Opium Wars
The Opium Wars were two mid-19th century conflicts primarily driven by British economic interests and imperialistic expansion in China. The first war (1839-1842) erupted as British merchants sought to address a trade imbalance caused by China's preference for silver over British goods, specifically tea. To counteract this, the British promoted opium grown in India, leading to widespread addiction among the Chinese population. Alarmed by the societal impact of opium, the Chinese authorities, led by Commissioner Lin Zexu, took measures to suppress the trade, prompting military retaliation from Britain.
The First Opium War concluded with the Treaty of Nanjing, which forced China to pay indemnities, cede Hong Kong, and open several ports to foreign trade. The Second Opium War (1856-1860) saw a renewal of hostilities, with Britain and France exploiting diplomatic tensions, ultimately leading to further humiliating treaties, including the Treaty of Tianjin and the Peking Treaty. These conflicts resulted in significant territorial concessions and legalized the opium trade, contributing to China's vulnerability and social unrest, which would later influence the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the emergence of a republican era. The Opium Wars represent a significant chapter in China's interactions with Western powers, marked by conflict, exploitation, and lasting consequences for Chinese society.
Opium Wars
At issue: Continued and increased trade between the Western powers and China, colonial domination of China
Date: 1839–1842, 1856–1860
Location: China
Combatants: Chinese vs. British and French
Principal commanders: Chinese, Commissioner Lin Zexu (1785–1850), Prince Sengguolinqin (d. 1865); British, Captain Charles Elliot (1801–1875), Sir Henry Pottinger (1789–1856), Victor Alexander Bruce Elgin (1849–1917); French, Baron Gros (1793–1870), General Cousin de Montauban (1796–1878)
Principal battles: Chuenpi, Whompoa, Ningpo (Ninghsien), Guangzhou (Canton), Dagu (Taku) Forts
Result: The defeat and subjugation of China; forced acceptance of the opium trade; payment of indemnities; loss of territory
Background
The principal reason for the Opium Wars was the British desire for economic and imperialistic expansion. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, a mass market had developed in Britain for Chinese tea. Paying for the tea presented problems because the Chinese did not want British goods in trade and preferred silver, of which the British had only limited amounts. The British solved their problem by promoting a covert trade in opium grown in India and fostering an addiction to the drug among the Chinese. Drug addiction became so widespread and the outflow of silver to pay for the drug so acute that by 1838, the alarmed Chinese authorities took action. Lin Zexu was appointed commissioner to suppress the trade and to destroy the opium stock. In retaliation, the British took military action, resulting in the First Opium War.
Despite its huge size and population, China was unprepared for war. The equipment of its army and navy was antiquated, and its military personnel for the most part were incompetent and untrained for modern warfare. China also lacked a diplomatic system. Its traditional contacts with the outside world were based on foreign powers paying tribute to or submitting to the will of the emperor, a system that was rejected by the Western powers.
Action
The First Opium War (1839–1842) was primarily a series of naval engagements, the two most important of which were Chuenpi (November 3, 1839) and Whompoa (May 21, 1841), both in Guangzhou Harbor. The British under Captain Charles Elliot and Sir Henry Pottinger virtually destroyed the Chinese navy. In order to force the Chinese government to negotiate, the British threatened the Dagu forts guarding the mouth of the Hai river leading to Tianjin and Beijing, the capital. They then made plans to sail up the Yangtze (Chang) River, intending to bombard the important city of Nanjing. The Chinese suffered heavy casualties attempting to repulse the British at Ningpo (March 4, 1842). The shaken imperial government agreed to negotiate, resulting in the Treaty of Nanjing (August, 1842).
The Treaty of Nanjing stipulated a payment to Britain of $21 million and the opening of five ports to trade and foreign residence. It ceded to Britain the island of Hong Kong and established a customs tariff, not to be changed without British consent. The treaty was followed a year later by a supplementary treaty that set the tariff at a low rate, gave Britons the right to be tried in British courts (extraterritoriality), and contained a most-favored-nation clause.
In the Second Opium War (1856–1860), using an alleged insult to the British flag as a pretext, the British under Victor Alexander Bruce Elgin renewed the war. They were joined by the French, eager for imperialist expansion. Both Russia and the United States joined as “interested neutrals,” mainly to protect and to further their interests. Guangzhou was largely destroyed by bombardment in December of 1857. The Dagu Forts were again taken, and Tianjin and Beijing were threatened. The imperial government, weakened by internal rebellion and headed by the incompetent Emperor Xian Feng, agreed to the Treaty of Tianjin (June, 1858).
The Treaty of Tianjin opened eleven more Chinese ports to trade and stipulated payment of $8 million each to Britain and France. It gave foreigners the right to conduct missionary activity anywhere in China and to travel throughout China. Ambassadors were given right of residence in the capital. In addition, the expression “barbarian” was not to be used in reference to the Western powers.
Because the emperor failed to ratify the treaty, the allies prepared for a major land battle. In June of 1859, they again attacked the Dagu Forts but were this time repulsed by the Chinese under General Sengguolinqin. The allies regrouped and returned the following summer. They reduced the forts and proceeded toward Tianjin and Beijing. The emissaries sent by Elgin were taken prisoner, and some were mistreated. The emperor fled the capital. In retaliation for the mistreatment of the emissaries, Elgin ordered the two hundred buildings of the summer palace outside the city burned.
The Peking Treaty (October, 1860) increased the indemnities to $11 million, added Tianjin to the list of treaty ports, and ceded a part of Kaulun (Kowloon) to Britain. Later negotiation legalized the opium trade. China signed separate treaties or concessions with France, Russia, and the United States.
Aftermath
As a result of the wars and the treaties, China was humiliated, weakened, and impoverished. Humiliation led to a growing hatred of all foreigners, and weakness invited later attacks by the Japanese and further loss of territory. Impoverishment led to the infamous “coolie system” that in many ways replaced slavery. Public resentment led to the overthrow of the Manchus of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, the establishment of a republic, and the beginning of a new era for China.
Bibliography
Beeching, Jack. The Chinese Opium Wars. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1975.
Chu, Henry. “Chinese Officials Ban Perfume Opium, Saying Name Could Prove Harmful to Society.” Los Angeles Times, January 13, 2000.
Hsü. Immanuel C. Y. “The Opium Wars.” In The Rise of Modern China. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
Newsinger, John. “Britain’s Opium Wars.” Monthly Review 44, no. 5 (October, 1997): 35.
Waley, Arthur. The Opium Wars Through Chinese Eyes. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1958.