History of Japan

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

History of Japan
Paleolithic 35,000–14,000 BC Jōmon period 14,000–300 BC Yayoi period 300 BC–250 AD Kofun period 250–538 Asuka period 538–710 Nara period 710–794 Heian period 794–1185 Kamakura period 1185–1333 Kenmu restoration 1333–1336 Muromachi period (Ashikaga) 1336–1573 Nanboku-chō period 1336–1392 Sengoku period 1467–1573 Azuchi–Momoyama period 1568–1603 Nanban trade Edo period (Tokugawa) 1603–1868 Bakumatsu Meiji period 1868–1912 Meiji Restoration Taishō period 1912–1926 Japan in World War I Shōwa period 1926–1989 Shōwa financial crisis Japanese militarism Occupation of Japan Post-occupation Japan Heisei period 1989–present Lost Decade
Empire of Japan (prewar) 1868–1945 (political entity) Japan (postwar) 1945–present (political entity) Economic history Currency Educational history Military history Naval history Earthquakes
Glossary · Timeline This box:  view   talk   edit

The history of Japan encompasses the history of the islands of Japan and the Japanese people, spanning the ancient history of the region to the modern history of Japan as a nation state. Following the last ice age, around 12,000 BC, the rich ecosystem of the Japanese Archipelago fostered human development. The earliest-known pottery belongs to the Jōmon period. The first known written reference to Japan is in the brief information given in Twenty-Four Histories in the 1st century AD. The main cultural and religious influences came from China.

The first permanent capital was founded at Nara in 710 AD, which became a center of Buddhist art, religion and culture. The current imperial family emerged about 700 AD, but until 1868 (with few exceptions) had high prestige but little power. By 1550 or so political power was subdivided into several hundred local units, or "domains" controlled by local "daimyō" (lords), each with his own force of samurai warriors. Tokugawa Ieyasu came to power in 1600, gave land to his supporters, set up his "bakufu" (military government) at Edo (modern Tokyo). The "Tokugawa period" was prosperous and peaceful, but Japan deliberately terminated the Christian missions and cut off almost all contact with the outside world. In the 1860s the Meiji Period began, and the new national leadership systematically ended feudalism and transformed an isolated, underdeveloped island country into a world power that closely followed Western models. Democracy was problematic, because Japan's powerful military was semi-independent and overruled—or assassinated—civilians in the 1920s and 1930s. The military moved into China starting in 1931 but was defeated in the Pacific War by the United States and Britain.

Occupied by the U.S. after the war and stripped of its conquests, Japan was transformed into a peaceful and democratic nation. After 1950 it enjoyed very high economic growth rates, and became a world economic powerhouse, especially in automobiles and electronics. Since the 1990s economic stagnation has been a major issue, with an earthquake and tsunami in 2011 causing massive economic dislocations.

History of the United Arab Emirates

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

‹ The template below (Lead too short) is being considered for deletion. See templates for discussion to help reach a consensus.›

This article's lead section may not adequately summarize its contents. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of the article's key points. (January 2011)

The United Arab Emirates was formed from the group of tribally organised Arabian Peninsula sheikhdoms along the southern coast of the Persian Gulf and the northwestern coast of theGulf of Oman.

Contents   [hide]  1 Advent of Islam 2 Portuguese control 3 British and Ottoman rule 4 The Treaty of 1892 5 The rise and fall of the pearling industry 6 The beginning of the oil era 7 Border disputes 8 Sheikh Zayed and the Union 9 Involvement in US "War on Terror" 10 Death of Sheikhs Zayed and Maktoum 11 Arab Spring 12 See also 13 References

[edit]Advent of Islam

Main article: Islam in the United Arab Emirates

The arrival of envoys from Muhammad in 630 heralded the conversion of the region to Islam. After Muhammad's death one of the major battles of the Ridda Wars was fought at Dibba, resulting in the defeat of the non-Muslims and the triumph of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula.

In 637, Julfar (today Ra’s al-Khaimah) was as a staging post for the conquest of Iran. Over many centuries, Julfar became a wealthy port and pearling center from which dhows traveled throughout the Indian Ocean.

[edit]Portuguese control

See also: Economic history of Portugal in 15th century and History of Oman

Portuguese expansion into the Indian Ocean in the early 16th century following Vasco da Gama's route of exploration saw them battle the Ottomans up the coast of the Persian Gulf. The Portuguese controlled the area for 150 years in which they conquered the inhabitants of the Arabian peninsula.^[1] Vasco da Gama was helped by Ahmad Ibn Majid, a navigator and cartographer from Julfar, to find the route of spices from Asia.^[2][3]

[edit]British and Ottoman rule

Then, portions of the nation came under the direct influence of the Ottoman Empire during the 16th century.^[4] Thereafter the region was known to the British as the "Pirate Coast", as raiders based there harassed the shipping industry despite both European and Omani navies patrolling the area from the 17th century into the 19th century.^[5] British expeditions to protect the Indian trade from raiders at Ras al-Khaimah led to campaigns against that headquarters and other harbours along the coast in 1819. The next year, a peace treaty was signed to which all the sheikhs of the coast adhered. Raids continued intermittently until 1835, when the sheikhs agreed not to engage in hostilities at sea. In 1853, they signed a treaty with the United Kingdom, under which the sheikhs (the "Trucial Sheikhdoms") agreed to a "perpetual maritime truce." It was enforced by the United Kingdom, and disputes among sheikhs were referred to the British for settlement.^[6]

