Empire of Japan

"Who's driving this thing?"

- The Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan was a historical country character seen in WW2 (Part 1) and the Russian Revolution (Part 1).

History
In 1633, under Tokugawa Iemitsu, the Tokugawa shogunate enacted the policy of Sakoku (鎖国, meaning "closed country"). It was an isolationist foreign policy under which, for 214 years, relations and trade between Japan and other countries were severely limited. It barred nearly all foreign nationals from entering Japan and kept common Japanese people from leaving the country. In 1853, Sakoku ended when American ships commanded by Commodore Matthew Perry forced the opening of Japan to American (and, by extension, Western) trade through a series of treaties. These treaties were highly unfair and humiliating, and the Tokugawa shogunate soon faced internal hostility, which materialized into a radical, xenophobic movement. After years of civil war, Emperor Meiji came to power and industrialized Japan. In WW1, Japan joined the Allies, mainly because it wanted resources and land. After the war, Japan kept the occupied German islands.

However, Japan wanted more resources and land, so in WW2, it joined the Axis and took over many islands, including parts of the Republic of China, the Philippines, Burma, Indonesia, and others. Despite these victories, it screwed up when it attacked the United States, declaring war on it. The US and the United Kingdom began "island-hopping" (slowing taking over Japanese islands). Soon, the Allies defeated Germany and Italy, but Japan didn't surrender. The Allies had a choice: they could invade Japan or use a nuclear bomb. They chose to nuke Japan, so the United States dropped two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945, respectively. The bombings caused massive damage, leading to Japan's surrender. Then, Japan turned into Allied-occupied Japan. In 1947, the country adopted a new constitution emphasizing liberal democratic practices. The Allied occupation ended, and Japan regained its independence in 1952. It was granted membership of the United Nations in 1956, and the country has been at peace since.