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The Opium Wars of the mid-19th century were fought between the Western powers and the Qing dynasty, which ruled China from 1644 to 1912. Two wars took place, both fought essentially over the illegal trade of opium and the expansion of territory claimed by the British in the region. In the eyes of many scholars, the conflict marked the end of China's isolation and the beginning of modern Chinese history. But the price paid was heavy.
So, what exactly were the Opium Wars? Click through for an explanation and timeline of events.
Opium is a highly addictive non-synthetic narcotic that is extracted from the poppy plant.
Since the 18th century, foreign traders (primarily British) had been illegally exporting opium, mainly from India to China. Pictured are opium ships moored at Lintin (Nei Lingding) Island.
By the early 19th century, addiction to the narcotic among the Chinese population had increased dramatically, causing serious social and economic problems.
In fact, the decade of the 1830s witnessed a rapid rise in opium trade. Pictured is the 'examining hall' in a opium factory in Patna, India. Hundreds of opium balls are being prepared for export to China.
In early 1839, the Chinese government, determined to suppress the illicit business, confiscated and destroyed more than 20,000 chests of opium—some 1,400 tons of the drug—that were warehoused at Canton (Guangzhou) by British merchants.
Later that year, Chinese authorities appointed scholar-official Lin Zexu to the post of special imperial commissioner with the task of eradicating the opium trade. A formidable bureaucrat known for his competence and high moral standards, Lin was sent to Guangdong by the emperor to halt the illegal importation of opium by the British. He arrived in March 1839 and made a huge impact on the opium trade within a matter of months. He arrested more than 1,700 Chinese opium dealers and confiscated over 70,000 opium pipes.
Lin Zexu initially attempted to get foreign companies to forfeit their opium stock in exchange for tea, but this ultimately failed. Instead, he resorted to using force in the Western merchants' enclave. Beginning June 3, 500 workers labored for 23 days in order to destroy all of it, mixing the opium with lime and salt and throwing it into the sea (pictured).
Lin's destruction of the merchants' opium warehouses was followed by a Chinese blockade of the Pearl River (Zhu Jiang) estuary at Hong Kong. Hostilities ensued, with British naval vessels attacking and destroying several Chinese war junks. This action triggered the First Opium War, which broke out on September 4, 1839.
On November 3, 1839, the first significant military engagement of the war took place—the First Battle of Chuenpi. Fought between British and Chinese ships at the entrance of the Humen strait, the battle began when HMS Volage and HMS Hyacinth confronted Chinese war junks they perceived as being hostile.
The following year in another bid to force the Chinese government to pay reparations and allow trade to continue, the British sent a naval expedition to the region and occupied Hong Kong. The fleet then proceeded up the Pearl River estuary.
The First Capture of Chusan (Zhoushan) by British forces occurred on July 5-6, 1840. Chusen Island was later evacuated by the victors in preference for Hong Kong (Rear-Admiral George Elliot had declared the cession of Hong Kong to Great Britain after a tentative agreement with Chinese imperial commissioner Qishan a few days earlier).
The Second Battle of Chuenpi saw British and Chinese naval forces clash on the Pearl River Delta on January 7, 1841. The iron warship Nemesis destroyed dozens of Chinese vessels, with defeated enemy crews referring to her as the "devil ship."
Fought between British and Qing forces at Amoy (present-day Xiamen) on August 26, 1841, the Battle of Amoy resulted in the destruction of the citadel's powder magazine and capture of 26 Chinese war junks and 128 cannons.
After taking Amoy, the British once again invaded Chusan. This time, however, they met heavy resistance. The city ultimately fell to far superior British forces on October 1, 1841.
The last major battle of the First Opium War took place on July 21, 1842, at Chinkiang (Zhenjiang). The British capture of this stronghold allowed them to proceed to Nanking.
