The First Sino-Japanese War(also known as War of Jiawu in China and Japan–Qing War in Japan) was fought between China and Japan over their influence on Korea in 1895. It was a big turning point because it symbols the fall of the Qing Empire and the rise of the Empire of Japan. However, not many people know that Great Britain had a pretty special role in this war.

(I heard this story from a Chinese TV program about history. Since I am not a history expert, I am not writing a very academic article. Just take it as a story if you don't know much about it!)

Burning Fuse Of The War

In 1894, Japanese warship "Naniwa" sank a ship called " Kowshing " carrying Chinese soldiers near Korea. However

" Kowshing " was actually a British ship which has British captain and crews. At that time, Great Britain was the super power in the ocean. There was a British fleet in Asia. After the incident, the vice-commander of the fleet even attempted to take revenge on Japan. Finally, Japan did not receive any punishment since Britain wanted a rising power to counter Russian influence over Asia.

Stance of Great Britain

China and Japan were the only two official fighting units in this war. But the interesting part was, British navy was actually near the fight and following the progress of the war. In fact, Great Britain did not stop Japan from attacking, but at the same time, Britain did not want Japan to get too much from the war. Great Britain started their business and trade with China for a while. One big responsibility of the British Navy in Asia was to protect the business and interests of Britain there. Not to mention that there are British living in the International Settlement in Shanghai. If Japan crossed the line, the British fleet would act immediately.

Taiwan Problem

After the war, the biggest benefit Japan gained was surely a new colony---Taiwan. But before that, some said that there was an interesting story too. Everyone could tell for sure that Chinese were absolutely reluctant to cede huge amount of land and resources to an enemy. So some officials in China even suggested to rent Taiwan to Great Britain(similar example of Hong Kong). Great Britain, as a country full of diplomatic experience, refused to do that. When we look back to this, we probably cannot resist to imagine what history would go if Britain took Taiwan.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is the end of this story. If you find anything incorrect here, please feel free to remind me. I ain't an expert, so please don't ask for too much from me. XD