Far East

1904–1905: The Russo-Japanese War

February 1904 – September 1905 · 1 battle

At the turn of the twentieth century Russia and Japan were rivals for influence in Korea and Manchuria. Russia had leased Port Arthur and was building a railway across Manchuria, while Japan, which since its war with China in 1894–1895 had regarded Korea as its own sphere, had no intention of sharing it with the Tsar. When negotiations failed, the Japanese fleet attacked Port Arthur in February 1904. The war, ended by the Treaty of Portsmouth, was the first victory of an Asian state over a European great power in the modern era. Japan took over Russia’s rights in southern Manchuria and gained a free hand in Korea, which opened the way to further expansion on the mainland.