Following the Chinese defeat at Chinkiang, the Daoguang Emperor decided to sue for peace and agreed to sign the Treaty of Nanking, which brought hostilities to an end, on August 29, 1842. The treaty was the first of what the Chinese called the unequal treaties granting an indemnity to Britain, the opening of five treaty ports, and the official cession of Hong Kong Island. However, the war marked the end of China's isolation and, in the eyes of many scholars, the beginning of modern Chinese history. But peace was short lived.
In early October 1856, Chinese officials boarded the British-registered ship Arrow while it was docked in Canton, arrested several Chinese crew members, and allegedly lowered the British flag. British officials in Guangzhou demanded release of the sailors under the rules of the Treaty of Nanking (they were later freed) and claimed that Qing officials had insulted the British Union Jack.
A few days later on October 8, a British warship sailed up the Pearl River estuary and began bombarding Canton. The Second Opium War had begun.
The British High Commissioner, Lord Elgin, was eager to take the city of Canton as a demonstration of power and to capture Chinese official Ye Mingchen, who had resisted British attempts to implement the 1842 Treaty of Nanking. The British did so on November 5, 1856. Pictured is the plan of the attack and bombardment of the city.
The Second Opium War differed from the first in that France had sided with the British, prompted to do so by the murder in February of a French missionary. In actual fact, France was hoping to force concessions from the Chinese in its own trade war with Beijing. Pictured is the landing of allied troops in China early in the conflict.
The United States was also briefly involved in the Second Opium War, as was Russia. While Russia ultimately decided not to send any military aid, the US Navy participated in the Battle of the Barrier Forts. In November 1856, American forces launched an amphibious assault against a series of four forts known as the Barrier Forts near the city of Canton. Pictured is the USS Portsmouth, one of several vessels that took part in the raid.
Meanwhile, allied British and French forces commanded by Admiral Rigault de Genouilly commenced joint military operations in late 1857 with the capture of Canton.
The Treaty of Tientsin ended the first phase of the Second Opium War. Signed in June 1858 by the British, French, Russians, and Americans, these treaties opened more Chinese ports to foreigners, permitted foreign legations in the Chinese capital Beijing, allowed Christian missionary activity, and—importantly—legalized the import of opium.
But even while the ink was still drying, hostilities again broke out in what became known as the Three Battles of Taku Forts. These violent and bloody military engagements played out from 1858 to 1860.
In 1860, two significant battles took place within days of each other. On September 18, a combined Anglo-French force commanded by Charles Cousin-Montauban inflicted massive losses on the Chinese Qing army at Zhangjiawan.
Three days later, on September 21, the decisive Battle of Palikao (Baliqiao) took place. The Anglo-French victory opened a path to Beijing for Western armies and quickly led to the defeat of the Qing empire.
In a final push, allied troops entered Beijing in October. While the city was spared destruction, the emperor's summer palace was burned to the ground.
China signed the Convention of Peking on October 24 to end the Second Opium War. By doing so, the Chinese also accepted the terms of the treaties of Tientsin, which they had refused to ratify, and ceded the southern portion of the Kowloon Peninsula to the British.
The handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China took place at midnight on July 1, 1997. Today, the ruins of the summer palace serve as a poignant stage for musical and cultural events.
And for anyone interested in learning more about the history of the Opium Wars, the Opium War Museum in Humen Town, Guangdong, features an engaging exhibition chronicling the conflict's timeline.
Sources: (Britannica) (Asia Pacific Curriculum) (The National Archives)
See also: What were the American Indian Wars?
The Opium Wars that devastated China
The conflicts that marked the beginning of modern Chinese history
LIFESTYLE History
The Opium Wars of the mid-19th century were fought between the Western powers and the Qing dynasty, which ruled China from 1644 to 1912. Two wars took place, both fought essentially over the illegal trade of opium and the expansion of territory claimed by the British in the region. In the eyes of many scholars, the conflict marked the end of China's isolation and the beginning of modern Chinese history. But the price paid was heavy.
So, what exactly were the Opium Wars? Click through for an explanation and timeline of events.