What transformations were carried out in China with the aim of its self-reinforcement?

We are talking about China during the Qing dynasty in 1861-1895, that is, between the second Opium War and the war with Japan. After defeats in the war with the European army of the British and the Taiping uprising, the Qing dynasty attempted some reforms.

The main reform was the military one, since the issue of defense from external aggression was acute. In the course of its implementation, an arsenal would have been created in 1861; by the end of the century, there were about 20 such arsenals.

In 1877-78, they created the Kaiping Coal Company, which also built the country’s first railway.

In addition, a shipping company was created, newspapers began to be published and establishments were opened where personnel trained and translated foreign literature into Chinese.

The reforms met with strong opposition from conservative circles and even the empress herself, who spent money on the new palace for the modernization of the fleet.

In 1895, the Qing empire was defeated in the war with Japan, from that date a new stage of the country’s reform began.