CANON UPDATE :: RENAME
peonyreign → peonyreign
This account has been renamed! Also, China is now from the year 2010.
Updated Background: When we last left China, he was at the height of his power during the 18th century; in 1712, his boss was the emperor Kangxi, the first of the Manchus to rule China and who established the Qing dynasty. Despite the fact that the Manchus were considered foreigners, there was "relatively" little conflict during the initial years of the Qing reign. The first few leaders- Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong -did their best to adopt Chinese ways, considering themselves the protectors and preservers of the culture. Thanks to this period of peace, China was able to become "the largest, richest and most effectively governed state of the world". Unfortunately, this golden era wasn't to last; the emperors became steadily more ineffective and corrupt, with the lower classes becoming more and more impoverished, leading to a growing instability marked by uprisings and an increasing number of secret societies.
This leads us to the 1900's, when Europeans were steadily and stubbornly expanding their sphere of influence into Asia. While in earlier times their presence had been heavily restricted and often treated with a lofty contempt, the impact of the West was now unable to be ignored. One of the key issues of this time was the opium trade that was doomed to cripple China; the British empire in particular desired Chinese silks and tea and profited heavily from the exchange of opium for these goods, while much of China's population became addicted. When China finally outlawed the sale of opium in 1839, the policy set off the first Opium War with Britain. This conflict proved to be a war that China would lose, and lose badly- lacking modern weapons and ships, China surrendered in 1842, signing the Treaty of Nanking which gave away Hong Kong to Britain and opened more ports to foreign trade. However, the terms of this treaty weren't fully carried out by either side, and the Second Opium War began in 1856. It was concluded in 1860, once more, with a British victory and more privileges being granted to the empire by the Chinese.
At the same time, the number of internal uprisings increased dramatically, fueled by anger at the encroaching Western influence and the failure of the Manchu government in repelling it. To make matters worse, the emperors were becoming younger and younger and thus were virtually powerless, with the real control in the hands of the empresses and other advisers. A combination of all these factors only served to weaken the beleaguered China further. One of the most infamous of these figures was Tsu Hsi. Opposed to modernization, she had reformers executed, ignoring the bitter truth that the foreigners once considered to be mere barbarians were easily defeating the now-backwards, poorly-equipped country of China, for all its ancient culture. Before her death, she placed the last Qing emperor on the throne in 1909; he was two years old, and in 1911 the increasingly-powerful revolutionaries dethroned him. Thus spelled the end of the Qing, China's last imperial dynasty. A republic was established in its' place that would last for 37 turbulent years until the communist takeover of 1949.
China during this brief era was, in essence, no longer truly unified, the political sphere of the nation made up of various military dictators. Even the most prominent and powerful of these, Chiang Kai-shek, was unable to keep total control after around 1927. The old problems left behind by the Qing still persisted, and were now intensified by internal division and Japanese aggression. The ruling parties in power could never fully agree on which ideological goals to reach first, let alone cooperate to achieve real social and political change. However, Chinese scholars and artists realized the need for a mental sort of change as well, and abandoned the cultural classics in favor of exploring new themes. New political groups, both democratic and communist, were formed and their views expressed in less traditional forms of media. While those in the cities were drawn to Western culture, the Chinese people in the countryside continued to suffer at the hands of unfair landlords and similar gentry. Mao Zedong, who would prove to be the most infamous of China's communists, took advantage of the fight against Japan's encroachment to start a civil war against the forces of Chiang Kai-shek. This conflict continued on and off until the Second Sino-Japanese War began, during which the two parties temporarily joined forces against Japan. After Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, this war was absorbed into the broader conflict of World War II as an important front in the Pacific theater.