Flag of the Trucial Coast

[edit]The Treaty of 1892

Primarily in reaction to the ambitions of other European countries, the United Kingdom and the Trucial Sheikhdoms established closer bonds in an 1892 treaty, similar to treaties entered into by the UK with other Persian Gulf principalities. The sheikhs agreed not to dispose of any territory except to the United Kingdom and not to enter into relationships with any foreign government other than the United Kingdom without its consent. In return, the British promised to protect the Trucial Coast from all aggression by sea and to help in case of land attack.^[7]

[edit]The rise and fall of the pearling industry

During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the pearling industry thrived in the relative calm at sea, providing both income and employment to the people of the Persian Gulf. It began to become a good economic resource for the local people. Then the First World War had a severe impact on the pearl fishery, but it was the economic depression of the late 1920s and early 1930s, coupled with the Japanese invention of the cultured pearl, that all but destroyed it. The industry eventually faded away shortly after the Second World War, when the newly independent Government of India imposed heavy taxation on pearls imported from the Arab states of the Persian Gulf.^[8] The decline of pearling resulted in a very difficult era, with little opportunity to build any infrastructure.

[edit]The beginning of the oil era

In the beginning of the 1960s, the first oil company teams carried out preliminary surveys and the first cargo of crude was exported from Abu Dhabi in 1962. As oil revenues increased, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, undertook a massive construction program, building schools, housing, hospitals and roads. When Dubai’s oil exports commenced in 1969, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, was also able to use oil revenues to improve the quality of life of his people .^[9]

[edit]Border disputes

In 1955, the United Kingdom sided with Abu Dhabi in the latter's dispute with Oman over the Buraimi Oasis another territory to the south.^[10] A 1974 agreement between Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia would have settled the Abu Dhabi-Saudi border dispute; however, the agreement has yet to be ratified by the UAE government and is not recognised by the Saudi government. The border with Oman also remains officially unsettled, but the two governments agreed to delineate the border in May 1999.^[11]

[edit]Sheikh Zayed and the Union

Al Fahdi Fort in Dubai in th late 1950s.

In the early 1960s, oil was discovered in Abu Dhabi, an event that led to quick unification calls made by UAE sheikdoms. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (UAEfounder.com) became ruler of Abu Dhabi in 1966 and the British started losing their oil investments and contracts to U.S. oil companies.^[12]

The British had earlier started a development office that helped in some small developments in the emirates. The sheikhs of the emirates then decided to form a council to coordinate matters between them and took over the development office. They formed the Trucial States Council,^[13] and appointed Adi Bitar, Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum's legal advisor, as Secretary General and Legal Advisor to the Council. The council was terminated once the United Arab Emirates was formed.^[14]

Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

In 1968, the United Kingdom announced its decision, reaffirmed in March 1971, to end the treaty relationships with the seven Trucial Sheikhdoms which had been, together with Bahrain and Qatar, under British protection. The nine attempted to form a union of Arab emirates, but by mid-1971 they were still unable to agree on terms of union, even though the British treaty relationship was to expire in December of that year.^[15]

Bahrain became independent in August, and Qatar in September 1971. When the British-Trucial Shaikhdoms treaty expired on December 1, 1971, they became fully independent.^[16]

The rulers of Abu Dhabi and Dubai decided to form a union between their two emirates independently, prepare a constitution, then call the rulers of the other five emirates to a meeting and offer them the opportunity to join. It was also agreed between the two that the constitution be written by December 2, 1971.^[17]

On that date, at the Dubai Guesthouse Palace, four other emirates agreed to enter into a union called the United Arab Emirates. Ras al-Khaimah joined later, in early 1972.^[18][19]

[edit]Involvement in US "War on Terror"

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States the UAE was identified as a major financial center used by Al-Qaeda in transferring money to the hijackers. The nation immediately cooperated with the U.S, freezing accounts tied to suspected terrorists and strongly clamping down on money laundering.

The country had already signed a military defense agreement with the U.S. in 1994 and one with France in 1995.

The UAE supports military operations from the United States and other Coalition nations that are engaged in the invasion of Afghanistan (2001) and Iraq (2003) as well as operations supporting the Global War on Terrorism for the Horn of Africa at Al Dhafra Air Base located outside of Abu Dhabi. The air base also supported Allied operations during the 1991 Persian Gulf War and Operation Northern Watch.

[edit]Death of Sheikhs Zayed and Maktoum

On 2 November 2004 the UAE's first ruler, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, died. His eldest son, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, succeeded as ruler of Abu Dhabi. In accordance with the constitution, the UAE's Supreme Council of Rulers elected Khalifa as president. Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan succeeded Khalifa as Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.^[20] In January 2006, Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the prime minister of the UAE and the ruler of Dubai, died, and Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum assumed both roles.

[edit]Arab Spring

In 2011, the Middle East saw a number of pro-democratic uprisings, popularly known as the Arab Spring. The UAE saw comparatively little unrest, but did face one high-profile case in which five pro-democratic activists were arrested on charges of insulting President Khalifa, Vice President Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.^[21] The trial of the UAE Five attracted international publicity and protest from a number of human rights groups,^[22] including Amnesty International, which named the five menprisoners of conscience.^[21] The defendants were convicted and given two- to three-year prison sentences on 27 November 2011, but were pardoned without comment by President Khalifa the following day.^[23]