During the early morning of 9 February, 1904, the Imperial Japanese Navy's 1st, 2nd and 3rd Torpedo Boat Flotillas attacked the Russian 1st Pacific Squadron as it lay at anchor in the roadstead of Port Arthur. Simultaneously, the 1st Japanese Army began to land at the Korea port of Chemulpo (today the port of Inchon). On 10 February, the Empire of Japan officially declared war on Imperial Russia. So began a war that would change the balance of world power and start a chain of events that would reach its climax in August, 1945. But even now this conflict is remarkably unknown to most students of military history.

The Russo-Japanese War, the starting point of these events, is rarely studied today. Seemingly one sided on the surface, and overshadowed by the events in 1914, the war is often referred to as the unlearned lessons of the First World War. But this war has much to offer the student of the military art and the wargamer. There, on the plains and the mountains of Manchuria, almost a million soldiers fought for 18 months to decide the spheres of influence between these two powers in the Far East.

Unlike their successors in 1914, these forces weren't trapped in the vast trench systems that dominated the operational and tactical levels of warfare in western Europe. The Russian and Japanese commanders were free to maneuver corps and armies on a scale rarely seen since Napolean. Grand flanking maneuvers, use of interior lines, and cavalry raids were executed by the opposing field commanders. The war included the great siege of Port Arthur, an epic of courage and leadership on both sides. With all this to offer, why isn't the Russo-Japanese War better known?

Obscurity Defined

The first reason: the land campaign proved indecisive. The war did not produce a Jena or a Sedan, a decisive battle that both armies strove to fight and win. Although the overall success of the Japanese might have indicated otherwise, the two armies were very evenly matched throughout the war. The differences between the two were the historical legacy and the doctrine possessed by each. [1]

The Japanese, schooled in the German methods of war, strove to gain and retain the initiative on the operational level. Offense was the key to victory, and the Japanese often would attack rather than defend. The Russians preferred an aggressive defense rather than offense. They believed that this strategy allowed them to create the conditions for a decisive counter-attack with large reserves without risking the main body.

The results of the war indicated that the Japanese approach to war was correct. However, international military observers noted that the Japanese made many errors during the war, errors the Russians could and should have exploited, but didn't. Most military experts felt there was nothing to learn from the war, as "...the Japanese bad been such fanatics while the Russians bad been such a poor opposition as to negate the value of military observations." [2] Judged as valueless by the military experts, and followed by the outbreak of the First World War nine years later, the war passed into obscurity.

The second reason: the Battle of Tsushima. Unlike the land war, the naval campaign was completely decisive. Without command of the sea, Japan was unable to fight a war in Manchuria. Because Japan recognized this reality, it became the key element in her war plans. Although her army struggled to destroy Russian land power in the Far East, the Japanese Navy dominated the sea war.

The naval campaign that culminated in the Battle of Tsushima was the decisive act of the war. The battle was a morale blow that the Russia government was unable to withstands. [3] Peace became the only solution for the Tsar to end the series of defeats in Manchuria. Additionally, Tsushima was the only major naval battle fought by pre-dreadnoughts, making the naval, rather than the land, campaign more interesting to the historian than the land campaign.

Finally, the fact that the war was fought 10,000 miles from Europe helped lessen its impact on the world scene. The war didn't affect Russia's position as a European power, and Japan's influence was seen by Europeans as confined to the Pacific.

The onset of the First World War confirmed this view, as Japan's entry into the war provided little change in the balance of forces between the Allies and the Central Powers. Because of the lack of any lasting impact on the western world, the war quickly became a passing curiosity. The far more immediate events in the West quickly over-shadowed the little war in Manchuria. why wargame the Russo-Japanese War? What can this period offer that one can't find somewhere else?

Men on Horseback

The Russo-Japanese War was the last war fought where command was still exercised by men on horseback. Field telephones and telegraphs were used, although their numbers were limited land not always reliable. Commanders still attempted to stand on a hill and direct their forces. Physical mass on the battlefield was also considered important, therefore the battlefields tended to be small in relationship to the forces involved.

