183-746: 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 The Malta convoys were Allied supply convoys of the Second World War . The convoys took place during the Siege of Malta in the Mediterranean Theatre . Malta was a base from which British sea and air forces could attack ships carrying supplies from Europe to Italian Libya . Britain fought the Western Desert Campaign against Axis armies in North Africa to keep
366-512: A drop tank came loose and caught fire as the Hurricane went overboard, killing nine men and injuring four more before the fire was extinguished. It was early afternoon before the 35 remaining Hurricanes arrived at Malta, again guided by six Blenheims. During the month 142 aircraft reached Malta, some of which were ferried to Egypt. Operation Substance sent Convoy GM 1 (six ships transporting 5,000 soldiers, escorted by six destroyers), covered by
549-599: A tributary state of China's Qing Empire , which exerted large influence over the conservative Korean officials who gathered around the royal family of the Joseon kingdom. On February 27, 1876, after several confrontations between Korean isolationists and the Japanese, Japan imposed the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876 , forcing Korea open to Japanese trade. The act blocked any other power from dominating Korea, resolving to end
732-649: A Theory of Civilization", which detailed Western society and his own philosophies. In the Meiji Restoration period, military and economic power was emphasized. Military strength became the means for national development and stability. Imperial Japan became the only non-Western world power and a major force in East Asia in about 25 years as a result of industrialization and economic development. As writer Albrecht Fürst von Urach comments in his booklet "The Secret of Japan's Strength", published in 1942, during
915-530: A battleship and two cruisers en route to Alexandria; Clan Campbell , Clan Chattam , Clan Lamont , Empire Song and New Zealand Star . The merchants tried to reach Alexandria with air cover of Fairey Fulmars onboard Ark Royal and the anti aircraft fire of 9 destroyers. Bad weather helped, but the Regia Aeronautica engaged the convoy during the day and at dusk Empire Song was lost after hitting two mines. The destroyers from Force H participated in
1098-473: A battleship and two cruisers sailed on 24 November and next day, two more battleships, an aircraft carrier, two cruisers and four destroyers of Force C departed Alexandria. MW 4 reached Malta without incident; ME 4 had sailed on 26 November, two destroyers returned to Malta; the cruiser and one destroyer saw the freighters into Alexandria and Port Said on 30 November. Force F from Gibraltar was to pass 1,400 soldiers and RAF personnel from Gibraltar to Alexandria in
1281-613: A chapel of the Russian Consulate. St. Nicholas of Japan made his own translation of the New Testament and some other religious books ( Lenten Triodion , Pentecostarion , Feast Services , Book of Psalms , Irmologion ) into Japanese . Nicholas has since been canonized as a saint by the Patriarchate of Moscow in 1970, and is now recognized as St. Nicholas, Equal-to-the-Apostles to Japan. His commemoration day
1464-958: A common Anglo-American vision of the postwar world, as formalized by the Atlantic Charter . At the Second Inter-Allied Meeting in London in September 1941, the eight European governments in exile, together with the Soviet Union and representatives of the Free French Forces, unanimously adopted adherence to the common principles of policy set forth in the Atlantic Charter. In December, Japan attacked American and British territories in Asia and
1647-639: A continued collaboration with the Tokugawa, Saigō Takamori , leader of the Satsuma clan, threatened the assembly into abolishing the title shōgun and ordered the confiscation of Yoshinobu's lands. On January 17, 1868, Yoshinobu declared "that he would not be bound by the proclamation of the Restoration and called on the court to rescind it". On January 24, Yoshinobu decided to prepare an attack on Kyoto, occupied by Satsuma and Chōshū forces. This decision
1830-484: A covering force of a battleship, two cruisers, destroyers and corvettes reached Malta on 20 December and Convoy ME 5 with the empty Breconshire , Memnon , Clan Macaulay and Clan Ferguson were collected by the covering force and returned to Alexandria. Convoy MG 1 with Clan Forbes and Clan Fraser reached Gibraltar from Malta escorted by the battleship and four destroyers. Operation Excess delivered one ship from Gibraltar to Malta and three to Piraeus . The operation
2013-726: A cruiser and five destroyers. The Hurricanes were flown off on 3 April and all arrived, Force H returning safely to Gibraltar on 4 April. Stores and ammunition were run to Malta in Operations MC 8 and MC 9. On 18 April, the Mediterranean Fleet sailed from Alexandria to Suda Bay in Crete with Breconshire carrying oil and aviation fuel for Malta. Late on 19 April, the Malta Strike Force destroyers sailed with Convoy ME 7 of four empty cargo ships. Breconshire made
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#17327650794152196-494: A cruiser and four destroyers of Force K in Operation MF 1 towards Alexandria; next day, a cruiser and two destroyers left Alexandria. During the evening of 6 December the cruiser and two destroyers returned to Malta and two destroyers carried on with Breconshire , meeting the cruiser and two destroyers from Alexandria at dawn on 7 December. Two destroyers went on to Malta and Breconshire continued to Alexandria accompanied by
2379-658: A debate over defining the political system of Japan as a dictatorship . The Imperial Japanese Armed Forces initially achieved large-scale military successes during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific War . However, from 1942 onwards, and particularly after decisive Allied advances at Midway Atoll and Guadalcanal , Japan was forced to adopt a defensive stance against the United States . The American-led island-hopping campaign led to
2562-612: A domination of the world completely different from any known in world history. The domination at which the Nazis aim is not limited to the displacement of the balance of power and the imposition of the supremacy of one nation. It seeks the systematic and total destruction of those conquered by Hitler and it does not treaty with the nations which it has subdued. He destroys them. He takes from them their whole political and economic existence and seeks even to deprive them of their history and culture. He wishes only to consider them as vital space and
2745-575: A formalized group upon the Declaration by United Nations on 1 January 1942, which was signed by 26 nations around the world; these ranged from governments in exile from the Axis occupation to small nations far removed from the war. The Declaration officially recognized the Big Three and China as the "Four Powers", acknowledging their central role in prosecuting the war; they were also referred to as
2928-662: A four-ship Convoy MW 4 to Malta and the sailing of ME 4 from Malta comprising Cornwall and the four empty ships from Convoy MW 3, escorted by a cruiser and three destroyers. Attacks on Italian airfields in the Aegean and North Africa were to be made at the same time. Three ships at Gibraltar, two bound for Malta and one for Alexandria were to be escorted by the cruisers HMS Manchester and HMS Southampton . Operation MB 9 from Alexandria began on 23 November, when Convoy MW 4 with four ships sailed with eight destroyer escorts, covered by Force E of three cruisers. Force D comprising
3111-549: A key role in achieving victory. A series of conferences between Allied leaders, diplomats, and military officials gradually shaped the makeup of the alliance, the direction of the war, and ultimately the postwar international order. Relations between the United Kingdom and the United States were especially close , with their bilateral Atlantic Charter forming the groundwork of their alliance. The Allies became
3294-664: A massive air attack on Germany, but Stalin kept wanting more. Although the U.S. had a strained relationship with the USSR in the 1920s, relations were normalized in 1933. The original terms of the Lend-Lease loan were amended towards the Soviets, to be put in line with British terms. The United States would now expect interest with the repayment from the Soviets, following the initiation of the Operation Barbarossa , at
3477-454: A prospect hard-liners from Satsuma and Chōshū found intolerable. On January 3, 1868, Satsuma-Chōshū forces seized the imperial palace in Kyoto , and the following day had the fifteen-year-old Emperor Meiji declare his own restoration to full power. Although the majority of the imperial consultative assembly was happy with the formal declaration of direct rule by the court and tended to support
3660-420: A run into Malta and the destroyers returned after joining in a shore bombardment by the main fleet. The cruiser Gloucester , which had a long range, joining the force. In Operation Dunlop, HMS Ark Royal sailed from Gibraltar on 24 April and flew off 24 Hurricanes at dawn on 27 April. Bristol Blenheims and Beaufighters were flown direct from Gibraltar. Three battleships and an aircraft carrier covered
3843-669: A separate colony. British Malaya covers the areas of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore , while British Borneo covers the area of Brunei , including Sabah and Sarawak of Malaysia. British Hong Kong consisted of Hong Kong Island , the Kowloon Peninsula , and the New Territories . Territories controlled by the Colonial Office , namely the Crown Colonies , were controlled politically by
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#17327650794154026-527: A three ship Convoy MW 9, escorted by Carlisle and eight destroyers, sailed from Alexandria in Operation MF5 ; several hours later, two cruisers from 15th Cruiser Squadron, escorted by eight destroyers, sortied to protect it. On 14 February, SS Clan Campbell was bombed and forced to seek shelter in Tobruk , Clan Chattan was bombed, caught fire and scuttled in the afternoon; Rowallan Castle
