The Sino-Japanese War was fought between Japan and China. The name usually refers to the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895, fought between the Empire of Japan and China's Qing dynasty.
The conflict centered largely on influence over Korea, which was traditionally connected to China but increasingly targeted by Japan during its rapid Meiji-era modernization. Japan won a series of land and naval victories, including the Battle of the Yalu River, and the war ended with the Treaty of Shimonoseki in April 1895.
That treaty forced China to recognize Korean independence and cede Taiwan and the Penghu Islands to Japan, along with paying a large indemnity. Readers sometimes confuse this conflict with the Second Sino-Japanese War, which began in 1937 and involved Japan and the Republic of China. Although the governments and historical circumstances differed, China is the country named in either Sino-Japanese war.