This book captures the sweeping story of modern Chinese history, tracing China’s journey from decline to resurgence. Renowned historian Jiang Tingfu wrote it for general readers, emphasizing the conflicts and upheavals of history and bringing out the complexity and drama of the modern era. In exceptionally concise prose, he explains the evolution of history, clashes of civilizations, major events, and key figures in the century following the Opium War. Sweeping and comprehensive yet clear, fluent, and evenhanded, the book is of great scholarly value.
From the Opium War to the Xinhai Revolution, from the Self-Strengthening Movement to the Hundred Days’ Reform, from Lin Zexu to Li Hongzhang, and from Hong Xiuquan to Sun Yat-sen, the book vividly recounts the historical changes and personal stories of the century following the Opium War. Its framework for historical study and periodization once led the way in modern history research and earned the admiration of later scholars. It is considered a pioneering work in the study of modern Chinese history.
