Meiji era (1868-1912)-Annexation of Korea

In January 1876, following the Meiji Restoration, Japan employed gunboat diplomacy to pressure Korea to sign the Treaty of Ganghwa, regarded as an unequal treaty, which granted extraterritorial rights to Japanese citizens and opened three Korean ports to Japanese trade. The rights granted to Japan under the treaty were similar to those granted western powers in Japan following the visit of Commodore Perry.

Korea in the Japanese Empire, 1939

Korea was occupied and declared a Japanese protectorate following the 1905 Eulsa Treaty, and officially annexed in 1910 through the annexation treaty. Japan's involvement in the region began with the 1876 Treaty of Ganghwa during the Joseon Dynasty and increased with the subsequent assassination of Empress Myeongseong (also known as "Queen Min") in 1895. The 1905 and 1910 treaties were eventually declared "null and void" by both Japan and South Korea in 1965.

In Korea, the period is usually described as a time of Japanese "forced occupation" (Hangul: ?? ???; Ilje gangjeomgi, Hanja: ?????). Other terms used for it include "Japanese Imperial Period" (Hangul: ????, Ilje sidae, Hanja: ????) or "Japanese administration" (Hangul: ??, Wae jeong, Hanja: ??).

In Japan, a more common description is "Japanese rule" (?????????, Nippon T?chi-jidai no Ch?sen?).

In the late 19th and early 20th century, various Western countries actively competed for influence, trade, and territory in East Asia, and Japan sought to join these modern colonial powers. The newly modernised Meiji government of Japan turned to Korea, then in the sphere of influence of China's Qing Dynasty. The Japanese government initially sought to separate Korea from Qing and make Korea a Japanese satellite in order to further their security and national interests.

Korea would be officially part of the Empire of Japan for 35-years from August 22, 1910 until the formal Japanese rule ended on September 2, 1945 upon the Japanese defeat in World War II in 1945.

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