Chronology of Modern Chinese History
1583
The Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci arrives in China
QING DYNASTY 1644 1911
1692
Jesuit missionaries welcomed by the Manchu court
1792-4
Lord Macartney's embassy to China
1839
Lin Zexu's destruction of 20,000 chests of opium leads to the deterioration of relations
between Britain and China and the outbreak of the First Opium War
1842
The First Opium War concludes with the signing of the Treaty of Nanjing (Nanking) which
provides for the opening of the first five treaty ports in Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen (Amoy),
Fuzhou (Foochow) and Guangzhou (Canton) and the cession of the island of Hong Kong to
Great Britain
1845
1850-64
The Sino American Treaty of Wangxia permits Americans to trade in the treaty ports and to
purchase land for Protestant churches and missions. It also establishes the principle of
extraterritoriality by which foreigners are tried only by their own consuls
Taiping Rebellion, led by Hong Xiuquan
1856
Outbreak of the Second Opium War
1858
Signing of the Treaty of Tianjin (Tientsin) which allows for the opening of more cities to
trade and foreign residence and the establishment of foreign ambassadors in Beijing
1860
The refusal of the Chinese to observe the terms of the Treaty of Tianjin results in renewed
hostilities. An Anglo French force occupies Beijing and destroys the Imperial Summer
Palace
1860s
The opening of a Foreign Office in Beijing in 1861 marks the beginning of a number of
diplomatic and military modernization projects described collectively as the Self
Strengthening movement
1894-5
China's defeat in the Sino Japanese War exposes the limitations of the Self-Strengthening
movement. By the Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895) China is forced to cede the Liaodong
peninsula and Taiwan to Japan in perpetuity and to permit Japanese to reside and trade in
China. Young radicals, among them Sun Yat sen, form Self Strengthening and Revive China
societies
1898
Foreign powers scramble for concessions in China. China is forced to grant a 25 year lease
on Lushun (Port Arthur) and the Dalian (Dairen) peninsula. Germany acquires Jiaozhou
(Kiaochow) Bay. France demands a lease on Guangzhou (Kwangchow) Bay and Britain
obtains a lease on Weihaiwei for as long as the Russians remain in Lushun and on Hong
Kong's New Territories for 99 years.
In an attempt to strengthen China the Guangxu emperor embarks on a programme of reform
but the `Hundred Days Reform' is ended by the Empress Dowager Cixi. The Emperor
becomes a prisoner in his own palace
1900
Boxer Rebellion leads to the siege of the legations in Beijing. The siege is lifted by an
international force and the Dowager Empress and the court flee to Xi'an Boxer Protocall
1900
China is required to pay a large indemnity to the foreign powers
1905
Civil service examinations are abolished. In Tokyo Sun Yat sen forms the Alliance Society,
precursor of the Kuomintang or Nationalist Party
1908
The Empress Dowager dies and the 2 year old Puyi is proclaimed emperor. China holds the
first elections for regional assemblies the following year
1911
An uprising in Wuhan leads to the overthrow of the Qing dynasty. Nanjing is proclaimed the
national capital
REPUBLIC OF CHINA 1912-1949
1912
On I January the Republic of China is declared with SunYat sen as provincial president.
Yuan Shikai, a Manchu general, then takes over. China's first constitution is proclaimed
1914
On the outbreak of the First World War China declares herself neutral
1915
Japan presents the Twenty one Demands, calling for Japanese control of Shandong,
Manchuria, Inner Mongolia, the south east coast of China and the Yangtze valley, as well as
the use of Japanese advisers in the Chinese administration
1916
Yuan Shikai declares himself emperor but dies soon after. Generals of provincial armies
declare their independence as local warlords
1917
Sun Yat sen's Kuomintang (KMT) Party sets up a military government in Guangzhou
1919
By the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, Japan's demands for control of all former German
territories in China are accepted by the Western powers. On 4 May students in Beijing
demonstrate in protest and organize a strike and boycott of Japanese goods. The cultural and
intellectual revolution taking place during this period is subsequently commonly known as
the May Fourth movement
1921
The northern warlords declare war on Sun Yat sen's government in Guangzhou. The Chinese
Communist Party is founded in Shanghai
1922
Sun Yat sen launches the Northern Expedition against warlords
1925
Sun Yat sen dies. A demonstration in Shanghai on 30 May is fired on on the order of a
British police inspector: 9 students are killed. A general strike is called in Shanghai which
leads to anti British demonstrations elsewhere and a boycott of British goods
1926
Chiang Kai shek assumes command of the KMT armies, relaunches the Northern Expedition
and takes Hankou
1927
Chiang Kai shek launches a purge of Communists. In Hunan Mao Zedong leads the Autumn
Harvest Uprising. When the revolt fails he is forced to flee
1928
Japanese troops land in Shandong. Mao and Zhou Enlai establish a Soviet regime in Ruijin,
Jiangxi
1930
Chiang Kai shek launches the first of five campaigns of encirclement and extermination
against the Communists. The first major internal purge of Chinese Communists takes place in