4209-599: A vacant territory over which he has every right. The human beings who constitute these nations are for him only cattle. He orders their massacre or migration. He compels them to make room for their conquerors. He does not even take the trouble to impose any war tribute on them. He just takes all their wealth and, to prevent any revolt, he scientifically seeks the physical and moral degradation of those whose independence he has taken away. France experienced several major phases of action during World War II: In Africa these included: French West Africa , French Equatorial Africa ,
4392-449: A variety of fields to come to Japan to educate the populace. For instance, the judicial system and constitution were modeled after Prussia , described by Saburō Ienaga as "an attempt to control popular thought with a blend of Confucianism and German conservatism ." The government also outlawed customs linked to Japan's feudal past, such as publicly displaying and wearing katana and the top knot , both of which were characteristic of
4575-547: Is February 16. Andronic Nikolsky , appointed the first Bishop of Kyoto and later martyred as the archbishop of Perm during the Russian Revolution , was also canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church as a Saint and Martyr in the year 2000. Divie Bethune McCartee was the first ordained Presbyterian minister missionary to visit Japan, in 1861–1862. His gospel tract translated into Japanese
4758-526: Is currently better known as the Kaihōrei ( 解放令 Emancipation Edict ). However, the elimination of their economic monopolies over certain occupations actually led to a decline in their general living standards, while social discrimination simply continued. For example, the ban on the consumption of meat from livestock was lifted in 1871, and many former burakumin moved on to work in abattoirs and as butchers . However, slow-changing social attitudes, especially in
4941-515: Is frequently referred to as the "Empire of Japan", the "Japanese Empire", or "Imperial Japan" in English. In Japanese it is referred to as Dai Nippon Teikoku ( 大日本帝國 ) , which translates to "Empire of Great Japan" ( Dai "Great", Nippon "Japanese", Teikoku "Empire"). Teikoku is itself composed of the nouns Tei "referring to an emperor" and -koku "nation, state", literally "Imperial State" or "Imperial Realm" (compare
5124-748: The Fliegerkorps X to Sicily in Unternehmen Mittelmeer (Operation Mediterranean) to protect the Axis supply routes past Malta, and sent the Afrika Korps to Libya in Unternehmen Sonnenblume (Operation Sunflower) which, with Italian reinforcements, recaptured Cyrenaica. Fliegerkorps X was transferred to Greece in April 1941 and the 23rd U-boat Flotilla was based at Salamis , near Athens , in September. In
5307-637: The Axis powers period: The rise of Japan to a world power during the past 80 years is the greatest miracle in world history. The mighty empires of antiquity, the major political institutions of the Middle Ages and the early modern era, the Spanish Empire, the British Empire, all needed centuries to achieve their full strength. Japan's rise has been meteoric. After only 80 years, it is one of
5490-465: The Battle of Calabria ( Battaglia di Punta Stilo ), Regia Marina escorts (two battleships, 14 cruisers and 32 destroyers) of an Italian convoy engaged the battleships HMS Warspite , Malaya , Royal Sovereign and the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle . The British cruisers and destroyers covered two convoys heading from Malta to Alexandria. The first, Malta Fast 1 (MF 1)/Malta East 1 (ME 1),
5673-521: The Battle of the Tarigo Convoy . During Operation Temple, the freighter Parracombe sailed for Malta from Gibraltar on the night of 28/29 April, disguised as a Spanish merchantman and later as the Vichy steamer Oued-Kroum . She was mined on 2 May, which blew off her bows, and sank with 21 Hurricanes, equipment, ammunition and military freight aboard. The minefield had been laid down on 24 April by
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5856-552: The British West Indies , British Honduras , British Guiana and the Falkland Islands . The Dominion of Newfoundland was directly ruled as a royal colony from 1933 to 1949, run by a governor appointed by London who made the decisions regarding Newfoundland. British India included the areas and peoples covered by later India , Bangladesh , Pakistan and (until 1937) Burma/Myanmar , which later became
6039-728: The Emperor from the Shogun , Japan underwent a period of large-scale industrialization and militarization , often regarded as the fastest modernization of any country to date. All of these aspects contributed to Japan's emergence as a great power following the First Sino-Japanese War , the Boxer Rebellion , the Russo-Japanese War , and World War I . Economic and political turmoil in the 1920s, including
6222-572: The German Kaiserreich ). The name "Empire of Japan" appeared for the first time in the 1854 Convention of Kanagawa between the United States and the Japanese Tokugawa shogunate . This meaning is significant in terms of geography, encompassing Japan, and its surrounding areas. The nomenclature Empire of Japan had existed since the anti-Tokugawa domains, Satsuma and Chōshū , which founded their new government during
6405-652: The Great Depression , led to the rise of militarism , nationalism , statism and authoritarianism, and this ideological shift eventually culminated in Japan joining the Axis alliance with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy , and also conquering a large part of the Asia-Pacific . During this period, the Japanese army committed many atrocities, including the Nanjing Massacre . However, there has been
6588-692: The Indian Ocean raid in April 1942. Malta was neutralised as an offensive base against Italian convoys by the attacks of the Regia Aeronautica and the Luftwaffe in early 1942. Several warships were sunk in Valletta harbour and others were withdrawn to Gibraltar and Egypt. Food and medicines for the Maltese population and the British garrison dwindled along with fuel, ammunition and spare parts with
6771-727: The Mediterranean Fleet , Force H and aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm and Royal Air Force , during the Battle of the Mediterranean (1940–1943). British and Allied ships were attacked by the Italian Regia Aeronautica (Royal Air Force) and Regia Marina (Royal Navy) in 1940 and from 1941, by the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) and Kriegsmarine (German Navy). In 1942,
6954-697: The Meiji Restoration , with the intention of forming a modern state to resist Western domination. Later the Empire emerged as a great power in the world. Due to its name in kanji characters and its flag, it was also given the exonyms "Empire of the Sun" and "Empire of the Rising Sun". After two centuries, the seclusion policy, or sakoku , under the shōguns of the Edo period came to an end when
7137-682: The Meiji period , affecting religious practices and institutions. Conversion from traditional faith was no longer legally forbidden, officials lifted the 250-year ban on Christianity, and missionaries of established Christian churches reentered Japan. The traditional syncreticism between Shinto and Buddhism ended. Losing the protection of the Japanese government which Buddhism had enjoyed for centuries, Buddhist monks faced radical difficulties in sustaining their institutions, but their activities also became less restrained by governmental policies and restrictions. As social conflicts emerged in this last decade of
7320-616: The Netherlands , Belgium , Norway , Greece , and Yugoslavia . The Soviet Union, which initially had a nonaggression pact with Germany and participated in its invasion of Poland , joined the Allies after the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. The United States, while providing some materiel support to European Allies since September 1940, remained formally neutral until
7503-467: The Shrine Consolidation Policy and the Meiji government built the new modern 15 shrines of the Kenmu restoration as a political move to link the Meiji restoration to the Kenmu restoration for their new State Shinto cult. Japanese had to look at old paintings in order to find out what the Horyuji temple used to look like when they rebuilt it. The rebuilding was originally planned for the Shōwa era. The Japanese used mostly concrete in 1934 to rebuild
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7686-399: The Spanish Civil War also caused British to be apprehensive about the security of the British base at Gibraltar. It was soon clear that unlike the Atlantic, where the war was fought by U-boats and surface and air escorts, operations in the Mediterranean would depend on air power and the possession of land bases to operate the aircraft. Events on land in Greece, Crete, Libya and the rest of
7869-495: The Suez Canal and to control Middle Eastern oil. The strategic value of Malta was so great the British risked many merchant vessels and warships to supply the island and the Axis made determined efforts to neutralise the island as an offensive base. The civilian population and the garrison required imports of food, medical supplies, fuel and equipment; the military forces on the island needed reinforcements, ammunition and spare parts. British convoys were escorted to Malta by ships of
8052-462: The Togetsukyo Bridge , unlike the original destroyed wooden version of the bridge from 836. The idea of a written constitution had been a subject of heated debate within and outside of the government since the beginnings of the Meiji government . The conservative Meiji oligarchy viewed anything resembling democracy or republicanism with suspicion and trepidation, and favored a gradualist approach. The Freedom and People's Rights Movement demanded
8235-424: The United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during World War II (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers . Its principal members by the end of 1941 were the " Big Four " – the United Kingdom , United States , Soviet Union , and China . Membership in the Allies varied during the course of the war. When the conflict broke out on 1 September 1939, the Allied coalition consisted of
8418-427: The anti-aircraft cruiser HMS Carlisle ) and six destroyers. The cruisers served as a bluff, in the absence of more heavily armed ships capable of challenging a sortie by the Regia Marina . Breconshire had sailed from Malta on 6 January escorted by four destroyers of Force C; the two forces met on 7 January and Force C with Glengyle reached Malta on 8 January, Force B with Breconshire arriving at Alexandria
