Liaodong Peninsula,

and north from the Yalu River towards Harbin.

We're going to start with the Port Arthur front today, because I think it's one of the most

interesting facets of the entire war. Port Arthur, remember, was part of the long-range strategic

plan for the war.

Its capture would force the Russian Pacific Fleet to surrender, be scattered, or be destroyed,

and would free up the port for ferrying in Japanese reinforcements.

Placed in charge of directing the assault on Port Arthur was one of the more interesting characters of our story, General Nogi Moreske.

Nogi was, by this point in his career, a well-known war hero. He was born into a samurai family from Choshu, and began his military career in 1869, with an appointment to the Choshu Domain's French-style

military academy, assembled to train replacements for the old Kihei-Tai militias from the Boishan

War.

Nogi advanced up the ranks rapidly, and by 1877, he reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

In that year, Saigotakamori led an uprising of discontented Satsuma Samurai, who were

outraged at the pace of change in the wake of the fall of the Tokugawa.

Nogi was dispatched as part of the force tasked to bring them to heal.

Things started out pretty well.

Nogi's 14th regiment was part of the force tasked with defending the key strategic strong

point of Kumamoto Castle.

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