Mao's return to Changsha coincided with the anti-imperialist May Fourth Movement in Beijing. On May 4th, 1919, vigorous student protests began after the Chinese government failed to defend its national interests in light of the terms drawn by the Treaty of Versailles. Germany had surrendered the port of Qingdao and the surrounding Jiaozhou Bay after the Siege of Tsingtao, and Japan was determined to gain control of the former German colony. England, Italy, and France had benefited from an allying with Japan during World War I and were relying on Japan to cooperate in an emerging war against Soviet Russia and thus supported Japan's bid for control over these areas