8601-457: The bombardment of Shimonoseki by a multinational force in 1864. The Chōshū clan also launched the failed coup known as the Kinmon incident . The Satsuma-Chōshū alliance was established in 1866 to combine their efforts to overthrow the Tokugawa bakufu . In early 1867, Emperor Kōmei died of smallpox and was replaced by his son, Crown Prince Mutsuhito (Meiji) . On November 9, 1867, Tokugawa Yoshinobu resigned from his post and authorities to
8784-399: The " trusteeship of the powerful", and later as the " Four Policemen " of the United Nations. Many more countries joined through to the final days of the war, including colonies and former Axis nations. After the war ended, the Allies, and the Declaration that bound them, would become the basis of the modern United Nations ; one enduring legacy of the alliance is the permanent membership of
8967-447: The 1920s, culminating in the invasion of Manchuria in 1931. The League of Nations strongly condemned the attack as an act of aggression against China; Japan responded by leaving the League in 1933. The second Sino-Japanese War erupted in 1937 with Japan's full-scale invasion of China. The League of Nations condemned Japan's actions and initiated sanctions; the United States, which had attempted to peacefully negotiate for peace in Asia,
9150-419: The American Harry Hopkins . It is also often called the "Strange Alliance", because it united the leaders of the world's greatest capitalist state (the United States), the greatest socialist state (the Soviet Union) and the greatest colonial power (the United Kingdom). Relations between them resulted in the major decisions that shaped the war effort and planned for the postwar world. Cooperation between
9333-402: The Big Three leaders, although they were not enough to break the alliance during wartime. In 1942 Roosevelt proposed becoming, with China, the Four Policemen of world peace. Although the 'Four Powers' were reflected in the wording of the Declaration by United Nations , Roosevelt's proposal was not initially supported by Churchill or Stalin. Division emerged over the length of time taken by
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#17327650794159516-429: The British Government during the Second World War and made part of the British Army structure. It was mostly Greek Cypriot volunteers and Turkish Cypriot inhabitants of Cyprus but also included other Commonwealth nationalities. On a brief visit to Cyprus in 1943, Winston Churchill praised the "soldiers of the Cyprus Regiment who have served honourably on many fields from Libya to Dunkirk". About 30,000 Cypriots served in
9699-486: The British assembled large flotillas of warships to escort Malta convoys, sent fast warships to make solo runs to the island and organised Magic Carpet supply runs by submarine. Hurricane and then Spitfire fighters were flown to Malta from aircraft carriers on Club Runs from Gibraltar towards Malta. In mid-1942, Axis air attacks on the island and on supply convoys neutralised Malta as an offensive base and an Axis invasion, Unternehmen Herkules (Operation Hercules),
9882-411: The British commander. The force landed near Tianjin on July 5. On 17 June 1900, naval Rikusentai from the Kasagi and Atago had joined British, Russian, and German sailors to seize the Dagu forts near Tianjin. In light of the precarious situation, the British were compelled to ask Japan for additional reinforcements, as the Japanese had the only readily available forces in the region. Britain at
10065-421: The Chinese forces on the Liaodong Peninsula , and nearly destroyed the Chinese navy in the Battle of the Yalu River . The Treaty of Shimonoseki was signed between Japan and China, which ceded the Liaodong Peninsula and the island of Taiwan to Japan. After the peace treaty, Russia, Germany, and France forced Japan to withdraw from Liaodong Peninsula in the Triple Intervention . Soon afterward, Russia occupied
10248-477: The Cyprus Regiment. The regiment was involved in action from the very start and served at Dunkirk , in the Greek Campaign (about 600 soldiers were captured in Kalamata in 1941), North Africa ( Operation Compass ), France, the Middle East and Italy. Many soldiers were taken prisoner especially at the beginning of the war and were interned in various PoW camps ( Stalag ) including Lamsdorf ( Stalag VIII-B ), Stalag IVC at Wistritz bei Teplitz and Stalag 4b near Most in
10431-421: The Czech Republic. The soldiers captured in Kalamata were transported by train to prisoner of war camps. After Germany invaded Poland, France declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939. In January 1940, French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier made a major speech denouncing the actions of Germany: At the end of five months of war, one thing has become more and more clear. It is that Germany seeks to establish
10614-605: The Daimyo and Shoguns. It was only due to the 1964 Summer Olympics in Japan that cheap concrete replicas of those castles were built for tourists. The vast majority of castles in Japan today are new replicas made out of concrete. In 1959 a concrete keep was built for Nagoya castle. During the Meiji restoration's Shinbutsu bunri , tens of thousands of Japanese Buddhist religious idols and temples were smashed and destroyed. Many statues still lie in ruins. Replica temples were rebuilt with concrete. Japan then closed and shut done tens of thousands of traditional old Shinto shrines in
10797-406: The Declaration was signed by Iraq, Iran, Brazil, Bolivia and Colombia. A Tripartite Treaty of Alliance with Britain and the USSR formalised Iran's assistance to the Allies. In Rio de Janeiro , Brazilian dictator Getúlio Vargas was considered near to fascist ideas, but realistically joined the United Nations after their evident successes. In 1944, Liberia and France signed. The French situation
10980-429: The Edo period, some new religious movements appeared, which were directly influenced by shamanism and Shinto . Emperor Ogimachi issued edicts to ban Catholicism in 1565 and 1568, but to little effect. Beginning in 1587 with imperial regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi's ban on Jesuit missionaries, Christianity was repressed as a threat to national unity. Under Hideyoshi and the succeeding Tokugawa shogunate, Catholic Christianity
11163-502: The Emperor and his Imperial House, and also against some major Shinto shrines which were believed to be tied strongly to the Emperor. The government strengthened its control over religious institutions that were considered to undermine State Shinto or nationalism. The majority of Japanese castles were smashed and destroyed in the late 19th century in the Meiji restoration by the Japanese people and government in order to modernize and westernize Japan and break from their past feudal era of
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#173276507941511346-473: The German war machine. On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland ; two days later Britain and France declared war on Germany. Roughly two weeks after Germany's attack, the Soviet Union invaded Poland from the east. Britain and France established the Anglo-French Supreme War Council to coordinate military decisions. A Polish government-in-exile was set up in London, joined by hundreds of thousands of Polish soldiers, which would remain an Allied nation until
11529-457: The Heavens and with the Earth, We shall maintain and secure from decline the ancient form of government. ... In consideration of the progressive tendency of the course of human affairs and in parallel with the advance of civilization, We deem it expedient, in order to give clearness and distinctness to the instructions bequeathed by the Imperial Founder of Our House and by Our other Imperial Ancestors, to establish fundamental laws. ... Imperial Japan
11712-475: The Hurricanes reached Malta. On 26 June Ark Royal and Furious sailed again with 22 Hurricanes, which were guided to Malta by Blenheims from Gibraltar; all arrived at Malta in bad weather, though one Hurricane crashed on landing. Force H reached port on 28 June, Crated aircraft were assembled aboard Furious as she joined Force H for Operation Railway II; on 30 June, 26 Hurricanes took off from Ark Royal . The second fighter skidded on take-off from Furious and
11895-449: The Italian cruisers Duca d'Aosta , Eugenio di Savoia , Muzzio Attendolo and Raimondo Montecuccoli , escorted by the destroyers Alvise da Mosto and Giovanni da Verrazzano . In Operation Tiger, Convoy WS 8 sailed from Gibraltar to Alexandria, combined with a supply run to Malta by six destroyers of Force H. Five 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) merchant ships passed Gibraltar on 6 May accompanied by Force H, along with
12078-425: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, after which it declared war and officially joined the Allies. China had already been at war with Japan since 1937 , and formally joined the Allies in December 1941. The Allies were led by the so-called "Big Three"—the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and the United States—which were the principal contributors of manpower, resources, and strategy, each playing
12261-472: The Korean government. When Korea demanded that Japan withdraw its troops from Korea, the Japanese refused. In early June 1894, the 8,000 Japanese troops captured the Korean king Gojong, occupied the Royal Palace in Seoul and, by June 25, installed a puppet government in Seoul. The new pro-Japanese Korean government granted Japan the right to expel Qing forces while Japan dispatched more troops to Korea. China objected and war ensued. Japanese ground troops routed
12444-472: The League of Nations mandates of French Cameroun and French Togoland , French Madagascar , French Somaliland , and the protectorates of French Tunisia and French Morocco . French Algeria was then not a colony or dependency but a fully-fledged part of metropolitan France . Empire of Japan Unitary parliamentary semi-constitutional monarchy (1889–1947) The Empire of Japan , also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan ,
12627-436: The Liaodong Peninsula, built the Port Arthur fortress, and based the Russian Pacific Fleet in the port. Germany occupied Jiaozhou Bay , built Tsingtao fortress and based the German East Asia Squadron in this port. In 1900, Japan joined an international military coalition set up in response to the Boxer Rebellion in the Qing Empire of China. Japan provided the largest contingent of troops: 20,840, as well as 18 warships. Of
