Imperialism is being under the rule of an emperor, but as we’ve observed through history being ruled by one person doesn’t always work out, like in these three cases. The first one that happened were the opium wars. Britain was selling china opium from Bengal despite it being illegal by the Chinese government. Britain bribed officials, smuggled it in, and gave out free samples to citizens. Silver began to sell out of china to keep up with the ten percent of the population regularly using opium. This was a big economic killer. The emperor sent out people to enforce the ban on opium by stopping and punishing the dealers, forcing the citizens to sober up and, thirdly tried to shut down the foreign merchants. Thus provoking the British to start the first opium war. China had lost by 1842 just three years after 1839 the year the war started. A few years later in 1856 the second opium war started up and was over by 1860.
The Taiping Rebellion in china was started by Hong Xiuquan in 1850 to recruit followers to help him build a “heavenly kingdom of great peace”. Everyone would share wealth and no one would be in poverty. In 1850 he had a peasant army of over one million. In 1853 him and his followers captured Nanjing and claimed it as there capital. The Rebellion was so devastating that over 20 million people were killed. After the taking of Nanjing the Qing dynasty enlisted the help of the British, and French troops. Eventually the rebellion was overthrown in 1864.
Last but not least the Boxer Rebellion was started on November 2, 1899. The citizens decided to rebel against foreign influence in religion. The rebels called “Boxers” by westerners for doing physical exercises. They believed that these exercises would help them to withstand bullets. Led by the secret organization called the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious these rebels were fierce. They killed many foreigners and Chinese Christians and destroyed foreign property. They then attempted to storm the foreign embassies in Beijing. Following the 55-day siege, the embassies where relieved by over twenty thousand Japanese, American, and European troops. The Rebellion ended on September 7, 1901 with the signing of the Boxer Protocol.
The Taiping Rebellion in china was started by Hong Xiuquan in 1850 to recruit followers to help him build a “heavenly kingdom of great peace”. Everyone would share wealth and no one would be in poverty. In 1850 he had a peasant army of over one million. In 1853 him and his followers captured Nanjing and claimed it as there capital. The Rebellion was so devastating that over 20 million people were killed. After the taking of Nanjing the Qing dynasty enlisted the help of the British, and French troops. Eventually the rebellion was overthrown in 1864.
Last but not least the Boxer Rebellion was started on November 2, 1899. The citizens decided to rebel against foreign influence in religion. The rebels called “Boxers” by westerners for doing physical exercises. They believed that these exercises would help them to withstand bullets. Led by the secret organization called the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious these rebels were fierce. They killed many foreigners and Chinese Christians and destroyed foreign property. They then attempted to storm the foreign embassies in Beijing. Following the 55-day siege, the embassies where relieved by over twenty thousand Japanese, American, and European troops. The Rebellion ended on September 7, 1901 with the signing of the Boxer Protocol.
Sources
- "RECORDING THE GRANDEUR OF THE QING | NANXUNTU: SOUTHERN INSPECTION TOUR SCROLLS." RECORDING THE GRANDEUR OF THE QING | NANXUNTU: SOUTHERN INSPECTION TOUR SCROLLS. Web. 13 May 2016.
- "What Was China's Boxer Rebellion?" About.com Education. Web. 13 May 2016.