What if Imperial China Industrialized? (Alternative History Revisited)

With the original video on this topic being my most consistently viewed video on the channel, I thought I would kick off the new year with a more in depth revisiting of a world in which Imperial China Industrialized.

[ThatAnnoyingAmerican]

With the original video on this topic being my most consistently viewed video on the channel, I thought I would kick off the new year with a more in depth revisiting of a world in which Imperial China Industrialized.

[hugoferreira]

Here is truly a scary fact: in the 1850s, China had more than 35% of the world's population! It had more than double the population of British India (which included Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Burma at the time).

For a comparison, today China only has 15% of the world's population.

With this absurdly monstrous manpower, China could potentially dominate the entire world with ease if it had industrialised and become a colonial nation.

In the game Victoria 2, you can industrialise the Qing empire in the 1850s. By the early 1900s, you are so far ahead of the European great powers that it's not even funny. Your sheer industrial power is greater than all the other countries of the world combined, and literally nothing can stand on the way of your tens of millions-sized armies.

[ctngel]

Actually, China was a country that once almost reached industrialization in the Medieval Century. It was Song Dynasty.
Song Dynasty was the richest, wealthiest, and most developed dynasty in politics, literature, culture, etc. How developed? Surprisingly, Slavery once declined during Song Dynasty, and Song was not a country ruled by aristocrats like Louis XIV France, but it was ruled by bureaucracy. Moreover, Song had prime minister system was not exactly the same, but similar to early Britain or Germany during Bismarck. Song was an absolute monarchy empire, but Song was not a dictator country everything can be done by the emperor's will. Google "industrialization of the Song dynasty."

Then why Song almost reached but not finally reached industrialization before Britain? There are two reasons:
First: they did not have enough steel technology to invent the steam engine. It was too early age to produce steel with enough quality to make steam engines.
Second: A very simple word. "Mongol."

...Britain was able to achieve its industrialization thanks to their boundary wall calls the "ocean." If they were connected to Europe through land and invaded by Napoleon, would they have achieved industrialization?

[altigers]

Cheers for the video lad, I've been waiting on this one for a while truly a beautiful redux that ignited a new flame within the Chinese alternative history community ♥♥♥

[sahilhossain]

Lore of What if Imperial China Industrialized? (Alternative History Revisited) momentum 100

[TheArctofireHD]

This was a truly fascinating timeline. Can't believe I've only just discovered you.

[winterstaroball]

I like this BGM! I can’t even believe there’s someone other than Chinese know this song! If Anyone want the version with lyrics. This song is called:爱殇

[kuroazrem]

I don't think the USA would intervene unless Japan attacks them, which, given the defeat against China, is higly unlikely.

[Everydayfunguy]

Even if China industrialized, I don't think that will solve ALL of China’s problems. You hadn't covered the domestic policies of China. Also, I doubt Japan would give up its geopolitical goals after losing one war to China. China and Japan fought more than a few times after the First Sino-Japanese War. And would there be another war between the USSR and China now that China has retaken Vladivostok? Would there be more wars to reclaim it, and would China's army be able to defeat them? And Japan? And would America support China invading French Indochina when they didn't support Japan taking it? And would the Qing dynasty still stand today?

[theactingace]

Probably one of my favourite alt hist scenarios. Would be cool to see though if China joined axis taking on the soviets and the west

[maddogbasil]

Can we get a video on Alternate History on the ottoman Empire

Maybe on what would happen if the ottoman empire didn't fall in the 20th century.

How would that affect the ww2
Cold War and oil.

[egglee]

if china had modernized well in mid 19th century, then maybe it never become communist nation in 1949

[arthurbriand]

What if the Mameluks won against the Ottoman Empire? They don't get trounced surprisingly quick and the Ottomans have a rival to even power in the Eastern méditerraneen.

[antoniomariamacri]

A suggestion for a future video:
What if Italy became a dictatorship in 1900? Irl, prime minister Luigi Pelloux, who had been a general fighting against peasant insurrections in the South, tried to pass a Public Safety Bill to reform the police force in reaction to the severe unrest that was going on in Italy. The law made strikes by state employees illegal; gave the executive wide powers to ban public meetings and dissolve subversive organisations; revived the penalties of banishment and preventive arrest for political offences; and tightened control of the press by making authors responsible for their articles and declaring incitement to violence a crime. It was stopped by the new strategy of obstructionism (developed in this context) by all the centre and left, but what if It had passed and paved the way for a legal dictatorship.

[unisangalaxystudio]

I wonder they be another golden age like space explanation
- New Japanese Empire ( moon colonies, and a Mars town size of poland.
-USA\Empire of Mars ( originality spacex until elon claims it as his own, making US like England in 1776, Elon colonie will be the size of Seattle in town.
- China Moon colonies ( small towns )
- UK having one moon base

[ArishVanNikon]

There's a reason why the country is called "The Sleeping Dragon"

[Evertech.]

Making a Hearts of Iron IV mod that takes place in this concept, If the Qing won the Opium wars, though

[goattier]

The music for this video was really nice.But I would suggest to turn it down a little bit.

[UndeadSlayer]

Can u do what if the Mongolian empire never fell

[angrymanwithsillymoustasche]

What if Buddhism remained prominent in the Indian subcontinent (asia) what if they defended Islamic invasions successfully and established more educational institutions (medival universities throughout central, south asia? What if splits of Buddhism didn't happen in this timeline?