Imperialism Against China: The Opium War In the late 18 th and early 19 th Centuries, Europeans wanted to trade with the Chinese much more than the Chinese wanted to trade with the Europeans Since the Chinese had little demand for European products, the European merchants had to trade with silver bullion

Imperialism Against China: The Opium War As an alternative, Europeans gradually began to trade in opium instead The trade was illegal and created both an economic and a social problem in China Illustration from an early 19th century book showing an opium addict

Imperialism Against China: Opium War In 1839, the Chinese took serious measures to halt the opium trade The British protested and launched the Opium War ( ) The British shell Guangzhou

Imperialism Against China: Opium War The war showed the military differential between China and Europe The British used steam- powered gunboats to attack the Grand Canal, and China sued for peace China suffered other military setbacks with Britain and France ( ), France ( ), and Japan ( ) Cartoon showing China being divided by the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, France, and Japan

Imperialism Against China: Unequal Treaties As a result of these defeats, China was subjected to what were collectively known as the “unequal treaties” China was forced to Cede Hong Kong to Britain Open ports to commerce and residence Permit the establishment of Christian missions Legalize the opium trade Not levy tariffs on imports

Imperialism Against China: Unequal Treaties By 1900….. ninety Chinese ports were under the effective control of foreign powers foreign merchants controlled much of the Chinese economy Christian missionaries were converting Chinese throughout the country foreign gunboats patrolled Chinese waters The Treaty of Nanjing (1842) ceded Hong Kong to the British in perpetuity