what becomes known as the Futian Incident
1931
The Japanese attack Shanghai but then withdraw. Zhou Enlai establishes the first `Labour
Persuasion' camps in Communist controlled territory
1934
KMT armies encircle the Communist Red Army in Jiangxi. In October, the Communists
break out and begin the Long March to Yan'an in Shanxi province
1936
Chiang Kai shek is kidnapped in Xian and forced to agree to a United Front with the
Communists against Japan
1937
An incident at the Marco Polo bridge west of Beijing marks the beginning of the Japanese
invasion of China
1938
Japan occupies most of eastern China. The KMT government moves its capital to Chongqing
1942
At Yan'an Mao purges his enemies in the Rectification movement. He also outlines Party
policy on intellectuals at the Yan'an Forum
1943
Britain and America relinquish all extraterritorial privileges and concessions in China
1945
Japan surrenders. Civil war between the Communists and the KMT resumes
THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA 1949
1949
On 1 October Mao Zedong declares the People's Republic of China. Chiang Kai shek and the
KMT government flee to Taiwan
1949 51
Land reform, already undertaken earlier in Communist controlled areas, is now enforced
throughout China, leading to the persecution of millions of landlords and wealthy peasants
1950
China invades Tibet. Hostilities break out between North and South Korea. China sends
`volunteers' to assist the North
1953
The first five year plan is launched
1955
Mao begins the collectivization of peasants' holdings into cooperatives
1956
Under the slogan `Let a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend'
Mao launches the Hundred Flowers movement to encourage greater freedom of debate in
political matters
1957
Those who have spoken out during the Hundred Flowers movement are condemned and
imprisoned in the Anti Rightist movement
1958
In an attempt to create a socialist Utopia Mao launches the Great Leap Forward. The peasants
are stripped of their remaining possessions and forced to join communes
1959
In Tibet China suppresses a rebellion and the Dalai Lama and his supporters flee to India. By
the autumn many parts of China are in the grip of a severe famine as a result of the policies
of the Great Leap Forward. Between 1959 and 1961 over 30 million Chinese starve to death
1960
The Soviet Union withdraws all its experts from China and stops all aid
1966
In a bid to restore his authority after the failure of the Great Leap Forward Mao launches the
Cultural Revolution
1969
Fighting breaks out along the Ussuri River between the USSR and China
1971
After a failed coup d'etat against Mao, Lin Biao flees but dies in a plane crash
1972
The American President Richard Nixon visits China
1975
On Taiwan, Chiang Kai shek dies
1976
The death of Zhou Enlai in January provokes demonstrations in Tiananmen Square in
Beijing. Mao dies in September, having named Hua Guofeng as his successor. An attempted
coup by the Gang of Four in October fails and its members are arrested and subsequently put
on trial
1978
At the Third Plenum of the Eleventh Party Congress Deng Xiaoping becomes de facto
successor to Mao and announces the Four Modernizations. Meanwhile posters begin to
appear on what becomes known as Democracy Wall in Beijing in which issues of political
significance are openly discussed and Mao is criticized. A young electrician, Wei Jingsheng,
puts up a poster calling for a Fifth Modernization, democracy
1979
In January Deng visits the United States. In February China attacks Vietnam in punishment
for its invasion of Cambodia but the Vietnamese successfully block the attack. China is
forced to withdraw. In October Wei Jingsheng is put on trial and in December the
Democracy Wall is closed down
1979-83
The communes are dissolved and free markets begin to spring up. Price controls on many
goods are lifted. The one child policy is introduced in the countryside
1982
Hu Yaobang becomes Party General Secretary
1983
Campaigns against crime and `spiritual pollution' are launched
1986
Pro democracy demonstrations by students occur in major cities
1987
Hu Yaobang is forced to step down and an Anti Bourgeois Liberalization campaign is
launched. Zhao Ziyang replaces Hu as Party General Secretary and Li Peng becomes Prime
Minister
1987-9
Zhao pushes for political reform
1989
Hu Yaobang dies. In honor of his memory students hold demonstrations in Tiananmen
Square and occupy the square for over a month. On 20 May martial law is declared in Beijing
and on 3/4 June the army repossesses the square, killing hundreds. Zhao Ziyang is arrested
and Jiang Zemin is declared Deng's successor. A clamp down on political activity follows
1992
Deng embarks on a Southern Tour to relaunch his economic reforms
1995
Deng falls into a coma
1996
Taiwan holds its first open elections for the Presidency and the National Assembly. China
fires missiles into the Taiwan Strait
1997
Deng Xiaoping dies. Hong Kong, hitherto under British rule, is returned to China
1998
Zhu Rongji becomes Prime Minister and seeks membership for China of the World Trade
Organization
1999
Macao, the last territory on the mainland, occupied by the Portuguese for four hundred years,
is returned to China
2000
The KMT Party loses a general election in Taiwan. Chen Shui bian of the Democratic
Progressive Party becomes President