Wilson and China : a revised history of the Shandong question / Bruce A. Elleman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Elleman, Bruce A., 1959-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

China--Foreign relations--Japan.

China.

International relations.

Japan.

Japan--Foreign relations--China.

China--Foreign relations--1912-1949.

Shandong Sheng (China)--History.

Shandong Sheng (China).

Physical Description:

xviii, 227 pages : maps ; 24 cm

Other Title:

Revised history of the Shandong question

Place of Publication:

Armonk, N.Y. : M.E. Sharpe, [2002]

Summary:

Drawing on sources in Japanese, Chinese, and American archives and libraries, this book reassesses another facet of Woodrow Wilson's agenda at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference at the end of World War I. Breaking with accepted scholarly opinions, the author argues that Wilson did not "betray" China, as many Chinese and Western scholars have charged; rather, Wilson successfully negotiated a compromise with the Japanese to ensure that China's sovereignty would be respected in Shandong Province. Rejecting the compromise, Chinese negotiators refused to sign the Treaty of Versailles, creating conditions for the Soviet Union's entry into China and its later influence over the course of the Chinese revolution.

Contents:

1. The Diplomatic Situation Prior to the Paris Peace Conference 7

The German Diplomatic Position in Shandong 8

Japan Declares War on Germany 11

Strategic and Military Importance of the Shandong Concession 13

Foreign Policy Issues Regarding the Shandong Concession 14

Japan Presents the Twenty-one Demands 15

The Japanese Ultimatum 18

China Joins the War Against Germany 21

The 1918 Secret Sino-Japanese Agreements 24

2. The Chinese Delegation's Proposals to the Paris Peace Conference 33

The Members of the Chinese Delegation 34

Wellington Koo and President Woodrow Wilson 36

The Chinese Delegation's Proposals to Paris 39

Wellington Koo and the Shandong Question 41

The Chinese Delegation's March and April Declarations 44

Direct or Indirect Restitution of Shandong 46

3. The Japanese Delegation's Proposals to the Paris Peace Conference 53

The Japanese Delegation and its Proposals 54

The American Delegation's Opening Position on Shandong 56

Who Wanted the Secret Agreements Kept Secret? 60

The Impact of the Secret Agreements on America's Proposals 64

The Japanese Delegation's April 1919 Proposals 66

4. President Wilson's Compromise Proposal 73

The American Delegation and its Proposals 75

The Big Three's Negotiations with the Chinese Delegation 77

The Big Three's Negotiations with the Japanese Delegation 80

Wilson's Rationale Behind this Compromise Solution 84

The Impact of Wilson's Compromise 86

5. The Myth of Woodrow Wilson's Betrayal 93

The Importance of "Face" in China 94

The Chinese Diplomatic Reaction to the Shandong Resolutions 97

The Japanese Diplomatic Reaction to the Shandong Resolutions 98

The Shandong Resolutions, the May Fourth Movement, and Wilson 103

Liang Qichao's Interpretation of the Shandong Resolutions 105

6. Wilson's Failed Attempts to Secure a Japanese Statement of Intent 111

America Decides to Obtain a Japanese Statement of Intent 112

The Chinese Delegation Fails to Sign on a Provisional Basis 114

The Creation of a Draft Statement of Intent 118

Plans to Issue a Big Three Statement of Intent 122

Shandong and the League of Nations 124

7. Shandong and the Origins of the Chinese Communist Party 135

The May Fourth Movement and Chinese Radicalization 136

The Karakhan Manifesto and the Birth of Chinese Communism 138

The Shandong Resolution's Impact on Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu 140

Shandong and the Founding of the Chinese Communist Party 145

Shandong and the United Front Strategy 148

8. The Myth of Soviet Equal Treatment of China 155

Shandong and the Diplomatic Legacy of Versailles 156

The 1921-1922 Washington Conference 160

Soviet Diplomacy and the United Front Strategy 162

Lev Karakhan's Secret Diplomacy and the CER 164

The 1925 Restoration of Soviet-Japanese Diplomatic Relations 165

Lev Karakhan and the Twenty-one Demands 168

Epilogue: The Impact of the Shandong Question 175

Appendix A 27 January 1919 Notes 183

Appendix B 28 January 1919 Notes 187

Appendix C 22 April 1919 Notes 195.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 211-219) and index.

ISBN:

0765610507

OCLC:

49226372