The Opium Wars

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at how, between the years 1839 and 1841, the British Empire, then under the rule of the very young Queen Victoria, commenced what has come to be called the "Opium Wars" against China, which, prior to 1842, was a closed and self-isolated nation. It looks at how the war caused many negative consequences, some being the destruction of China's false sense of superiority over the West, as well as the collapse of its social, economic, and political structures, which brought about social chaos and insurrection.

From the Paper:

"The "Opium Wars" touched off many explosive matters with far-reaching consequences, all of which contributed to its failure. Politically, the cession of Hong Kong gave Great Britain a powerful foothold in China for further advancement; the opening of numerous Chinese ports, such as Shanghai, Macao and Chinkiang, extended foreign, particularly British, influence to the entire eastern coast of China and the loss of numerous national rights relegated China to a semi-colonial state. Socially, the continuation of the illicit traffic deepened the opium problem and the growth of foreign trade in the prominent ports introduced "a new class of business entrepreneurs who came to wield an increasing influence upon Chinese society" (La Fleur 268)."

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