Imperial Japan's military ambitions in the Far East were severely set back in the Sino/Russian war of 1903. Prior to the collapse of the Imperial Russian State, it soundly defeated Imperial Japan in the battle of Port Arthur. The loss at this critical junction to a supposedly inferior, over stretched European power was a major blow to the image of the Emperor and many of his experienced, well trained officers committed seppuku as an act of contrition. This set the stage for younger, untested and untrained officers to assume command of the Imperial Military.
When the Emperor turned his sights upon Korea, to retake that long held slave-nation some years later, the lack of strategic foresight led to what is called the Burning Sky Era. Secure in the belief that battle ships would rule the seas for ages to come, the Admiralty of Japan ignored advances in aircraft, including anti-aircraft firepower, focusing almost exclusively on ships with massive guns meant to instill fear for the Japanese fleet, in the way of the British Fleet a decade before.
All to brutally, the Koreans, with Russian Mercenaries and American technology, showed the Japanese the error of their ways. In the first use of aircraft to sink ships at sea, a fleet of aircraft met the undefended Japanese fleet off the coast of Wonsan. This battle was decisive in the way that few battles are. Of the 80 ship Japanese fleet, no vessel escaped damage and over half were sunk. Many of the vessels exist today, their twisted superstructures poking above the shallow waters of the Wonsan Coast, in an area called 'Ippal', or 'Teeth'.
Capitalizing on the Japanese disarray, the Korean forces launched wave after wave of Zeppelins armed with incendiary firebombs. Tokyo and Osaka burned, as did many outlying cities. The Emperor was killed in the attacks, when the Imperial Palace burned. His heir, Hirohito, fled to Hokkaido Island, where he established a new Capitol at Sapporo. The southern three islands however, shattered and rebelled against the Authority of the Emperor. They were later crushed by the Korean Invasion and remain subjugated to this day.
- Tokyo - Tokyo is rapidly being rebuilt under Korean design, with broad tree-lined avenues and meandering streams. It is showcased as a symbol of supreme Korean benevolence - while Japanese citizens are largely second-class in the Korean Empire, they are afforded living standards that put many impoverished parts of the wealthiest European nations to shame.