After Japan's defeat in 1945, China emerged as a military power that was nonetheless economically weak, and the uneasy truce between the Communist and Kuomintang (Nationalist) parties soon fell apart. The civil war resumed, culminating in a Communist victory; Chiang Kai-shek and his forces were routed to the island of Taiwan, where they set up their own government and to this day argue for rightful control of the mainland. With Mao Zedong now in power, steps were taken to both "cleanse" China of the old shame of the 19th century by overturning the traditional rules and means of thinking that had led to the "century of humiliation" and to forcefully modernize China in order to catch up with the rest of the world- notable programs include the Hundred Flowers Campaign, the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. These campaigns and more were intended to impose socialist orthodoxy, achieve Zedong's own political goals, overhaul the economy and land distribution system, and to "purify" the very culture of China. While all of this succeeded to some extent, the possible good was largely overshadowed by the widespread death and terror from famine and political purging, not to mention the controversial damage to China's cultural heritage. The Cultural Revolution itself would not end until Mao's death in 1976. One month later, the powerful "Gang of Four" -Jiang Qing, Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan, and Wang Hongwen -who had controlled much of the Communist Party under Mao and were blamed the most for the disasters of the last few years were also brought down.
After Mao- and after a bloodless political struggle against Hua Guofeng -came Deng Xiaoping, who was tasked with continuing the reform of China's economy and government. However, Deng was conservative when it came to reform, and under his leadership there were many unexpected issues arising from new economic policies to add to the already existing burden; China, at this time, was more or less a huge mess. Still, in time, a great many changes were made to ease China toward growth; the government itself took steps to avoid the pitfall of the "cult of personality" that had happened to Mao- the president's role was then concieved to be more of a figurehead in regards to heading the state, with the actual power residing with the Premier of the People's Republic of China and the General Secretary of the Party. The government also became much more pragmatic in most fields, such as, although open attacks on party members were forbidden, allowing the journalists and writers of the population to take a more critical approach. Greater freedom of thought was allowed and political ideology was downplayed, although loyalty to the government and party thought was still mandatory. The Cultural Revolution was also repudiated and condemned, although the Chinese leadership was careful to avoid placing too much blame on the still-popular Mao. This slow easing of previously-strict policies, though, was by no means a sign that China was ready to become either democratic or capitalist; while slandering of the Gang of Four and the Cultural Revolution were for the most part tolerated because the views were in-line with that of the government, some began calling for things like open elections, which was more than the government was willing to tolerate.
Under Deng Xiaoping, relations with the West improved remarkably thanks to a string of diplomatic successes worldwide, and in 1979 the USA formerly recognized the PRC. One of the greatest diplomatic achievements that came from this was the agreement signed in 1984 between the PRC and Britain that Hong Kong would be returned to the PRC in 1997. Yet at virtually the same time, Deng brought China into conflict with the Sino-Vietnamese War of 1979, and made no move to improve relations with the Soviet Union for some time. And unfortunately, with the election of the staunch anti-communist Ronald Reagan in the USA, relations on that front went right back down again. Although Reagan held more issue with the Soviet Union than he did with the PRC, China became increasingly angered by the US' continued arms sale to Taiwan, as well as various political squabbles that set China and the US on opposing sides. Despite all of this, though, it's important to note the definite change in China's foreign policy under Deng compared to that under Mao; at this time, world peace was the goal instead of world revolution. And, as well, the shifts in economic policy- the irony being that it was local leaders, not Deng himself, who provided the true reforms. Usually in violation of governmental orders, these leaders experimented with changes that, if proven to be successful, were used by larger and larger areas until the entire nation had effectively adopted them.
However, this was not enough to placate the vast population of China, and as political restriction eased, political dissent increased. Struggling with such things as corruption, the heavy influence of the government and increasing inflation, the intellectual generations emerging from the formidable shadow of the Cultural Revolution became more and more openly critical of the government. In December of 1989, students staged protests at Tienanmen Square against the slow pacing of reform and the economic hardships brought about by Deng's policies. This dissent only confirmed the fears of the older members of the government and the party as it ignited protests in other parts of the country, and Deng declared martial law the following May. Military force was used to break up the protests and clear dissenters from the streets, with several of them being detained, and the event sparked massive global condemnation and sanctions against the PRC. After this, it was President Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu Rongji who led the PRC in the 1990s. Under their ten years of administration, the PRC's GDP grew over ten percent and pulled millions out of poverty. China also formally joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, as well.
Currently, although China has been making great strides to improve education and their own economy- indeed, China is now one of the world's top exporters and is second in GDP only to the USA -there is still a great number of issues still challenging China in the modern day.
