Part 22 (1/2)
CHAPTER XIV
TSU-s.h.i.+MA
1905
When the war of 1894-5 between China and j.a.pan was brought to a close by the Treaty of s.h.i.+monoseki (17 April, 1895), the j.a.panese were in possession of Korea and Southern Manchuria, Port Arthur and the Liao-tung Peninsula, Wei-hai-wei and the Pescadores Islands, and a joint naval and military expedition was ready to seize Formosa.
By the second article China ceded to j.a.pan the fortress and dockyard of Port Arthur and the Liao-tung Peninsula. As soon as the terms of the treaty were published, Russia, which was the northern neighbour of China along the borders of Manchuria and Mongolia, and the neighbour of j.a.pan by the possession of Vladivostock and Saghalien, protested against the cession of Port Arthur and its territory to the victors, arguing that the permanent occupation of Port Arthur by a foreign Power would be a standing menace to the Government at Pekin, and would put an end to the independence of China.
Germany and France joined in the Russian protest, and the three Powers began to move their s.h.i.+ps eastward. Their combined squadrons would have been more than a match for Admiral Ito's cruisers. England had a powerful squadron in the Eastern seas, but observed a strict neutrality in the diplomatic strife.
If England had joined her, j.a.pan would undoubtedly have fought rather than yield up the fruit of her hard-won victories. But the Mikado's Ministers realized that single-handed they could not face a Triple Alliance of aggressive European Powers. The treaty was revised, the cession of Port Arthur and its territory being struck out of it. They were to be restored to China.
But the statesmen of j.a.pan, while they yielded the point, recognized in Russia their future rival for the empire of the East, and resolved to begin at once preparing for a struggle in years to come which would give them back more than they were now forced to abandon. They set to work to create a powerful navy, and at the same time added steadily to the fighting strength of their army, which for a while found useful war training in the subjugation of the hill tribes of Formosa. The millions of the war indemnity and loans negotiated abroad were expended on a great scheme of armaments. A fleet of battles.h.i.+ps, cruisers, and torpedo craft was built in foreign s.h.i.+pyards, and the personnel of the navy was increased to provide officers and crews. The j.a.panese Government went on for years patiently preparing, regardless of conduct on the part of Russia that might have tempted a less self-possessed Power to premature action.
The Russian Government had hardly forced j.a.pan to abandon so large a part of her conquests when it took advantage of the weakness of China to obtain from the Pekin Government the right to make a railway through Manchuria to the treaty port of Niu-chw.a.n.g, and to place garrisons along the new line for its protection, and further the right to garrison Port Arthur, use it as a naval station, and occupy the adjacent territory. When the first rumours of the Russo-Chinese Treaty reached Europe they were treated with incredulity. It was said that it was impossible that Russia could cynically claim a position which she had just declared was incompatible with the independence of China, and which she had argued the nations of Europe could not permit to j.a.pan or any other Power. But presently the treaty was published, and acted upon, Russia making Port Arthur her chief naval station in the East, announcing a project for a great commercial port at Talienwan Bay, and, further, occupying the treaty port of Niu-chw.a.n.g. There was a brief period of tension, during which there was a talk of various Powers resisting this barefaced aggression, but European statesmen thought that an easier course was open to them. Instead of resisting the aggressor, they embarked in a policy of aggression themselves, on the plea of securing compensations and guarantees. The weakness of China made her the ready victim of this policy.
Foreign aggression from so many quarters called forth a patriotic movement in China, which in 1900 culminated in the ”Boxer” revolt. For a while j.a.pan and the European Powers, including Russia, became allies, to save their emba.s.sies and repress the rising about Pekin. In the campaign the j.a.panese forces proved themselves the most efficient of all, and their chiefs returned home with an absolute confidence that they could successfully meet European soldiers in the field.
j.a.pan had made the most unsparing use of its rights in Korea, acquired by the Treaty of s.h.i.+monoseki, all but absolutely annexing the country. After the Boxer revolt Admiral Alexieff, who was governor of the Russian possessions in the Far East, embarked on a dangerous policy of provocation towards j.a.pan. He had an ill-informed contempt for the hardy islanders. He underrated their power of resistance, and felt sure that the mere fact that the Russian fleet outnumbered theirs would secure the command of the sea for Russia, and have a decisive effect in the event of a conflict. He believed that the sooner it came the better.
