Hello and welcome to the History of Japan podcast episode 605, The Final Frontier, Part 1.

So, now that I've taken three weeks to answer a patron request question, let's tackle a nice,

straightforward subject that I'm sure will take me no time at all.

Imperialism.

Specifically, patron Andre pointed out a rather large gap in my coverage of the history of the Japanese Empire.

We've talked about Taiwan. We've talked about Korea. We've talked about Micronesia and Hokkaido and Okinawa.

But we have not, at least not substantially, talked about Manchuria.

And of course, Manchuria is in many ways one of the

most famous examples of Japanese colonialism, if for no other reason, than that Japan's open

split with the international community and growing isolation in the 1930s stemmed from its invasion

of Manchuria. But the story of Manchuria and Japan goes back quite a bit further than the 1930s, and the

Japanese era in Manchuria has a lot more significance than just this was what got Japan

to leave the League of Nations.

So let's talk about it.

To what extent does Manchuria fit the mold of the rest of the Japanese Empire?

To what extent does it not?

First things first, though, what the hell is Manchuria?

Where even is that?

The what is unfortunately a bit complicated, the where, thankfully, is rather straightforward.

Presumably, if you listen to this podcast, you are

at least loosely aware where Japan is. I mean, I really hope you are. It's a podcast, so it's

kind of hard for me to show you. You are also, in turn, presumably aware that Korea is next to Japan.

...