Henry Pottinger and the End of the Opium War
Channel: The Chinese Revolution
Date: 2024-01-12

Henry Pottinger takes over as British Superintendent of Trade from Charles Elliott.

The British take Xiamen and then Zhoushan Island again.  The Union Jack flew over Ningbo and the British fleet was sailing for Nanjing, up the Yangzi from Shanghai.

Efforts by the Qing officials to battle the British with cannons, fire rafts and tiger headed Sichuanese fighters all failed.  The Daoguang Emperor finally agreed to negotiate.

The first Opium War ended with the Treaty of Nanjing. 

It is now remembered as the first unequal treaty and the beginning of a century of humiliations for China.

This is episode 8 of the Chinese Revolution series.