12810-695: The Mediterranean in late 1940. Up to the end of the year, 21 ships with 160,000 long tons (160,000 t) of cargo reached Malta without loss and a reserve of seven months' supplies had been accumulated. Three convoy operations to Malta in 1941 lost one merchant ship. From January 1941 to August 1942, 46 ships delivered 320,000 long tons (330,000 t) but 25 ships were sunk and modern, efficient, merchant ships, naval and air forces had been diverted from other routes for long periods; thirty-one supply runs by submarines were also conducted. Reinforcements for Malta, included 19 Club Runs, risky aircraft carrier ferry operations to deliver fighters. From August 1940 to
12993-421: The Meiji Restoration, the practices of the samurai classes, deemed feudal and unsuitable for modern times following the end of sakoku in 1853, resulted in a number of edicts intended to 'modernise' the appearance of upper class Japanese men. With the Dampatsurei Edict of 1871 issued by Emperor Meiji during the early Meiji Era, men of the samurai classes were forced to cut their hair short, effectively abandoning
13176-481: The Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian coasts but was spotted by Italian aircraft at early on 14 November south of Galite Islands and sunk by torpedo bombers. Empire Defender was sunk at sunset the next day in the same place; Astrologer was the last attempt to send merchant ships to Malta from the west for six months. To alleviate a fuel oil shortage on Malta, MV Breconshire was escorted from Malta on 5 December by
13359-465: The Pacific, resulting in the U.S. formally entering the war as an Allied power. Still reeling from Japanese aggression, China declared war on all the Axis powers shortly thereafter. By the end of 1941, the main lines of World War II had formed. Churchill referred to the "Grand Alliance" of the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union, which together played the largest role in prosecuting
13542-517: The Soviet Union, were accepted as members of the United Nations as a way to provide greater influence to Stalin, who had only Yugoslavia as a communist partner in the alliance. British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain delivered his Ultimatum Speech on 3 September 1939 which declared war on Germany , a few hours before France. As the Statute of Westminster 1931 was not yet ratified by
13725-547: The Tokugawa army. A series of battles were then fought in pursuit of supporters of the Shogunate; Edo surrendered to the Imperial forces and afterward, Yoshinobu personally surrendered. Yoshinobu was stripped of all his power by Emperor Meiji and most of Japan accepted the emperor's rule. Pro-Tokugawa remnants retreated to northern Honshū ( Ōuetsu Reppan Dōmei ) and later to Ezo (present-day Hokkaidō ), where they established
13908-701: The Treaty of Versailles and made claims over German-populated Austria and the German-populated territories of Czechoslovakia. The likelihood of war was high, but none of the major powers had the appetite for another conflict; many governments sought to ease tensions through nonmilitary strategies such as appeasement . Japan, which was a principal allied power in the First World War, had since become increasingly militaristic and imperialistic; parallel to Germany, nationalist sentiment increased throughout
14091-673: The U.N. Security Council , which is made up exclusively of the principal Allied powers that won the war. The victorious Allies of World War I —which included what would become the Allied powers of the Second World War—had imposed harsh terms on the opposing Central Powers in the Paris Peace Conference of 1919–1920 . Germany resented signing the Treaty of Versailles , which required that it take full responsibility for
14274-653: The UK and therefore also entered hostilities with Britain's declaration of war. At the outbreak of World War II, the British Indian Army numbered 205,000 men. Later during World War II, the British Indian Army became the largest all-volunteer force in history, rising to over 2.5 million men in size. Indian soldiers earned 30 Victoria Crosses during the Second World War. It suffered 87,000 military casualties (more than any Crown colony but fewer than
14457-611: The United Kingdom and the United States had cooperated in a number of ways, notably through the destroyers-for-bases deal in September 1940 and the American Lend-Lease program, which provided Britain and the Soviet Union with war materiel beginning in October 1941. The British Commonwealth and, to a lesser extent, the Soviet Union reciprocated with a smaller Reverse Lend-Lease program. The First Inter-Allied Meeting took place in London in early June 1941 between
14640-453: The United Kingdom and the United States was especially close and included forming a Combined Chiefs of Staff . There were numerous high-level conferences ; in total Churchill attended 14 meetings, Roosevelt 12, and Stalin 5. Most visible were the three summit conferences that brought together the three top leaders. The Allied policy toward Germany and Japan evolved and developed at these three conferences. There were many tensions among
14823-592: The United Kingdom). The UK suffered 382,000 military casualties. Kuwait was a protectorate of the United Kingdom formally established in 1899. The Trucial States were British protectorates in the Persian Gulf. Palestine was a mandate dependency created in the peace agreements after World War I from the former territory of the Ottoman Empire , Iraq . The Cyprus Regiment was formed by
15006-533: The United Kingdom, France , and Poland , as well as their respective dependencies , such as British India . They were joined by the independent dominions of the British Commonwealth : Canada , Australia , New Zealand and South Africa . Consequently, the initial alliance resembled that of the First World War . As Axis forces began invading northern Europe and the Balkans , the Allies added
15189-480: The United Kingdom, the four co-belligerent British Dominions (Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa), the eight governments in exile ( Belgium , Czechoslovakia , Greece , Luxembourg , the Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Yugoslavia ) and Free France . The meeting culminated with the Declaration of St James's Palace , which set out a first vision for the postwar world. In June 1941, Hitler broke
15372-637: The Western Allies and the Soviet Union , with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the Soviet invasion of Manchuria . The Pacific War officially came to an end on 2 September 1945, leading to the beginning of the Allied occupation of Japan , during which United States military leader Douglas MacArthur administered the country. In 1947, through Allied efforts, a new Japan's constitution
15555-760: The Western Allies to establish a second front in Europe. Stalin and the Soviets used the potential employment of the second front as an 'acid test' for their relations with the Anglo-American powers. The Soviets were forced to use as much manpower as possible in the fight against the Germans, whereas the United States had the luxury of flexing industrial power, but with the "minimum possible expenditure of American lives". Roosevelt and Churchill opened ground fronts in North Africa in 1942 and in Italy in 1943, and launched
15738-459: The afternoon, an Italian battleship convoy was spotted and every seaworthy ship at Malta was ordered out to bring in Breconshire . Only one cruiser and two destroyers were operational but they met the oncoming force before dawn on 17 December and the ships made a circle round Breconshire ; the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica attacked through the afternoon with bombs and torpedoes. As night
15921-543: The airfields at Martuba and Tmimi in Cyrenaica as RAF and FAA aircraft bombed them to ground Ju 88 bombers; 201 Group RAF provided air cover and reconnaissance of the convoy route. A club run, Operation Picket was to use Argus and Eagle , with Force H as a decoy, but the Spitfire ferry tanks were found to be defective and the operation was called off. Allies of World War II The Allies , formally referred to as
16104-596: The anti-aircraft fire of the British destroyer screen. British reconnaissance aircraft reported the Italian Fleet had left harbour and was on an interception course and the British covering force, less Nelson , was sent to engage. Ark Royal launched her torpedo bombers but the Italian turned back, and the aircraft failed to make contact; at about 7:00 p.m. , GM 2 reached the Narrows. The five cruisers and nine of
16287-526: The battleship Nelson and three cruisers from the Home Fleet and Force H ( Ark Royal , Renown , and several cruisers and destroyers). GM 1 reached Gibraltar from Britain on 19 July and sailed for Malta on 21 July, minus troopship RMS Leinster (carrying 1,000 troops and RAF ground crews) which ran aground and had to return to Gibraltar. The Eastern Fleet sortied from Alexandria as a diversion and eight submarines watched Italian ports and patrolled
16470-549: The breakaway Republic of Ezo . An expeditionary force was dispatched by the new government and the Ezo Republic forces were overwhelmed. The siege of Hakodate came to an end in May 1869 and the remaining forces surrendered. The Charter Oath was made public at the enthronement of Emperor Meiji of Japan on April 7, 1868. The Oath outlined the main aims and the course of action to be followed during Emperor Meiji's reign, setting
16653-406: The cabinet demanded that there be guarantees from the British in return for the risks and costs of the major deployment of Japanese troops. On July 6, 1900, the 5th Infantry Division was alerted for possible deployment to China, but no timetable was set for this. Two days later, with more ground troops urgently needed to lift the siege of the foreign legations at Peking, the British ambassador offered
16836-698: The centuries-old Chinese suzerainty . On June 4, 1894, Korea requested aid from the Qing Empire in suppressing the Donghak Rebellion . The Qing government sent 2,800 troops to Korea. The Japanese countered by sending an 8,000-troop expeditionary force (the Oshima Composite Brigade) to Korea. The first 400 troops arrived on June 9 en route to Seoul , and 3,000 landed at Incheon on June 12. The Qing government turned down Japan's suggestion for Japan and China to cooperate to reform
