The trading situation between Great Britain and China in the early part of the 18th century continued to expand, yet the British were not satisfied and wanted to possess the ability to trade at any Chinese port and with any entity it wished. In 1793, the first formal diplomatic mission arrived in China under the leadership of Lord Macartney, a man often described as having a powerful influence on trade in India and with a vast knowledge of Eastern sensibilities. Macartney's main objective was to devise a treaty for a fair exchange of diplomatic representatives and the opening of all Chinese ports to British shipping while creating a set of tariff duties which were to be vigorously enforced in every Chinese port.
Unfortunately, Macartney's mission to China did not turn out as he had expected, for he was rebuffed by the emperor. In 1816, another attempt to establish formal trading relations with China was made by Lord Amherst, and like its predesessor, it too failed miserably. This, in effect, officially ended all British governmental efforts to create trade relations with China, but this did not deter other individuals, despite the fact that the Chinese government had humiliated Britain's trading ambassadors and kept to its unrelenting refusal to bow down to British imperialism.
From the British standpoint, something had to be done to alter this situation. After all, "Did China possess the right to shut itself off from the world and was its riches exclusively owned and controlled by the Chinese or were they placed on earth to be shared by all who were willing to pay for obtaining them?" (Mungello, 290). This question inexorably leads to what became one of the most foul and dishonest practices ever conceived in the mind of the West, namely, the trade in opium. To begin with, in the late 18th century, the Chinese viewed...
Of course, opium had been a part of Chinese culture for hundreds of years and had mostly been used for medicinal purposes. But the English quickly formulated a devious plan -- to introduce opium into China in order to literally create a nation of dope fiends.
In 1729, an imperial edict was issued by the Chinese government which contained severe penalties for selling opium; by 1800, "the English had managed to ship some 20,000 pounds of opium into China" (Gregory, 283). Thus, as the supply increased, so did the opium habit within China. Not surprisingly, the English pulled in huge profits from the illicit sale of opium in China which soon became a monopoly, based under the East India Company. By 1830, the opium trade had grown into nothing short of a smuggling operation despite another imperial edict banning the importation and cultivation of opium in China. In essence, this situation slowly moved toward confrontation, and the Chinese monarchy realized the potential threats linked to open war with Britain. By the late 1830's, this confrontation came about in the form of the Opium Wars, "a war of convention with the winner receiving the bulk of the profits" (Mungello, 301).
In conclusion, the influence of Westerners in China is a tale filled with adventure, promise and greed and truly symbolizes how foreign intrusion into the affairs of a sovereign nation such as China can lead to either prosperity or devastation.
Bibliography
Gregory, J.S. The West and China Since 1500. New York: Macmillan, 1999.
Mungello, David E. The Great Encounter of China and the West, 1500 to 1800. New York: Rowman…