The Russian fleet in the East was steadily reinforced, unit by unit. The j.a.panese people began to see in these proceedings, and in the work done at Port Arthur, a threat of early hostilities, and there was a general call on the Government to antic.i.p.ate the blow, when relations became strained between the two countries in 1903. The Tokio Government was anxious not to precipitate the war, for the organization of the army required some months for completion, but the feeling in the navy, army, and civil population forced its hand. After a brief delay of negotiations, during which both parties worked with feverish energy to secure additional armaments, diplomatic relations were broken off at the beginning of February, 1904, and then, without waiting for any formal declaration of war, the j.a.panese torpedo flotilla swooped down on the Russian fleet lying in the roads outside the narrow entrance of Port Arthur, found them utterly unprepared to meet this sudden attack, and crippled several of the s.h.i.+ps. A second blow was the destruction of the first-cla.s.s armoured cruiser ”Variag,” the Russian guards.h.i.+p at Chemulpo, by a j.a.panese squadron.
Most of the best s.h.i.+ps in the Russian navy were in the East at the outbreak of the war. Alexieff had, however, made the initial mistake of dividing the force at his disposal. Away north at Vladivostock was a squadron of three large armoured cruisers, the ”Gromoboi,” ”Rossia,” and ”Rurik,” and the protected cruiser ”Bogatyr.” The ”Variag” was isolated at Chemulpo, the port of Seoul, doing duty that might have been left to a gunboat. At Port Arthur, under Admiral Stark, there was a strong fleet, including seven battles.h.i.+ps, the ”Petropavlosk,” ”Poltava,” ”Peresviet,” ”Pobieda,”
”Retsivan,” ”Sebastopol,” and ”Tsarevitch,” the cruisers ”Askold,”
”Boyarin,” ”Bayan,” ”Pallada,” ”Diana,” and ”Novik,” and a flotilla of torpedo craft and the mine-laying steamer ”Yenessei.” In the torpedo attack on the evening of 8 February the ”Retsivan,” ”Tsarevitch,” and ”Pallada”
were badly damaged. The ”Variag” was destroyed next day, and a few days later the ”Yenessei” accidentally blew herself up while laying mines. This series of disasters seemed for a while to have almost destroyed the _morale_ of the fleet. Stark set to work to repair his damaged s.h.i.+ps, made no attempt to meet the j.a.panese at sea, or interfere with the transport of their armies to the mainland of Asia, and, subordinating his fleet to the defence of Port Arthur, even landed guns and men to strengthen the landward works. The j.a.panese blockaded the port, insulted it with long-range bombardments, and tried to block the narrow entrance by sinking old steamers across it.
In March the arrival of the best officer in the Russian Navy, Admiral Makharoff, for a while inspired new energy into the Port Arthur fleet. The repairs of the injured s.h.i.+ps were completed, and on 13 April the admiral steamed out to challenge Togo and the main j.a.panese fleet to battle.
Notwithstanding precautions taken against the known danger of floating mines, the fleet entered a tract of water where several were afloat, and the flags.h.i.+p ”Petropavlosk” was destroyed with fearful suddenness by the explosion of one of them. There was great loss of life, but the most serious blow to Russia was the death of the admiral.
After the fleet returned to the harbour there came another period of irresolute inactivity. It was not till August, when several s.h.i.+ps had been injured at their anchors by the bombardment from the land batteries of the j.a.panese attack, and it was evident that the port would soon be a dangerous place for the s.h.i.+ps, that Admiral Witjeft proceeded to sea, announcing that he was going to Vladivostock, the cruiser squadron from that port having been warned to come out and reinforce him on his way.
