- Describe how a weak Qing government dealt with external influences.
Michael Hull
- Military weakness was a major problem
- US and western European forces bullied them around
- European forces often stole/colonized land from Qing’s and China could do nothing about it
- US and European forces forced favorable trade out of Qing dynasty via overpowering military force
- European forces defeated Qing forces militarily and forced China’s leaders to accept a series of ‘humiliating’ treaties
- These treaties destroyed Chinese sovereignty and paved the way for further economic exploitation by superior forces
- Due to all of the external military pressure, it sent China into a great downward spiral that handicapped the Qing’s rulers ability to deal with internal disorder and essentially forced immediate reform, which did come but had very limited effect, thus weakening China further as time went on
- In 1759 the Chinese emperor restricted European economic presence to Guangzhou, where Chinese authority controlled both the foreign merchants and also the terms of trade
- These foreign merchants were only allowed to engage with chinese trading companies known as cohongs, which bought and sold goods at a predetermined and non negotiable price under regulations set by their government
- China had little need for European products, so despite these regulations, the majority of trade took place in the form of European purchase of silk, porcelain, lacquerware, and tea which was paid for with silver.
- Eventually, as the British East India Company wanted to make greater profit, they turned away from silver bullion and towards a rather criminal currency that was the drug opium
- The drug proved to be so addictive that it started at 4500 133 pound chests of import a year, but after only 30 or so years, that increased almost x10 to 40000 chests annually to satisfy the addicts
- It took until the late 1830’s before the government attempted to halt the trade of opium and caused british merchants to finally lose money in the business
- In 1839 the Chinese government charged Lin Zexu with eliminating the opium trade and he delivered by destroying approximately 20000 chests of opium almost immediately which ignited a conflict now known as The Opium War
- After being galvanized into action by Zexu’s display of disregard for British power, the European power unleashed their military prowess upon China, taking control of the seas and sweeping the port cities with superior weapons
- Despite these powerful advances by the British, the Chinese were not swayed towards peace and only continued their campaign to end the opium trade which prompted the British to further action
- The British used steam powered gunboats to sail up and down the Grand Canal, which linked the Yangzi and Yellow Rivers, and terrorized the coastal cities until in 1842 a British armada of 70 ships sailed up the Yangzi River
- By the time the armada reached the intersection with the Grand canal, the Chinese were pursuing peace negotiations
- Upon the conclusion of the Opium War in the Brit’s favor, the British imposed several damaging treaties upon China including the Treaty of Nanjing which freed Korea, Vietnam, and what is now Myanmar from Chinese rule and dismantled the Chinese tributary states system.
- The other treaties included placed Hong Kong under British control, opened Chinese ports to free trade, completely legalized opium trade, allowed christian missions throughout China, and essentially forced the Qing dynasty to establish Britain as their favorite nation
- To prevent interruption of trade, the treaties also denied the Chinese their ability to levy tariffs on imports.
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