Opium War I (jan 1, 1839 – jan 1, 1842)

Description:

The Opium Wars arose from China’s attempts to suppress the opium trade. Foreign traders had been trade with india and china illegally and people start to get addicted to it. This caused serious social and economic disruption there. Hostilities broke out later that year when British warships destroyed a Chinese blockade of the Pearl River. A war broke out after, and then the British occupied the city of Hong Kong. The British held against that offensive, however, and captured Nanjing (Nanking) in late August, which put an end to the fighting.