This book provides an important contribution to the economic history of modern China. It examines the history of the coal mining industry - one of China's largest and most important - from the beginnings of modernisation around 1895 to the start of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937. It addresses questions of both economic and socio-political history and contributes to our knowledge of many aspects of early twentieth-century Chinese history. It examines the slow growth of the modern sector of the Chinese economy and considers the effects of foreign investment and ownership, the supply of capital, the technology of production, the availability of local entrepreneurship and compares the evolution of the Chinese coal industry with development elsewhere. This book will be of interest to those concerned with the problems of industrial growth in general as well as to specialists on modern China.

Coal mining is one of China’s largest industries, and provides an excellent case study through which to consider the broader issues of China’s transition from socialism to capitalism, focussing on the shift to a market economy, the rise of rural industry and the situation of China’s working class. Coal was one of the pillars of the planned economy but, the author argues, its shift to market-based operations has been protracted and difficult, particularly in moving from the artificially low prices of the planned economy to market prescribed prices - a change that had a major impact on the industry’s financial performance. The book goes on to considers the growth of small rural coal mines as part of the Township and Village Enterprises (TVEs) programme; these small mines have brought prosperity to areas where small manufacturing enterprises are not competitive, but at the same time have been the cause of many social and environmental problems. It also examines the situation of coal miners - arguably one the most vulnerable segments of the Chinese working class - under socialism and under capitalism, paying particular attention to the issue of work safety and coal mine disasters. The book provides a comprehensive and coherent treatment of these issues from the establishment of the People’s Republic up to 2010.

The coal industry has been and continues to be of critical importance for China's economic modernization. With its huge labour force, country-wide infrastructure, and vital strategic importance for the economy, the industry presents special problems for reformers, and epitomises the problems of reform in the state industrial sector as a whole. This book examines the changes in the structure and operation of the Chinese coal industry from the mid-19th century to the present, concentrating on the years of reform. Although the focus is on the economics of the industry, the book also provides many insights into China's socio-political development.

Coal mining is one of China¿s largest industries, and provides an excellent case study through which to consider the broader issues of China¿s transition from socialism to capitalism, focussing on the shift to a market economy, the rise of rural industry and the situation of China¿s working class. Coal was one of the pillars of the planned economy but, the author argues, its shift to market-based operations has been protracted and difficult, particularly in moving from the artificially low prices of the planned economy to market prescribed prices - a change that had a major impact on the industry¿s financial performance. The book goes on to considers the growth of small rural coal mines as part of the Township and Village Enterprises (TVEs) programme; these small mines have brought prosperity to areas where small manufacturing enterprises are not competitive, but at the same time have been the cause of many social and environmental problems. It also examines the situation of coal miners - arguably one the most vulnerable segments of the Chinese working class - under socialism and under capitalism, paying particular attention to the issue of work safety and coal mine disasters. The book provides a comprehensive and coherent treatment of these issues from the establishment of the People¿s Republic up to 2010.

Volume two of the acclaimed three-volume series on modern Japanese colonialism and imperialism This book brings together essays by leading experts on the history of Japan to examine the period from 1895 to 1937 when Japan’s economic, social, political, and military influence in China expanded so rapidly that it supplanted the influence of competing Western powers. They discuss how Japan’s informal empire emerged in China after Japan entered the Treaty Port system in 1895 and how it shaped Japan’s own internal development. How did Japan’s informal empire expand in size and importance so that Japanese economic and security interests became heavily dependent on China? What influence did Japanese business groups, China experts, and military have on their government’s China policy? How did the Japanese in China deal with the threatening rise of Chinese nationalism? Exploring these and other questions, these essays show how the pursuit of an informal empire in China played a profound role in the emergence of modern Japan. The contributors are Banno Junji, Barbara J. Brooks, Alvin D. Coox, Peter Duus, Albert Feuerwerker, Kitaoka Shin’ichi, Sophia Lee, Mizoguchi Toshiyuki, Ramon H. Myers, Nakagane Katsuji, Mark R. Peattie, Douglas R. Reynolds, and William D. Wray. This is the second volume of a series on modern Japanese colonialism and imperialism. Volume one is The Japanese Colonial Empire, 1895–1945. Volume three is The Japanese Wartime Empire, 1931–1945.

An historiographical examination of the political debates of the 1980s over despotism in Chinese history and over Party history. The extent of popular culture and its reinterpretation of history is also assessed, as governmental control of the media has decreased.

Set against the backdrop of the Iraq war, and a debate over moral values, the 2004 presidential campaign presented voters with a choice that reflected divisions within the country. This collection analyzes the election, and its consequences, examining the aspects of the election including the strategies and tactics of the Bush and Kerry campaigns.

Wei and Liu argue that Chinese nationalism is a multifaceted concept. At different historical moments and under certain circumstances, it had different meanings and interacted with other competing motives and interests. The authors of this timely volume, all of whom are of Chinese origin and bi-national education, have produced a balanced and non-culture-bound work of scholarship. It contains diverse, provocative, and in-depth analysis of both historical and recent case studies that can shed light on the contemporary incarnation of Chinese nationalism. This interdisciplinary anthology looks at variants of Chinese nationalism upheld and contended by social groups, classes, and power-holders from the past to the present. The authors argue that nationalism can be supported by both patriotic and group- or party-oriented interest calculations. Forms of Chinese nationalism can result from situational as well as ideological conditions.

Coffee from East Africa, wine from California, chocolate from the Ivory Coast - all those every day products are based on labour, often produced under appalling conditions, but always involving the combination of various work processes we are often not aware of. What is the day-to-day reality for workers in various parts of the world, and how was it in the past? How do they work today, and how did they work in the past? These and many other questions comprise the field of the global history of work – a young discipline that is introduced with this handbook. In 8 thematic chapters, this book discusses these aspects of work in a global and long term perspective, paying attention to several kinds of work. Convict labour, slave and wage labour, labour migration, and workers of the textile industry, but also workers' organisation, strikes, and motivations for work are part of this first handbook of global labour history, written by the most renowned scholars of the profession.

The text studies how various Western, Japanese, and Chinese businesses struggled with the persistent dilemma in China of how to retain control over corporate hierachies while adapting to dramatic changes in Chinese society, politics and foreign affairs from 1880-1937.