Nurhachi becomes the leader of the Manchus and initiates an invasion of China, gaining control over northeastern China by 1621. Li Tzu-ch'eng, a domestic rebel, captures the capital. The Chinese emperor commits suicide. The Manchu forces help Ming forces to remove Li Tzu-ch'eng, but take the throne for themselves. He seizes and destroys 20,000 chests of smuggled British opium in Canton.
Fighting breaks out between China and Britain.
No agreement is reached. Henry Pottinger, Elliot's successor, takes Nanking and forces the Treaty of Nanking, with China giving up concession after concession to British trade. Antiforeign sentiment grows. Hung Hsiu-ch'uan fails his civil service examination, goes into a trance and discovers that he is the Son of God. A British-registered ship, the Arrow, is seized and its Chinese crew charged with smuggling.