Imperialism is a term associated with the expansion of Western European powers, as well as their invasion and occupation of East Asian countries, primarily throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. Imperialism was administered through brute force and trade which allowed Western imperial nations to benefit from East Asian states and manipulate their governments without bothering to implement political and economic control. In the 19th century, Britain wanted to trade with the Chinese. much more than the Chinese wanted to trade with the British. As the Chinese had little demand for European goods, European merchants had to trade with silver. As an alternative, the British gradually began trading opium from India. The trade was illegal and created economic, political and social problems in China. In 1839, the Chinese took serious steps to halt the opium trade. The British protested and launched the Opium Wars between 1839 and 1842. The wars demonstrated the military differential between China and Europe. The British used steam-powered ships to attack the Grand Canal, and China, realizing that conquest was inevitable, began the necessary preparations for a ceasefire. As a result of these defeats, China was subjected to what became known as the Preferred Nations Treaties (NTFs). China was forced to legalize the opium trade, cede Hong Kong to Britain, allow the establishment of Christian missions, open ports to trade, and not impose tariffs on imports. By 1900, the majority of Chinese seaports were under the effective control of Western powers, and foreign nations controlled much of the Chinese economy. Christian missionaries were converting Chinese people across the world......amidst the paper-making powers. Eventually, in China, an anti-Western organization called the "Boxers" by Europeans because of their abilities in martial arts, emerged to protest the growing Western presence in China. In 1899, participants in the Boxer Rebellion organized to rid China of foreign authorities. They went on a rampage killing Chinese Christians, Chinese who had ties to foreigners, and Western foreigners. In 1900, they overwhelmed foreign embassies in Beijing. Heavy armed forces consisting of American, British, Russian, German, French and Japanese troops defeated the rebellion. When Russia refused to withdraw its troops from Manchuria after the Boxer Rebellion, Japan attacked and defeated the Russian fleet. It was the first time in modern history that an East Asian country managed to defeat the forces of a Western European power..