Unequal treaty | |||||||||||||
Chinese name | |||||||||||||
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Traditional Chinese | 不平等條約 | ||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 不平等条约 | ||||||||||||
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Korean name | |||||||||||||
Hangul | 불평등 조약 | ||||||||||||
Hanja | 不平等條約 | ||||||||||||
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Japanese name | |||||||||||||
Kanji | 不平等条約 | ||||||||||||
Kana | ふびょうどうじょうやく | ||||||||||||
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An unequal treaty is any of a series of treaties signed with Western powers during the 19th and early 20th centuries by Qing dynasty China and late Tokugawa Japan after suffering military defeat by the foreign powers or when there was a threat of military action by those powers. The term is also applied to treaties imposed during the same time period on late Joseon Korea by the post-Meiji Restoration Empire of Japan.
Starting with the rise of nationalism, anti-imperialism, and revanchism in the 1920s, the Kuomintang and Chinese Communist Party used these concepts to characterize the Chinese experience in losses of sovereignty between roughly 1839–1949. The term "unequal treaty" became associated with the concept of China's "Century of Humiliation", especially the forced opening of the treaty ports, the imposition of European extraterritoriality on foreigners living in China, and loss of tariff autonomy.
Contents
China
The historian Wang Dong concludes that "although the phrase has long been widely used, (unequal treaty) nevertheless lacks a clear and unambiguous meaning" and that there is "no agreement about the actual number of treaties signed between China and foreign countries that should be counted as 'unequal'."[1] The term "unequal treaty" did not come into use until early in the 20th century. These treaties were considered unequal in China "because they were not negotiated by nations treating each other as equals but were imposed on China after a war, and because they encroached upon China's sovereign rights ... which reduced her to semicolonial status". In many cases China was effectively forced to pay large amounts of reparations, open up ports for trade, cede or lease territories (such as Hong Kong to Great Britain and Macau to Portugal), and make various other concessions of sovereignty to foreign "spheres of influence", following military defeats.[2]
The earliest treaty later referred to as "unequal" was the 1841 Convention of Chuenpee negotiations during the First Opium War. China and Great Britain signed the first unequal treaties under the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842. Following Qing China's defeat, treaties with Britain opened up five ports to foreign trade, while also allowing foreign missionaries, at least in theory, to reside within China. In addition, foreign residents in the port cities were afforded trials by their own consular authorities rather than the Chinese legal system, a concept termed extraterritoriality.[3] Under the treaties, the UK and the US established the British Supreme Court for China and Japan and United States Court for China in Shanghai.
Chinese resentment
After World War I, patriotic consciousness in China focused on the treaties, which now became widely known as "unequal treaties". The Nationalist Party and the Communist Party competed to convince the public that their approach would be more effective.[4] Germany was forced to terminate its rights, the Soviet Union ostentatiously surrendered them, and the United States organized the Washington Conference to negotiate them. After Chiang Kai-shek declared a new national government in 1927, the western powers quickly offered diplomatic recognition, arousing anxiety in Japan.[5] The new government declared to the Great Powers that China had been exploited for decades under unequal treaties, and that the time for such treaties was over, demanding they renegotiate all of them on equal terms.[6] In the face of Japanese expansion in China, however, ending the system was postponed.[citation needed]
Most of China's unequal treaties were abrogated during the Second Sino-Japanese War, which started in 1937 and merged into the larger context of World War II. The United States Congress ended American extraterritoriality in December 1943. Significant examples of unequal treaties with China did outlast World War II: unequal treaties regarding Hong Kong remained in place until Hong Kong's 1997 handover, and in 1969, to improve Sino-Russian relations, China reconfirmed the 1859 Treaty of Aigun.[citation needed]
Japan and Korea
When the American Commodore Matthew Perry reached Japan in 1854, it signed the Convention of Kanagawa. Its importance was limited. Much more important was the Harris treaty of 1858 negotiated by U.S. envoy Townsend Harris.[7]
