The Opium Wars

The opium war was an important war. It showed that the europeans got what they wanted when they wanted it. It was also the worlds first drug wars. The British would trade opium with the Chinese for tea. As you know, any drug can be addictive and opium sure was. At first opium used to be a drug used to cure diarihha but then they mixed it with tobacco so they could smoke it. Tea was in high demand and the chinese had it. The chinese were self sufficient and didnt want anything from the Europeans or Americans.

When the British ran out of things to trade, they started to trade opium mixed with tobacco so they could promote smoking. They would bring in nearly 2 million pounds of opium a year. This weakend the chinese population. It even weakend the economy because they were giving away pounds of silver to pay for opium. They tried to ban opium but it didnt work. All the government officials were corrupt and accepted bribes. the Chinese tried everything to stop the british from smuggling opium into the country but nothing worked. The chinese were fed up with this so the opiums wars began.

China was easily defeated because they lacked the technology. Europe was too advanced for them. They made the chinese sign a treaty that was "unequal" and it exploited the chinese resources. The Americans and Fench also made an "unequal" treaty.

Film Lesson "Mountains of the Moon"

This was a good movie. In this movie it showed two Europeans trying to find the source of the Nile river. They had many hardships trying to do this. Their first attempt was not very successful. They were attacked by a local African tribe. While John Speak was out hunting, he was being followed by some of the members. Richard Burton (another explorer) had a spear thrown through his mouth during the ambush. John Speak was captured and then escaped. He found Richard Burton and they escaped and returned to Europe. A couple years later they met back up and decided to go back to Africa again. In this trip there were even more hardships. a lot of there supplies were stolen and they were captured twice. John speaks had a bug go in his ear and killed it by shoving a blade in his ear. Richard Burton was almost killed by a Lion and he had obtained a disease in his leg that made him unable to walk.

They found the source of the Nile and Named it Lake Victoria. The problem was, that they didn't really discover it. The African tribes have been using it way before they came. The main technology advance that the Europeans had over the Africans were there guns. A simple handgun was a great advance. The Europeans were eventually able to capture Africa so easily because they had developed machine guns. They brought machine guns and even more Europeans to conquer Africa.

The meiji Restoration of Japan

Mathew Perry bullied the Japanese to sign the treaty. He came to japan with huge navy ships and advanced technology. The japanese would have no chance if they fought back. So it was either get destroyed or trade with us. The japanese were very impressed with the navy ships. japan's war ships were nothing compared to them. The Economy of Japan went up because of the Americans. The Japanese started to trade with the United states and that brought more money for Japan. They industrialized and modernized because they traded more. They were able to see all the new technology that everyone had. Japan is an archipelago and an archipelago is a chain of islands.

Karl Marx and Communism

Communism is when everyone lives in an equal. Everyone has equal pay no matter what job they have. Communism took over the world becuase people thought it would be a good idea. Some people worked hard for little pay and some people did nothing for a lot of pay. People didnt think that was fair so they believed in Karl Marx idea. Karl Marx saw that the working conditions of people were bad. They had to do dnagerous jobs with no sleep and food. He thought that the workers were the "good guys" and the rich people or factory owners were the "bad guys".

Karl Marx and the Industrial Revolution

Karl Marx did not like the Industrial Revolution. He felt that the working conditions in the factories were un safe for the workers. He urged for people all over the world to unite in a big revolution. Marx had his own ideas and his idea was called Communism. Communism is when workers share the wealth in a communist society. He Belelieved that money should be distributed "from each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs."

The Industrial Revolution inspired Marx because he thought the workers were treated unfairly. He thought that the rich got a lot of money for no reason and that the common people got a little bit of money for a lot of work. he didnt think this was fair. He thought that everyone should share money and get equal amounts.

Nationalism and the Creation of Italy

Nationalism is when you have pride in your country. When you defend your country to the fullest and never dis honor your country. I am Nationalistic For my parents country, Barbados. I love Barbados and go there practically every year. When i go home i listen to the music from my island and talk like people who live there around my family. I have a lot of Bajan clothes including flags, hats, bandannas, wrist bands and even a tie.

Nationalism was used to create Italy. They formed their territory from other crumbling territories. Italy was ruled before it became its own state. They were apart of another country. Italy became Italy because it was united with other countries and made its own.

Simon Bolivar and Latin American Revolutions

Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar Palacios y Blanco was a good man. He was a South American general and he won independence for Bolivia, Panama, Colombia, Equidor, Peru and Venesuela. He was born in July 24th 1783, Caracas Venesuela. He has a country named after him because he conquered Peru. Upper Peru became a seperate estate and it was named after him. Somin Bolivar helped defeat the Spaniards and was fighting for Independence. His dream of a united colombia influenced him.