17019-490: The chonmage ( chonmage ) hairstyle. During the early 20th century, the government was suspicious towards a number of unauthorized religious movements and periodically made attempts to suppress them. Government suppression was especially severe from the 1930s until the early 1940s, when the growth of Japanese nationalism and State Shinto were closely linked. Under the Meiji regime lèse majesté prohibited insults against
17202-699: The command of Captain Shimamura Hayao . The Japanese were able to contribute 52 men to the Seymour Expedition . On 12 June 1900, the advance of the Seymour Expedition was halted some 50 kilometres (30 mi) from the capital, by mixed Boxer and Chinese regular army forces. The vastly outnumbered allies withdrew to the vicinity of Tianjin , having suffered more than 300 casualties. The army general staff in Tokyo had become aware of
17385-441: The convoy and escorts' anti-aircraft guns; once the convoy was in range. Hurricanes from Malta also provided air cover and the ships docked on 19 January. On 26 January, in a similar operation, Breconshire and escorts from Alexandria met two ships which had sailed from Malta on 25 January transporting service families from Malta with escorts from Force K, which escorted Breconshire back to the island on 27 January. On 12 February,
17568-535: The convoy evaded Italian aircraft, but on the night of 23/24 July, the 12,000 GRT steamer Sydney Star was torpedoed by an MAS boat and crippled; the Australian destroyer HMAS Nestor assisted her safe arrival to harbour and she was seaworthy again by September. The cruisers sailed ahead to disembark troops and equipment; the convoy and its destroyer escort arrived later on 24 July. A raid on 26 July by Italian midget submarines, MAS boats, and aircraft on
17751-708: The convoy operation as far as Malta then returned. Force H bombarded Benghazi and rendezvoused with the convoy 50 nmi (58 mi; 93 km) south of Malta late on 9 May. The minefied had been laid by the same Italian cruiser force whose mines had sunk the freighter Parracombe in early May. Operation Splice was a Club Run from 19 to 22 May; 48 Hurricanes were flown off Ark Royal and Furious on 21 May, all reaching Malta. Slow Convoy MW 7B with two tankers sailed from Egypt for Malta with 24,000 long tons (24,000 t) of fuel oil, followed by fast Convoy MW 7A with six freighters escorted by five cruisers, three destroyers and two corvettes. Abdiel and Breconshire sailed with
17934-514: The country was forced open to trade by the Convention of Kanagawa which came when Matthew C. Perry arrived in Japan in 1854. Thus, the period known as Bakumatsu began. The following years saw increased foreign trade and interaction; commercial treaties between the Tokugawa shogunate and Western countries were signed. In large part due to the humiliating terms of these unequal treaties ,
18117-573: The countryside, meant that abattoirs and workers were met with hostility from local residents. Continued ostracism as well as the decline in living standards led to former burakumin communities turning into slum areas. In the Blood tax riots , the Japanese Meiji government brutally put down revolts by Japanese samurai angry over the legal revocation of the traditional untouchable status of burakumin. The social tension continued to grow during
18300-413: The cruiser and its two destroyers, reaching Alexandria on 8 December, less the cruiser which was detached to help a sloop damaged by air attack of Tobruk. Breconshire was filled with 5,000 long tons (5,100 t) of boiler oil and every space was filled with supplies. On 15 December, MD 1 began when Breconshire sailed for Malta with three cruiser and eight destroyer escorts. During the night Breconshire
18483-489: The cruisers HMS Aurora and Penelope had sailed from Scapa Flow for Malta and were joined by the destroyers HMS Lance and Lively of Force H at Gibraltar, reaching the island on 21 October. The squadron was named Force K (reviving a title used in 1939) for operations against the Italian supply route to North Africa. Operation MG 3 was a convoy planned to despatch the Halberd merchant ships from Malta but
18666-418: The cruisers Orion , Ajax and Gloucester and Tribal-class destroyers Nubian and Mohawk , covered by Barham , Valiant , Eagle , Coventry , Decoy , Hotspur , Havock , Hereward , Hero , Hasty , Ilex , Jervis , Janus and Jaguar . Operation MC 9 covered Convoy MW 6 consisting of Perthshire , Clan Ferguson , City of Manchester and City of Lincoln , which sailed from Alexandria on 19 March,
18849-602: The decentralized American system with no central bank. In 1871, the New Currency Act of Meiji 4 (1871) abolished the local currencies and established the yen as the new decimal currency. It had parity with the Mexican silver dollar. The First Sino-Japanese War , fought in 1894 and 1895, revolved around the issue of control and influence over Korea under the rule of the Joseon dynasty . Korea had traditionally been
19032-569: The declaration; the Big Four were listed first: The United Nations began growing immediately after its formation. In 1942, Mexico, the Philippines and Ethiopia adhered to the declaration. Ethiopia had been restored to independence by British forces after the Italian defeat in 1941. The Philippines, still owned by Washington but granted international diplomatic recognition, was allowed to join on 10 June despite its occupation by Japan. In 1943,
19215-711: The deficit being made up by imports. Malta was a staging post on the British Suez Canal sea route to India , East Africa, the oilfields of Iraq and Iran , India and the Far East. The island was also close to the Sicilian Channel between Sicily and Tunis . Malta was also a base for air, sea and submarine operations against Axis supply convoys by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and Fleet Air Arm (FAA). Military operations from Malta and using
19398-567: The destroyers continued for Malta as the covering force changed course. The British made course for Sicily, which enabled them to skirt minefields laid by the Italians in the channel between Sicily and the North African coast. During the night the moon was bright and Italian torpedo bombers managed to hit the 10,000 GRT transport Imperial Star with an aerial torpedo. Attempts to tow the ship to Malta failed; her troops were taken off and
19581-414: The eastbound convoy on the night of 27/28 November to no effect and the two ships for Malta arrived on 29 November, as Force H returned to Gibraltar and the through convoy and naval ships reached Alexandria. Convoy MW 5A with Lanarkshire and Waiwera carrying supplies and munitions and Convoy MW 5B of Volo , Rodi and Devis , the tanker Pontfield , Hoegh Hood and Ulster Prince from Alexandria with
19764-437: The emperor, agreeing to "be the instrument for carrying out" imperial orders, leading to the end of the Tokugawa shogunate. However, while Yoshinobu's resignation had created a nominal void at the highest level of government, his apparatus of state continued to exist. Moreover, the shogunal government, the Tokugawa family in particular, remained a prominent force in the evolving political order and retained many executive powers,
19947-635: The end of August 1942, 670 Hurricane and Spitfire fighters were flown off aircraft carriers in the western Mediterranean. Many other aircraft used Malta as a staging post for North Africa and the Desert Air Force . When Italy declared war on Britain and France on 10 June 1940, the Taranto Naval Squadron did not sail to occupy Malta as suggested by Admiral Carlo Bergamini . With Italian bases in Sicily, British control of Malta
20130-749: The end of the war—the United States were not looking to support any "postwar Soviet reconstruction efforts", which eventually manifested into the Molotov Plan . At the Tehran conference , Stalin judged Roosevelt to be a "lightweight compared to the more formidable Churchill". During the meetings from 1943 to 1945, there were disputes over the growing list of demands from the USSR. Tensions increased further when Roosevelt died and his successor Harry Truman rejected demands put forth by Stalin. Roosevelt wanted to play down these ideological tensions. Roosevelt felt he "understood Stalin's psychology", stating "Stalin
20313-554: The end. After a quiet winter, Germany began its invasion of Western Europe in April 1940, quickly defeating Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. All the occupied nations subsequently established a government-in-exile in London, with each contributing a contingent of escaped troops. Nevertheless, by roughly one year since Germany's violation of the Munich Agreement, Britain and its Empire stood alone against Hitler and Mussolini. Before they were formally allied,
20496-552: The escort included four battleships and two aircraft carriers. An Italian attempt against the returning escort by destroyers and torpedo boats ended in the Battle of Cape Passero , a British success. The five ship Convoy MW 3 from Alexandria and four ship return Convoy ME 3 arrived safely, coinciding with a troop convoy from Gibraltar and the air attack on the Italian battle fleet at the Battle of Taranto. In Operation White, twelve Hurricanes were flown off Argus to reinforce Malta but
20679-408: The escorts sailing a day later, covered by the Mediterranean Fleet until the night of 22/23 March. The ships sailed by indirect routes and bad weather enabled the convoy to evade Axis air reconnaissance. The ships arrived at Malta but two were bombed at their berths. Hurricanes delivered to Gibraltar on Argus were put on board Ark Royal , which sailed on 2 April, escorted by the battleship Renown ,
20862-475: The eventual loss of many of Japan's Oceanian island possessions in the following three years. Eventually, the American military captured Iwo Jima and Okinawa Island , leaving the Japanese mainland unprotected and without a significant naval defense force. By August 1945, plans had been made for an Allied invasion of mainland Japan , but were shelved after Japan surrendered in the face of a major breakthrough by
