South Pacific Mandate

South Pacific Mandate
南洋庁
Mandate of Empire of Japan
←
1919–1947 →


Flag

Location of the South Pacific Mandate in the western Pacific Ocean.
Capital Koror
Languages Japanese (official)
Austronesian languages
Political structure League of Nations Mandate
Emperor
 -  1919–1926 Taishō (Yoshihito)
 - 1926–1947 Shōwa (Hirohito)
Governor
 - 1919–1923 (first) Toshirō Tezuka
 - 1943–1946 (last) Boshirō Hosogaya
Historical era Empire of Japan
 -  Treaty of Versailles June 28, 1919
 -  Pacific Islands Trusteeship July 18, 1947
Currency Yen, Oceanian Pound
Today part of  Palau
 Marshall Islands
 FSM
 Northern Mariana Islands ( United States)

The South Pacific Mandate (南洋庁 Nan'yō-chō, lit. South Seas Mandate) was the Japanese League of Nations mandate consisting of several groups of islands (modern-day Palau, Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Marshall Islands) in the Pacific Ocean which came under the administration of Japan after the defeat of the German Empire in World War I.[1]

History

Early history

Under the terms of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, after the start of World War I, Japan declared war on Germany on 23 August 1914.[2] The country participated in a joint operation with British forces in the Battle of Tsingtao to capture the German settlement in China's Shandong Province. The Imperial Japanese Navy was tasked with pursuing and destroying the German East Asiatic Squadron and protection of the shipping lanes for Allied commerce in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

During the course of this operation, the Japanese Navy seized the German possessions in the Marianas, Carolines, Marshall Islands and Palau groups by October 1914.[2]

After the end of World War I, as determined in the Treaty of Versailles, Japanese occupation of former German colonies in Micronesia north of the equator was formally recognized, and Japan was given a League of Nations Class C mandate.[2]

The Nan'yō government built and maintained hospitals[3] and schools.[4]

Pacific War

During the 1930s, the Japanese Navy began construction of airfields, fortifications, ports, and other military projects in the islands controlled under the mandate, viewing the islands as "unsinkable aircraft carriers" with a critical role to play in the defense of the Japanese home islands against potential American invasion. These became important staging grounds for Japanese air and naval offensives in the Pacific War.

In addition to the islands' naval importance, the Japanese Army utilized the islands to support air and land detachments. The "island-hopping" strategy employed by the United States military caused the Japanese Empire to lose control of its Pacific possessions between 1943 and 1945.

The League of Nations mandate was formally revoked by the United Nations in July 1947, and the United States was made responsible for administration of the islands under the terms of a United Nations trusteeship agreement which established the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

Administration

Militarily and economically, Saipan, in the Marianas archipelago, was the most important island in the South Pacific Mandate and became the center of subsequent Japanese settlement. Another important island was Truk in the Carolines archipelago, which was fortified into a major navy base by the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Headquarters of the South Pacific Mandate in Saipan.

The administration of South Pacific Mandate was managed by the Imperial Japanese Navy, which divided the region into six administrative districts reporting to naval headquarters in Truk. Later, in April 1922, civilian government was established in the form of a civil administration department which still reported to the local naval garrison commander in each of the six administrative districts: Saipan, Palau, Yap, Truk, Ponape and Jaluit Atoll.

Later, the headquarters of the South Pacific Mandate was transferred from Truk to Koror, Palau, and its governor reported directly to the Prime Minister of Japan. However, after the establishment of a Ministry of Colonial Affairs, the mandate's governor was ordered to report to the colonial minister in June 1929.

When colonial affairs were absorbed into the Ministry of Greater East Asia in November 1942, the primacy of the Imperial Japanese Navy was again recognized by appointing an admiral as governor. Furthermore, the six administrative districts were reduced to three in November 1943: North, East, and West.

Significance

The population of the South Pacific Mandate was too small to provide significant markets and the indigenous people had very limited financial resources for the purchase of imported goods. The major significance of the mandate to the Empire of Japan was its strategic location, dominating sea lanes across the Pacific Ocean and providing convenient provisioning locations for sailing vessels in need of water, fresh fruit, vegetables and meat. Later, the islands became important coaling stations for steam-powered vessels.

Population

The initial population figures (1919-1920) for the mandated territories included around 50,000 indigenous islanders. The total grew to 70,000 inhabitants in 1930, and more than 80,000 in 1933, as more Japanese settled in the islands.[5] In the census of December 1939, the total population was 129,104, of which 77,257 were Japanese (including ethnic Taiwanese and Koreans), 51,723 indigenous islanders and 124 foreigners.

Economy

The mandated territories produced significant quantities of sugar cane, bananas, pineapples, taro, coconuts, and other tropical farming products on a par with Taiwan. The islands also provided bases for the Japanese fishing fleet.

In terms of mineral products, many islands yielded phosphates for farming, especially from Angaur island, which produced some 60,000 tonnes per year. Bauxite was another segment of the colonial economic structure, although the mineral was only present in the Palau group. Large quantities of pearls, both natural and cultured, were extracted from the islands.

The islands also allowed for regular flight links for long range seaplanes such as the Kawanishi H6K2-L ("Mavis") of Dai Nippon Koku KK.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1962). Sovereign and Subject, pp. 346-353.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ponsonby-Fane, p. 348.
  3. ↑ Ponsonby-Fane, p. 350.
  4. ↑ Ponsonby-Fane, pp. 350-351.
  5. ↑ Peattie, Mark R. (1988). Nanʻyō: the rise and fall of the Japanese in Micronesia, 1885–1945, p. 155.

References

Further reading

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