1839-1842, 1856-1860 Opium Wars

  • the first in 1839-1842, the second in 1856-1860
  • losses of both wars resulted in China signing treaties with exploitative and borderline embarrassing terms (similar to the 1919 Treaty of Versailles) – including land, special trade, status, extra-judiciary power
    • China forcibly opened up to foreign trade
    • concessions = formation of foreign areas like Beijing’s French or American concession
    • extra-judiciary power = foreigners tried by their own country’s laws instead of Chinese law
      • this enraged nationalist Chinese, who would later to go Versailles to ask for equal status
  • by the 1900s, many Chinese people were not only addicted, but also dependent → making it increasingly difficult to shut off trade or foreign imports
    • drugs and money flowed from India to Britain to China