This account has been renamed! Also, China is now from the year 2010.
Updated Background: When we last left China, he was at the height of his power during the 18th century; in 1712, his boss was the emperor Kangxi, the first of the Manchus to rule China and who established the Qing dynasty. Despite the fact that the Manchus were considered foreigners, there was "relatively" little conflict during the initial years of the Qing reign. The first few leaders- Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong -did their best to adopt Chinese ways, considering themselves the protectors and preservers of the culture. Thanks to this period of peace, China was able to become "the largest, richest and most effectively governed state of the world". Unfortunately, this golden era wasn't to last; the emperors became steadily more ineffective and corrupt, with the lower classes becoming more and more impoverished, leading to a growing instability marked by uprisings and an increasing number of secret societies.
This leads us to the 1900's, when Europeans were steadily and stubbornly expanding their sphere of influence into Asia. While in earlier times their presence had been heavily restricted and often treated with a lofty contempt, the impact of the West was now unable to be ignored. One of the key issues of this time was the opium trade that was doomed to cripple China; the British empire in particular desired Chinese silks and tea and profited heavily from the exchange of opium for these goods, while much of China's population became addicted. When China finally outlawed the sale of opium in 1839, the policy set off the first Opium War with Britain. This conflict proved to be a war that China would lose, and lose badly- lacking modern weapons and ships, China surrendered in 1842, signing the Treaty of Nanking which gave away Hong Kong to Britain and opened more ports to foreign trade. However, the terms of this treaty weren't fully carried out by either side, and the Second Opium War began in 1856. It was concluded in 1860, once more, with a British victory and more privileges being granted to the empire by the Chinese.
At the same time, the number of internal uprisings increased dramatically, fueled by anger at the encroaching Western influence and the failure of the Manchu government in repelling it. To make matters worse, the emperors were becoming younger and younger and thus were virtually powerless, with the real control in the hands of the empresses and other advisers. A combination of all these factors only served to weaken the beleaguered China further. One of the most infamous of these figures was Tsu Hsi. Opposed to modernization, she had reformers executed, ignoring the bitter truth that the foreigners once considered to be mere barbarians were easily defeating the now-backwards, poorly-equipped country of China, for all its ancient culture. Before her death, she placed the last Qing emperor on the throne in 1909; he was two years old, and in 1911 the increasingly-powerful revolutionaries dethroned him. Thus spelled the end of the Qing, China's last imperial dynasty. A republic was established in its' place that would last for 37 turbulent years until the communist takeover of 1949.
China during this brief era was, in essence, no longer truly unified, the political sphere of the nation made up of various military dictators. Even the most prominent and powerful of these, Chiang Kai-shek, was unable to keep total control after around 1927. The old problems left behind by the Qing still persisted, and were now intensified by internal division and Japanese aggression. The ruling parties in power could never fully agree on which ideological goals to reach first, let alone cooperate to achieve real social and political change. However, Chinese scholars and artists realized the need for a mental sort of change as well, and abandoned the cultural classics in favor of exploring new themes. New political groups, both democratic and communist, were formed and their views expressed in less traditional forms of media. While those in the cities were drawn to Western culture, the Chinese people in the countryside continued to suffer at the hands of unfair landlords and similar gentry. Mao Zedong, who would prove to be the most infamous of China's communists, took advantage of the fight against Japan's encroachment to start a civil war against the forces of Chiang Kai-shek. This conflict continued on and off until the Second Sino-Japanese War began, during which the two parties temporarily joined forces against Japan. After Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, this war was absorbed into the broader conflict of World War II as an important front in the Pacific theater.
