Lesson 4 - Imperialism in China
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The Chinese language does not use the system of letters familiar to speakers of European languages. It uses characters and ideographs.
Characters
The earliest Chinese characters were pictographs. A pictograph is a symbol that visually represents an object.
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Ideographs
Today's Chinese characters are referred to as ideographs, of which there are simple ideographs and compound ideographs. A simple ideograph is a character that represents an idea rather than an object. A compound ideograph is comprised of two or more simple ideographs - the word is thereby the combined meaning of the ideographs as in the following example: |
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Two main systems have been used to transcribe Chinese into English. Most books published before the 1980s used the older Wade-Giles system. Using this method, China's capital city was known as Peking and the Chinese leader was Mao Tse-tung. The Pinyin system of transcription is now in common usage. Therefore, Beijing is the name of the Chinese capital and Mao Zedong is the name of the Chinese leader. For the most part, pronunciation of consonants in the Pinyin style are much as they would be in English, but there are some exceptions. Thus c is pronounced ts, q is pronounced ch and x is pronounced sh.
In what ways was China an advanced civilisation?
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Download worksheet of lesson here.
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There was good reason for China's global superiority complex. Before the 15th century and on most indicators of development, China was hundreds of years ahead of European civilisation. Most importantly, China had enjoyed an efficient, centralised system of government hundreds of years before Europeans.
The Chinese could also claim many great achievements - including being the first to invent: paper, gunpowder, waterproof lacquer, money, drought-resistant rice, asbestos suits, credit cards, acupuncture, the compass, the rudder, seismographs for measuring earthquakes, and printing. They also had crossbows, cast iron and mechanical clocks many hundreds of years before Europeans. For more on Chinese achievements see this video and 20 Chinese inventions. |
At the beginning of the nineteenth century China believed it was culturally superior to the rest of the world. It saw itself as the 'Middle Kingdom' where smaller states including modern day Korea, Tibet and Vietnam, accepted an inferior 'tributary status'. If this superiority can be summed up in one image this it. Zheng He' s (pronounced Jung Ha) 'Treasure Ship' next to Christopher Columbus' flagship.
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Zheng He's ship and voyages predate Columbus by nearly 100 years. In the 1400s, China owned the greatest seagoing fleet in the world, up to 3,500 ships at its peak. (The U.S. Navy today has only 430). Between 1405 and 1433 seven Chinese ‘treasure voyages’ were undertaken that used ships and technology well in advance of European navigation and 27,000 sailors, larger than the population of most European medieval towns. Evidence emerged in 2023 that he may even have reached Australia. See this Guardian report. |
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Extension
One of the most influential works of history in recent times is Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. (See film right). Diamond seeks to explain why 'European societies, rather than those of the Fertile Crescent or China or India, the ones that colonized America and Australia, took the lead in technology, and became politically and economically dominant in the modern world'. Have a look at this edited extract and see if you can explain in your own words the reasons Diamond gives for China's failure to become a modern power. |
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What were the causes of conflict between China and the West?
Direct maritime trade between Europe and China began with the Portuguese in the sixteenth century, when they leased an outpost at Macau in 1557. China, however, did not want close contact with the West. The Qing authorities tried to limit European influence by enforcing a strict “closed door” or Canton policy. Only a small amount of trade was allowed, and only in designated ports under tight regulation. Europeans could not travel beyond these areas, ordinary Chinese people could not meet them, and anyone caught teaching Chinese to foreigners faced severe punishment.
Direct maritime trade between Europe and China began with the Portuguese in the sixteenth century, when they leased an outpost at Macau in 1557. China, however, did not want close contact with the West. The Qing authorities tried to limit European influence by enforcing a strict “closed door” or Canton policy. Only a small amount of trade was allowed, and only in designated ports under tight regulation. Europeans could not travel beyond these areas, ordinary Chinese people could not meet them, and anyone caught teaching Chinese to foreigners faced severe punishment.
