Imperialism in China China’s “Century of Humiliation”

Key Terms Opium Opium Wars Treaty of Nanjing Unequal Treaties Extraterritoriality Spheres of Influence Open Door Policy Taiping Rebellion Boxer Rebellion

Powerful China 1514 – Portuguese arrived in East Asia to trade (Ming Dynasty)  Chinese thought Europeans = Barbarians Review – Chinese people called their country the “Middle Kingdom”. Why? Ming and early-Qing Rulers placed very strict rules on foreign traders  Restricted port access  Some merchants specialized in dealing with Europeans

Power Shift Aging-Qing Dynasty was weaker  High taxes were unpopular with the Chinese people  Growing population did not have enough food Losing the “Mandate of Heaven”? Europeans were more powerful than the Chinese… Why?  Europeans gained power through the Industrial Revolution Europeans took advantage of weakened Chinese rulers

Opium War British traders brought opium to China  Chinese became addicted  Qing Emperors tried to stop the drug trade; Europeans ignored them Qing Dynasty tried to ban Opium  WAR!!!... British military invaded and defeated the Chinese

Treaty of Nanjing Chinese government forced to sign The Treaty of Nanjing after defeat in the Opium War Results:  British took control of Hong Kong  British allowed to control ports throughout China  Other European Countries followed Britain’s lead and forced the Qing rulers to sign “unequal treaties” Unequal Treaties – China was forced to give up some control of their own country to foreign imperialist powers. Extraterritoriality – Foreigners in China were not subject to China’s laws. (Condition of the Unequal Treaties)

“Spheres of Influence” Spheres of Influence - Areas where imperial powers (Europeans, Japan) had exclusive trading rights throughout China  Each imperialist country claimed an area Economic control leads to political control USA was against this trend; they supported an Open Door Policy  Open Door Policy – Anyone can trade with China. Rejected the concept of “Spheres of Influence”

Spheres of Influence

Taiping Rebellion (1850s) Chinese people were upset and embarrassed by the Qing Dynasty & Treaty of Nanjing  The people blamed the Qing Dynasty for giving up power to imperialist countries  Wanted the imperialist powers out!  Revolt! – Chinese people vs. Qing Dynasty Review – How is this like the Independence movements in Africa? How is it different?

Taiping Rebellion (1850s) Outcomes:  Qing Dynasty asked the Imperialist Powers to help fight against the people (BAD MOVE?)  People lost. Imperialist Powers gained even more power.  20,000,000 people killed in 14 years Chinese Rebels Qing Dynasty European Powers

Boxer Rebellion 1900 Hostility directed at all foreigners Boxers – (AKA “Society of Harmonious Fists”)  Chinese Rebels  Goal was to expel all foreigners This time, the Qing Dynasty supported the Chinese rebels Boxers Qing Dynasty European Powers Japanese

Boxer Rebellion (1900) Outcomes:  20,000 troops from Britain, France, Germany, Russia, and Japan defeated the Boxers  These nations ended up with more influence  Qing Dynasty lost nearly all power. They would never recover. 4,000 years of dynastic rule would soon come to an end…

Review Imperialist powers from Europe and Japan showed up in China, and started imposing their will. The Chinese despised their presence. However, the Qing Dynasty was too weak to keep the imperialists out of China. The Opium Wars, Treaty of Nanjing, Taiping Rebellion, and the Boxer Rebellion all resulted in the Qing Dynasty losing control of China to Imperialist Powers. This time period would become known as China’s “Century of Humiliation”.

Reflection When did the Qing Dynasty side with the Chinese people? When did they side with the Imperialist Powers?  Opium Wars  Taiping Rebellion  Boxer Rebellion In your opinion, how should the Qing Dynasty have reacted to foreign involvement?  What does the idiom “stuck between a rock and a hard place” mean? How does it relate to the Qing Dynasty during the 19 th century?