China in the 19th Century:Rebellions,

Foreign Incursions, and Decline

January 30, 2014

Review• What was more important in the decline of the

Mughal empire in the 18th century, the power of the British or the internal weaknesses of the Mughal empire?

• What was the impact of the Industrial Revolution on India’s textile industry?

• How nationalist was India under the Mughals and during the early part of British rule?

• Did British rule inadvertently inspire the beginnings of Indian nationalism?

Pre-nationalist resistance to the British

•Mysore

•The Maratha Confederacy

•Sikhs

•Why is this resistance not nationalistic? None of it is fuelled by calls for India to be ruled by Indians.

India in 1857

•Direct and Indirect rule

http://projects.ecfs.org/eastwest/Images/1857_india.gif

Sepoy Mutiny-1857• What is a “sepoy”? (p. 174)

• British angered many in 1856 by annexing Oudh, ordering soldiers to accept overseas assignments, and allowing widows to remarry.

• But the ultimate insult was the new rifle, which required soldiers to bit off the casing for cartridges, and those cartridges were believed to have animal fat (pig or cow) on them. This offended both Muslims (who couldn’t eat pork) and Hindus (who couldn’t eat beef).

A limited rebellion

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Indian_revolt_of_1857_states_map.svg

A limited rebellion• The Sepoy mutiny was not a nation-wide rebellion. Many,

including the Sikhs, helped the British suppress it.

• It is now called the “India’s First War of Independence” but that is anachronistic, since no one was fighting for a united India under Indian control.

• It lead to the Crown assuming control of India from the British East India Company. And it led to more racial tension between Brits and South Asians.

• 1857 marks a break between a century of control by the British East India company and a century of control by the British Crown. (p. 171)

China in the 19th century

• The problems China faced: (Ebrey, pp. 314-5) Overpopulation and a decline in the standard of

living. Technological stagnation--from a “high-level

equilibrium trap” Threats from an unexpected direction-- “barbarians

from the seas to the south” Corruption and inertia Tax inflation Opium addiction.

Barbarians break through the gates

• The Canton system --Foreigners confined to Guangzhou• The Opium War (1839-1842) and the consequences of the

Chinese defeat (Ebrey, pp.315–318)Why did the British try to force opium down Chinese throats? Why was China unable to resist the West? Technological

weakness, unprepared for an attack from that direction, could not mobilize all its resources against the West.

• The Arrow War of 1856-1860 -another defeat for the Qing. (Ebrey, p. 321-22).

Unequal treaties (extraterritoriality, tariff limits, barriers to missionaries lifted, etc) and the creation of treaty ports which stimulated nationalism and produced compradors--Chinese who worked with Western merchants

Wars on the Home Front

•The Taiping rebellion (1850-1864) Ebrey, pp. 318-321) •The Nian Rebellion (1853-1873•Two Muslim rebellions (religious and ethnic roots)

one in Yunnan (1855-1873)

and one in the far west (1863-1873)

3 of those 4 rebellions had religious origins.

How could the Qing suppress 4 rebellions but be unable to defeat the West?

Why do peasants rebel?

For survival, either to protect themselves or to seize things they need to survive.

Taiping Rebellion

• http://sites.asiasociety.org/chinawealthpower/the-taiping-rebellion/

The Qing response to Crisis

• Devolution of authority to the provinces• Self-strengthening: an attempt to create an industrial sector

strong enough to challenge the West. (322-25)• Three stages: a) importing Western technology b)

government-sponsored commercial ventures, and c) joint government-merchant enterprises

• Why did self-strengthening fail? Did not encourage private capitalism Did not promote nationalism. Could not overcome the contradiction between Confucian

and Western values. Would have created new centres of power, which could have

threatened Manchu control and thus was half-hearted.

Defining Nationalism

• What is nationalism?

• It is more than patriotism. Modern nationalism turns subjects into citizens who identify their self-interest with the self-interest of their nation-state. People move beyond identifying only with families and neighbours to define themselves as a member of a much larger, politically-defined community.

Modern Nationalism•Nationalism is a commitment to the political entity known as the nation-state. Under nationalism, subjects become citizens, and people demand a government they can identify with. That means they wanted to be governed by people like themselves rather than by outsiders. Modern nationalism is distinguished from earlier forms of patriotism in three ways: Entails a political more than a cultural commitment

a willingness to jettison tradition if that is what national survival requires.

However, sometimes tradition is redefined rather than jettisoned so that it can better promote the political survival of its adherents.is mass-based rather than an elite defence of class privilegesrecognizes the existence of other nations as legal equals

More on Nationalism• Nationalism can refer to a commitment to an already existing

nation, or to a desire to create a nation which is is under the control of one’s own community rather than under the control of foreigners. What makes nationalism different from other forms of group consciousness is that a nationalistic community identifies itself with a political entity called the nation-state, which requires embodiment in an independent government.

• We need to distinguish elite nationalism from mass nationalism. Elite nationalism appears first.

• Nationalism is not natural--it must be taught, often in primary schools, the army, and through political rituals, and promoted through vernacular publications . It is also reinforced with myths and “invented” histories and traditions.

Conditions for Nationalism

• How do people come to identify with a national community? It helps to have (not all are necessary):

• a homeland defined by a geographically distinct border

• a common language , a common ethnicity, and a common religion,

• a common culture

• urbanization

• a common history.

• These conditions do not have to be real. They can instead be imagined.

Pre-Nationalism in China

• The Qing responded to the challenge of the West with “Self-strengthening,” an attempt to implant the latest Western technology, both military and industrial, in China. It failed because the Manchu, as an ethnic minority, could not promote nationalism, and because Confucianism placed scholars rather than engineers and merchants in charge.

• Also, because of population growth, China lacked the financial resources to modernize rapidly.

Social DarwinismEbrey, p. 313

• Fear for China’s survival caused some Chinese intellectuals to begin to doubt that China would survive the onslaught of Western imperialism. This led some to even doubt the viability of Confucianism, and to move toward nationalism (the willingness to use any means necessary for the survival of the nation, and the willingness to jettison any traditional institutions, beliefs, values, and practices which were seen as hindering that survival.

• They were influenced by SOCIAL DARWINISM:  The application to human society of the biological principle of natural selection. Applied to international relations, social darwinism justifies the conquest of one country by another “more advanced” country.  Just as “might makes right” appears to be the dominant mode of interaction in the animal kingdom, social darwinism makes “might makes right” a legitimizing principle in international relations.

Carving Up China

• endleus2.wikispaces.com/file/view/CarvingUpChina.jpg/280069864/248x352/CarvingUpChina.jpg

Carving up China• China was not an independent country in the 19th century (p. 331)

• “concessions,” not colonies, are awarded to: (Ebrey, p. 325)

• Japan (Manchuria, taken from Russia) [Taiwan is a colony, not a concession]

• the UK (Shanghai region and Guangzhou region) More of Hong Kong becomes a colony.

• France (across the border from Vietnam)

• Germany (Qingdao region)

• Why were there no US concessions?

• What are concessions? foreigner-administered zones

The Boxer Rebellion

• More an ethnocentric rebellion than a nationalistic movement. (Ebrey, p. 328-30)

• was supported by the Empress Dowager but not by much of the Chinese military.

• Defeat told Chinese that it had been the last gasp of the old order.