“However well educated and clever a native maybe, and however brave he may prove himself. I believe that no rank we can bestow on him would cause him to be considered an equal of the British Officer.”(Lord Kitchener) New imperialism, the act of controlling territories under a greater power of greater nations, was popular during the nineteenth century. China and India were two independent nations, so similar, but yet also so different. Their imperialists had motives over raw material, resources, and power. Their thoughts of imperialism were fixed more on controlling and taking, then making relations and building up the country. This inequality led for a struggle of freedom and independence. From the struggles, the culture and the people had been impacted greatly from the foreign influences. Industrialism was halted for India and thrived in China. From the coasts China to the riches of India, imperialism changed the countries vastly.
Across India and China, imperialistic motives of the Europeans ranged from rare materials to the immense voltage of power, however how they forced upon these motives was different. These nations were both imperialized by great European powers. Furthermore, they both had Britain as a strong imperialist. In China, Britain wanted luxury goods, like silk and porcelain. Britain also looked at India for luxury goods. Gems, gold, indigo, and spices were just several of the lustful items. Different Europeans nations, ruled different parts of these nations. For India, Britain was the only critical imperialized. Unlike India, China had Britain, Germany, France, and Japan. Russia also had taken the chance to imperialize China at their weak point. After China’s Opium War in the 1800’s, western influence was crowded all around. Spheres of Influence began to form in China. India always had the British East India Company on their backs until the Sepoy Mutiny. Trading was much different in these two countries. The start of trade in China was first unbalanced with Europe. They had limited trade to foreigners to trade in the outlet of Guangzhou. On the other hand, India never had a good chance of trade. They were too quick to get imperialized by the British. Most of their trades were controlled by the British. The main motives and objectives for imperializing was for power and wealth. With wealth and power, the flourished under the trade and resources greatly. Their minds were clouded by greed, which caused them to forget to equalize with the natives. The imperialistic motives came from all of Europe and with one main idea, to conquer or to be conquered. From trade and resources, these to nations varied. With motives, came distinct and separate prospective on how imperialism affected and changed them.
The view of imperialism from the Europeans and the natives were diverse. One of the major differences between China and India is how they viewed the Europeans themselves. The Chinese were very fearful of them. They feared the Europeans would change their culture and their Confucius ways. They had absolutely no trust in them and wanted nothing to even do with them in the start. On the other hand, the Indians weren’t afraid of the Europeans, but had a strong hatred towards them. They disliked how the British imposed on their government and politics. Even with no trust and hatred towards the Europeans, they both still got manipulated and seduced. The Indians were used for their land to grow crops like cotton and Opium. Since the British only encouraged the growth of cotton, between 1800 and 1900, around 30 million Indians died of starvation. The British textile industry also used this time to take an advantage. The cotton grown from India was shipped back to Britain to be manufactured and it was eventually sold back to the Indians. This price was lower than the Indian’s own textile industry. The Chinese was also used lengthy and caused their government to slowly collapse. They were forced into trade with the Europeans. Because of the Opium grown in India, it caused the Chinese to get addicted after Britain used it for trade. After many affairs, and the Opium War, China agreed to the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842. Five new ports were open for trade for British trade. Europeans thought low of both races, they thought of themselves as the superior race. The British didn’t regard or have any concern about India’s religious practices. They greased bullets with pig and cow fat. Pigs were a taboo to Muslims and cows were sacred creatures to the Hindus. This led to the First War of Independence, the Great Rebellion, or the common name, the Sepoy Mutiny in 1857. British rule was also degrading and cut into the Indian’s pride and heritage. They failed to respect their culture also. The Taj Mahal, a tomb of the wife of an Indian ruler, was a favorite for British parties and weddings. Many disrespectful visitors would bring hammers to chip off the pieces as souvenirs. Britain didn’t regard China’s request to stop trading Opium. The European’s lack of respect and equality towards the natives was the true reason of the conflicts and resulting downfall of imperialism. The differences between the natives and the Europeans were vast and left many unfilled gaps. These gap caused rebellions to start for the strive of independence.
