Book Review – Imperial Twilight: The Opium War and the End of China’s Last Golden Age by Stephen R. Platt​

Benjamin E. Mainardi

External Source: Naval War College Review

In modern Chinese history, few subjects are discussed as widely and misunderstood as broadly as the so-called Century of Humiliation, which ostensibly commenced with China’s defeat in the First Opium War (1839–42). Most academic analyses of the Century of Humiliation’s genesis emphasize economic and technological disparities, inevitable clashes of contrasting civilizations, or, broadly, the tide of European imperialism. Historian Stephen Platt, however, has sought to examine the prelude to the Opium War comprehensively through the eyes of the individuals who drove early Anglo-Chinese relations.

The full article is available at Naval War College Review

Benjamin E. Mainardi, Analyst

• Asia & the Indo-Pacific
• Geopolitics