21045-576: The fast Convoy MF 2 of three freighters carrying 40,000 short tons (36,000 t ) of supplies, including reinforcements and ammunition for anti-aircraft guns and met at Malta another convoy from Gibraltar. En route, Italian airbases were raided; the Regia Marina had superior forces at sea but missed the opportunity to exploit their advantage. Four ships of Convoy MF 3 reached Malta safely from Alexandria and three ships returned to Alexandria as Convoy MF 4. The convoys were part of Operation MB 6 and
21228-496: The fast transport HMS Breconshire from Alexandria to Malta. The operation was coordinated with the four-ship Convoy ME 7 from Malta to Alexandria. On 16 April, the value of Malta for offensive operations was shown when four destroyers of 14th Flotilla (the Malta Striking Force), recently based in the island, destroyed an Afrika Korps supply convoy (five ships, for a total of 14,000 GRT and three escorts) in
21411-463: The few great powers that determine the fate of the world. In the 1860s, Japan began to experience great social turmoil and rapid modernization. The feudal caste system in Japan formally ended in 1869 with the Meiji restoration . In 1871, the newly formed Meiji government issued a decree called Senmin Haishirei ( 賤民廃止令 Edict Abolishing Ignoble Classes ) giving burakumin equal legal status. It
21594-555: The immediate establishment of an elected national assembly , and the promulgation of a constitution. The constitution recognized the need for change and modernization after the removal of the shogunate : We, the Successor to the prosperous Throne of Our Predecessors, do humbly and solemnly swear to the Imperial Founder of Our House and to Our other Imperial Ancestors that, in pursuance of a great policy co-extensive with
21777-547: The island as a staging post, led to Axis air campaigns against the island in 1941 and 1942. By late July, the 80 fighters on the island averaged wastage of 17 per week and the remaining aviation fuel was only sufficient for the fighters, making it impractical to send more bombers and torpedo-bombers for offensive operations. Resources available to sustain Malta were reduced when Japan declared war in December 1941, and conducted
21960-526: The legal stage for Japan's modernization. The Meiji leaders also aimed to boost morale and win financial support for the new government . Japan dispatched the Iwakura Mission in 1871. The mission traveled the world in order to renegotiate the unequal treaties with the United States and European countries that Japan had been forced into during the Tokugawa shogunate, and to gather information on western social and economic systems, in order to effect
22143-545: The main advocates of appeasement, decided that Hitler had no intention to uphold diplomatic agreements and responded by preparing for war. On 31 March 1939, Britain formed the Anglo-Polish military alliance in an effort to avert an imminent German attack on Poland; the French likewise had a long-standing alliance with Poland since 1921 . The Soviet Union , which had been diplomatically and economically isolated by much of
22326-777: The main fleet and all the ships reached Grand Harbour on 9 May, preceded by a minesweeper, which detonated about twelve mines. In May, the Luftwaffe transferred Fliegerkorps X from Sicily to the Balkans, relieving pressure on Malta until December. A Club Run from 5 to 7 June delivered 35 Hurricanes to Malta, guided by eight Blenheims from Gibraltar. In June, the new carrier HMS Victorious replaced Furious on Club Runs. Operation Tracer began on 13 June when Ark Royal and Victorious , escorted by Force H, departed Gibraltar. On 14 June, 47 Hurricanes were flown off. The fighters were guided by four Hudsons from Gibraltar and 43 of
22509-618: The merchant ships of an Axis convoy off Cape Spartivento. On 10 November, Ark Royal and Argus sailed from Gibraltar and flew off thirty-seven Hurricanes, thirty-four arriving successfully; seven Blenheims flew direct from Gibraltar. On 13 November, Ark Royal was torpedoed and sank the next day, 25 nmi (29 mi; 46 km) from Gibraltar. Operation Astrologer (14–15 November 1941), an attempt to supply Malta by two unescorted freighters, Empire Pelican and Empire Defender disguised as neutral Spanish then French ships. Empire Pelican passed Gibraltar on 12 November and sailed close to
22692-411: The merchant ships reached Malta. Mediterranean convoys were resumed to supply the advancing British forces, from which ships for Malta were detached and escorted to and from the island. Malta , a Mediterranean island of 122 sq mi (320 km) had been a British colony since 1814. By the 1940s, the island had a population of 275,000 but local farmers could feed only one-third of the population,
22875-565: The modernization of Japan. Renegotiation of the unequal treaties was universally unsuccessful, but close observation of the American and European systems inspired members on their return to bring about modernization initiatives in Japan. Japan made a territorial delimitation treaty with Russia in 1875, gaining all the Kuril islands in exchange for Sakhalin island . The Japanese government sent observers to Western countries to observe and learn their practices, and also paid " foreign advisors " in
23058-610: The murder of an Englishman, Charles Lennox Richardson , by a party of samurai from Satsuma . The British demanded reparations but were denied. While attempting to exact payment, the Royal Navy was fired on from coastal batteries near the town of Kagoshima . They responded by bombarding the port of Kagoshima in 1863. The Tokugawa government agreed to pay an indemnity for Richardson's death. Shelling of foreign shipping in Shimonoseki and attacks against foreign property led to
23241-599: The next day. On 16 January the Convoy MW8A and Convoy MW8B with two ships each, sailed from Alexandria in Operation MF3, accompanied by Carlisle and two destroyer divisions . The 15th Cruiser Squadron sortied on 17 January to join the escort for both convoys. Force K (still short Aurora ) departed Malta to rendezvous with the convoy on 18 January. Thermopylae (6,655 tons), in MW8A, developed mechanical faults and
23424-493: The next day. Two ships sailed from Malta in ballast on 21 October and arrived at Gibraltar despite air attacks; one ship with engine trouble left Malta again on 22 October, watched over by Catalina flying boats, but failed to arrive; an Italian radio broadcast claimed the sinking. The fourth ship sailed on 24 October but was attacked by an Italian aircraft and recalled, having been spotted so quickly. Force K of two cruisers and two destroyers sailed from Malta on 8 November and sank
23607-495: The night of 23/24 November to rendezvous with the merchant ships and their destroyer escorts from Britain. The cruisers embarked the troops and RAF personnel, leaving Gibraltar on 25 November. The British were unaware that Italian reconnaissance aircraft had spotted the sorties from both ends of the Mediterranean and set up submarine ambushes. Two Italian battleships, three cruisers and two destroyer flotillas had left harbour, more cruisers, destroyers and torpedo boats following. Force D
23790-655: The non-aggression agreement with Stalin and Axis forces invaded the Soviet Union , which consequently declared war on Germany and its allies. Britain agreed to an alliance with the Soviet Union in July, with both nations committing to assisting one another by any means, and to never negotiate a separate peace. The following August saw the Atlantic Conference between American President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill , which defined
23973-432: The parliaments of Australia and New Zealand, the British declaration of war on Germany also applied to those dominions . The other dominions and members of the British Commonwealth declared war from 3 September 1939, all within one week of each other; they were Canada , British India and South Africa . During the war, Churchill attended seventeen Allied conferences at which key decisions and agreements were made. He
24156-595: The rest of the Axis powers , the formalized Japanese Instrument of Surrender was issued on 2 September 1945 in compliance with the Potsdam Declaration of the Allies , and the empire's territory subsequently shrunk to cover only the Japanese archipelago resembling modern Japan. Under the slogans of fukoku kyōhei and shokusan kōgyō , which followed the Boshin War and the restoration of power to
24339-495: The rest of the ships returned to Alexandria and the Italian freighters reached Libya. Force K and Breconshire spent 18 December under air attack, until Malta Hurricanes arrived in the afternoon and at around 3:00 p.m. the ships arrived in Malta. On 5 January, the fast supply ship HMS Glengyle was escorted from Alexandria by 15th Cruiser Squadron (Force B, commanded by Rear Admiral Philip Vian , made up of Dido -class light cruisers Naiad , Dido , and Euryalus and
24522-496: The right external ferry tanks were fitted; seven Blenheims flew direct from Gibraltar. On 10 March, the Spitfires flew their first sorties against a raid by Ju 88s escorted by Bf 109 fighters. Operation MG 1 began with the four ships of Convoy MW 10 sailing from Alexandria at 7:10 a.m. on 20 March, each with a navy liaison party and Defensively equipped merchant ship (DEMS) gunners, supplemented by service passengers. The convoy
24705-554: The routes an Italian sortie was expected to use. Force H was to return to Gibraltar upon reaching the Sicilian Narrows, while the close escort of three cruisers, Manxman , and ten destroyers would continue to Malta. During the convoy operation, Breconshire and six other empty ships at Malta were independently to return to Gibraltar in Operation MG 1. On 23 July, south of Sardinia, Italian air attacks began; one cruiser
24888-456: The same time, to build up the Malta striking force to use the munitions delivered in Operation Substance. The merchantman SS Empire Guillemot reached Malta from Gibraltar in Operation Propeller and another ship completed the trip independently. In Operation Halberd, the eastbound Convoy GM 2 with nine 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) merchant ships, carrying 81,000 long tons (82,000 t) of supplies and 2,600 troops from Gibraltar,
25071-428: The samurai class, which was abolished together with the caste system. This would later bring the Meiji government into conflict with the samurai . Several writers, under the constant threat of assassination from their political foes, were influential in winning Japanese support for westernization . One such writer was Fukuzawa Yukichi , whose works included "Conditions in the West", " Leaving Asia ", and "An Outline of
