Manchukuo

Manchukuo The Japanese puppet state in north-eastern China, established on 9 March 1932 and dissolved at the end of World War II. The Guandong Army's invasion of Manchuria paved the way for Japan's attempts to establish a military hegemony in east Asia, while the development of a thoroughly integrated and advanced economy in the region came to be seen as germane to Japan's postwar economic growth. Under the leadership of Ishiwara Kanji, Manchuria was occupied by military conquest in a series of actions which came to be known as the Manchurian Incident, beginning in September 1931. After further aggressive expansion, the state of Manchukuo was to occupy, at its fullest extent, the territories of Manchuria as well as parts of inner Mongolia in an area that covered an estimated 1.4 million km2 (550,000 sq. miles) and a population of thirty million. The Japanese military established China's last Emperor, Pu Yi, as the puppet ruler, but the Guandong Army retained control over the state beyond even the influence of Tokyo. Manchukuo experienced a new form of Japanese colonial regime which chose to invest Japanese capital in the development of heavy industries and communications. From a Japanese point of view, the policy was such a success that operations in Manchuria produced, for example, 30 per cent of the Empire's pig iron by 1937.