Question

At the time, why did people think that China would easily win the First Sino-Japanese War? Was this assumption correct, and why or why not?(1 point)
Responses

People thought China would win the war because it had a bigger military. This assumption was incorrect because Japan’s technology was more advanced, which helped it win the war.
People thought China would win the war because it had a bigger military. This assumption was incorrect because Japan’s technology was more advanced, which helped it win the war.

People thought China would win the war because it had the support of Western imperialist powers. This assumption was incorrect because it turned out that Japan had their support also.
People thought China would win the war because it had the support of Western imperialist powers. This assumption was incorrect because it turned out that Japan had their support also.

People thought China would win the war because Japan had a bigger military. This assumption was incorrect because China’s technology was more advanced, which helped it win the war.
People thought China would win the war because Japan had a bigger military. This assumption was incorrect because China’s technology was more advanced, which helped it win the war.

People thought China would win the war because it had less land to defend. This assumption was incorrect because Japan’s technology was more advanced, which helped it win the war.

Answer 1

People thought China would win because it had a much larger population and army (so option 1). That assumption was incorrect — Japan’s rapid Meiji modernization produced far better-trained troops, more effective leadership, modern weapons and warships, and superior organization and logistics, while Qing forces suffered from corruption, poor command and coordination. Those advantages let Japan win despite China’s size.