Abstract
Railways are an indispensable civilization for modernization, but on the other hand, imperialism has two sides as a typical means of invading and colonizing weaker countries. Japan was able to seize and further colonize transportation and logistics on the Korean Peninsula through the construction of railroads. In addition, it used this as a bridgehead to develop a policy of invading the continent.
 After the opening of the port, Japan developed Busan as a base city to promote an aggression policy. Busan was the base city of the railway network, the last stop of the government-affiliated contact line, and the starting point of the Eurasian International Railway. In this process, while Dongnae, a traditional strategic point in the southeastern region of the Korean Peninsula, declined, Busan overtook Pyongyang to grow into Korea's second-largest city. In this process, Dongnae strengthened its character as a recreational tourism city for the Japanese living in Busan.
 The railroads established by Japan reorganized traditional transportation and logistics, and further changed the power relations and topography between cities. The presence or absence of railroads became the main criterion for the rise and fall of cities. As such, it can be seen that railroads were the main means of Japan's colonization of Korea, and were a fundamental force that changed the traditional power relations, topography, logistics, and markets between cities.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
More From: Institute for Historical Studies at Chung-Ang University
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.