Can you beat them?
The Century of Humiliation Quiz
Ten questions on the 110 years that shaped how China sees the world, from the First Opium War in 1839 to the founding of the People's Republic in 1949.
- 10 questions
- About 3 minutes
- Medium
- Includes a map and a photo
About this quiz
Between the First Opium War in 1839 and the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, China lost wars, territory and control over its own trade to foreign powers, among them Britain, France, Russia and Japan. China's government calls these years the century of humiliation, and they still shape how many Chinese people see the world.
The quiz runs from a British embassy in 1793 to Mao Zedong in 1949. It covers the wars, the treaties, the rebellions and the people caught up in them, and a few questions check popular stories against what historians have found.
Topics in this quiz
Read up first
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Encyclopedia
Century of Humiliation
The Century of Humiliation is China's name for the period from 1839 to 1949 when foreign powers defeated and carved up the country.
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Encyclopedia
Opium Wars
Two wars in which Britain forced China to accept the opium trade, beginning what China calls the century of humiliation.
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Blog
How China's century of humiliation shaped the country it is today
In 1820, China produced a third of global output. The century of humiliation, a hundred years of lost wars and foreign occupation, left it among the poorest countries on earth.
