“Within a period of two weeks, all of German Micronesia north of the equator was in Japanese hands. German possessions to the south would go to the British, Australians and New Zealanders.”
By George Yagi Jr.
ON JUNE 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were assassinated in Sarajevo. Their deaths immediately triggered a diplomatic crisis, leading to the outbreak of the First World War. On August 4, Great Britain declared war on Germany, which in turn would lead to the entrance of a rising power in the Far East into the conflict: the Empire of Japan.
Emerging from feudalism in 1868, Japan was eager to prove itself as an equal to nations in the West. In 1895, it unseated China as the region’s superpower and by 1905 had triumphed over Russia in the Russo-Japanese War, marking the first time in modern history that a Western power was defeated by an Asian nation. Prior to the outbreak of hostilities with Russia, Japan entered into a pact with Britain in 1902. With the outbreak of war in 1914, the British would invoke the Anglo-Japanese Alliance and draw Tokyo into the conflict.
Initially, the British Foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Grey, wanted only limited assistance from his country’s Eastern ally. This was due to fears in the Foreign Office that Japan would use the war as an opportunity to expand its influence in the Pacific, which would lead to strong opposition from Australia, New Zealand and even the United States, who would feel threatened by a Japanese presence near their domains. However, Grey’s efforts to constrain Japan worried the First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill. “You may easily give mortal offence – which will not be forgotten,” he warned.
With Churchill’s intervention, Tokyo would be brought into the conflict as a full participant, despite the efforts of some to treat the emergent empire as a junior partner.
Eager to make its mark on the world stage, Japan issued an ultimatum to Germany on Aug. 15. While the document only demanded the handover of Germany’s Chinese colony of Tsingtao, members of the Japanese Imperial Navy planned for the occupation of German holdings in Micronesia.
Officially, Navy Minister Rokuro Yashiro warned the commanders of the two task forces destined to seek and destroy German shipping in the region that they were not to occupy enemy territory. Upon learning this, the Commander of the Second South Seas Task Force, Admiral Tatsuo Matsumura, sought out the opinion of the Navy Ministry.
During a meeting with navy director general Admiral Saneyuki Akiyama, Matsumura was told to ignore the Navy Minister’s orders. These views were later supported by Vice Chief of Staff Admiral Yoshika Inoue. “As long as the islands are enemy territory, what should you be afraid of?” asked Inoue.
While Matsumura pondered his options, the Commander of the First Seas Task Force, Admiral Tanin Yamaya, seized the initiative. Ignoring the Navy Minister’s directive, Yamaya moved to capture German Micronesia.
Administered from the German protectorate of New Guinea, the territories of the Northern Marianas and the Caroline and Marshall islands, among others in the region, were ceded to Berlin by Spain through a series of treaties and agreements in the 1880s and 1890s. The annexations were part of Germany’s campaign to secure a collection of overseas colonies to rival those of other imperial powers like Britain and France. Small, sparsely inhabited and with few valuable resources, the islands would nonetheless provide Kaiser Wilhelm II with a foothold in the region, helping to achieve what the monarch would later refer to as “a place in the sun” for his empire.
As Yamaya’s squadron approached Germany’s distant outposts in the South Pacific, they had little to fear from any opposition. In 1914, there were no German troops stationed in the region, and the local population had received no military training. The artillery pieces that did exist on the islands were mostly used for ceremonial salutes and useless in the face of any invasion. In addition, while Germany did have a Pacific fleet based at Tsingtao, the fleet viewed its visits to the islands as recreational and not even official government coal depots had been established to support them. Instead, the German warships had to rely on private companies such as Norddeutscher Lloyd or the Neuguinea-Kompanie. Ultimately, with no military provisions made for its defense, it was clear that German Micronesia existed simply to boost the prestige of the Reich.
On Sept. 29, Yamaya struck the commercial heart of German Micronesia, and occupied Jaluit Atoll in the Marshall Islands. On learning of his actions, Japan’s Navy Ministry immediately ordered his withdrawal. Yamaya withdrew his forces and occupied nearby Eniwetok instead. Due to Yamaya’s success and earlier discussions with Matsumura, the naval staff reconsidered their earlier instructions and approved Japanese occupation of German Micronesia. Following the capture of Jaluit again on Oct. 3, Japan waited for a British reaction to the seizure of the atoll. None was forthcoming.
Convinced that the silence signalled London’s approval, the Japanese quickly proceeded to occupy other islands. Ponape in the Carolines was soon captured on Oct. 7, although the territory’s surrender was delayed a few days after a small local defence force took to the island’s interior to mount a resistance. Soon they realized their situation was hopeless and lay down their weapons. The Caroline islands of Yap also fell on Oct. 7, followed by Koror the next day and Angaur on Oct. 9. Truk Atoll was captured on Oct. 12, Saipan on Oct. 14 and Rota a week later. Within a period of two weeks, all of German Micronesia north of the equator was in Japanese hands. German possessions elsewhere in the Pacific would go to the British, Australians and New Zealanders.
Soon after their capture, Japanese administrators arrived in the Marianas, Caroline and Marshall Islands to develop the local economy and establish infrastructure at levels unseen in previous times. Roads, wharfs, schools, public buildings, radio stations and telephone networks quickly appeared, while efforts were made to improve agricultural production. Immigrants from Japan also sailed into ports, boosting the local population, and even the towns began taking on a different appearance. By the end of the First World War, visitors to Saipan noted that the capital, Garapan, resembled a city in Japan. With the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, German Micronesia also received a new name, and was known as the South Seas Mandate. The Japanese Empire had expanded into the South Pacific, and would remain there until the outbreak of another world war.
Dr. George Yagi Jr. is an award winning author and historian at California State University, East Bay. Follow him on Twitter @gyagi_jr