Korea's first unequal treaty was not with the West but with Japan. Taking a page from Western tactics, in 1875 Japan sent Captain Inoue Yoshika and the warship Un'yō to display military might over Korea in the Ganghwa Island incident. This forced Korea to open its doors to Japan by signing the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1876.[8]
The unequal treaties ended at various times for the countries involved. Japan's victories in the 1894–95 First Sino-Japanese War convinced many in the West that unequal treaties could no longer be enforced on Japan. Korea's unequal treaties with European states became largely null and void in 1910, when it was annexed by Japan.[9]
Select list of unequal treaties
Unequal treaties imposed on China
Unequal treaties imposed on Japan
Imposed on Japan | |||
---|---|---|---|
Treaty | Year | Imposer | |
English name | Japanese name | ||
Convention of Kanagawa | 日米和親条約 | 1854[10] | ![]() |
Anglo-Japanese Friendship Treaty | 日英和親条約 | 1854[11] | ![]() |
Ansei Treaties | 安政条約 | 1858[12] | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Treaty of Amity and Commerce (Harris Treaty) | 日米修好通商条約 | 1858[13] | ![]() |
Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce | 日英修好通商条約 | 1858[14] | ![]() |
Prussian-Japanese Treaty of Amity, Commerce and Navigation | 1861[15] | ![]() |
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Spanish-Japanese Treaty of Amity, Commerce and Navigation | 日西修好通商航海条約 | 1868[16] | ![]() |
Unequal treaties imposed on Korea
Other uses
The term "unequal treaty" was used in 2006 by the RESPECT MP George Galloway and the then Liberal Democrat leader Menzies Campbell to refer to the 2003 UK–US extradition treaty.[41][42]
The 1903 Cuban–American Treaty, which granted the United States a perpetual lease of Guantanamo Bay, is seen as an "unequal treaty" by Professor Alfred de Zayas.[43]
The American annexation of Hawaii in 1898 has been described as an example of the "unequal treaty doctrine" and its consequences.[44]
See also
- Client state
- Puppet state
- Most favoured nation
- Treaty of Waitangi
- Capitulations of the Ottoman Empire
References
Citations
- ^ Dong Wang, China's Unequal Treaties: Narrating National History (Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 2005), p. 2 .
- ^ Hsü, Immanuel C. Y. (1970). The Rise of Modern China. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 239. ISBN 0195012402.
- ^ Dong Wang, China's Unequal Treaties: Narrating National History (Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 2005), .
- ^ Dong Wang, China's Unequal Treaties: Narrating National History (Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 2005).
- ^ Akira Iriye, After Imperialism: The Search for a New Order in the Far East, 1921–1931 (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1965; Reprinted: Chicago: Imprint Publications, 1990), passim.
- ^ "CHINA: Nationalist Notes". TIME. June 25, 1928. Retrieved April 11, 2011.
- ^ Michael R. Auslin (2006). Negotiating with Imperialism: The Unequal Treaties and the Culture of Japanese Diplomacy. Harvard University Press. pp. 17, 44.
- ^ Preston, Peter Wallace. [1998] (1998). Blackwell Publishing. Pacific Asia in the Global System: An Introduction. ISBN 0-631-20238-2
- ^ I. H. Nish, "Japan Reverses the Unequal Treaties: The Anglo-Japanese Commercial Treaty of 1894," Journal of Oriental Studies (1975) 13#2 pp 137-146.
- ^ Auslin, Michael R. (2004) Negotiating with Imperialism: The Unequal Treaties and the Culture of Japanese Diplomacy, p. 17., p. 17, at Google Books
- ^ Auslin, p. 30., p. 30, at Google Books
- ^ Auslin, pp. 1, 7., p. 1, at Google Books
- ^ Auslin, p. 214., p. 214, at Google Books
- ^ Auslin, pp. 47–48., p. 47, at Google Books
- ^ Auslin, p. 71., p. 71, at Google Books
- ^ Auslin, Michael R. (2004) Negotiating with Imperialism: The Unequal Treaties and the Culture of Japanese Diplomacy, p. 154., p. 154, at Google Books
- ^ Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921–1922. (1922). Korea's Appeal to the Conference on Limitation of Armament, p. 33., p. 33, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty Between Japan and Korea, dated February 26, 1876."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 29., p. 29, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between the United States and Korea. Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation dated May 22, 1882."
- ^ Moon, Myungki. "Korea-China Treaty System in the 1880s and the Opening of Seoul: Review of the Joseon-Qing Communication and Commerce Rules," Journal of Northeast Asian History, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Dec 2008), pp. 85–120.
