After 3,300 years of civilisation, recorded in writing, Chinas old dynastic system of imperial government was brought down by its inability to make the adjustment to industrialisation in Western societies. By the mid-nineteenth century Chinas society was being militarily humiliated by superior Western weaponry and technology and faced with imminent territorial dismemberment, China began to reassess its position with respect to Western civilization. It was a painful experience and ... (more)