Opium Wars
At a glance:
- Series: Magill’s Guide to Military History
- Categories: Government and Politics, Military History, Economics, Land Acquisition and Expansion, Territory Redistribution
- Subcategories: Colonialism, Colonies, Settlements, Wars, Battles, Empires, Dynasties, Trade, Commerce, British Empire
- Curriculum: 19th Century European History, British History, French History, Asian History
- Geographical Location: China
- Date: 1839-1842; 1856-1860
Article abstract: At issue: Continued and increased trade between the Western powers and China, colonial domination of China. 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...
[The entire page is 946 words long]