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I am reading "The First World War" by Hew Strachan.. I know Japan got a foot hold in China during the First WW, but did not know that the way this came about was by Japan taking the German base at Tsingtao, part of Shantung Province. The Germans acquired this base in 1897.
Can anyone tell me how Germany got this base? Germany was not a major colonizer, so it seems a strange place for them to have a naval base.
Actually they were. They had many holdings in Africa, and thruout the Pacific.
All of those "possessions" were divied up between the victorious allied powers via terms of the Treaty of Versailles. Some of them extended Japan's Pacific bases, and they became battle grounds in the second war.
Actually they were. They had many holdings in Africa, and thruout the Pacific.
All of those "possessions" were divied up between the victorious allied powers via terms of the Treaty of Versailles. Some of them extended Japan's Pacific bases, and they became battle grounds in the second war.
It’s true that Germany isn’t exactly the first country to come to mind when you start talking about colonialism in the late 19th century. The Germans were very late to the game and really only entered into it more by happenstance than anything else. German merchants had been going abroad for some time, setting up trading posts and so on, but these were never official attempts at establishing colonies.
That all changed however, in late 1883, when a merchant from Bremen, Franz Luderitz, struck a deal with local tribesman and bought himself a twenty mile strip of land on the southwest coast of Africa, in what is present day Namibia. Luderitz quickly constructed three stores and cleared a road that gave him access to the interior so he could trade with the surrounding tribes. The British merchants in nearby Cape Colony, South Africa, were not particularly happy about this turn of events, especially since they were of the belief they already had the rights to the land Luderitz just bought. They decided this German “incursion” into their territory would not be tolerated and made plans to drive Luderitz out. Word reached the Foreign Office in London, and a Royal Navy vessel was dispatched to the area to determine what was going on and to prevent anything from happening that might spark hostilities breaking out between Britain and Germany.
In the meantime, Chancellor Bismarck sent repeated messages to London in an attempt to clarify the British governments stand on the situation. Perturbed by the lack of a meaningful response, Bismarck granted official government protection to Luderitz in March of 1884. With this one act, Germany became a colonial power. Over the next year and a half, the German flag was raised over more territory in Africa and in the Pacific as Germany recognized as colonies every bit of land that a German set foot on or erected a trading post. While having a colonial empire was all well and good, Germany faced a twofold problem. For one, the majority of colonies were of limited commercial value so they contributed little in the way of money flowing into the German treasury. More significantly, Germany did not have at her disposal the means to protect these newly acquired lands spread out over such a large area. When unrest broke out in a particular colony, the Imperial Navy was called on to suppress it. But the Imperial Navy was very small and not geared to the task, so sailing from one hot spot to the next stretched naval resources to their limit. Given that these colonies were by and large being developed for commercial and not military purposes, the Imperial Navy considered them more trouble than they were worth.
Things changed, however, in 1890. An American naval officer, Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan, wrote and had published a book titled “The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783”. In his book, Captain Mahan put forth the notion that throughout history, great nations only maintained their power and influence by controlling the seas. A copy of the book found it’s way into the hands of Kaiser Wilhelm II, and after completing it, the Kaiser became convinced that Germany must build a first class navy if she wished to become a great nation. With the transition from sail power to steam power, the need for bases strategically positioned so that German vessels could not only refuel, but also exert influence across the globe, became paramount. Unfortunately for Germany, she discovered very quickly that the majority of her colonial possessions were completely unsuited for use as naval bases, and the truly desirable locations for naval bases had already been spoken for by the other European powers. Germany did have Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania which they developed for use in naval operations for Africa and the Indian Ocean. But that still left Asia. As it stood, when German navy vessels required maintenance or major repair work, they were forced to use either facilities in British controlled Hong Kong, or the Japanese port of Nagasaki. Finding a location from which the Imperial Navy could be based and protect Germany’s valuable Asian trade and the Pacific colonies was deemed a top priority.
