Control is Lost Over a Long Time. But the Qing was Not in Control for a long Time. The Qing’s overthrowing that led to China’s Communism

Qing Dynasty

The Qing family ruled China from 1644 until 1911. They had a strong and consolidated rule over the country until the 1800s. But what happened to chip away at the Qing Dynasty’s grasp of China. 

China had prosperity during this period. They had gigantic cities that contributed greatly to their economy. These cities had almost anything for consumers: essentials and luxury items were found in these cities. People from around the world came to China to get these luxuries the Chinese produced and found on their lands. European trade was a big part of the economy. Then the Qing government controlled trade heavily and would not accept trade items the British and other European countries could provide. The British wanted wider access to China. China was interested in the chemical of opium. Britain used that to their advantage and took opium from the land controlled by the British East India Company in British India. They then traded this opium for Chinese luxury goods to sell in the U.K.. This trade was known as the Triangular Trade of Opium. 

Even though the population growth in the Qing Dynasty facilitated economic growth in the cities, there was not enough farmland for everybody to use and cultivate. There were also not enough jobs for the entire population. This created widespread poverty throughout the country which angered many. 

Despite the Europeans being big in the Qing’s economic growth, their independence weakened. Being desperate and reliant on foreign input to your economy allows other countries to dictate how they operate. 

The British were angry that the Qing were not operating their economy how they liked. The First Opium War broke out in 1839 as a result. The Qing were already starting to weaken and the strength of the British army with their guns led to an easy British win. The treaty of Nanking was signed in 1842 to end the war. The Qing heavily lost this trade, they had to open more ports, give the British Hong Kong island , pay the British back for the opium that was destroyed in the war, and exempt British citizens from Qing law. 

These ports that were opened up as a result of the treaty turned into the giganticly important cities of Shanghai and Hong Kong. The diverse populations in these influential cities allowed for western culture to flourish in China. The Qing grasp of the country was shrinking fast. 

During this time the Chinese citizens were realizing that Qing rule needed to go. A civil war broke out in 1850 in southern China. The Qing beat the rebellions but many areas in southern China were decimated. Many other rebellions also broke out in this short period of time. 

Following the Civil War period which ended in 1864, the Chinese suffered a defeat in the 1st Sino-Japanese War in 1895. Outside news sources were wondering which European power would take control of China or if foreign powers would split China up and each power would take a piece. 

Towards the end of the Qing’s rule reformers tried to become more western. The Chinese citizens also wanted to become more western to avoid being taken over by European powers. The final revolution that overthrew the Qing occurred in 1911. The Xinhai Revolution in the city of Wuchang and many other cities revolted against the Qing government. The last emperor Puyi surrendered which led to the Republic of China being formed. 

Republic of China

Despite the mostly universal decision to overthrow the Qing, the Republic of China failed to unify the Chinese. One of the only wins for early China was that the big powers—the U.S., Britain, and Russia—established full diplomatic relations with the country.  The beginning of the Republic of China’s history was also highly tumultuous. In 1915 a civil war erupted after the elected president elected himself emperor. Japan was looking at China eagerly as they became weaker and weaker. Japan started following the same trajectory of these European countries in their imperial history. 

With the increase in Japanese aggression on China and the even further reliance on European trade in the Chinese economy angered the Chinese. The things that angered the Chinese with the Qing with their allowance on foreign spheres of influence were occurring with the newly found Republic of China as well. The 2nd Civil War broke out in China in 1927 between the Nationalist groups and Communist groups. The Nationalist Party was trying to fight off the communists and silence their revolution. However, they were weak and did not have the industrial power to support the army. The Communists had a more powerful army and was way more popular amongst the citizens. The amount of land they controlled kept getting greater and greater. 

After the Japanese invaded Manchuria and started the 2nd Sino-Japanese War the Civil War was still going on. When fighting started intensifying the Civil War was put on hold. The Communist Party was able to fight off the Japanese invaders way more effectively than the Nationalists which led to their win in the 2nd Chinese Civil War. 

The Nationalists fled to the Island of Taiwan and kept a Capitalist society. The Chinese kept control of the mainland. Each still claims the other but de-facto—the reality in practice disregarding claims—The Republic of China/Taiwan controls the island of Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China (Communists) controls the mainland. 

The People’s Republic of China had an authoritarian government and a communist economy. Their notable leaders were Mao Zedong and today’s leader Zi Jingping. The Republic of China/Taiwan’s notable leader was their first Chiang Kai-shek. 

In all, the overthrowing of the weakened Qing led to the destruction which was seen during the 2nd Civil War and the 2nd Sino-Japanese War. In addition to the destruction caused by their government. The Taiwanese still field aggression from the mainland but kept their model of Capitalist economic policies and democratic government. 

Sources used:

• The fall of the Qing dynasty – The Qing dynasty – KS3 History – homework help for year 7, 8 and 9. – BBC Bitesize
• Chinese History – Republic of China 1911-1919 
• The Chinese Revolution of 1911 
• Western colonialism – British Empire, Imperialism, Colonization | Britannica 
• Second Sino-Japanese War – Stalemate, Invasion, Conflict | Britannica