Modern industry and armies
The Self-Strengthening Movement (also called the Yangwu or Westernisation movement) lasted from about 1861 to 1895.
Why did it start?
- The Opium Wars showed that Western ships and guns were stronger.
- In the Taiping war, officials saw that foreign-style guns helped them win.
- Treaty ports showed steamships, telegraph and machines in daily use.
Leaders such as Prince Gong, Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang, Zuo Zongtang and later Zhang Zhidong said: keep Chinese learning as the base, and use Western learning for practical use.
What was built?
- Arsenals: Jiangnan Arsenal (Shanghai, 1865) made guns and ships and translated science books.
- Shipyards: Fuzhou Shipyard (1866) built steam warships and trained sailors.
- Schools: Tongwen Guan (1862) taught languages and science. Students were also sent to study in the USA from 1872.
- Companies: the China Merchants Steam Navigation Company (1872), Kaiping coal mines (1878) and the first telegraph line (1881). Later came textile mills and ironworks.
- Navy: the Beiyang Fleet in the north, formally started in 1888, was Asia's largest at the time.
Frontier crises
While China was building new things, trouble came at its edges. Remember each one by its place and year.
- Ili crisis (1871-81): Russia occupied the Ili region in the far west while a rebellion shook Xinjiang. General Zuo Zongtang led an army that recovered most of Xinjiang. A treaty in 1881 returned most of Ili. Xinjiang became a province in 1884.
- Taiwan (1874): Japan sent troops to Taiwan after sailors were killed. China paid to end the matter, but it began to strengthen the island and made Taiwan a province in 1885.
- Ryukyu islands (1879): Japan took the Ryukyu islands, which had long been linked to China.
- Sino-French War (1884-85): over Vietnam. The Fuzhou fleet was badly hit. China lost its influence over Vietnam.
- Korea and the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95): China and Japan fought for influence in Korea. The Beiyang Fleet lost. By the Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895), China gave Taiwan to Japan and paid a very large sum.
These crises tested the new industry and army. In the west it worked. At sea, against Japan, it did not.
Evaluation: how do we judge the movement?
A good answer to "was the movement a success?" looks at both sides.
Gains
- It started modern industry, shipping, mining and telegraph in China.
- It trained the first group of people who knew modern subjects.
- It helped the army recover Xinjiang.
Limits
- Little money: the projects ran on limited funds and were often poorly run.
- No single plan: each official built his own projects. There was no plan for the whole country.
- Old system: government, exams and ideas were not changed. Many officials who gained from the old system opposed change.
- Result: in 1895 China lost to Japan, which had changed its whole system after 1868.
So the movement was a first step, but too small and too narrow. This pushed some people towards deeper change, such as the Hundred Days' Reform of 1898.
Key formulas and definitions
- Slogan: Chinese learning as base, Western learning for use
- Built: arsenals (1865), shipyard (1866), schools (1862), steamships (1872), mines (1878), telegraph (1881), navy (1888)
- Frontier crises: Ili 1871-81, Taiwan 1874, Ryukyu 1879, Vietnam 1884-85, Korea 1894-95
- Limits: little money + no one plan + old system unchanged
- End mark: defeat by Japan (1894-95), Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895)
Worked examples
1. Easy. What was the slogan of the Self-Strengthening Movement and what did it mean?
The slogan was "Chinese learning as the base, Western learning for use." It meant: keep China's old values and way of government, but borrow guns, ships and machines from the West.
2. Medium. Name three things built by the movement and say what each was for.
Jiangnan Arsenal (1865) made guns and ships and translated science books. Fuzhou Shipyard (1866) built steam warships. The China Merchants Steam Navigation Company (1872) carried cargo and took trade back from foreign firms. Others: Tongwen Guan school (1862), Kaiping mines (1878), the telegraph (1881), the Beiyang Fleet (1888).
3. Hard. Why did the movement fail to stop China's defeat by Japan in 1894-95?
Step 1: money was limited and projects were often poorly run. Step 2: each official built his own projects, so the army and navy were not under one plan. Step 3: the old system of government, exams and ideas was not changed, so tools had little to grow on. Step 4: Japan, which had changed its whole system after 1868, was stronger. The Beiyang Fleet lost and the 1895 treaty gave Taiwan to Japan.
Common mistakes
- Mixing up the Self-Strengthening Movement (1861-95, modern tools by officials) with the Hundred Days' Reform (1898, a short push for deeper change).
- Saying the movement built nothing. It built the first modern arsenals, shipyards, steamships, mines, a telegraph and a navy.
- Giving only one reason for failure. A good answer links little money, no single plan and the old system staying unchanged.
- Forgetting the frontier crises. They tested the new army: the west (Ili, Xinjiang) was a success, but Vietnam (1884-85) and Korea (1894-95) were defeats.