Summary of First Opium War Depth Study for OCR China and its Rulers A Level. The A Level OCR China Thematic Study paper has one 30 marker source question based on one of the three depth studies, and they tend to be focused on either the consequences or causes.
Depth Studies – A Level OCR China – 1839-1989
First Opium War 1839-1842
Long Term Causes
By the 1830s, Britain began to explore China as it grew as a major
European free trade power. Britain’s economic ways and trading
system clashed with the Chinese.
Britain had just won Napoleonic Wars – confident military
In the 1830s, the East India Company, having held control over the
Opium trade in India and Burma and issued licences to merchants,
was expanding rapidly.
o 1800 - 4500 chests
o 1838 - 40,000 chests
o Almost 900% increase from 1800s
The growth in Opium traded was not due to a Chinese demand, but
a British pursuit to pressure the Chinese into taking more Opium.
The money Britain received paid for the increase in tea imports from
China. If this was disrupted it would have affected Britain’s
balance of payments which it would not have tolerated.
China was suspicious of European expansionism.
Britain was aware of the Chinese military weakness in
comparison to their own.
Reform Act 1832 – merchants in parliament protecting their
interests
Slave Trade abolished 1807 – Britain paying back merchants – even
keener to maintain balance of payments
Short Term Causes
Growing imbalance in trade, silver stores drained. Before the
1830s the economic balance between the British and the Chinese
was equal, but after the 1830s China was paying out $18 million
silver.
The Chinese government was becoming aware of the disruptive
nature of Opium on their people. The lethargy and apathy the
Opium was causing in the workers was an issue.
Qing government seized the Opium stocks in Canton in 1839. It
was through here 90% of the Opium was distributed.
Chinese had previously declared Opium to be illegal, they had
never acted on the decree. Inaccurate translation from the Manchu
court between 1836 to 1838 – thought they were about to legalise
it, merchants were stockpiling.
Lin Zexu was appointed as special imperial Commissioner to
Canton to supervise the destruction of the Opium. He opposed the
Opium on social, economic, moral, and ethical grounds.
Lin even wrote a letter to Queen Victoria, asking her to stop the
Opium trade.
After they were made to leave Canton, Charles Elliot appealed to
the British government to intervene. Viscount Palmerston feared
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