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Long-term causes of war
A major problem was that China insisted on being paid in silver for its goods. This made European trade expensive and one way, since the Chinese refused almost all Western products in return for tea and silk. European merchants resented this imbalance and saw China as obstructive. The Chinese, for their part, viewed Europeans as uncivilised and offering nothing of value. In 1793 Britain sent a mission led by Lord Macartney (See the famous contemporary British satirical cartoon by James Gillray left) to try to establish diplomatic relations and wider trade. Despite elaborate gifts, the mission failed. The Qing court regarded Britain not as an equal nation but as a minor tribute state that should show respect to the Emperor. The idea of negotiating as equals was unacceptable, and Macartney’s requests were rejected. |
Our dynasty's majestic virtue has penetrated unto every country under Heaven, and Kings of all nations have offered their costly tribute by land and sea. As your Ambassador can see for himself, we possess all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country's manufactures. This then is my answer to your request to appoint a representative at my Court, a request contrary to our dynastic usage, which would only result in inconvenience to yourself. I have expounded my wishes in detail and have commanded your tribute Envoys to leave in peace on their homeward journey. It behoves you, O King, to respect my sentiments and to display even greater devotion and loyalty in future, so that, by perpetual submission to our Throne, you may secure peace and prosperity for your country hereafter. Besides making gifts (of which I enclose an inventory) to each member of your Mission, I confer upon you, O King, valuable presents in excess of the number usually bestowed on such occasions, including silks and curios-a list of which is likewise enclosed. Do you reverently receive them and take note of my tender goodwill towards you!
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The short-term causes of war - opium
Opium is a narcotic drug that for centuries had been used medicinally to relieve pain. Originally opium had been popular in European cities - where the bars known as 'opium dens' were set up (see right). Due to the horrific impact of opium addiction on the general public, European governments banned the drug. This meant that the growing companies needed a new market. The idea of selling the opium to China in exchange for tea seemed an ideal solution to British merchants. 
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The British introduced the drug as a recreational habit to be smoked with tobacco and being highly addictive, smoking opium quickly took hold in China. The main company trading with China was the British East India Company. This company had sponsored the growing of opium poppies in India. In response the Chinese passed two laws banning the importation of the drug in 1729 and 1796. To get around this ban, and continue making huge profits, the East India Company began to sell opium to Chinese merchants who were able to smuggle it into China.
Despite the bans the opium trade grew and grew. The trade was so lucrative that merchants from other countries, including Portugal, France and America, also got involved. |
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Towards war
In 1838, Emperor Dao Guang, who ruled from 1820 to 1850, sent Commissioner Lin Zexu to Guangzhou (Canton) to finally end the opium trade. Lin ordered the confiscation of all the British merchants' opium supplies. In all, 20,283 chests of the drug were seized and destroyed. The merchants were furious. The new Superintendent of Trade in China, Captain Charles Elliott, then promised the merchants compensation from the British government. Tension between Britain and China intensified. The trigger for the outbreak of war came as the result of the murder of a Chinese national by drunken British sailors in a fight in the city of Kowloon. |
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Charles Elliott paid compensation to the Chinese man's family, but the Chinese authorities wanted the accused handed over to stand trial, the British refused, arguing that the men would not get a trial under Chinese law as confessions were extracted under torture. They also objected to the public execution the men faced if they were found guilty.
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The First Opium War 1839-42
In retaliation, the Chinese blockaded and stopped food supplies to foreigners. The British response was to send warships to Guangzhou to 'protect their interests'. The Chinese underestimated the power of the newly industrialised British navy and its steam ships. 'The English barbarians are an insignificant and detestable race, trusting entirely to their strong ships and large guns: but the immense distance they have traversed will render the arrival of seasonal supplies impossible and their soldiers after a single defeat, being deprived of provisions will become dispirited and lost. (An official report to the Emperor before the conflict) |
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British warships destroyed large numbers of Chinese war junks, causing heavy casualties. Although the British were briefly expelled from Guangzhou, this only led to a stronger response: twenty British warships and four thousand troops bombarded the city and then attacked targets along the coast. The First Opium War, fought from 1839 to 1842, exposed the huge military gap between the two sides. China fought to stop opium entering the country. Britain fought to protect a profitable trade.
The Treaty of Nanjing, 1842
The war ended with the Treaty of Nanjing. Its main terms were:
• Four additional ports were opened to Western trade.
• British citizens in China were no longer subject to Chinese law.
• Britain gained special rights in “concession areas.”
• China had to pay 21 million silver dollars and reimburse the opium Lin Zexu had destroyed.
• China had to treat Britain as an equal in all future dealings.
• Britain received Hong Kong.
• Britain gained “most favoured nation” status, meaning it would receive any privilege China later granted to another power.
