Britain fought two wars with Qing China, in 1839-1842 and 1856-1860, after the Qing government moved to suppress the British-run opium trade that the East India Company had built to offset its silver trade deficit for tea. Chinese defeat in the First Opium War produced the Treaty of Nanjing (1842), which ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain, opened five treaty ports to foreign trade, and imposed a punitive indemnity, the first of the unequal treaties that opened China's economy to foreign commerce on foreign terms for the following century.
Facts
Event DateDated to the First Opium War''s formal outbreak (the Battle of Kowloon, per the cited infobox). This entity covers both Opium Wars, so the date marks the onset of hostilities rather than the full two-war span. LocationChina and British Empire 2 Chronology
End YearThe Second Opium War ended with the Convention of Peking on 24 October 1860. Connections
Associated With
The East India Company held the Bengal opium monopoly that supplied the trade Britain went to war to protect.
Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
Influenced By
In the Other Atlases
Same As
Also in History Atlas: the same subject.
Located In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is located.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Great Depression
Second Opium War, infoboxQuote, Second Opium War, infobox
8 October 1856 - 24 October 1860
2. Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.- Opium Wars
britannica.com/topic/Opium-Wars
The Opium Wars were two conflicts fought in China in the mid-19th century between the forces of Western countries and of the Qing dynasty, which ruled China from 1644 to 1911/12.
- Associated With: East India Company
View the Source 3. Wikipedia
Wikimedia FoundationFirst Opium War, lead section
The First Opium War, also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and Qing China between 1839 and 1842.
First Opium War, infobox
4 September 1839 - 29 August 1842 (2 years, 11 months, 3 weeks and 4 days)
Influenced By: Mercantilism, Opium Wars (Wikipedia), First Opium War section
Trade between China and Britain was heavily imbalanced in China's favor.
View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.