Independence wasn’t an easy accomplishment, struggles and ideas clashed in India and China. Battles fought and wares raged for years. Both nations had revolts against the imperialists over first impressions. China’s first encounter with the outside resulted in the Opium War (1839 – 1842). The Opium War was over the issue of treading Opium. The ending result favored the British. India had it when its rulers and society was at their weak point. When the Mogul Rulers started to decline in power, the British East India Company was given power by Britain and started to actively get involved in Indian political and military affairs. To rule this large country, they had to have soldiers and forts. They hired sepoys, which are Indian soldiers to protect the company. British involvement also affected the religious practices. In China, they had the Boxer Rebellion. After the Open Door Policy, it was already too late to stop the rebellion. The name Boxer was given because of the secret organization called the Society of Harmonious Fists. They practiced the art of shadowboxing, boxing with an imaginary opponent. They were very upset with the foreign takeover and Christianity. In early 1900’s, they roamed around killing all Christians, Chinese or not. The imperialists took advantage of this inside rebellion and made an allied army of 20,000 and took over Beijing in August 1900. The Chinese also had to deal with the Tai Ping Rebellion (1850-1864). Hong Xiuquan was the leader of this peasant revolt. He claimed to be the brother of Jesus Christ. He was on a mission to destroy the Qing dynasty and proclaimed the new Kingdom of Great Peace. On March 1853, rebels took Nanjing and massacred 25000 people. It took 10 more years for this revolt to slowly pass. In 1864, European armies helped take down the rebels. The Sepoy Mutiny was over religious practices. Because the British greased bullets with pig and cow fat, a group of sepoys in Delhi refused to use these bullets since these creatures were religious to them. At Kanpur, Indians slaughtered about 200 defenseless women and children. The British parliament transferred power from the British East India Company to Britain herself. They put Queen Victoria in power in 1876. Movements for independence took shape in different forms. In India, the first nationalists were the educated in Mumbai, Chennai, and Calcutta. In 1885, the Indian National Congress was formed. Their leaders mainly consisted of Hindus and reflected Hindu concerns. In 1915, Mohandas Gandhi was introduced into the movement. He believed in peace, not violence. He set up a movement based on non-violent resistance. On the other hand, in China, they received help from the US. In 1899, John Hay introduced the Open Door Policy; it reflected the American concern of China. It loosed the spheres of influence and reduced imperialism over the Chinese markets. “…Of any good ever coming of the rebel movement. They do nothing but burn, murder, and destroy” (British Observer). The struggles for freedom in the imperialized nations only show the hope and dreams that the natives have. To obtain true freedom, the nation needs to bond together and join as one against these imperialists. At the end of the struggles and wars, independence wasn’t easy. These wars left scars and impacted these nations for better or for worse.
After the long hardships, the impact left on these nations was both disastrous and beneficial. Industrialization after imperialism in these countries was very unlike. In India, industrialization was halted. British manufactured goods destroyed the local industries. China’s industry grew exceedingly at the main points of schools, banks, press, and military with the Europeans as a model. After the Tai Ping Rebellions, the Qing court supported the idea of “self- strengthening”. China would adapt to western technology, but keep their Confucius values. In the 1870’s, China tried to modernize their military forces and build up their industry. After imperialism, both countries lost a large and small piece of their land. China last their island of Hong Kong after the Opium War and the Treaty of Nanjing. Britain kept Hong Kong for around 100 years before giving it back on July 1, 1997. In India, they lost a much greater mass. With internal rebellions between the Hindus and the Muslims, Britain decided to settle it by creating the country of Pakistan. This nation was created on August 14, 1947. Indian and Chinese lifestyles changed with many reforms during imperialism. The Indians had reforms that brought them new school systems, railroads, telegraphs and postal services. Tagore was a social reformer and also a great writer and poet. In China, after the Tai Ping rebellion, social reforms were needed. Peasants were given land and women were equal with men. People could also hold private possessions. In 1898, Emperor Guang started a massive reform based off Japan. It was called the 100 Days of Reform, which changed China politically and educationally. It modernized government bureaucracy. His aunt, Empress Dowager CiXi opposed these reforms and used the Imperial Army to imprison him. “An examination of the causes of success and failure in government reveals that...the adoption of foreignism leads to disorder” said one of the court members opposing the 100 Day Reform. The impacts of imperialism and colonalization were more of a tragedy then a success. Overall, these impacts and reforms brought both glory and catastrophe.
Throughout history, imperialism has been a beckon of light to some, but a chaotic cataclysm for others. New imperialism shifted and changed the courses India and China took Flourished nations and devastated people were the results of this belief. Motivations, like gems and silk, was the driving force of this engine. Different prospective and thoughts soon arose. With new ideas, people put them into actions of struggle and rebellion. This resulted in a changed society, a new society. Crushed and bended, China and India survived the harsh reality of imperialism. Mistakes made and lessons learned, these nations would prosper for the challenges ahead. “That they will put our own civilization in order and supplement it with others’ so that it will be transformed and become a new civilization.” (Liang Quichao)