The Qing government had no choice but to sign. British ships threatened further attacks if they refused. This was the first “unequal treaty,” so called because it ignored Chinese interests entirely.
After the war, opium imports increased dramatically. Other Western powers, including France, the Netherlands and the United States, joined the trade. Shanghai became the best example of this new relationship: a rapidly expanding foreign settlement with churches, schools and hundreds of merchant ships arriving each year.
The Treaty of Nanjing, 1842
The war ended with the Treaty of Nanjing. Its main terms were:
• Four additional ports were opened to Western trade.
• British citizens in China were no longer subject to Chinese law.
• Britain gained special rights in “concession areas.”
• China had to pay 21 million silver dollars and reimburse the opium Lin Zexu had destroyed.
• China had to treat Britain as an equal in all future dealings.
• Britain received Hong Kong.
• Britain gained “most favoured nation” status, meaning it would receive any privilege China later granted to another power.
The Qing government had no choice but to sign. British ships threatened further attacks if they refused. This was the first “unequal treaty,” so called because it ignored Chinese interests entirely.
After the war, opium imports increased dramatically. Other Western powers, including France, the Netherlands and the United States, joined the trade. Shanghai became the best example of this new relationship: a rapidly expanding foreign settlement with churches, schools and hundreds of merchant ships arriving each year.
The Second Opium War, 1856–60
A second conflict broke out in 1856 after an incident involving a Chinese-owned ship called the Arrow. Although the ship flew a British flag, Chinese officials boarded it, believing pirates were on board. In the struggle the flag was torn down. Britain demanded an apology and the release of the crew. Although the crew was returned, no apology followed. Tension escalated when Chinese gangs attacked British property in Guangzhou, and British warships responded by bombarding the city. War began again, and China suffered further defeats.
The Treaty of Tientsin, 1858
The war resulted in another unequal treaty. Its terms included:
• Six more ports opened to foreign trade
• Opium made legal with a small import tax
• Full freedom for Christian missionaries
• Europeans permitted to travel anywhere in China
• Foreign ambassadors allowed to reside in Beijing
Tension remained high, as China resisted implementing these terms. In 1860 Britain and France sent troops to enforce the treaty. They looted and burned the Imperial Summer Palace and forced the Emperor to flee. China again had to negotiate from a position of complete weakness.
A British officer later wrote that the war had “opened up the Yangtze trade” and dealt such a blow to the Emperor’s authority that China’s relations with the West would never be the same again.
Activity 1
What were the causes of the Opium Wars and the consequences for China? Write a short explanation that covers:
A second conflict broke out in 1856 after an incident involving a Chinese-owned ship called the Arrow. Although the ship flew a British flag, Chinese officials boarded it, believing pirates were on board. In the struggle the flag was torn down. Britain demanded an apology and the release of the crew. Although the crew was returned, no apology followed. Tension escalated when Chinese gangs attacked British property in Guangzhou, and British warships responded by bombarding the city. War began again, and China suffered further defeats.
The Treaty of Tientsin, 1858
The war resulted in another unequal treaty. Its terms included:
• Six more ports opened to foreign trade
• Opium made legal with a small import tax
• Full freedom for Christian missionaries
• Europeans permitted to travel anywhere in China
• Foreign ambassadors allowed to reside in Beijing
Tension remained high, as China resisted implementing these terms. In 1860 Britain and France sent troops to enforce the treaty. They looted and burned the Imperial Summer Palace and forced the Emperor to flee. China again had to negotiate from a position of complete weakness.
A British officer later wrote that the war had “opened up the Yangtze trade” and dealt such a blow to the Emperor’s authority that China’s relations with the West would never be the same again.
Activity 1
What were the causes of the Opium Wars and the consequences for China? Write a short explanation that covers:
- Long-term causes
Identify the broader, underlying reasons for conflict between China and the West.
These might include trade restrictions, the Canton system, the silver imbalance and China’s refusal to treat Western powers as equals. - Short-term causes
Describe the specific events that triggered each war.
For example: Lin Zexu’s destruction of opium in 1839 and the Arrow Incident in 1856. - Consequences for China
Explain the main results of the wars.
Include key points such as the unequal treaties, new treaty ports, foreign rights, indemnities, the legalisation of opium and the weakening of Qing authority.