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Germany and Korea. Treaty of Amity and Commerce dated November 23, 1883."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Great Britain and Korea ... dated November 26, 1883."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and Russia. Treaty of Amity and Commerce dated June 25, 1884."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and Italy. Treaty of Friendship and Commerce dated June 26, 1884."
- ^ Yi, Kwang-gyu and Joseph P. Linskey. (2003). Korean Traditional Culture, p. 63., p. 63, at Google Books; excerpt, "The so-called Hanseong Treaty was concluded between Korea and Japan. Korea paid compensation for Japanese losses. Japan and China worked out the Tien-Tsin Treaty, which ensured that both Japanese and Chinese troops withraw from Korea."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and France. Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation dated June 4, 1886."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and Austria. Treaty of Amity and Commerce dated July 23, 1892."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and Belgium. Treaty of Amity and Commerce dated March 23, 1901."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 32., p. 32, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty and Diplomatic Relations Between Korea and Denmark. Treaty of Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation dated July 15, 1902."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 34., p. 34, at Google Books; excerpt, "Treaty of Alliance Between Japan and Korea, dated February 23, 1904."
- ^ Note that the Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament in Washington, D.C., 1921–1922 identified this as "Treaty of Alliance Between Japan and Korea, dated February 23, 1904"
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 35., p. 35, at Google Books; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated August 22, 1904."
- ^ Note that the Korean diplomats in 1921–1922 identified this as "Alleged Treaty, dated August 22, 1904"
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 35., p. 35, at Google Books; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated April 1, 1905."
- ^ Note that the Korean diplomats in 1921–1922 identified this as "Alleged Treaty, dated April 1, 1905"
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 35., p. 35, at Google Books; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated August 13, 1905."
- ^ Note that the Korean diplomats in 1921–1922 identified this as "Alleged Treaty, dated August 13, 1905"
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 35., p. 35, at Google Books; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated November 17, 1905."
- ^ Note that the Korean diplomats in 1921–1922 identified this as "Alleged Treaty, dated November 17, 1905"
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 35., p. 35, at Google Books; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated July 24, 1907."
- ^ Korean Mission, p. 36., p. 36, at Google Books; excerpt, "Alleged Treaty, dated August 20, 1910."
- ^ UK–US Extradition Treaty, House of Commons Hansard column 1437, July 12, 2006
- ^ Trapped by an unequal treaty The Independent, July 6, 2006
- ^ A. de Zayas The status of Guantanamo Bay and the status of the detainees, 2003
- ^ Morse, Bradford Wilmot. (1990). "American Annexation of Hawaii: An Example of the Unequal Treaty Doctrine" (with Kazi A. Hamid). Connecticut Journal of International Law, Vol. 5, pp. 407–456.
Bibliography
- Auslin, Michael R. (2004). Negotiating with Imperialism: The Unequal Treaties and the Culture of Japanese Diplomacy. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 10-ISBN 0-674-01521-5; 13-ISBN 978-0-674-01521-0; OCLC 56493769
- Hsü, Immanuel Chung-yueh (1970). The Rise of Modern China. New York: Oxford University Press. OCLC 300287988
- Perez, Louis G. Japan Comes of Age: Mutsu Munemitsu & the Revision of the Unequal Treaties (1999) 244pp
- Wang, Dong. "The Discourse of Unequal Treaties in Modern China," Pacific Affairs (2003) 76#3 pp 399–425.
- Nish, I. H. "Japan Reverses the Unequal Treaties: The Anglo-Japanese Commercial Treaty of 1894," Journal of Oriental Studies (1975) 13#2 pp 137–146.
- Ringmar, Erik (2013). Liberal Barbarism: The European Destruction of the Palace of the Emperor of China (PDF). New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Wang, Dong. (2005). China's Unequal Treaties: Narrating National History. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books. 10-ISBN 0739112082/13-ISBN 9780739112083; OCLC 60311787
Primary sources
- Halleck, Henry Wager. (1861). International law: or, Rules regulating the intercourse of states in peace and war New York: D. Van Nostrand. OCLC 852699
- Korean Mission to the Conference on the Limitation of Armament, Washington, D.C., 1921–1922. (1922). Korea's Appeal to the Conference on Limitation of Armament. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office. OCLC 12923609