The above image, taken from a Japanese propaganda booklet of the period, depicts the Japanese occupation of East Asia as the Japanese wanted it to be perceived: The Japanese Army and Navy give Allied soldiers and ships a good thumping, while also performing acts of kindness and generosity for the happy peoples they liberated, while a glum Winston Churchill and a distraught Franklin Roosevelt look on.
The reality of the occupation was quite different. It was remarkably brutal and remains a sore spot in relations between these countries and Japan to this day.
- Listen now:
Playlist:
Fanfare
Opening War Theme
Miroirs
Composed in 1905 by Maurice Ravel. Public domain.
Performed by Olena Havyuk-Sheremet. Public domain. Source.
Closing War Theme
Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.