China Open Door Policy

Shanna, Allie, Danielle, Sarah China Open Door Policy

China's Qing Dynasty began to crumble- nations saw China as a weakened power and demanded trade • China Open Door Policy- Initiated by Secretary of State John Hay • Issued to Great Britain, Germany, Russia, Japan, France, and Italy • Requested that no nation with a sphere of influence use that power to benefit only itself

Involvement • Problem: Other nations were sectioning off parts of China for themselves • U.S. did not want other nations to gain too much power off of China • Wanted to ensure free access to China for U.S. political and business interests

Motives • Main fear was that other countries would block off U.S. trade with China • In 1898, president McKinley requested access to China, promising that he would not ask for any special advantages • This was in hopes to create free trade for all of the countries who wanted to trade with China • U.S. did not want territory in China, just the right to trade

Justifications • Americans believed: • The growth of the economy depended on exports • The U.S. had a right to intervene abroad to keep foreign markets open • Feared the closing of American products, citizens, or ideas threatened American survival

Reactions • Shandong, China- a rebellion began in 1896, ended in 1898 • A group called the Boxers created anti-Christian hysteria • Hated all foreigners and tried to drive them out • Forts were built in Beijing to block out foreigners, they failed miserably

Final Result • Japan violated the Open Door principle with its Twenty-One Demands to China • Japan’s defeat in World War II and the communist victory in China’s civil war ended all special privileges to foreigners • The Open Door Policy has since remained meaningless

When it comes to the Open Door Policy, America acted as the Hemisphere’s Mafia Don • Intentions were played to be beneficial to the other countries- really America didn’t want to lose access to China • Actions were beneficial to China and U.S. only • China was a weak power and would have been taken advantage of by other countries if the U.S. had not intervened

Works Cited • [Senate Foreign Relations Committee] Treaties, International Acts, Protocols, and Agreements between The United States of America and other Powers 1776-1909 William M. Mallory, ed., Washington, 1910, vol. 1, pp. 246-247. • “Open Door Policy.” Encyclopedia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopedia Britannica Online. 07 Oct. 2010 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/429642/Open-Door-policy>. • “Open Door Policy" A Dictionary of Contemporary World History. Jan Palmowski. Oxford University Press, 2008. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. West Morris Mendham HS. 12 October 2010 <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t46.e1757>

China Open Door Policy