Imperialism in China

Domination of China started with Opium Wars.

Opium Wars

• Before opium wars only two ports opened to foreign traders. 
• No market for British goods in China. 
• British merchants started smuggling Opium into China on large scale. Very profitable trade.
• Did immense physical and moral damage to Chinese. 
• In 1839, China seized opium cargo and destroyed it. 
• Britain declared war and defeated China. 
• China forced to pay heavy damages and open 5 port cities to British traders. 
• Chinese government agreed that future British subjects in these port cities would be tried for any crimes in English rather than Chinese courts. - Known as extraterritorial rights.
• Chinese government not free to impose tariff on foreign goods. 
• Hong Kong given to China. 

China-Japan War

• Japan tried to increase her influence over Korea.
• Korea under Chinese overlordship. China resented; two countries went to war in 1894.
• China got defeated. China gave Korea her independence, ceded Formosa and other islands to Japan.
• Forced to pay heavy war damages of 150 million USD. 
• France, Russia, Britain and Germany gave loans to China to meet this payment. 
• In lieu divided China into spheres of influence. Each country has certain regions of China reserved exclusively for its purpose. 
• Germany: Kiachow Bay + Shantung + Hwang Ho valley.
• Russia: Liatong Penisula + right to build railroads in Manchuria. 
• France: Kwangchow Bay + 3 southern provinces to China. 
• Britain: Wei-hi-Wei + Yangtze Valley.
• US feared that its trade with China would be shutoff suggested "Open door"/ "Me too" policy.
• Open door - all countries will have equal rights to trade anywhere in China. 
• Britain supported US to discourage annexation of China by Japan and Russia. 
• Scramble for privileges stopped in China after an uprising against the foreign power known as Boxer rebellion (1898-1900).
• Foreign powers were victorious and levied heavy damages on China as punishment. 
• China was not conquered and occupied by any imperialist country, but the effects of these developments were same as in areas which had been colonized. 
• Division of China into spheres of influence - "cutting of the Chinese melon"

Imperialism

Imperialism is the practice of extending the power, control or rule by a country over the political and economic life of areas outside its own borders.

Conditions that helped the growth of Imperialism

1. Demands created by Industrial Revolution
• Production of goods was far excess of demand at home. 
• Low wages of worker = low purchasing power of worker = restricted demand at home,
• Possibility of trade between industrialized nations little due to protectionist policy.
• So capitalist countries have to find market for the goods they were producing.
• Markets for surplus goods in Asia and Africa. No Industrial Revolution here yet.
• Selling made easier due to political domination. 
• Raw materials available from the colonies. 
• For protection of their investments. Weak government means frequent uprisings. = Loss of profits. 
2. Improvement in Transportation and Communication
• Faster transport of goods between European countries and acquired territories. 
• Built waterways in conquered territories by cheap labour, raw materials from interior of  continents could be transported. 
• Every area of world was brought within easy reach.
3. Extreme Nationalism: Pride and Power
• For superiority, each nation felt that it must have colonies to add to its prestige and power. 
• Many intellectuals openly advocated imperialism, Took pride in calling their territories empires. 
• Acquiring colony - chain reaction - need another to protect it and so on. 
• Colonies provided manpower to imperialist countries.
4. The "Civilizing Mission": Men and Ideas
• Many Europeans thought imperialist expansion to be noble. 
• Bringing civilization to backward people of the world. 
• "The whiteman's burden" -Rudyard Kipling;
• "Superior races have the duty of civilizing the inferior races." - Jules Ferry
• Christian missionaries dedicated to spreading Christianity - war for their protection - part in promoting imperialism. 
5. Conditions that favoured Imperialism in Asia and Africa
• No industrial revolution here. 
• Weak government in Asia and Africa in 19th century.
• Militarily weak against European nations. 
• Old ways of governance still followed. Outlived its usefulness.
• Strong nation states in the modern sense not developed. 
• Loyalities to local princes or to tribal Chieftians as in feudal times