-
1853
Rebels seized Nanjing, the sec- ond largest city of the empire, and massacred 25,000 men, women, and children. -
1858
The Chinese agreed to legalize the opium trade and open new ports to foreign trade. -
1800
After a long period of peace and prosperity, the Qing dynasty of the Manchus was at the height of its power. -
1863
The Chinese agreed to open five coastal ports to British trade, limit taxes on imported British goods, and pay for the costs of the war. -
1868
The Qing dynasty was in decline. Unable to restore order themselves, government troops had relied on forces recruited by regional war- lords to help fight the Tai Ping Rebellion. -
1889
Another blow further disintegrated the Qing dynasty. -
1904
The army restored order and demanded more conces- sions from the Chinese government. -
1905
The civil service examination system was replaced by a new educational system based on the Western model. -
1907
Empress Dowager Ci Xi, who had long resisted her advisers’ sug- gestions for change, now embraced a number of reforms in education, adminis- tration, and the legal system. -
1910
Elections for a national assembly were even held in 1910.