1750-1900
Gil Ferra
Chinese reject British request for open trade-1793
Napoleon invades Egypt-1798
Famine and rebellion in Japan-1830s
Crop failures widespread between 1824 & 1832, severe famine in Northern Japan in 1833, Nationwide famine in 1836, debt to Ōsaka merchants alone by 1840 total more than 60 million ryo.
First Opium War-1838-1842
Tanzimat Reforms in the Ottaman Empire-1838-1876
Tanzimat, (Turkish: “Reorganization”), series of reforms promulgated in the Ottaman Empire between 1839 and 1876 under the reigns of the sultans Abdülmesid I and Abdülaziz. These reforms, heavily influenced by European ideas, were intended to effectuate a fundamental change of the empire from the old system based on theocratic principles to that of a modern state.
Many of the key provisions of the Tanzimat reforms were set forth in the “Noble Edict of the Rose Chamber, 1839. This document called for the establishment of new institutions that would guarantee security of life, property, and honour to all subjects of the empire regardless of their religion or race. It also authorized the development of a standardized system of taxation to eliminate abuses and established fairer methods of military conscription and training. The promises of equality for non-Muslims (mainly Christians and Jews) living in the empire were not always carried out, but the balance of the changes provided for in the Noble Edict, along with other reform measures, were implemented principally under the leadership of Mufasa Resid Pasa, who served six terms as grand vizier. The reforms included the development of a new secular school system, the reorganization of the army based on the Prussian conscript system, the creation of provincial representative assemblies, and the introduction of new codes of commercial and criminal law, which were largely modeled after those of France. These laws, moreover, were administered by newly established state courts independent of the ʿulamāʾ, the Islāmic religious council.
Taiping uprising in China-1850-1864
The Taiping Rebellion or Taiping Civil War was a massive rebellion or civil war in China that lasted from 1850 to 1864, which was fought between the established Manchu-led Qing dynasty and the Christian millenarian movement of the Heavenly Kingdom of Peace. The Taiping Rebellion began in the southwestern province of Guangxi when local officials launched a campaign of persecution against a Christian sect known as the God Worshipping Society led by Hong Xiuquan who believed himself to be the younger brother of Jesus Christ. The war was mostly fought in the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi, and Hubei, but over 14 years of war, the Taiping Army had marched through every regularized province of China proper except Gansu. The war was the largest in China since the qing conquest in 1604, and ranks as one of the bloodiest wars in human history, the bloodiest civil war, and the largest conflict of the nineteenth century with estimates of war dead ranging from 20 to 70 million dead, as well as millions more displaced.
Second Opium War-1856-1858
"Second Opium War" refers to one of the British tactical objectives: legalising the opium trade, expanding coolie trade, opening all of China to British merchants, and exempting foreign imports from internal transit duties.
Admiral Perry arrives in Japan-1853
Meiji Restoration in Japan-1863
The Meiji Restoration also known as the Meiji Ishin, Renovation, Revolution, Reform, or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were Emperors before Meiji Restoration, the events restored practical abilities and consolidated the political system under the Emperor of Japan.
The goals of the restored government were expressed by the new emperor in the Charter Oath. The Restoration led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure, and spanned both the late Edo period and the beginning of the Meiji period. The period spanned from 1868 to 1912 and was responsible for the emergence of Japan as a modernized nation in the early twentieth century.
Sino-Japanese-Japanese War-1894-1895
Ethiopia defeats Italy and preserve independence-1896
The First Italo-Ethiopian War was fought between Italy and Ethiopia from 1895 to 1896. It originated from a disputed treaty which, the Italians claimed, turned the country into an Italian protectorate. Much to their surprise, they found that Ethiopian ruler Menelik II, rather than opposed by some of his traditional enemies, was supported by them, and so the Italian army, invading Ethiopia from Italian Eritrea in 1893, faced a more united front than they expected. In addition, Ethiopia was supported by Russia with military advisers and the sale of weapons for Ethiopian forces during the war. Full-scale war broke out in 1895, when Ethiopian troops counterattacked Italian positions and besieged the Italian fort of Meqele, forcing its surrender. Italian defeat came about after the Battle of Adwa, where the Ethiopian army dealt the outnumbered Italians a heavy loss and forced their retreat back into Eritrea.
This was not the first African victory over Western colonizers, but it was the first time such a military put a definitive stop to a colonizing nation's efforts.
Boxer Rebellion in China-1899-1901
Russo-Japanese War-1904-1905
Russia sought a warm-water ports on the Pacific Ocean for their navy and for maritime trade. Vladivostock was operational only during the summer, whereas Port Arther, a naval base in Liaodong Province leased to Russia by China, was operational all year. Since the end of the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895, negotiations between Russia and Japan had proved impractical. Russia had demonstrated an expansionist policy in the Siberian far-east from the reign of Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century. Through threat of Russian expansion, Japan offered to recognize Russian dominance in Manchuria in exchange for recognition of Korea as within the Japanese sphere of influence. Russia refused and demanded Korea north of the 39th parallel to be a neutral buffer zone between Russia and Japan. The Japanese government perceived a Russian threat to its strategic interests and chose to go to war. After negotiations broke down in 1904, the Japanese Navy opened hostilities by attacking the Russian Eastern Fleet at Port Arthur in a surprise attack.
Young Turk takeover in Ottoman Empire-1908
The Young Turk Revolution (July 1908) of the Ottoman Empire was the restoration of the Ottoman constitution in 1876 and ushering a multi-party politics in two stage electoral system (electoral law) under the Ottoman parliament by the Young Turks movement. Sultan Abdul Hamid II more than 3 decades earlier in 1876 established the constitutional monarch, First Constitutional Era, only to last for two years before it was suspended. On 24 July 1908, Sultan Abdul Hamid II capitulated and announced the restoration, which established the Second Constitutional Era.
Japan annexes Korea-1910
The Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910, also known as the Japan–Korea Annexation Treaty, was made by representatives of the Empire of Japan and the Korean Empire on August 22, 1910. In this treaty, Japan formally annexed Korea following the japan-Korea Treaty of 1907 by which Korea became the protectorate of Japan and Japan-Korea Treaty of 1907 by which Korea was deprived of the administration of internal affairs.
Chinese revolution; end of Qinq dynasty-1911
In October of 1911, a group of revolutionaries in southern China led a successful revolt against the Qing Dynasty, establishing in its place the Republic of China and ending the imperial system. In the Nineteenth Century, the Qing Empire faced a number of challenges to its rule, including a number of foreign incursions into Chinese territory. The two Opium Wars against Western powers led by Great Britain resulted in the loss of Hong Kong, forced opening of “treaty ports” for international trade, and large foreign “concessions” in major cities privileged with extraterritorial rule. After its loss in the Sino-Japanese War (1894–95), Imperial China was forced to relinquish control over still more of its territory, losing Taiwan and parts of Manchuria and ending its suzerainty over Korea. The Russo-Japenese War firmly established Japanese claims to the Northeast and further weakened Qing rule. The combination of increasing imperialist demands (from both Japan and the West), frustration with the foreign Manchu Government embodied by the Qing court, and the desire to see a unified China less parochial in outlook fed a growing nationalism that spurred on revolutionary ideas.