How did Japan respond to western imperialism

China and Japan's Responses to the West in the 19th Century. In the 19th century, after a long period of isolationism, China and then Japan came under pressure from the West to open to foreign trade and relations ... Both countries had long maintained isolationist tendencies, with limited commerce with the West.

The responses of China and Japan to Western Imperialism were similar in several significant respects. Each nation, for centuries, successfully held back Western incursions into their territories and economies. Both China and Japan were ultimately able to maintain this policy of isolationism until the 19th century, when each finally succumbed to external pressures, though to differing degrees