Further Chinese humiliation
A further clash with France developed in the 1880s, over the French consolidation of its hold on Vietnam. Traditionally, Vietnam like Korea occupied a tributary status with regard to Imperial China. The rulers of both Vietnam in the south and Korea in the north recognised the lordship if not the direct rule of the Emperor in Beijing. The French brutally severed any link, destroying a Chinese fleet in Fuzhou in August 1884, in the process. Five Frenchmen and 521 Chinese men died.
A further clash with France developed in the 1880s, over the French consolidation of its hold on Vietnam. Traditionally, Vietnam like Korea occupied a tributary status with regard to Imperial China. The rulers of both Vietnam in the south and Korea in the north recognised the lordship if not the direct rule of the Emperor in Beijing. The French brutally severed any link, destroying a Chinese fleet in Fuzhou in August 1884, in the process. Five Frenchmen and 521 Chinese men died.
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In 1894 Qing China suffered a serious humiliation over the other tributary state, Korea, and this time at the hands of an Asiatic power, Japan. Japan, newly reformed and invigorated, was anxious to extend its influence into Korea at China's expense. A rebellion in Korea against the monarchy there led both powers to rush in troops. A ship carrying Chinese reinforcements was sunk by a Japanese cruiser and for good measure Japanese forces crossed into Chinese territory proper, seizing the port of Lushun in Manchuria and even the Shandong peninsula near to Beijing itself. The Treaty of Shimoneseki was more humiliating than that of Nanjing in 1842. China abandoned Korea and even ports in China to Japan. In 1898 and 1899, China almost seemed on the point of partition between the imperialist powers.
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The Russians who had forced the Japanese out of some of their gains, notably the port of Lushun, now occupied much of Manchuria and Lushun, renaming it Port Arthur.
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The Germans occupied a port in the Shandong peninsula and the British, not to be outdone and to stop anyone else having it took Weihaiwei. They also extended their hold on the south by extracting a 99-year lease on the Kowloon Peninsula to the north of Hong Kong. The French also seized territory in the south.
The Failure of Self-Strengthening and the Boxer Rising
By the late nineteenth century the Qing government appeared unable to defend China’s sovereignty. Some officials concluded that China would remain weak unless it adopted selected Western technologies. Reformers promoted a “self-strengthening” movement that aimed to modernise the military and industry while preserving Confucian values. Their goal was not to Westernise China but to strengthen it against foreign powers.
However, the Empress Dowager Cixi opposed major reform, and no full programme of industrial or social change was introduced. Early attempts at modernisation, such as the first railway built in 1876, were quickly dismantled. Without sustained reform, China could not resist growing foreign influence.
By the late nineteenth century the Qing government appeared unable to defend China’s sovereignty. Some officials concluded that China would remain weak unless it adopted selected Western technologies. Reformers promoted a “self-strengthening” movement that aimed to modernise the military and industry while preserving Confucian values. Their goal was not to Westernise China but to strengthen it against foreign powers.
However, the Empress Dowager Cixi opposed major reform, and no full programme of industrial or social change was introduced. Early attempts at modernisation, such as the first railway built in 1876, were quickly dismantled. Without sustained reform, China could not resist growing foreign influence.
'Railways carried "fire-carts" and rattling, iron-wheeled wagons all over the country, desecrating burial places, disturbing the spirits of the earth, putting honest carters and porters, trackers and boatmen, muleteers and camel men out of work. Equally obnoxious were the foreign operators of the chugging steamships on the inland waterways, the foreign mining engineers whose deep shafts upset the feng-shui even more than the railway tracks did, the foreign mechanics who put up the wires and the poles for the telegraph companies.
[A member of the Boxer movement commented:]
'The iron roads and iron carriages are disturbing the terrestrial dragon and are destroying the earth's beneficial influences... the red liquid which keeps dripping from the iron snake [the rust coloured rain water that dripped from the telegraph wires] is nothing but the blood of the out-raged spirits of the air.'
Quoted in Hibbert, C. 1970. The Dragon Wakes: China and theWest, 1793-1911.
Why the Qing Failed to Modernise
The court was divided. Reformers wanted selective Western technology, but conservative officials feared it would undermine Confucian values and social order.
• Modernisation was limited. The Qing tried to strengthen the military without reforming industry, administration or education.
• Key projects, such as early railways, were halted due to political opposition.
• The dynasty underestimated Western power and believed existing institutions could cope without deep change.
• Repeated military defeats and foreign pressure exposed these weaknesses, leaving China unable to resist by 1900.
