"The dirtiest wars in history" What do you know about the opium wars between China and Britain?

182 years ago, Britain ignited the dirtiest war in its colonial history, spreading opium abuse among the Chinese people during its conflict with the Chinese Qing dynasty. This phase was called the Opium Wars, and its impact continued until the beginning of the twentieth century.

The Opium Wars are two armed conflicts that took place in China in the mid-19th century between Britain and the Qing dynasty that ruled China (1664-1912) (Others)

The Opium Wars are two armed conflicts that took place in China in the mid-19th century between Britain and the Qing dynasty that ruled China (1664-1912). While the First Opium War (1839-1842) was fought between China and Britain only, France joined Britain in the Second Opium War (1856-1860), also known as the "Arrow War" or the "Anglo-French War in China".

Modern military technology led the European powers to an easy victory over the Qing forces, which enabled them to obtain commercial, legal, and territorial privileges in China.

The successive wars and treaties that were imposed also weakened the Qing Dynasty and the Chinese imperial government, and forced China to open its ports to European trade. In addition, Britain took sovereignty over Hong Kong, which was returned to China only three decades ago while still maintaining a special status.

Motives behind the opium wars

The killing of an English sailor by a Chinese villager and the refusal of the British government at the time to accept its citizen to appear before a Chinese court (Others)

The main reason for the outbreak of wars was China's attempt to counter the opium trade that was illegally practiced by English traders between India and China through the British-owned East India Company, which had a monopoly on trade with China at the time. With the growth of the opium trade dramatically starting in the twenties of the eighteenth century, the Chinese response was a motive for Britain to start the dirtiest war in history because of the great profits it was reaping from the opium trade with China.

With the exacerbation of economic and social problems in China due to the spread of opium abuse among the people, the Chinese government in 1839 burned a huge storehouse of opium that the English merchants were storing in the province of Guangzhou.

As a result, the tension between the Chinese and the English increased, and the incident of an English sailor killing a Chinese villager and the British government’s refusal to accept the appearance of its citizen before a Chinese court was the straw that broke the camel’s back, igniting the first opium wars between Britain and China, which lasted 3 years and ended with Britain’s victory. It obtained great concessions in the use of Chinese ports and a monopoly on trade with China.

First Opium War (1839-1842)

The First Opium War (1839-1842) (Others)

In late 1839, after the Incident of the Englishman, Britain, at the height of its power, declared war on China in order to reopen the gates to the lucrative trade in opium, and immediately sent its warships to strike a naval blockade opposite the mouth of the Pearl River in Hong Kong.

In early 1940, Britain decided to send an expeditionary force to China, and with the expedition to Hong Kong in June, the British fleet advanced through the mouth of the Pearl River to Canton, and then occupied Hong Kong in May 1941 after months of negotiations.

Despite a determined counterattack from Chinese forces in the spring of 1842, the British not only managed to hold out, but were able to capture Nan Jing in late August, putting an end to the fighting and beginning the negotiations that concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Nan Jing In August 1842.

Under the terms of the agreement, China was required to pay substantial compensation to Britain, cede the island of Hong Kong to the British, and increase the number of ports assigned to the English from one to five, including Shanghai.

In a supplementary agreement signed in October 1843, the English were granted the right of habeas corpus, as well as the status of most favored foreign country for the United Kingdom.

The Second Opium War (1856-1860) (Others)

Second Opium War (1856-1860)

In the mid-1850s, while the Qing government was suppressing the Taiping Rebellion between 1850 and 1864, Britain saw the opportunity to ignite a new conflict with the Chinese that would expand their commercial influence.

The United Kingdom did not wait long to find the appropriate pretext, if the incident of the ship (Arrow) was considered a sufficient reason to ignite the war again, after the Chinese authorities arrested in early October 1856 some of the crew members of the ship (Chinese), which was docked in The port of Canton, which the English considered an insult to their flag, and reason enough to start a second war.

Arguing this, the British Navy began bombarding Canton across the mouth of the Pearl River, and ignited skirmishes with Chinese forces. Trade halted followed, and in December the Chinese burned British trade factories and warehouses, raising tensions.

For their part, the French decided to enter the line and join the British campaign, using the murder of a French missionary in early 1856 on Chinese soil as a pretext to enter the war.

By the end of 1857, the Allies began their military operations, and succeeded in capturing the province and appointing a more cooperative governor.

In the summer of 1858, the Allies succeeded in reaching Tianjin and forcing the Chinese government to agree to the Treaty of Tianjin in June 1858, which legalized the opium trade and made it legal, China paid large compensation to the allies, and secured the residence of foreign envoys in Beijing , opening many new ports to trade, and allowing foreign travelers and missionaries to enter deep into Chinese territory.

In the aftermath, the Allies withdrew from "Tianjin", and returned in the summer of 1859 to ratify the treaties, but the government resisted them and refused to sign them, which prompted the Allies to start a new military campaign that succeeded in entering Beijing and burning the Emperor's Summer Palace in October 1860.

Subsequently, the Treaty of Beijing was signed, which recognized the terms of the Treaty of "Tianjin" and handed over southern Kowloon Peninsula, to be attached to Hong Kong, which remained under British control until the nineties of the last century, before it was returned to China while still maintaining a special status.