25254-427: The severity of the economic crisis on the Treaty of Versailles. The far-right Nazi Party led by Adolf Hitler , which had formed shortly after the peace treaty, exploited growing popular resentment and desperation to become the dominant political movement in Germany. By 1933, they gained power and rapidly established a totalitarian regime known as Nazi Germany . The Nazi regime demanded the immediate cancellation of
25437-472: The ship was scuttled. During the morning of 28 September, the convoy came into range of Malta-based fighters. The rest of the convoy reached Malta at 1:30 p.m. and landed 85,000 short tons (77,000 t) of supplies. Halberd was the last convoy operation of 1941. On 16 October, Force H covered Operation Callboy, another Club Run by Ark Royal , to fly off thirteen Swordfish and Albacore torpedo bombers for Malta, delivered to Gibraltar by Argus . On 12 October,
25620-486: The ships sailed in succession. Two departed on 16 October but one ship had to turn back with engine trouble. The second ship was covered by the fleet movements of Operation Callboy which reached the flying off point on 17 October and arrived on 19 October, having dodged a torpedo bomber attack. Two cruisers and two destroyers of Force H loaded equipment and ammunition for Malta as soon as they got back to Gibraltar and sailed again on 20 October, arriving at Grand Harbour in Malta
25803-450: The shogunate soon faced internal hostility, which materialized into a radical, xenophobic movement, the sonnō jōi (literally "Revere the Emperor, expel the barbarians"). In March 1863, the Emperor issued the " order to expel barbarians ." Although the shogunate had no intention of enforcing the order, it nevertheless inspired attacks against the shogunate itself and against foreigners in Japan. The Namamugi Incident during 1862 led to
25986-458: The south shore of the Mediterranean would have great influence on the security of sea communications by both sides. An Italian conquest of Egypt could link Abyssinia , Italian Somaliland and Eritrea . The Italian invasion of Egypt in September 1940, was followed by Operation Compass , a British counter-offensive in December, which led to the destruction of the Italian 10th Army and the conquest of Cyrenaica in January 1941. Hitler transferred
26169-433: The success of Axis attacks on Malta convoys. The Italian Operation C3 and the Axis Unternehmen Herkules (Operation Hercules) invasion plans against Malta were prepared but then cancelled on 16 June 1942. The Allies waged the Western Desert Campaign (1940–43) in North Africa, against the Axis forces of Italy aided by Germany , which sent the Deutsches Afrika Korps and substantial Luftwaffe detachments to
26352-492: The threat of the Italian fleet lurking south of Sardinia prompted a premature fly-off from Argus and its return to Gibraltar. Eight Hurricanes ran out of fuel and ditched at sea, with seven pilots lost. An enquiry found that the Hurricane pilots had been insufficiently trained about the range and endurance of their aircraft. Operation Collar was intended to combine the passage of a battleship, heavy cruiser and light cruiser with mechanical defects from Alexandria to Gibraltar, with
26535-455: The time was heavily engaged in the Boer War , so a large part of the British army was tied down in South Africa. Further, deploying large numbers of troops from its garrisons in India would take too much time and weaken internal security there. Overriding personal doubts, Foreign Minister Aoki Shūzō calculated that the advantages of participating in an allied coalition were too attractive to ignore. Prime Minister Yamagata agreed, but others in
26718-412: The total, 20,300 were Imperial Japanese Army troops of the 5th Infantry Division under Lt. General Yamaguchi Motoomi; the remainder were 540 naval rikusentai (marines) from the Imperial Japanese Navy . At the beginning of the Boxer Rebellion the Japanese only had 215 troops in northern China stationed at Tientsin; nearly all of them were naval rikusentai from the Kasagi and the Atago , under
26901-462: The transports in Grand Harbour failed, with the attacking force almost destroyed; 65,000 short tons (59,000 t) of supplies were landed. On 31 July, three cruisers and two destroyers sailed from Gibraltar with the troops and stores left behind in Leinster , reaching Malta 2 August. Ark Royal and Furious flew off over 50 Hurricanes to Malta in Operations Status I and Status II, forty-nine arriving; several Blenheims flew direct from Gibraltar at
27084-447: The two cruisers, slip two supply ships into Malta and one to Crete. The other warships destined for the reinforcement of the fleet at Alexandria were to be sent on, the cruisers being accompanied by two destroyers and four corvettes. Force B provided the covering force with the battlecruiser Renown , the aircraft carrier Ark Royal , the cruisers Sheffield and Despatch , and nine destroyers. The destroyers and corvettes left Alexandria on
27267-423: The two-hundred-year-old Tokugawa shogunate. Tokugawa Yoshinobu launched a military campaign to seize the emperor's court in Kyoto. However, the tide rapidly turned in favor of the smaller but relatively modernized imperial faction and resulted in defections of many daimyōs to the Imperial side. The Battle of Toba–Fushimi was a decisive victory in which a combined army from Chōshū, Tosa, and Satsuma domains defeated
27450-430: The unchallenged Japanese expansion in the East, particularly considering their defeat in previous wars with Japan; the Soviets also recognized, as the U.S. and Britain had suggested, the advantages of a two-front war . Franklin D. Roosevelt , Winston Churchill , and Joseph Stalin were The Big Three leaders. They were in frequent contact through ambassadors, top generals, foreign ministers and special emissaries such as
27633-505: The war, Britain could remain the sole great power in Europe facing the Communist threat, as it was in 1940 and 1941 against Nazism. During the early part of 1945, Peru, Chile, Paraguay, Venezuela, Uruguay, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria (these latter two French colonies had been declared independent states by British occupation troops, despite protests by Pétain and later De Gaulle) and Ecuador became signatories. Ukraine and Belarus , which were not independent states but parts of
27816-488: The war, lose a significant portion of territory, and pay costly reparations, among other penalties. The Weimar Republic , which formed at the end of the war and subsequently negotiated the treaty, saw its legitimacy shaken, particularly as it struggled to govern a greatly weakened economy and humiliated populace. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , and the ensuing Great Depression , led to political unrest across Europe, especially in Germany, where revanchist nationalists blamed
27999-428: The war. The alliance was largely one of convenience for each member: the U.K. realized that the Axis powers threatened not only its colonies in North Africa and Asia but also the homeland . The United States felt that the Japanese and German expansion should be contained, but ruled out force until Japan's attack. The Soviet Union, having been betrayed by the Axis attack in 1941, greatly despised German belligerence and
28182-411: The world, had sought an alliance with the western powers, but Hitler preempted a potential war with Stalin by signing the Nazi–Soviet non-aggression pact in August 1939. In addition to preventing a two-front war that had battered its forces in the last world war, the agreement secretly divided the independent states of Central and Eastern Europe between the two powers and assured adequate oil supplies for
28365-478: The worsening conditions in China and had drafted ambitious contingency plans, but in the wake of the Triple Intervention five years before, the government refused to deploy large numbers of troops unless requested by the western powers. However three days later, a provisional force of 1,300 troops commanded by Major General Fukushima Yasumasa was to be deployed to northern China. Fukushima was chosen because he spoke fluent English which enabled him to communicate with
28548-431: Was "the most important of the Allied leaders during the first half of World War II". British West Africa and the British colonies in East and Southern Africa participated, mainly in the North African, East African and Middle-Eastern theatres. Two West African and one East African division served in the Burma Campaign . Southern Rhodesia was a self-governing colony, having received responsible government in 1923. It
28731-554: Was accompanied by the battleships Nelson , Rodney , Prince of Wales (all detached from the Home Fleet), Ark Royal , five cruisers, and eighteen destroyers. The British staged diversions in the eastern Mediterranean and submarines and aircraft watched Italian naval and air bases. Attacks on the convoy by the Regia Aeronautica began on 27 September, demonstrating more skill and determination than earlier encounters. An Italian torpedo bomber hit Nelson with an aerial torpedo and reduced her speed. Later air attacks were deterred by
28914-409: Was among the first Protestant literature in Japan. In 1865, McCartee moved back to Ningbo , China, but others have followed in his footsteps. There was a burst of growth of Christianity in the late 19th century when Japan re-opened its doors to the West. Protestant church growth slowed dramatically in the early 20th century under the influence of the military government during the Shōwa period . Under
29097-399: Was attacked on the night of 26/27 November but the attack was so ineffectual that the British did not notice. On 27 November, aircraft from Force F spotted the Italian battle fleet, the force headed for Force D and prepared to defend the merchant ships, in what became a confused and inconclusive engagement. Two Italian submarines attacked three cruisers in the Sicilian Narrows as they waited for
29280-424: Was characterized by rapid industrialization , the development of a capitalist economy , and the transformation of many feudal workers to wage labour . The use of strike action also increased, and 1897, with the establishment of a union for metalworkers, the foundations of the modern Japanese trade-union movement were formed. Samurai were allowed to work in any occupation they wanted. Admission to universities
