Opium WarsIMPERIALISM IN CHINA

Relations with China

China refused to adapt to Western Culture◦History of isolation◦ Isolated by jungles, mountains and desert

◦Middle Kingdom = Ethnocentric◦ Ethnocentrism Belief that your culture is better than all

others

Relations with ChinaThe Chinese saw themselves as self-sufficient..THEREFORE:◦ They had little interest in the west

They had:◦ healthy agricultural economy

◦ mining (natural resources) provided jobs

◦ manufacturing – silk, cotton, and porcelain

Relations with ChinaEuropeans didn’t like the fact that they couldn’t trade with China

WHY??

British had a trade deficit with China They were importing more goods from China than exporting to them

Relations with ChinaBritain had to pay China with silver for the difference between its imports – tea, silk, and porcelain – and its exports – cotton◦Qing dynasty made it illegal to pay for export goods in anything but silver

Relations with ChinaEuropeans nations saw the market potential of China (300 million people)

◦ Hmm…

◦ What would the Chinese people be willing to trade for?

◦ What product would they want that they didn’t have?

◦ OPIUM

OpiumTo solve the problem England turned India into poppy fields which could be reaped for Opium for illegal sale to the Chinese

Opium was used recreationally in China starting in the 15th

Century but was prohibited in 1729◦ British start to smuggle opium from India into China

◦ Silver was flowing into the hands of the British

But what is Opium??????Opium: a reddish-brown heavy-scented addictive drug prepared from the juice of the opium poppy, used as a narcotic

Effects: Euphoria, relaxation, reduced anxiety, sleepiness, reduced energy, loss of appetite, impaired vision, coma, or death

Highly addictive

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OpiumBritish smuggled opium into China for nonmedical use and by 1835, as many as 12 million Chinese people were addicted to the drug

In the 19th century, Opium addiction spread rapidly among Chinese government employees and soldiers. Historians blame the drug for a decline in China’s standard of living and for the deterioration of public services, which eventually led to massive peasant uprisings during the mid-1800s

China’s ResponseIn 1839 the Chinese Dynasty legislated that the import of opium would be punishable by death

~ by that time 12 million Chinese were users of Indian opium

A Growing Problem…The Qing emperor was angry about the situation and had advisors write letters to Queen Victoria of England

So China decides to do this..Emperor Daoguang orders British shipments of opium be confiscated and destroyed◦During one seizure of British cargo

◦ 20,000 chests of opium were destroyed

◦ Each chest was worth $1,000

◦ In 2007 dollars that’s about $300,000,000

Britain’s ResponseBritish ignore China’s rules and elude China’s navy to sell it

When China began taking opium shipments, Queen Victoriasent in the Royal Navy to bomb Chinese ports and vessels

Let the Wars BeginBritain attacks coastal Chinese cities to start the war in October of 1839◦ Battles took place mostly at sea

◦ Outdated Chinese ships were no match for the modern steam-powered gunboats of the British

Result of 1st War~ Chinese government pays Britain six million silver dollars for lost opium

~ Opium still illegal and black market trade grows◦ All Chinese ports were opened to the British

◦ Britain gained control of Hong Kong (Restored to China in 1997)

◦ Extraterritoriality British & other foreigners were not subject to Chinese law in 5 major port cities of China

Result of 2nd War2nd opium war in 1856

~lasted for two years and ended with the humiliating Treaty of Tientsin

~ legalized opium in China

Influence of the Opium WarsThey marked the beginning of the establishment of Western influence in China

For the time being, China dealt with the problem by pitting foreign countries against one another

Growing Internal Problems•Foreigners were not the greatest of China’s problems

•China’s population became an overwhelming challenge

•By 1850 there were 430 million Chinese- a 30% gain in only 60 years

•Food production did not increase

•Hunger became widespread, people were discouraged, and Opium addiction rose steadily

•As a result, the Chinese began to rebel against the Qing Dynasty