Chronology of Modern Chinese History

SPRING AND AUTUMN PERIOD 770‑481 BC

WARRING STATES PERIOD 481‑221 BC

QIN DYNASTY 221‑206 BC

HAN DYNASTY 206 BC ‑ AD 220

THREE KINGDOMS AD 220‑265

PERIOD OF DISUNION AD 265‑581

SUI DYNASTY AD 581-618

TANG DYNASTY AD 618-907

PERIOD OF DISUNION AD 907-960

SONG DYNASTY AD 960-1279

YUAN DYNASTY 1279-1368

MING DYNASTY 1368‑1644

1583

The Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci arrives in China

QING DYNASTY 1644‑1911

1692

Jesuit missionaries welcomed by the Manchu court

I792-4

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

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

1850‑64

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‑90s

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

The 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

1901

By the Boxer Protocol 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 I 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 co‑operatives

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