The court was divided. Reformers wanted selective Western technology, but conservative officials feared it would undermine Confucian values and social order.
• Modernisation was limited. The Qing tried to strengthen the military without reforming industry, administration or education.
• Key projects, such as early railways, were halted due to political opposition.
• The dynasty underestimated Western power and believed existing institutions could cope without deep change.
• Repeated military defeats and foreign pressure exposed these weaknesses, leaving China unable to resist by 1900.
In this climate of frustration, popular anger in northern China erupted into the Boxer Rising. Tension had been rising over the presence of Western missionaries and their converts. In 1900 scattered attacks turned into a violent, anti-foreign movement. Beliefs that railways disturbed the spirits of the earth and that telegraph wires carried poison mixed with strong Han nationalism. Europeans and even Chinese people associated with foreign objects or ideas were attacked and killed.
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Foreign Intervention and the Defeat of the Boxers
Violence spread rapidly from the countryside into major cities such as Tianjin and Beijing. The German ambassador was killed, and foreign diplomats, civilians and thousands of Chinese Christians retreated to the Legation Quarter in Beijing. They were besieged for 55 days by the Boxers and elements of the Qing army. Under growing pressure, the Empress Dowager Cixi backed the uprising, effectively declaring war on the foreign powers. In response, an Eight Nation Alliance of British, French, German, Russian, American, Japanese, Austrian and Italian troops invaded northern China. They relieved the siege, occupied Beijing and carried out widespread reprisals. The Qing court fled to Xi’an, and China was forced to accept the harsh terms of the Boxer Protocol in 1901. China had to pay a huge indemnity, allow foreign troops to be stationed in Beijing and punish officials who supported the Boxers. The defeat left the dynasty humiliated and further weakened, accelerating the decline that would lead to its collapse in 1911. |
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Activity 2
Explain the 'self-strengthening' movement and explain how it failed and why the Boxer rebellion resulted in the final humiliation for the Chinese.
Write a short explanation that covers:
Keep your answers focused and use examples from the website.
Explain the 'self-strengthening' movement and explain how it failed and why the Boxer rebellion resulted in the final humiliation for the Chinese.
Write a short explanation that covers:
- Self-strengthening
Describe what the reformers tried to achieve and why they believed Western technology was necessary.
Explain why the movement failed, focusing on political resistance, limited reforms and the refusal to modernise society as well as the military. - The Boxer Rising
Describe how popular anger turned into a violent anti-foreign movement.
Explain why the Qing’s support for the Boxers made the situation worse and how the foreign intervention of 1900–01 revealed China’s weakness. - Consequences
Identify the main outcomes of the defeat, such as the Boxer Protocol, foreign troops in Beijing, the huge indemnity and the further loss of Qing authority.
Keep your answers focused and use examples from the website.
Extension and Extras
China’s view of the “Century of Humiliation”
The period that followed the Opium Wars is remembered in China as the “Century of Humiliation.” From the 1840s to the 1940s China suffered repeated defeats, unequal treaties, foreign invasions and internal rebellions. Large areas of its territory were controlled or influenced by outside powers, and the Qing government proved unable to protect national sovereignty. For many Chinese, this century represents a loss of dignity and independence. It is still seen today as a warning about the dangers of weakness, division and failing to modernise in time.
China’s view of the “Century of Humiliation”
The period that followed the Opium Wars is remembered in China as the “Century of Humiliation.” From the 1840s to the 1940s China suffered repeated defeats, unequal treaties, foreign invasions and internal rebellions. Large areas of its territory were controlled or influenced by outside powers, and the Qing government proved unable to protect national sovereignty. For many Chinese, this century represents a loss of dignity and independence. It is still seen today as a warning about the dangers of weakness, division and failing to modernise in time.
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Xi Jinping frequently draws on the “Century of Humiliation” to justify China’s priorities today. He presents the defeats China suffered between the Opium Wars and 1949 as a warning about what happens when the country is weak or divided. This history supports his call for “national rejuvenation,” the idea that China must regain its rightful status as a strong global power.
Xi uses the narrative to promote military modernisation, technological self-reliance and firm resistance to foreign pressure. It also strengthens national unity by suggesting that only the Communist Party can prevent a return to past humiliation. Issues such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and the South China Sea are often framed as part of this long struggle to restore China’s dignity and sovereignty. |
See also - Sal Khan does a short video on the Opium Wars