Silver Helped Start a War in the Qing Dynasty
Channel: The Chinese Revolution
Date: 2024-02-20

The Qing Dynasty, like the Ming Dynasty, demanded taxes in silver, but didn't mine or mint silver for coins.  China depended on silver coins from the Spanish Americas.  

When Spanish colonies gained independence following Napoleon Bonaparte's invasion of Spain, supplies of silver coins and the Chinese economy were disrupted. 

Inflation and trade disruptions helped fuel the Opium War and the Taiping Rebellion.  Silver played its important part in starting China's decline.

This is a short excerpt from Episode 3 of the Chinese Revolution series.