After Japan's defeat in 1945, China emerged as a military power that was nonetheless economically weak, and the uneasy truce between the Communist and Kuomintang (Nationalist) parties soon fell apart. The civil war resumed, culminating in a Communist victory; Chiang Kai-shek and his forces were routed to the island of Taiwan, where they set up their own government and to this day argue for rightful control of the mainland. With Mao Zedong now in power, steps were taken to both "cleanse" China of the old shame of the 19th century by overturning the traditional rules and means of thinking that had led to the "century of humiliation" and to forcefully modernize China in order to catch up with the rest of the world- notable programs include the Hundred Flowers Campaign, the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. These campaigns and more were intended to impose socialist orthodoxy, achieve Zedong's own political goals, overhaul the economy and land distribution system, and to "purify" the very culture of China. While all of this succeeded to some extent, the possible good was largely overshadowed by the widespread death and terror from famine and political purging, not to mention the controversial damage to China's cultural heritage. The Cultural Revolution itself would not end until Mao's death in 1976. One month later, the powerful "Gang of Four" -Jiang Qing, Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan, and Wang Hongwen -who had controlled much of the Communist Party under Mao and were blamed the most for the disasters of the last few years were also brought down.
After Mao- and after a bloodless political struggle against Hua Guofeng -came Deng Xiaoping, who was tasked with continuing the reform of China's economy and government. However, Deng was conservative when it came to reform, and under his leadership there were many unexpected issues arising from new economic policies to add to the already existing burden; China, at this time, was more or less a huge mess. Still, in time, a great many changes were made to ease China toward growth; the government itself took steps to avoid the pitfall of the "cult of personality" that had happened to Mao- the president's role was then concieved to be more of a figurehead in regards to heading the state, with the actual power residing with the Premier of the People's Republic of China and the General Secretary of the Party. The government also became much more pragmatic in most fields, such as, although open attacks on party members were forbidden, allowing the journalists and writers of the population to take a more critical approach. Greater freedom of thought was allowed and political ideology was downplayed, although loyalty to the government and party thought was still mandatory. The Cultural Revolution was also repudiated and condemned, although the Chinese leadership was careful to avoid placing too much blame on the still-popular Mao. This slow easing of previously-strict policies, though, was by no means a sign that China was ready to become either democratic or capitalist; while slandering of the Gang of Four and the Cultural Revolution were for the most part tolerated because the views were in-line with that of the government, some began calling for things like open elections, which was more than the government was willing to tolerate.
Under Deng Xiaoping, relations with the West improved remarkably thanks to a string of diplomatic successes worldwide, and in 1979 the USA formerly recognized the PRC. One of the greatest diplomatic achievements that came from this was the agreement signed in 1984 between the PRC and Britain that Hong Kong would be returned to the PRC in 1997. Yet at virtually the same time, Deng brought China into conflict with the Sino-Vietnamese War of 1979, and made no move to improve relations with the Soviet Union for some time. And unfortunately, with the election of the staunch anti-communist Ronald Reagan in the USA, relations on that front went right back down again. Although Reagan held more issue with the Soviet Union than he did with the PRC, China became increasingly angered by the US' continued arms sale to Taiwan, as well as various political squabbles that set China and the US on opposing sides. Despite all of this, though, it's important to note the definite change in China's foreign policy under Deng compared to that under Mao; at this time, world peace was the goal instead of world revolution. And, as well, the shifts in economic policy- the irony being that it was local leaders, not Deng himself, who provided the true reforms. Usually in violation of governmental orders, these leaders experimented with changes that, if proven to be successful, were used by larger and larger areas until the entire nation had effectively adopted them.
However, this was not enough to placate the vast population of China, and as political restriction eased, political dissent increased. Struggling with such things as corruption, the heavy influence of the government and increasing inflation, the intellectual generations emerging from the formidable shadow of the Cultural Revolution became more and more openly critical of the government. In December of 1989, students staged protests at Tienanmen Square against the slow pacing of reform and the economic hardships brought about by Deng's policies. This dissent only confirmed the fears of the older members of the government and the party as it ignited protests in other parts of the country, and Deng declared martial law the following May. Military force was used to break up the protests and clear dissenters from the streets, with several of them being detained, and the event sparked massive global condemnation and sanctions against the PRC. After this, it was President Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu Rongji who led the PRC in the 1990s. Under their ten years of administration, the PRC's GDP grew over ten percent and pulled millions out of poverty. China also formally joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, as well.
Currently, although China has been making great strides to improve education and their own economy- indeed, China is now one of the world's top exporters and is second in GDP only to the USA -there is still a great number of issues still challenging China in the modern day.