[New Book] Geongeonrok - What Was Japan's Real Purpose in Starting the First Sino-Japanese War?

Diplomatic Memoirs Written by Mutsu Munemitsu, Foreign Minister of the Ito Hirobumi Cabinet

Cover of Geongeonrok / Photo by Nonhyeong Publishing House

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] The book "Kengenkoku," written by Mutsu Munemitsu, the Foreign Minister of the Ito Hirobumi cabinet of the Japanese Empire during the First Sino-Japanese War, has been published. It covers various issues from the outbreak of the Donghak Peasant Movement to the Triple Intervention by Russia, Germany, and France, and the Treaty of Shimonoseki. Mutsu Munemitsu wrote the book by deleting content unfavorable to Japan and himself, but the newly released translated edition includes commentary and annotations by Nakatsura Akira, an authority on First Sino-Japanese War research. This allows readers to see through Japan's ultimate purpose in starting the war and its true nature.

The author of Kengenkoku, Mutsu Munemitsu, is a figure unfamiliar to Koreans not well-versed in Japanese history and Meiji-era political diplomacy, but he is a very important figure in Japanese diplomatic history. It is significant that he directly recorded his experiences as Foreign Minister during the First Sino-Japanese War from 1894 to 1895, including the outbreak and progress of the war and the handling of the subsequent Triple Intervention.

Mutsu Munemitsu is regarded as a politician who demonstrated outstanding skill in elevating modern Japan into an imperialist state. However, the so-called "Mutsu diplomacy" also represents the realization of an anti-international, anti-peace, anti-humanitarian, and anti-nationalistic mindset that does not hesitate to infringe on the sovereignty and human rights of other countries to maximize Japan's own interests. Nevertheless, modern Japanese society evaluates Mutsu Munemitsu positively.

Kengenkoku was first published in 1896. It was printed directly by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Because it contained diplomatic secrets, it was treated as a confidential document, but in January 1929, Iwanami Publishing House published "The Collected Works of Count Mutsu Munemitsu" in full, making it accessible to the public for the first time.

In Korea, it has been translated twice but was not sufficiently known. This translation corrects mistranslations, errors, and parts considered misinterpretations found in previous works and adds detailed commentary and annotations by the top authority on First Sino-Japanese War research. It can be called a proper Korean edition.

Nakatsura Akira is praised for meticulously comparing the publication process of Kengenkoku and the differences between the manuscript and the published edition, coldly penetrating the essence of the war.

Kengenkoku / Written by Mutsu Munemitsu, Translated by Lee Yong-su / Nonhyeong

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.