March 14

China was wrecked by peasant rebellion and population growth.  The stability of Japanese public life was eroded by internal social and economic changes. The Islamic World's great empires shrank or disappeared. Latin American societies were troubled by rivalry among competing elites. The activities of European missionaries and merchants were strictly limited and controlled by Chinese authorities. American food crops and China's robust economy enabled substantial population growth, from about 100 million people to some 430 million. This difference occurred between 1685 and 1853. The wealth and resources derived from Europe's overseas empires generated more than China's internal expansion to the west and south. As a result, China faced unemployment, impoverishment, starvation and misery.