Japanese forces move north and oust Kuropatkin and his armies from Liaoyang. Port Arthur falls after a six-month siege and a bloody assault on 203 Hill.

The Japanese First Army defeats the Russians at the Battle of the Yalu River and advances from Korea into Russian-occupied Manchuria. The Japanese Second Army lands on the Liaodong Peninsula and advances north, while the Japanese Third Army moves south to begin the Siege of Port Arthur. Russian commanders quarrel among themselves. The small Russian Vladivostok Squadron proves surprisingly troublesome.

Russia has 100,000 soldiers in Manchuria, and is pressuring Japan's interests in Korea. When diplomacy fails, Japan launches as surprise attack on the Russian Pacific Squadron at Port Arthur (Liushunkou).

Europe has managed to keep the peace (more or less) for some 85 years now. Remarkably, she has done that with no formal peacekeeping structure; just a willingness among the great powers to come to the negotiating table when necessary. But how long can that last?