Question: British Hong Kong was under British Crown rule from 1841-1997. From 1856-1860 the British Empire was against the Qing Dynasty of China with what other Empire?

Context paragraphs:
Qing dynasty in Inner Asia: The Qing dynasty in Inner Asia was the expansion of the Qing dynasty's realm in Inner Asia in the 17th and the 18th century AD, including both Inner and Outer Mongolia, Manchuria, Tibet, Qinghai and Xinjiang.  Wars were fought primarily against the Northern Yuan dynasty (before 1636) and the Dzungar Khanate (1687–1758).  Even before the conquest of China proper (see Qing conquest of the Ming), the Manchus had controlled Manchuria (modern Northeast China as well as Outer Manchuria) and Inner Mongolia, with the latter being previously controlled by the Mongols under Ligdan Khan.  After suppressing the Revolt of the Three Feudatories and the conquest of Taiwan as well as ending the Sino-Russian border conflicts in the 1680s, the Dzungar–Qing War broken out.  This eventually led to Qing conquests of Outer Mongolia, Tibet, Qinghai and Xinjiang.  All of them became part of the Qing Empire and were garrisoned by Qing forces, but they were governed through several different types of administrative structure and also retained many of their existing institutions.  Furthermore, they were not governed as regular provinces (until Xinjiang and Manchuria were turned into provinces in late Qing), but instead were supervised by the Lifan Yuan, a Qing government agency that oversaw the empire's frontier regions.

Yeung Ku-wan: Yeung Ku-wan (19 December 1861 – 11 January 1901) was a Chinese revolutionary of the late Qing dynasty.  In 1890, Yeung started the Furen Literary Society (輔仁文社) in British colonial Hong Kong to spread ideas of revolution against the Qing Dynasty and to establish a republic in China.  He became the first President of the Hong Kong Chapter of the Revive China Society in 1894 and was, with Sun Yat-sen, in charge of planning an uprising in Canton (now Guangzhou) in 1895 and in Huizhou in 1900.  Yeung was assassinated in 1901 in Hong Kong by an agent sent by the Qing government.

Second Opium War: The Second Opium War, the Second Anglo-Chinese War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a war pitting the British Empire and the French Empire against the Qing dynasty of China, lasting from 1856 to 1860.

Battle of Hong Kong: The Battle of Hong Kong (8–25 December 1941), also known as the Defence of Hong Kong and the Fall of Hong Kong, was one of the first battles of the Pacific War in World War II.  On the same morning as the attack on Pearl Harbor, forces of the Empire of Japan attacked the British Crown colony of Hong Kong.  The attack was in violation of international law as Japan had not declared war against the British Empire.  The Japanese attack was met with stiff resistance from the Hong Kong garrison, composed of local troops as well as British, Canadian and Indian units.  Within a week the defenders abandoned the mainland and less than two weeks later, with their position on the island untenable, the colony surrendered.

Hong Chengchou: Hong Chengchou (1593–1665), courtesy name Yanyan and art name Hengjiu, was a Chinese official who served under the Ming and Qing dynasties.  He was born in present-day Liangshan Village, Yingdu Town, Nan'an County, Quanzhou, Fujian Province, China.  After obtaining the position of a "jinshi" (進士; successful candidate) in the imperial examination in 1616 during the reign of the Wanli Emperor, he joined the civil service of the Ming Empire and served as an official in Shaanxi.  During the reign of the Chongzhen Emperor (r. 1627–1644), he was promoted to Minister of War and Viceroy of Suliao (薊遼; an area which included parts of present-day Shandong, Hebei and Tianjin).  In 1642, he surrendered and defected to the Manchu-led Qing Empire after his defeat at the Battle of Songjin.  He became one of the Qing Empire's leading Han Chinese scholar-politicians.  While he was in office, he encouraged the Manchu rulers to adopt Han Chinese culture and provided advice to the Qing government on how to consolidate its control over the former territories of the fallen Ming Empire.  Apart from Dorgon and Fan Wencheng (范文程), Hong Chengchou was regarded as one of the most influential politicians in the early Qing dynasty.  However, he was also villainised by the Han Chinese for his defection to the Qing Empire and for his suppression of the Southern Ming dynasty (a short-lived state formed by remnants of the fallen Ming Empire).

British Hong Kong: British Hong Kong () was the period during which Hong Kong was under British Crown rule from 1841 to 1997 (excluding the Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945).  It was established as a Crown colony and later designated a British Dependent Territory in 1981.  Hong Kong Island was ceded to Great Britain by the Qing dynasty of China after the First Opium War (1839–42).  The Kowloon Peninsula was added to the colony after the Second Opium War (1856–60).  Finally, in 1898, the New Territories were added under a 99-year lease.  Although Hong Kong Island and Kowloon were ceded to Britain in perpetuity, the New Territories – which comprised over 90 per cent of Hong Kong's land – had such a vital role in the economy that the British government agreed to transfer sovereignty of the entirety of Hong Kong to China upon the expiration of the lease in 1997.  The transfer has been credited by some as marking the end of the British Empire.

Manchuria under Qing rule: Manchuria under Qing rule was the rule of the Qing dynasty over Manchuria, including today's Northeast China and Outer Manchuria.  The Qing dynasty itself was established by the Manchus, a Tungusic people coming from Manchuria, who later conquered the Ming dynasty and became the ruler of China.  Thus, Manchuria enjoyed a somewhat special status during the Qing and was not governed as regular provinces until the late Qing dynasty.

Governor of Hong Kong: The Governor of Hong Kong was the representative in Hong Kong of the British Crown from 1843 to 1997.  In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong.  The governor's roles were defined in the Hong Kong Letters Patent and Royal Instructions.  Upon the end of British rule and the transfer of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China in 1997, most of the civil functions of this office went to the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, and military functions went to the Commander of the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison.

Tibet under Qing rule: Tibet under Qing rule refers to the Qing dynasty's rule over Tibet from 1720 to 1912.  During the Qing rule of Tibet, the region was structurally, militarily and administratively controlled by the Qing dynasty established by the Manchus in China.  In the history of Tibet, Qing administrative rule was established after a Qing army defeated the Dzungars who occupied Tibet in 1720, and lasted until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912, although the region retained a degree of political autonomy under the Dalai Lamas.  The Qing emperors appointed imperial residents known as the Ambans to Tibet, who commanded over 2,000 troops stationed in Lhasa and reported to the Lifan Yuan, a Qing government agency that oversaw the empire's frontier regions.  The protectorate that China had established over Tibet in the 18th century remained into the 20th century, but by the late 19th century Chinese hegemony over Tibet remained in theory but in actuality was a dead letter given the weight of China's domestic and foreign-relations burdens.  However, the Chinese began to take steps to reassert their authority shortly after the British expedition to Tibet.

Xinjiang under Qing rule: Xinjiang under Qing rule refers to the Qing dynasty's rule over Xinjiang from the late 1750s to 1912.  In the history of Xinjiang, the Qing rule was established in the final phase of the Dzungar–Qing War when the Dzungar Khanate was conquered by the Qing dynasty established by the Manchus in China, and lasted until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912.  The post of General of Ili was established to govern the whole of Xinjiang and reported to the Lifan Yuan, a Qing government agency that oversaw the empire's frontier regions.  Xinjiang was turned into a province in 1884.

Supporting paragraphs: British Hong Kong Second Opium War
Answer: French