PORT ARTHUR, a harbour in South Manchuria at the southern extremity of the Liao-tung peninsula (38° 48' N. and 121° 20' E.)—the only part of the relatively short coast-line of Manchuria which is ice-free throughout the year. The town was given this name by Admiral Seymour when British forces were there in 1860. It occupies a particularly strong strategic posi tion; commanding the entrance to the Gulf of Pechihli and the opposite peninsula of Shantung. Its main interest is historical. Until the Chino-Japanese War it was the chief Chinese naval arse nal, but in 1894 it fell to Japan which was, however, forced by the European Powers to retrocede it to China, along with the whole Liao-tung peninsula, almost immediately after the ratifica tion of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. Russia was anxious to secure an ice-free Chinese port as a base for her Pacific fleet, and the capture of Kiaochow by the Germans in.1897 provided the neces sary occasion for her to occupy with warships Port Arthur and Talienwan (Dairen). The British Government was "not opposed to the lease by Russia of an ice-free commercial port connected by rail with the Trans-Siberian Railway," but it was pointed out that "questions of an entirely different kind were opened if Rus sia obtained control of a military port in the neighbourhood of Peking." Russia, regarding Port Arthur as necessary for the protection of Talienwan, refused to change its status as a closed military port. In 1898 by agreement, Russia acquired from China the lease of the Liao-tung peninsula (including Port Arthur) for 25 years and the right to construct the branch railway from Harbin to Port Arthur and Talienwan. Subsequent events showed that Russia had been seeking a fortress rather than an ice-free port on the Pacific. Port Arthur was made an apparently im pregnable stronghold and along with Talienwan accommodated 20,000 Russians by the end of 1899. During the Russo-Japanese War, it was the main strength of Russia and only fell to the Japanese after a terrific siege by land which cost Japan some casualties. By the treaty of Portsmouth (19o5) Port Arthur was transferred to Japan. As part of the famous Twenty one demands in 1915 the Japanese lease of Kwantung and the railway as far as Changchun was extended to a period of 99 years. Port Arthur is at present the seat of Government of the Japanese leased territory of Kwantung, but its importance has diminished since it was the stronghold of Russian influence on the Pacific, and the chief town in South Manchuria, with a population of more than 42,00o. The port, based on a fine natural harbour,
entirely land-locked save on the south, is not now used as a naval base. A branch railway and excellent motor-road connect it with Dairen, the second port of China, and the real terminus of the South Manchuria Railway. The new town, dating from the Rus sian occupation, has been constructed on modern lines and is a popular summer resort because of its splendid beaches. Port Arthur has a population of 24,405, of whom 10,373 are Japanese and 14,021 Chinese. The town contains modern hotels and hos pitals and advanced education facilities. (See KWANTUNG.) While the fortunes of the siege of Port Arthur had un doubtedly a considerable influence on the outcome of the Russo Japanese war (q.v.), its execution was separated both in space and design from the main operations of the field armies. The first clash of the armies took place on the Yalu on May 1, 1904, and five days later, Gen. Oku's 2nd Army, which had been waiting at Chinampo for the ice to melt, landed near Pitszewo. By storming Nanshan Hill, he gained command of the narrow isthmus which connected the Port Arthur peninsula with the mainland. This mission was a prelude not only to the siege, but to the 2nd Army's advance northward, its place being taken by the 3rd Army under Gen. Nogi.
Nogi landed on June I, and his army (1st and iith Divisions) gradually separated itself from Oku's and got into position for the advance on Port Arthur. Dalny, the commercial harbour, was seized without fighting, and a month was spent in preparing a base there. But so far from retiring within his fort-line, the Russian commander, Gen. Stossel took up a strong position outside. Dis lodged from this on June 26, the Russians checked Nogi's further advance on July by a fierce, though unsuccessful, counter stroke. Having been reinforced by the 9th Division and two extra brigades of infantry, Nogi advanced again on the 26th. The Rus sians, having had a month wherein to intrench themselves, held out all along the line ; but after two days and one night of fighting amongst rocks and on precipitous hill-sides, the Japanese broke through on the night of July 27-28. Stossel then withdrew in good order into Port Arthur, which, in the two months he had gained by his fighting manoeuvre, had been considerably strength ened. Nogi had already lost 8,000 men.