| Port Arthur | |
|---|---|
—  City in the Russian Empire — |
|
| Russian transcription(s) | |
| - Cyrillic: | Порт-Артур, Port-Artur |
| Manchu transcription(s) | |
| - Cyrillic: | Бумут Аратüр, Bumut Aratür |
| Port Arthur skyline.jpg | |
| Government | |
| - Type | City Duma |
| - Head | Sergey von Eisenberg |
| Population | 1,005,320 |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (Russia Standard) |
OTE: Dalian, China
Port Arthur (Russian: Порт-Артур, Port-Artur; Manchu: Бумут Аратüр, Bumut Aratür; Chinese: 旅順市, Lǚshùn Shì) is a city located in the Manchuria Principality of Russia. It was the capital city of the Manchuria Governorate, before being re-located to Mukden. Port Arthur borders the cities of Nemtsovsk (Yinkow) to the south, Anshan to the north and east, and Moroshinsk (Panjin) to the northwest, and shares maritime borders with the Chinese cities of Jinzhou and Huludao across the Manchuria Bay to the West.
Located at the extreme southern tip of the Manchuria Peninsula, it is the southernmost city in Manchuria, one of the Russian Empire's most important and strategic maritime cities, with an excellent natural harbor, the possession and control of which became a casus belli of the Russo-Japanese War (1904–05). Japanese and then Russian administration was established in 1895 and continued until 1905 when control was ceded to Japan. During that period, it was world-famous and was more significant than the other port on the peninsula, Dalian proper. In English-language diplomatic, news, and historical writings, it was known as Port Arthur, and during the period when the Japanese controlled and administered the Liaodong (formerly Liaotung) Peninsula it was called Ryojun (旅順), the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese characters in the city's name.
During World War II, the Russians avenged their 1905 loss, and completely and decisively took the city, as well as all of Manchukuo, from the Japanese, the city was under the administration of Russia and renamed Port Arthur, a decision with infuriated Chiang kai-shek, and the Russians and Chinese fought over Port Arthur in the Russo-Chinese conflict, which ended up in a Russian victory.
Afterwards, the Russians consolidated their control over Port Arthur by deciding to make one of the capitals of the navy's shipbuilding industry, something considered one of the miracles of modern Russian history. Port Arthur is considered one of Russia's most important cities, in addition the naval industry, it is also a popular tourist spot and retirement place for many military veterans. It also home to the Chinese Orthodox Church, an autonomous church within the Moscow Patriarchate.
History[]
World War II[]
After the Japanese failed to invade eastern Russia, the Japanese made a retreat to Ryojun, for a desperate defense against the Russians, attempting to emulate their 1905 victory. The battle was significant for both empires, and became akin to the defense of Berlin our OTL. The quest to retake Ryojun was part of the Manchuria offensives in Russia. The Russians completely bombarded and laid complete siege to the port, culminating the bloody Second Battle of Port Arthur, which ended up in a decisive Russian victory.
The battle Port Arthur became one of the last major Russo-Japanese battles, leading to the final expulsion of all Japanese forces from Manchuria.
Post-War[]
In the aftermath of World War II, Tsar Vladimir I ordered a quick rebuilding and fortification of Port Arthur. Akin to what the Japanese did to Russian POWs during the First Russo-Japanese war, Procurator General Prince Vladimir Pavlovich Rannenkampf allowed surrendering Japanese officers and their men to be used as prison labor.
Port Arthur made rapid recovery after World War II, many wealthy estates, palaces, manors and Russian Orthodox cathedrals sprung up in the years following the war, and once-more, it became a popular international city.
Contrary to what people thought, the Russians were not fans of cultural repressions, and both Tsar Vladimir I and General Rennenkampf decreed that no cultural repressions be waged. Many Japanese officers and their families who defected to the Russian side were able to maintain their residences, properties and even religion in Port Arthur. Communities of Koreans and Chinese also thrived in the city. The Russians also allowed Chinese, Korean and Japanese to continue being used in the public medium, as Port Arthur was often-known as Aziyagrad or "Asia city", a moniker also used for the city of Kharbin.
Once-more, Port Arthur became a sprawling mixed community of Russians, Koreans, Japanese Chinese, Manchus and Baltic Germans. However, it wouldn't be long before Port Arthur would again see itself as a city of conflict, this time against China, a former ally of the Russian Empire, with its ethnic Chinese residents caught in the middle. Chiang Kai-shek regarded Port Arthur as Chinese territory, and lamented over the loss of Manchurian territories to foreign powers.
In 1965, Chinese forces attempted to shell Port Arthur, and attack the Russians, however their attacks were continually repulsed. The conflict took a toll on the Chinese population of Port Arthur, who underwent severe discrimination. Chinese became de-officiated, leaving Russian as the sole official language in Port Arthur. Ex-Japanese military soldiers were known to have been used by the Russian authorities to carry out atrocities against the Manchurian Chinese populations, ethnic Koreans, being mistaken for Chinese also underwent this discrimiantion.