The Sino-Japanese War of 1894 seemed to offer the possibility of rectifying the problem. With China appearing to be on the verge of total collapse, the Kaiser believed that Germany might be able to take advantage and acquire new territory for use as a naval base. With that in mind, the Kaiser asked the Imperial Navy command for their recommendations as to which places offered the best locales for their purposes. Several were suggested, including Kiaochow Bay where Tsingtao was located. But Kiaochow Bay was rumored to be subject to icing over in the winter, so it was rejected. In any event, after a peace treaty was concluded between Japan and China, only France and Russia were able to capitalize on the situation, and Germany was left out in the cold. For the next two years, the Imperial Navy explored the Chinese coast, searching in vain for a useable port. Several times the Kaiser asked them “Why not Kiaochow Bay?” and the response was always the same “Kiaochow useless”.
In 1896, the Germans received a serious shock; news was received that the Russian navy had been granted permission from the Chinese to use Kiaochow Bay as a anchorage for the winter. The Kaiser was furious. How was it that this supposedly “useless” bay was found to be suitable now by the Russians? Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz, who was being sent out to the Far East to take command of the German East Asiatic Squadron, was ordered by the Kaiser to investigate Kiaochow and determine once and for all whether it had value or not. Von Tirpitz undertook an extensive but surreptitious examination of the bay and informed the Kaiser that not only was the bay not subject to icing, but that it would serve as an ideal location for a German navy base. What ensued next was a series of lengthy and circumspect conversations with Russian naval officials to find out what, if any, designs they had on Kiaochow Bay. When it was discovered that the Russians were more interested in acquiring Port Arthur, the Kaiser made up his mind; Kiaochow Bay would belong to Germany. All that was needed was a pretext to take it forcibly from China. And that came with the murder of the Catholic missionaries in November of 1897.
The successful taking of Kiaochow would seemingly have put an end to further German territorial ambitions in the Far East. This however, was not to be the case. With the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in 1898, the Kaiser dispatched the East Asiatic Squadron to the Philippines to “observe” what was taking place. In truth, the Kaiser felt that perhaps Germany might be able to pick up a small slice of the Philippines for herself while the Spanish were distracted by the Americans. The East Asiatic Squadron took up station in Manila Bay and almost immediately raised the ire of Admiral George Dewey, commander of U.S naval forces, by repeatedly sailing through and ignoring the blockade he had set up. Dewey finally warned the Germans that any further violations would be met by gunfire and a declaration of war against Germany. Not willing to risk such a thing, the East Asiatic Squadron withdrew from Manila Bay. Still, after Spain was defeated, Germany was able to purchase the Caroline, Palau, and Marianas Islands. Though the Germans tried to pick up more islands off Africa and even in the Caribbean, with the exception of a few insignificant islands in the Pacific, the territory bought from Spain would be the last additions to the German colonial empire.
In the end, of all the colonies accumulated by Germany between 1884 and 1900, only Kiaochow Bay and Tsingtao, the so called “Pearl of the East”, ever amounted to anything. And even as valuable a prize it turned out to be, when the First World War began, Germany was not able to hold onto it. Even before a formal declaration of war against Germany was issued by Japan, the Japanese, along with a small contingent of British troops, moved against and captured Tsingtao. Driven from it’s base at Tsingtao, the German East Asiatic Squadron became homeless and wandered across the Pacific, alternating between conducting commerce raiding missions and evading the far more powerful British and Japanese naval vessels that were seeking to destroy it. The East Asiatic Squadron, under the command of Admiral Maximilian Graf von Spee, would go on to inflict a humiliating defeat on the British Royal Navy at the Battle of Coronel in November of 1914. The following month, von Spee and all but one of vessel from his squadron were destroyed by the British at the Battle of the Falkland Islands. The end of the East Asiatic Squadron severed the one remaining link between Germany and her once expansive “empire” in the Far East and Pacific.
Thanks so much, Tony. As always, an excellent post and one that really answers the question and sets up the history of the colony
My pleasure. I'm glad you found it informative.
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