Because of this close relationship, the fate of the Korean Peninsula is also closely related to our country. When the Central Plains Dynasty was strong, the Korean Peninsula could sit back and relax. For example, during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, the Japanese invaded, and the Ming Dynasty directly sent troops to help the Korean dynasty drive away the Japanese. However, after the decline of the Chinese dynasty, the Korean peninsula lost its protection and will also fall into an embarrassing situation of being besieged by the enemy. For example, in modern times, with the invasion of imperialist countries, the Qing dynasty was unable to protect itself, and the Korean peninsula could only be slaughtered. After the Western powers forced the Qing Dynasty to sign a series of unequal treaties, they also forced the Korean Dynasty to sign various unequal treaties.
Among these big countries, there is a country that loves the land like life and is never picky about the land, whether it is the alpine plateau or the desert Gobi. The name of this country, I believe you have guessed, is Tsarist Russia, that is, the Russian Empire. In the colonial era, Russia was the second largest territorial country in the world after the British Empire. At its peak, it controlled 22.88 million square kilometers of land.
Russia was originally a European country. Out of its fascination with the sea and land, it expanded eastward and developed into a great empire across Europe, Asia and America. In the process of Russia's expansion, many neighboring countries suffered losses, some of which were annexed, such as the Kazakh khanate in Central Asia, and some territories were annexed, such as the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Sweden and the Qing Empire, which were all occupied by Russia. But the Korean dynasty was an exception. It was not occupied by tsarist Russia.
Just like in the Qing Dynasty, Russia and the Korean dynasty did not border, but in 1860, Russia forced the Qing Dynasty to sign the Sino-Russian Treaty of Beijing, which humiliated the country and cut off a large area of land east of the Wusuli River, including Sakhalin Island. Since then, Russia and the Korean dynasty have a small piece of land connected, and the two countries have officially become neighbors. However, from 1860 to the demise of Russia, the Korean peninsula did not occupy a piece of land. What happened?
You should know that Russia and China are different. China belongs to the state of etiquette. Although it has a close relationship with the Korean peninsula in history, it never thought that it would directly occupy this land. However, Russia is a land-loving country. Moreover, the Korean peninsula is surrounded by the sea on three sides, with a superior geographical position and numerous natural ice-free ports, which is very attractive to Russia. So why didn't Russia invade an inch of land on the Korean peninsula?
There are two main reasons. First, protect China. Since modern times, China has declined, but it is still the suzerain of the Korean dynasty. If other countries want to benefit from the Korean peninsula, they must be recognized by the Qing Empire. For example, after the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, although Japan actually controlled the peninsula, it still needed the recognition of the Qing Dynasty in form. Therefore, the first article in treaty of shimonoseki is that the Qing Dynasty recognized the independence of the Korean dynasty, which indicates that the Qing Dynasty officially gave up its suzerain status on the peninsula.
1860s, the Qing dynasty still controlled the peninsula, and most of the Korean peninsula was connected with the northeast of China, which was a relationship of "lacking lips and teeth". The Qing dynasty regarded the northeast as a land of Longxing, and would not use the powers to occupy the land on the Korean peninsula. For example, in 1882, the Korean dynasty mutinied at noon. When the Qing Dynasty saw Japan sending troops, it also sent troops almost at the same time, forcing Japan to temporarily withdraw from the peninsula. Similarly, if tsarist Russia invaded outer Manchuria and continued to invade the Korean peninsula, the Qing Dynasty would never tolerate it. In addition, 186 1 year, Russia started the reform of serfdom again, and the country was unstable. Moreover, Russia and the Korean Peninsula are only connected by a long and narrow land, and most of them are blocked by the northeast of China. Under such conditions, it is also difficult for Russia to invade. Therefore, Russia had no chance to occupy the Korean peninsula at that time.
Second, Japanese control. After the Meiji Restoration, Japan's national strength continued to rise. Since AD 1870, like other powerful countries, it has gained consular jurisdiction and trade rights on the Korean Peninsula. However, due to the protection of the Qing dynasty, Japan failed to occupy the land on the Korean peninsula. It was not until 1894 that Japan launched the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 and defeated the Qing Dynasty that it completely controlled the entire Korean Peninsula. Since then, Japan has regarded the Korean peninsula as its own colony and will not tolerate Russian occupation of the peninsula. 1903, Russia tried to get its hands on the peninsula, and the Russo-Japanese War broke out the following year. After the Russo-Japanese War, Russia was defeated, and even Sakhalin Island was occupied by Japan in half, and it was no longer able to occupy the Korean Peninsula. For these two reasons, after Russia occupied Outer Manchuria, it failed to occupy an inch of land on the Korean Peninsula.