In 1793, the British government sent Lord Macartney and his embassy to China under the Qing empire to sell English goods and open up a Britain-China trade relationship. The British had just had an industrial revolution, and they needed to sell English goods to make money from costs of the revolution. Contrary to the plan, the Qing rejected British trade proposals because of a strong influence of longstanding traditions and ideas in China. First, the Chinese people already had a belief that they were the “Middle Kingdom” and therefore, they believed they were superior to all other civilizations, especially the British. The Chinese also believed that their strong economy was self-sufficient, and that they did not need anything from other countries.
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This idea of superiority started with the fact that China was an isolated country with a high population. Many land features, such as the Himalayas or the Tibetan Plateau, stopped a lot of contact with other countries, especially to the West, and created an isolated China. Because the Chinese were forced to stay within eastern China for adequate food and water, the country became more unified. People were concentrated with high numbers in certain areas, and they developed a deep respect for Chinese culture. The people also developed unified ideals, especially regarding foreigners; they began to look at all non-Chinese civilizations as barbaric. In 1380, Fang Xiaoru, a Confucian scholar of the Ming Dynasty, wrote about the Yuan/Mongol rule, saying that they instilled a barbaric culture in Chinese society. He said that the ignorance of human relationships, barbaric living habits, and greed formed from Yuan rule consequently destroyed Chinese culture. This view of Mongols as barbarians became …show more content…
Historically, each dynasty in the past had provided tons of innovations in technology, which led to no need of better inventions in China. Beautiful arts and crafts had been integrated into Chinese society during the Yuan dynasty , and huge engineering projects unmatched by any other country were completed under the Qin ruler Shi Huangdi. The grand canal, one of his accomplishments, created a much easier transport of essential crop and goods from north to south China. The fast-growing Chinese population had always needed tremendous food resources to survive, but the people were always fed through the labor-intensive Chinese farming industry. With rice and wheat as the two main staples, China flourished, but even more successful crops were brought in from Europe. Under the Qing dynasty, China had a new strain of rice that could be harvested twice a year as well as sweet potatoes and other crops to feed the growing nation. The mineral and production needs of the country were also met by way of new salt, tin, silver, and iron mines as well as a continuing silk, cotton, and porcelain production. Another aspect of China which prompted a rejection of British trade was the idea that most British products were useless in Chinese society. In 1839, Lin Zixu had written to Queen Victoria, stressing her to stop the Opium trade in China.
This idea of superiority started with the fact that China was an isolated country with a high population. Many land features, such as the Himalayas or the Tibetan Plateau, stopped a lot of contact with other countries, especially to the West, and created an isolated China. Because the Chinese were forced to stay within eastern China for adequate food and water, the country became more unified. People were concentrated with high numbers in certain areas, and they developed a deep respect for Chinese culture. The people also developed unified ideals, especially regarding foreigners; they began to look at all non-Chinese civilizations as barbaric. In 1380, Fang Xiaoru, a Confucian scholar of the Ming Dynasty, wrote about the Yuan/Mongol rule, saying that they instilled a barbaric culture in Chinese society. He said that the ignorance of human relationships, barbaric living habits, and greed formed from Yuan rule consequently destroyed Chinese culture. This view of Mongols as barbarians became …show more content…
Historically, each dynasty in the past had provided tons of innovations in technology, which led to no need of better inventions in China. Beautiful arts and crafts had been integrated into Chinese society during the Yuan dynasty , and huge engineering projects unmatched by any other country were completed under the Qin ruler Shi Huangdi. The grand canal, one of his accomplishments, created a much easier transport of essential crop and goods from north to south China. The fast-growing Chinese population had always needed tremendous food resources to survive, but the people were always fed through the labor-intensive Chinese farming industry. With rice and wheat as the two main staples, China flourished, but even more successful crops were brought in from Europe. Under the Qing dynasty, China had a new strain of rice that could be harvested twice a year as well as sweet potatoes and other crops to feed the growing nation. The mineral and production needs of the country were also met by way of new salt, tin, silver, and iron mines as well as a continuing silk, cotton, and porcelain production. Another aspect of China which prompted a rejection of British trade was the idea that most British products were useless in Chinese society. In 1839, Lin Zixu had written to Queen Victoria, stressing her to stop the Opium trade in China.