Japan–British Exhibition

The Japan-British Exhibition of 1910 (日英博覧会, Nichi-Ei Hakuran-kai) took place at White City, London in Great Britain from 14 May 1910 to 29 October 1910. It was the largest international exposition that the Empire of Japan had ever participated in. It was driven by the Japanese government's desire to shake off Japan's earlier status of being viewed as racially inferior and subject to unequal treaties from Western countries, legitimize its rising prestige as an imperial and colonial power over Asia, and to generally develop a more favorable public image in Britain and Europe following the renewal of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. It was also hoped that the display of manufactured products would lead to increased Japanese trade with Britain. The formal annexation of Korea occurred during the exhibition in August 1910, and was celebrated with a lantern procession on the site. Through the exhibition and its colonial displays, Japan thus made a successful effort to display its new status as a great power by emphasizing its position as an ostensibly 'civilized nation' and an 'efficient colonial administrator' in a manner that paralleled Western empires.