Chinese nationalism
The presence of Western influences in China during the midst of the 19th Century was noteworthy for both the formation and perception of Chinese nationalism as it eroded the traditional view of the concept of Celestial Empire; merging it with the concept of a modern statehood. The years of the mid- nineteenth century were instructive to the Celestial Empires realization that it had lost its eminence as a prevailing world power. The defeats experienced by China within the Opium wars (1840–1842, 1856–1860), impacted the perception of Chinese nationalism; therefore, encouraging the Qing dynasty to reconsider its nationalistic approach. Zhao Suisheng had placed an emphasis on the idea that the escalation of Chinese nationalism had an explicit correlation with the intellectual search for answers to the questions regarding China’s setback due to defeat in the Opium wars. This then oversaw a complete transformation in the characterisation of the term ‘Celestial Empire’ as Chinese scholars and political leaders began to evaluate the impact of the western world.