Most of the battles are very manageable on a wargame table. The main position at Liaoyang, on an scale of 1"=250 meters, is only 22 feet long. Within this area, 158,000 Russians and 125,000 Japanese fought. It is very easy to set up a battle involving several corps on a 12 foot table.

The armies were evenly balanced. This is not a Franco-Prussian war mismatch. As stated earlier, the main differences between the two armies were leadership issues [4]. In fact, the Russians enjoyed many advantages over the Japanese. While one could say that the Japanese infantry was better on the offense, there was little difference between the two on the defense. The Japanese artillery overwhelmed the Russians during the first clash between the two armies at the Battle of the Yalu in May, 1904, but was never able again to dominate the Russian artillery.

By the battle of Liaoyang in August, 1904, the roles had been reversed, with the Russian guns ruling the battlefield. In cavalry, the Japanese realized that theirs was no match for the Russian mounted arm. The first cavalry action at Yu-dsia-tun confirmed this. Never again during the war would the Japanese allow their cavalry to face the Russian cavalry without the close support of the infantry [5] , and normally confined its use to the mountains in the east.

Fortunately for the Japanese, the Russians never developed an offensive doctrine to exploit their superior advantage in cavalry. Finally, from Liaoyang on, the Russians (although they never seemed to know it) always out-numbered the Japanese. These material advantages of the Russians were balanced by the Japanese by effective leadership and superior staff work. The uniforms of the period looks great. If you believe that this war is all khaki and mud, you are misinformed.

At the start of the fighting, the Japanese dressed in dark blue uniforms, trimmed with various branch colors. The Russians wore white tunics with colored collars and hat bands to identify regiments and brigades. The Japanese wore white linen undress for summer wear, while all Russian reinforcements arrived in dark green European uniforms. Both sides changed to khaki, but the transition was never fully completed. Regiments on both sides carried colors into battle, and the Russians often marched to the attack with bands playing. And if that is not enough on the table top, add in thousands of colorful Cossacks.

Battles

Finally, let's discuss battles! After all, this article is about wargaming. The Russo-Japanese War offers a large variety of battles and near battles. There were four major battles involving all the forces on both sides. Three of these battles were fought over a period of two weeks, normally broken into distinct phases of operations. This allows the wargamer to fight parts of the larger battle, rather than the whole.

The capture of Manju Yama during Liaoyang is a great stand alone mini battle involving the Japanese 1st Army and the 17th Russian Army Corps and the 1st Siberian Army Corps. There were ten other battles that ranged from a division or two to several corps in size. There were two near battles involving two or more corps/armies, numerous small actions, two large cavalry raids, and the famous siege of Port Arthur. There are countless "what if' possibilities for scenarios, created by the commanders inability to gain any decisive success during the 18 months of the conflict.

What all of this means is that the Russo-Japanese War was an infantry war between two armies with different, but balanced capabilities. The Russians normally will defend, supported by excellent artillery and plenty of ineffective cavalry. Their units will be slow to react to a rapidly changing situation, so they will build depth into their positions. The Japanese have good infantry, average artillery, and a cavalry arm that performs better dismounted than mounted. However, the Japanese units can march rapidly, and can change plans quickly during the battle.

The Russians will attempt to fight a preplanned battle, denying the Japanese any advantage and preparing a counterattack. The Japanese will use mobility and flexibility to find or create a weakness in the Russian defenses. Both armies could win, but victory will belong to the player with the better plan and the ability to execute it. I hope these facts will convince you that the Russo-Japanese War can provide many hours of enjoyable wargaming.

Now that I have presented reasons to stop and think about wargaming the Russo-Japanese War, where can you learn more about the period. In subsequent articles, I hope to provide enough information so you can get started wargaming the period. For those who like to conduct in-depth research, there is more available on the war than you think. The problem is trying to find it.

NOTES