The Challenge of Western Imperialism. Beginning in the eighteenth century, the empires of the Middle East began to fall behind modern Western Europe. Europe’s transoceanic trade bypassed the Middle East, and the region lost much of its pivotal role in the East-West trade. Furthermore, modern commerce, industry, transportation, and weapons remained largely in the hands of Europeans. The weakness of the Middle East created a power vacuum that pitched Russian, French, and British Empires against each other. The Middle East, like much of the rest of Africa and Asia, came under European domination as Russia, France, and Britain staked out interests and territories for themselves. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, what were the major Middle Eastern responses to continued and increasing European encroachment?  The textbook is:  History of the Modern Middle East Author: Cleveland ISBN: 9780813349800 Chapters 6 - 11 Must be cited