The Impact of Imperialism 1840-1900
帝国主义
Chinese Dynasties• Xia Dynasty About 1994 BCE - 1766 BCE • Shang Dynasty 1766 BCE - 1027 BCE • Zhou Dynasty 1122 BCE -256 BCE plus suppliment • Qin Dynasty 221 BCE - 206 BCE • Early Han Dynasty 206 BCE - 9 AD • Later Han Dynasty 25 AD - 220 AD • Three Kingdoms - Period of Disunion 220 AD - 280 AD • Sui Dynasty 589 AD - 618 AD • Tang Dynasty 618 AD - 907 AD • Song Dynasty 969 AD - 1279 AD • Yuan Dyansty 1279 AD - 1368 AD • Ming Dynasty 1368 AD - 1644 AD • Qing Dynasty (Ch’ing) 1644 AD - 1911 AD
Qing World View
• China at the centre of its formulation of the world.
• Centuries of contacts with neighbouring states, most of which recognized the pre-eminence of the Qing emperor
• A complex, pre-existing system of foreign affairs: tribute states
• This is the lens through which the Qing view Western nations/empires
“Botanical Imperialism”: Opium and Tea
• TEA= What the British Want
• The tea trade grew exponentially—from 1719 to 1833—tonnage of foreign ships trading with China increased 13 times.
• By the 1820s enough tea was imported into England to give every person 2 pounds a year.
• Paying for it with Silver=trade imbalance
Macartney Mission
• Lord George Macartney • Send as British envoy
to the Qing from 1792-1794
• Sought to gain more “favorable” conditions of trade for British interests
• Fails to do so—famously refuses to bow to Qing emperor
Opium Trade
• It is ILLEGAL Under Qing Law
• Foreign traders mount a massive smuggling operation to trade this illicit substance for tea
• 1820- 5,000 chests (665,000 pounds)
• 1830- 16,000 chests (2,000,000 pounds)
• 1858- 70,000 chests (9,000,000 pounds)
The effects of the Opium War:Part (I)—The Unequal Treaties
• The Treaty of Nanjing (1842): “Free Trade”– Opens a total of 5 “treaty ports”—coastal cities where
foreigners could freely trade and reside– Grants “concession areas” within treaty ports to
foreign powers—essentially micro-colonies– Gives Britain Hong Kong– Most Favored Nation clause for Britain– Forces Qing to pay 21 million ounces of silver
• The Treaty of Tianjin (1858):– Opens 10 more ports– Allows Christian missionaries to move inland– Extraterritoriality for foreign subjects
Imperialism in China 1895-1900
• “Spheres of Influence”– Germany in Shandong—Qingdao– Russia in Manchuria– France in Yunnan– British in HK-New Territories