29463-410: Was composed of El Nil , Knight of Malta and Rodi ; the second, Malta Slow 1 (MS 1)/ME 1 was composed of Kirkland , Masirah , Novasli , Tweed and Zeeland . Using an aircraft carrier to ferry land-based aircraft to Malta had been discussed by the Admiralty in July and once Italy had declared war, the reinforcement of Malta could be delayed no longer. The training aircraft carrier HMS Argus
29646-436: Was coordinated with Operation MC 4, consisting of Convoy MW 5 + 1 ⁄ 2 with Breconshire and Clan Macaulay from Alexandria to Malta, ME 6, a return journey of ME 5 + 1 ⁄ 2 with Lanarkshire and Waiwera and ME 6, with Volo , Rodi , Pontfield , Devis , Hoegh Hood , Trocas and RFA Plumleaf . The convoys arrived safely with 10,000 short tons (9,072 t) of supplies. The cruiser Southampton
29829-422: Was determined based on examination results. The government also recruited more than 3,000 Westerners to teach modern science, mathematics, technology, and foreign languages in Japan ( O-yatoi gaikokujin ). Despite this, social mobility was still low due to samurai and their descendants being overrepresented in the new elite class. After sending observers to the United States, the Empire of Japan initially copied
30012-472: Was diverted to Benghazi but was severely damaged by bombing en route and had to be scuttled. On 17 January, the destroyer HMS Gurkha was torpedoed by U-133 ; the Dutch destroyer HNLMS Isaac Sweers towed her clear of blazing oil, allowing most of her crew to be rescued before she sank. The three remaining freighters reached Malta, air attacks on the ships being intercepted by fighters from No. 201 (Naval Co-operation) Group based in Cyrenaica,
30195-555: Was enacted, officially ending the Japanese Empire and forming modern Japan . During this time, the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces were dissolved. It was later replaced by the current Japan Self-Defense Forces in 1954. Reconstruction under the Allied occupation continued until 1952, consolidating the modern Japanese constitutional monarchy . In total, the Empire of Japan had three emperors: Meiji , Taishō , and Shōwa . The Imperial era came to an end partway through Shōwa's reign , and he remained emperor until 1989. The historical state
30378-530: Was escorted by Force B, the cruisers HMS Cleopatra , Dido , Euryalus , the anti-aircraft cruiser Carlisle and the six ships of the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla . The 5th Destroyer Flotilla sailed from Tobruk on an anti-submarine sweep, before joining the convoy on 21 March. Clan Campbell struggled to keep up because of engine trouble and the convoy timetable was not met. Several British submarines participated near Messina and Taranto to watch for Italian ships. Long Range Desert Group parties were to attack
30561-458: Was especially angered by the invasion and sought to support China. In March 1939, Germany took over Czechoslovakia , just six months after signing the Munich Agreement , which sought to appease Hitler by ceding the mainly ethnic German Czechoslovak borderlands; while most of Europe had celebrated the agreement as a major victory for peace, the open flaunting of its terms demonstrated the failure of appeasement. Britain and France, which had been
30744-432: Was falling, three Italian battleships two cruisers and ten destroyers appeared and Breconshire and two escorts were diverted to the south-west as the rest of the British ships turned towards the Italian fleet. With the escorts between the Italians and Breconshire , the ship was handed over to Force K as it arrived and set a smoke screen. The opposing ships diverged in the dark and Force K turned for Malta with Breconshire ;
30927-519: Was founded, de jure , after the 1889 signing of Constitution of the Empire of Japan. The constitution formalized much of the Empire's political structure and gave many responsibilities and powers to the Emperor. In 1890, the Imperial Diet was established in response to the Meiji Constitution. The Diet consisted of the House of Representatives of Japan and the House of Peers . Both houses opened seats for colonial people as well as Japanese. The Imperial Diet continued until 1947. Economic development
31110-406: Was hit and had to return to Gibraltar, and a destroyer was so badly damaged it was scuttled, but air cover from Ark Royal enabled the convoy to reach the Skerki Channel by late afternoon. The covering force turned for Gibraltar and the rest of the convoy pressed on, facing more Regia Aeronautica attacks; these forced another damaged destroyer to drop out and return to Gibraltar. Turning north,
31293-484: Was made more difficult from its bases in Gibraltar to the west and Cyprus , Egypt and Palestine to the east, which were much further away. Two weeks later, the Second Armistice at Compiègne ended British access to Mediterranean Sea bases in France and passage to Mediterranean colonies. The British attack on Mers-el-Kébir on 3 July 1940 against French naval ships, began an informal war between Vichy France and Britain. Axis support for General Francisco Franco in
31476-434: Was near-missed, disabled and taken under tow but scuttled by Lively after it was realised she could not reach Malta before dark: the escort had been warned that the Italian battleship Duilio had sailed from Taranto to intercept the convoy. On 6 March, Operation Spotter, a Club Run by the aircraft carriers Eagle and Argus flew off the first 15 Spitfire reinforcements for Malta. An earlier attempt had been abandoned but
31659-457: Was not a sovereign dominion. It governed itself internally and controlled its own armed forces, but had no diplomatic autonomy, and, therefore, was officially at war as soon as Britain was at war. The Southern Rhodesian colonial government issued a symbolic declaration of war nevertheless on 3 September 1939, which made no difference diplomatically but preceded the declarations of war made by all other British dominions and colonies. These included:
31842-417: Was prompted by his learning of a series of arson attacks in Edo, starting with the burning of the outworks of Edo Castle , the main Tokugawa residence. The Boshin War ( 戊辰戦争 , Boshin Sensō ) was fought between January 1868 and May 1869. The alliance of samurai from southern and western domains and court officials had now secured the cooperation of the young Emperor Meiji, who ordered the dissolution of
32025-415: Was repressed and adherents were persecuted. After the Tokugawa shogunate banned Christianity in 1620, it ceased to exist publicly. Many Catholics went underground, becoming hidden Christians ( 隠れキリシタン , kakure kirishitan ) , while others lost their lives. After Japan was opened to foreign powers in 1853, many Christian clergymen were sent from Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches, though proselytism
32208-409: Was set for mid-July 1942 but cancelled. The siege of Malta eased after the Allied victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942). The Axis retreat from Egypt and Cyrenaica brought more of the seas around Malta into range of Allied land-based aircraft. In Operation Stoneage , which began after Operation Torch (8–16 November), round the clock air cover was possible and all
32391-408: Was slowed by engine trouble and on 16 December the force headed west in daylight without zig-zagging. After dark a cruiser and two destroyers turned back and made spurious wireless broadcasts to simulate the battle fleet at sea. Destroyers left Malta on 16 December and at 6:00 p.m. Force K comprising two cruisers and two destroyers sailed to meet Breconshire and escort it into Grand Harbour. During
32574-426: Was still banned. Only after the Meiji Restoration, was Christianity re-established in Japan. Freedom of religion was introduced in 1871, giving all Christian communities the right to legal existence and preaching. Eastern Orthodoxy was brought to Japan in the 19th century by St. Nicholas (baptized as Ivan Dmitrievich Kasatkin), who was sent in 1861 by the Russian Orthodox Church to Hakodate , Hokkaidō as priest to
32757-441: Was sunk, the cruiser HMS Gloucester and aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious were badly damaged and a destroyer was damaged beyond repair. Excess was the first occasion that the Luftwaffe participated in an anti-convoy operation; the Italian torpedo boat Vega was sunk during the operations by the cruiser HMS Bonaventure . Operation MC 8, from19 to 21 February, delivered troops, vehicles and stores to Malta in
32940-457: Was the Japanese nation-state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 until the Constitution of Japan took effect on 3 May 1947. From 1910 to 1945 , it included the Japanese archipelago , the Kurils , Karafuto , Korea , and Taiwan . Concessions such as the Kwantung Leased Territory were de jure not parts of the empire but dependent territories. In the closing stages of World War II , with Japan defeated alongside
33123-416: Was too anxious to prove a point ... he suffered from an inferiority complex." During December 1941, Roosevelt devised the name "United Nations" for the Allies and Churchill agreed. He referred to the Big Three and China as the " Four Policemen " repeatedly from 1942. The alliance was formalised in the Declaration by United Nations signed on 1 January 1942. There were the 26 original signatories of
33306-412: Was used to despatch twelve Hurricanes to Malta from a position to the south-west of Sardinia. Hurry was the first Club Run to reinforce the air defence of the island, despite the British Chiefs of Staff decision two months earlier that nothing could be done to reinforce Malta. Club Runs continued until it was possible to fly the aircraft direct from Gibraltar. The Mediterranean Fleet in Alexandria escorted
33489-405: Was very confused. Free French forces were recognized only by Britain, while the United States considered Vichy France to be the legal government of the country until Operation Overlord , while also preparing U.S. occupation francs . Winston Churchill urged Roosevelt to restore France to its status of a major power after the liberation of Paris in August 1944; the Prime Minister feared that after
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