How Britain's Opium Smuggling Led to War with China
During the late 1700s, Britain encountered a trade imbalance with China, driven by the immense popularity of Chinese products. To address this, the British East India Company created a monopoly on opium in India, illicitly transporting over 30,000 chests of the drug into China by the late 1830s, which resulted in a significant outflow of silver. In 1838, the Daoguang Emperor tasked Lin Zexu with halting the trade, leading to the destruction of more than 2 million pounds of opium, which incited anger in London. The tensions escalated with the Battle of Chuenpi on November 3, 1839, culminating in the First Opium War and the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842. The Second Opium War (1856-1860) resulted in the Convention of Peking, which legalized the opium trade and initiated China's 'century of humiliation.'
Key facts
- Britain faced a trade imbalance with China in the late 1700s due to high demand for Chinese tea, silk, and porcelain.
- The British East India Company held an opium monopoly in Bengal and Bihar, India.
- Opium was sold at public auctions in Calcutta to foreign merchants who smuggled it into China via Lintin Island.
- By the late 1830s, over 30,000 chests of opium entered China annually.
- Lin Zexu was appointed Imperial Commissioner on December 31, 1838, to end the opium trade.
- Lin destroyed over 2 million pounds of opium at Humen.
- The Battle of Chuenpi occurred on November 3, 1839, between British ships and Chinese war junks.
- The 1842 Treaty of Nanjing forced China to cede Hong Kong Island and open five ports.
- The Second Opium War (1856-1860) led to the burning of the Old Summer Palace and the Convention of Peking.
- The unequal treaties contributed to China's 'century of humiliation' and the decline of the Qing dynasty.
Entities
Institutions
- British East India Company
- British Foreign Office
- Parliament
- Qing dynasty
Locations
- Britain
- China
- India
- Bengal
- Bihar
- Calcutta
- Lintin Island
- Canton
- Humen
- Pearl River estuary
- Hong Kong Island
- Beijing
- Old Summer Palace