The sea-fight, known as the battle of the Tenth of August, took place a few miles to seaward of the port. Witjeft led the fleet in his flags.h.i.+p the ”Tsarevitch,” followed by the battles.h.i.+ps ”Retsivan,” ”Sebastopol,”
”Pobieda,” ”Poltava,” and ”Peresviet” (carrying the flag of the second in command, Rear-Admiral Prince Ukhtomsky), and the cruiser division made up of the ”Askold” (carrying the flag of Rear-Admiral Reitzenstein), ”Pallada,” ”Diana,” and ”Novik,” besides eight destroyers. The cruiser ”Bayan” had been so damaged that she was left in port. Witjeft had a marked superiority in battles.h.i.+ps. Togo had had six new first-rate s.h.i.+ps of the cla.s.s under his command at the outset of the war, but on 15 May he had lost two of them, one-third of his battles.h.i.+p fleet, by a disaster like that of the ”Petropavlosk.” On that May morning, while cruising off Port Arthur, he ran into a field of drift mines, and in a few minutes the battles.h.i.+ps ”Hatsuse” and ”Yas.h.i.+ma,” and the cruiser ”Yos.h.i.+no,” were destroyed. The j.a.panese managed till the end of the war to conceal the fact that the ”Yas.h.i.+ma” had been lost, and the Russians up to the battle of Tsu-s.h.i.+ma believed Togo had five of his big battles.h.i.+ps intact. In the battle of 10 August he put in his main fighting-line the two powerful armoured cruisers ”Niss.h.i.+n” and ”Kasuga,” purchased from the Argentine Government on the eve of the war.
The battle began with long-range firing at 1 p.m., and continued till after seven in the evening. It was decided by the superior gunnery of the j.a.panese, and the damage done by their high explosive sh.e.l.ls. The ”Tsarevitch,” badly cut up and set on fire, was driven out of the line.
Witjeft was killed by a sh.e.l.l. His last word was to reiterate his order to push for Vladivostock. As darkness came on Ukhtomsky lost heart, and led the fleet back to Port Arthur. If he had held on he might have got through the j.a.panese fleet, for their ammunition was almost exhausted when the firing ceased. Reitzenstein, with the cruisers, tried to execute Witjeft's last order. The ”Pallada,” however, left him and followed the battles.h.i.+ps.
The rest of the cruiser squadron and the destroyers that accompanied it were forced to part company, and only the ”Novik” got through to the northwards. The ”Diana” fled southwards to the French port of Saigon; the ”Askold,” with a destroyer, reached Shanghai. The battered ”Tsarevitch,”
with three destroyers, took refuge at Kiao-chau. All these s.h.i.+ps were disarmed by the French, German, and Chinese authorities, and detained till the end of the war, when they were restored to the Russian Government.
The ”Novik” failed to get into Vladivostock, but reached a Russian port in Saghalien, where a few days later she was tracked down and destroyed by j.a.panese cruisers. The Vladivostock squadron had come out to meet the unfortunate Witjeft. The ”Boyarin” was left behind, damaged by accidentally grounding, so the squadron was made up of the three big armoured cruisers ”Gromoboi,” ”Rossia,” and ”Rurik.” They were approaching the straits of Tsu-s.h.i.+ma, and were as far south as Fusan, when they were discovered and attacked by Admiral Kamimura's cruiser squadron, on 14 August. Once more good gunnery against poor shooting decided the fight. The ”Rurik” was sunk, and the ”Gromoboi” and ”Rossia” returned to Vladivostock, bearing marks of very hard hitting--riddled funnels, and sides hastily patched with plates of iron, told of the straight shooting of the j.a.panese cruisers. In both the action with the Port Arthur battles.h.i.+p fleet and the Vladivostock cruiser squadron the losses of the j.a.panese had been very slight.
On paper the Russians had had a distinct superiority over the j.a.panese in sea-power at the outset, so far as it can be measured by balancing off battles.h.i.+ps, cruisers, and minor craft in parallel columns. In the months before the war there was ample material for the enterprising journalist to work up a navy scare at Tokio. But once more it was shown that not the number of s.h.i.+ps but the temper and training of the men are the true measure of power on the sea. From the first Togo had a.s.serted his superiority, and by a.s.serting secured it. After the naval engagements of 10 and 14 August the Russian Navy in the Far East accepted a position of helpless inaction.
Ukhtomsky kept what was left of the fine fleet, that had been originally a.s.sembled at Port Arthur, anch.o.r.ed in the land-locked harbour till the s.h.i.+ps were sunk by fire of the besieging batteries.
While the Far Eastern fleet was still in being, and Port Arthur was holding out, the Russian Government had announced its intention of sending a second fleet from Europe to the seat of war. It had two fleets in European waters, those of the Black Sea and the Baltic. The Black Sea fleet was not available. International treaties barred its exit from the Dardanelles.
Only the Baltic dockyards could supply the new armada.