The decolonisation of Asia was the gradual growth of independence movements in Asia, concluding with the independence of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste from Indonesia in 2002. It led ultimately to the retreat of foreign powers and the creation of several nation-states in the region.
Background
The decline of Spain and Portugal in the 17th century paved the way for other European powers, namely the Netherlands, France and England. The Portuguese Empire would lose influence in all but three of its colonies, Portuguese India, Macau and Timor.
By the end of the 17th century, the Dutch had taken over much of the old Portuguese colonies, and had established a strong presence in present-day Indonesia, with colonies in Aceh, Bantam, Makassar and Jakarta. The Dutch also had trade links with Siam, Japan, China and Bengal.
The British had competed with Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch for their interests in Asia since the early 17th century and by the mid-19th century held much of India (via the British East India Company), as well as Burma, Ceylon, Malaya and Singapore. After The Indian Rebellion of 1857, Queen Victoria was declared Empress of India, thus solidifying the British rule on the subcontinent. The last British acquisition in Asia was the New Territories of Hong Kong, which was leased from the Qing emperor in 1897, expanding the British colony originally ceded in the Treaty of Nanking in 1842.
The French had little success in India following defeats against the British in the 17th century, though they held onto possessions on the east coast of India (such as Pondicherry and Mahar) until decolonisation. The French established their most lucrative and substantial colony in Indochina in 1862 (→ French Indochina), eventually occupying the present-day areas of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia by 1887.
Japan's first colony was the island of Taiwan, occupied in 1874 and officially ceded by the Qing emperor in 1894. Japan continued its early imperialism with the annexation of Korea in 1910.
The United States entered the region in 1898 during the Spanish–American War, taking the Philippines as its sole colony after a mock battle in the capital and the later formal acquisition of the Philippines from Spain through the 1898 Treaty of Paris.
Asian colonies from the 17th century to the end of World War II The following list shows the colonial powers following the end of World War II in 1945, their colonial or administrative possessions and the date of decolonisation.
///: (1912) Jiangxi Soviet (1931) Fujian (1933) (1924/1946) (1949)
: Empire of Vietnam (1945) Democratic Republic of Vietnam (1945/1954) State of Vietnam (1949/1954) Republic of Vietnam (1955) Kingdom of Cambodia (1953) (1953) (1946) (1946) French India (1954)
(1999/2002) : Manchuria (Manchukuo), Northern China (1945/1946) (1945/1946) (1945/1948) (1945/1948) (1945/1948) Taiwan and Penghu (1945/1952)
(1965) : Dutch Formosa (1662/1668) Dutch Malacca (1795/1825) (1945/1949) Dutch New Guinea (1962) : (1971) : Portuguese India (1961) (1975/2002) (1999) ( prior to 1917/1922) (1924) Manchuria (Manchukuo), Northern China (1946) (1948) (1991) (1991) (1991) (1991) (1991) : Spanish Formosa (1642) (1898)
(later became the in 1962) (1918) : (1919) (1947) (1971) (1922) Nepal (1923) (1932) (1946) (1947) (1947) (1948) (1948) (1948) (1957) (1960) (1961) Sabah (North Borneo) (1963) Sarawak (1963) (1965) (1965) (1967) (1970) (1971) (1971) (1971) (1984) (1997) : (1946) (1948) (1986) (1986) (1994)
Individual countries CountryDate of acquisition of sovereigntyAcquisition of sovereignty/1919Treaty of Rawalpindi ends British control of foreign policyEnd of treaties with the United Kingdom Independence from Pakistan declaredUgyen Wangchuck ends a period of civil war and unites Bhutan Brunei regains its independence after an agreement with the British on 4 January 1979France grants Cambodia independenceBecomes free from Vietnamese occupation; it gets back its name instead of the People's Republic of Kampuchea Taiwan On the first day of January 1912 The Republic of China unilaterally declared their independence. China On the 1st of October 1949 the Chinese Communist Party wins against the Kuomintang which then retreats to the island of Taiwan.Independence from the British EmpireIndependence from the Kingdom of the Netherlands following their unilateral Proclamation of Indonesian Independence on 17 August 1945 and subsequent Dutch–Indonesian Round Table Conference in The Hague.After the fall of Assyria between 616 BC and 609 BC, a unified Median state was formed, which together with Babylonia, Lydia, and ancient Egypt became one of the four major powers of the ancient Near East.The Abbasid Caliphate built the city of Baghdad along the Tigris in the 8th century as its capital, and the city became the leading metropolis of the Arab and Muslim world for five centuriesKingdom of IraqUpon the end of the British Mandate, Jews declared independence, forming the State of Israel; the remainder of Palestine came under control of Egypt (Gaza Strip) and Transjordan (West Bank)4th century CEDuring the subsequent Kofun period, most of Japan gradually unified under a single kingdom End of the British MandateEstablishment of the Sheikhdom of KuwaitIndependence from the Soviet UnionIndependence from FranceIndependence from France declaredIndependence from France recognisedMalayan independence from the United Kingdom was declared in Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square)Malaysia was formed by the federation of North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore with the existing States of the Federation of Malaya.Independence from the United KingdomMongol Empire formedProclamation of Mongolian independence from Manchu's Qing dynastyMyanmar (Burma) declares independence from the British EmpireNepali unification Expulsion of the Portuguese Army from Oman Independence from British India in the PartitionPalestinian Declaration of IndependenceThe evolving revolutionary movement in Philippine revolutionaries declared independence from the Spanish Empire but sovereignty remained with Spain, which ceded the country to the United States.The United States recognises independence under the provisions of the Treaty of Manila (1946). The 1935 Constitution remained in effect until 1973, when the Marcos regime promulgated a newer one, replaced in turn by the present 1987 Constitution.Independence from the Ottoman EmpireEstablishment of the First Saudi State Self-government under the United KingdomMalaysia unilaterally expels Singapore from the federation of Malaysian states, creating an independent Singaporean state Independence from the United KingdomEnd of the French Mandate End of the United Arab RepublicIndependence from the Soviet UnionKing Taksin the Great reunifies Thailand, establishing a new kingdom and repelling Burmese invasionsEast Timor declares its independence but was occupied by IndonesiaIndependence was recognised by the international community following the UN-sponsored act of self-determination of 1999Independence from the Soviet UnionEnd of a treaty relationship with the United KingdomIndependence from the Soviet Union declared7th century BC Hùng king established Van Lang, the first kingdom of VietnamIndependence of North Yemen from the Turkish EmpireIndependence of South Yemen from the United Kingdom
Notes
Burma
Burma was almost completely occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second World War. Many Burmese fought alongside Japan in the initial stages of the war, though the Burmese Army and most Burmese switched sides in 1945.
