Japan's Rise to Power

  • Commodore Perry Arrives in Japan

  • First of the Unequal Treaties Signed

  • Tokugawa Shogunate Ends

  • Emperor Meiji Formally Restored to Power

  • Iwakura Mission Tours Europe/USA to Learn Western Ways

  • Start of First Sino-Japanese War

  • End of First Sino-Japanese War

  • Russo-Japanese War Begins

  • Russo-Japanese War Ends

  • Annexation of Korea

  • Taisho Period Begins

  • Entrance to World War One, Allied with the Entente Powers

  • End of the Paris Peace Conference

  • Showa Period Begins

  • Invasion of Manchuria

  • Puppet State of Manchukuo Formed

  • Start of Second Sino-Japanese War

  • Bombing of Pearl Harbor

  • Atomic Bomb Dropped on Hiroshima

  • Atomic Bomb Dropped on Nagasaki

  • End of Second Sino-Japanese War

  • Formal Surrender of World War Two

  • New Constitution Takes Effect

  • Treaty of Peace with Japan Signed

  • Olympic Games Hosted in Tokyo

  • Economy Becomes Second Largest in the World