The Senate passed a new decree in 1966, authorizing for the expulsion of many Chinese, concurrently with the migration of ethnic Russians and people from elsewhere across the country to migrate not only to Port Arthur, but also parts of Manchuria. Those Chinese allowed to remain, were either Russified or Manchufied, and heavily discouraged from speaking Chinese in public. The manner bore extreme reminisciant to the expulusion of the Moriscos from Spain in the late 1500s, where many Nazi Russian leaders admitted to taking their influence from the Morisco expulsion.
After the end of the Russo-Chinese conflict, Port Arthur continued to grow into one of Russia's most sprawling cities as the local Manchurian National Socialist Party embarked on an aggressive campaign to modernize and develop Port Arthur. It became a common haven for military men and women to retire in luxurious homes in Port Arthur. Sergey Kolosov and Pavel von Eulberg founded the first airport, today the Port Arthur International Airport, which made for easy travel between Russia and the western United States.
In spite of the discriminatory measures against the Chinese, Port Arthur too, became home to many Asiatic Russians, namely those from Central Asia and Siberia. In 1975, the local Senate removed the ban on Chinese, and allowed Chinese to again, migrate to Manchuria, re-establishing strong economic ties with Russian Empire's southern and western Chinese neighbor as it opened up its ports to Chinese trade. This would lead to formation of one of Russia's largest Chinatowns.
By 1980, Port Arthur had become a major global city, and had become almost equivalent to a "New York City" of the Russian Empire.
However, many Chinese bussinessmen who returned to Port Arthur lamented that it was no longer the same. The city had truly been Russified and Europeanized, with ethnic Russians forming the majority, many Manchus having joined the anti-Chinese attitudes of the Russian elite.
Tumultous 1990s[]
During the Tumultous 1990s, many demonstrations took place in Port Arthur, similar to the civil rights movements of the United States. When the Nazi Russian atrocities against the Chinese population were brought into the light, protests occurred. However, it's not the demonstrations themselves that affected the city, but the western sanctions against Russia. In terms of the political upheavels of the 1990s, Port Arthur remained relatively safe.
At this point, Port Arthur began to resemble a typical big city, marked by elite living in high-rises around poor and homeless people. As an economic mercy move, the local Manchurian Senate strengthened economic ties with China to the west, allowing Chinese to open businesses in Manchuria. Chinese influence in Manchuria slowly started to progress and recover, with the election of Sergey Kashirin as city mayor, of the Liberal-Progressive Kadets.
Local economic ties with China saved the Manchurian and city economy of Port Arthur. In 2000, the first Russo-Chinese became city mayor, Fyodor Zhen-Long, a long-standing achievment in reconciliation attempts It is estimated that by 2005, over 34.5% of economic assets in Manchuria were Chinese-owned, in an event known as the "Silent Revenge".
Post-2010[]
After the collapse of the United States, Port Arthur recieved an influx of Russian-Americans, triggered anger amongst Chinese-Manchurian community leaders. Mikhail Wan-Fang, a Liberal-Progressive Kadet member and political analyst told interviewers, "So in the 1960s, they expelled innocent Chinese, who had nothing to do with Chiang Kai-Shek, not a single one of them has been welcomed back, however now the U.S. is gone, and now they're letting in ethnic Russians, who rebelled against the Tsar and fled to the U.S.?"
In addition, embassies of former U.S. states, now independent republics such as California and Texas (a former Dixie state as well), opened their embassies in Port Arthur.
Demographics[]
Currently, the ethnic makeup of Port Arthur is 66.4% Russian, 20% Manchu and 10% Chinese, and the Others form the rest, namely Koreans, Japanese, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Germans, Baltic Germans and Poles.
Most of the "Manchus" of Port Arthur are in reality, Han Chinese and their descendants who abandoned Chinese language due to the overwhelmingly anti-Chinese sentiments during the outbreak of the Russo-Chinese conflict. Most of the true Manchus are immigrants from Mukden, which is truly majority-inhabited by ethnic Manchus, who faced the opposite situation prior to the Russian takeover of Manchuria.
Recently, many of the Port Arthur Chinese have come out the closet, as discriminatory measures against the Chinese have long-subsided. Port Arthur is home to one of the world's most popular Chinatowns.
Religion[]
Eastern Orthodoxy is the predominant religion in the city, 71.6% of respondents regarded Eastern Orthodoxy as their religion, Buddhism makes up the next-largest religion, with 10.5%, Islam contributes 7.9%, Lutheranism 3.2%, 3.5% Judaism, and Irreligious and atheist make up the rest.
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