A transitional government sponsored by the British government was formed in the years following the Second World War, ultimately leading to Burma's independence in January 1948.
Cambodia
Following the capitulation of France and the formation of the Vichy regime, France's Indochinese possessions were given to Japan. While there was some argument that Indochina should not be returned to France, particularly from the United States, Cambodia nevertheless remained under French rule after the end of hostilities.
France had placed Norodom Sihanouk on the throne in 1941 and was hoping for a puppet monarch. They were mistaken. However, the King led the way to Cambodian independence in 1953, taking advantage of the background of the First Indochina War being fought in Vietnam.
Ceylon
Ceylon was an important base of operations for the Western Allies during the Second World War. The British gave in to popular pressure for independence and in February 1948, the country won its independence as the Dominion of Ceylon.
China
For some clarification and more detail including the sovereignty status of the Republic of China, see the following articles: History of China, Cross-Strait relations, One-China policy and Political status of Taiwan. Hong Kong was returned to the United Kingdom following its occupation by the Japanese during the Second World War. It was controlled directly by a British governor until the expiry of the ninety-nine-year lease of the New Territories, which occurred in 1997. From that date, the territory was returned to People's Republic of China and controlled as a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.
Philippines
Philippine revolutionaries unilaterraly declared independence from Spain in 1898, during the Spanish–American War, but sovereignty remained with Spain. Spain ceded the Philippines to the United States in the 1898 Treaty of Paris that concluded that war. In 1899, Philippine revolutionaries established the First Philippine Republic. Shortly thereafter, the Philippine–American War began, ending in 1901 with a U.S. victory, though isolated fighting continued for several years thereafter.
In 1902, the Philippines became a U.S. territory with the ratification of the Treaty of Paris on April 11, 1899, later becoming a U.S. Commonwealth in 1936. It was occupied by the Japanese during the Second World War. In 1943, with Japan granting it a short-lived nominal independence. In 1944, the Allied invasion of the Philippines by combined U.S. and Filipino troops began, which resulted in Americans and Filipinos regaining full control of the nation. In 1946, the United States recognised Philippine independence in the 1946 Treaty of Manila.
Timeline The "colonial power" and "colonial name" columns are merged when required to denote territories, where current countries are established, that have not been decolonised but achieved independence in different ways. Country/region Colonial name Colonial power Independence declared and/or achieved First head of state Independence won through Spanish East Indies
declared Emilio Aguinaldo Philippine Revolution
Manuel Roxas World War II Republic of the Philippines
achieved Treaty of Manila (1946)
Yahya I World War I and Protectorate of Aden
Qahtan Mohammed al-Shaabi Aden Emergency
Amanullah Khan Third Anglo-Afghan War Sultanate of Egypt
Fuad I Egyptian revolution of 1919 Mandatory Iraq
Faisal I of Iraq
Bechara El Khoury – Mandate of Syria
Shukri al-Quwatli Syrian Revolution
Sukarno Indonesian National Revolution
Democratic Republic of Vietnam
Hồ Chí Minh August Revolution Emirate of Transjordan
Abdullah I
Liaquat Ali Khan - as part of
Liaquat Ali Khan 15 August 1947 Jawaharlal Nehru Indian independence movement
U Nu
Don Senanayake
David Ben-Gurion 1948 Palestine war State of Vietnam Republic of Vietnam
Ngo Dinh Diem 1955 State of Vietnam referendum Japanese Korea
Syngman Rhee Korean independence movement
Kim Il Sung
Chiang kai shek Second Sino-Japanese War Nationalist government on Mainland China
Chinese Civil War Taiwan and Penghu Taiwan
Chen Yi Second Sino-Japanese War 28 April 1952 Occupation of Japan
Shigeru Yoshida San Francisco Peace Treaty