A Brief Introduction to the Second Opium War

The Second Opium War was1June 856 to1June 860. Britain and France jointly launched a war of aggression against China with the support of the United States and Russia. Its purpose is to further open the China market and expand its aggressive interests in China. Because Britain and France launched wars under the pretext of Arrow incident and Father Ma incident respectively, they were called "Arrow War" by the British. Also known as "British and French Expedition to China" or "Second Sino-British War". At the same time, because this war can be regarded as the continuation and expansion of the first opium war (the two wars have the same essential purpose), it is also called the "second opium war".

1860, British and French troops invaded Beijing, and the Qing emperor fled to Chengde. British and French troops invaded Yuanmingyuan, plundered jewels and burned them. After Russia sent troops to participate in the war, it claimed that "mediation was successful" and coerced the Qing government to cede more than 6.5438+0.5 million square kilometers of territory, becoming the biggest winner. The war ended with the Qing government being forced to sign the Beijing Treaty.

The Second Opium War forced the Qing government to sign the Sino-Russian peace treaties, such as the Love Faint Treaty, the Tianjin Treaty and the Beijing Treaty, and the invasion of foreign powers deepened. As a result, China lost more than 6.5438+0.5 million square kilometers of territory in the northeast and northwest. After the war, the Qing government was able to concentrate on suppressing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and maintaining its rule. Foreign aggression extended to coastal provinces and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

After the war:

Battle of Guangzhou City:

The course of the Second Opium War can be divided into "the first battle of the Anglo-French allied forces" and "the second battle of the Anglo-French allied forces". The first battle between the British and French allied forces was from the outbreak of the war in 1856 to the arrival of the allied forces in the waters near Tianjin in 1858 to sign the Tianjin Treaty. The second battle of the Anglo-French Allied Forces was from the outbreak of the first Dagukou Battle in 1858 to the signing of the Beijing Treaty in 1860.

1856, Britain captured the pirates aboard the China Arrow in Huangpu, Guangzhou, and sent troops to attack Guangzhou. France invaded China on the pretext that French Catholic priest Marais was killed in Xilin, Guangxi.

1857 65438+In February, more than 5,600 British and French invaders (including French troops 1000) gathered at the mouth of the Pearl River to prepare for a massive attack. William Levin, the American envoy, and Puyatine, the Russian envoy, also arrived in Hongkong, conspiring with Britain and France to invade China. On 12 12, Elgin and Gro issued an ultimatum to Ye within the limit of 10 respectively. At this time, the Qing government was trying its best to suppress the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Nian Army Uprising. In addition, it is "difficult to pay the army" and adopts the policy of "giving priority to foreign invaders". Ye faithfully carried out the policies of the Qing government and did not fight for them. 12 On February 28th, the British and French allied forces shelled Guangzhou and landed to attack the city. Du Tonglai Village, Qian Zong Deng Anbang and others led the troops to resist tenaciously and fell the next day. Bai Gui, the governor of Guangdong Province, and General Guangzhou surrendered in Fengtian. Driven by the enemy, they continued to hold their original posts under the supervision of the "Coalition Committee" headed by Parkes. Ye Chenming was captured and later deported to Calcutta? . During the occupation of Guangzhou by the invading army, the local people waged an indomitable struggle against aggression. Yimin near Guangzhou set up Yingyong Bureau in Foshan Town, gathering tens of thousands of people to resist and destroy the enemy. Patriots in Hong Kong and Macao also went on strike in protest.

1in March, 858, the envoys of the four countries went to Shanghai together. He Guiqing, Governor of Liangjiang, asked them to return to Guangdong. The envoys of the four countries decided to assemble warships and go north to Tianjin. Arrive at Baihekou in mid-April.

The First Battle of Dagukou

1in April, 858, the envoys of Britain, France, Russia and the United States arrived at Dagukou one after another, demanding that the Qing government appoint plenipotentiaries to negotiate within six days. Russia and the United States also expressed their willingness to act as mediators. While ordering the Qing army to fortify Tianjin and Dagu Lake, Emperor Xianfeng sent Tan Tingxiang, the governor of Zhili, as an imperial envoy to Dagu Lake for negotiations, and pinned his hopes on the so-called "mediation" of Russian and American envoys. The British and French aggressors did not have the sincerity to negotiate, but only used it to delay and intensify military preparations. 1On May 20th, 858, the British and French allied forces shelled Dagu Fort, and the Qing troops stationed in each fort fought back and fought fiercely with the enemy. However, Tan Ting and others had no fighting spirit, abandoned and fled, the fort facilities were dilapidated and isolated, and Otani fell. On the 26th, British and French allied forces went up the White River and invaded the suburbs of Tianjin, threatening to attack Beijing. 13 In June, the Qing government hurriedly sent Gui Liang, a university student, and Hua Shana, a senior official of the official department, as imperial envoys to Tianjin for peace talks. Gui Liang and others signed the Tianjin Treaty with Russia, Britain, France and the United States under the threat of the British and French aggressors.

The Sino-British Tianjin Treaty includes 56 clauses and an annex. The Sino-French Tianjin Treaty consists of 42 articles, with about 6 articles attached. The main contents are:

(1) the minister of Beijing;

Niuzhuang (later renamed Yingkou), Dengzhou (later renamed Yantai), Taiwan Province Province (later renamed Tainan), Danshui, Chaozhou (later renamed Shantou), Qiongzhou, Hankou, Jiujiang, Nanjing and Zhenjiang were turned into trading ports;

(3) Foreign missionaries can enter the mainland to preach freely;

(4) Foreigners can travel and trade in the Mainland;

⑤ Foreign merchant ships can sail in the Yangtze River port;

⑥ Revise the tariff and reduce the tonnage tax of merchant ships;

All landowners to Britain four million and two thousand silver, two million and two thousand silver to France.

In addition, Russian and American envoys used the status of "mediators" to sign 12 Sino-Russian Tianjin Treaties and 30 Sino-American Tianjin Treaties with the Qing government in 13 and 18 respectively, and seized almost the same aggression privileges as those obtained by Britain and France except compensation. Paragraph 9 of the Sino-Russian Tianjin Treaty also specifically stipulates that the two countries will send personnel to explore the "previously undefined border" and "make sure to bring the border clearing into this peace treaty" so as to solve it in the future, thus laying the groundwork for China to be further plundered by Russia. In the same year, Russia forced Yishan, the general of Heilongjiang Province, to sign the Love-Hate Treaty by force.

After the Tianjin Treaty was signed, the British and French allied forces withdrew from Tianjin, and the coastal areas went south one after another. Emperor Xianfeng was worried about the content of the Treaty, which led Gui Liang and others to negotiate with the representatives of Britain and France to amend the Tianjin Treaty, cancel the terms of envoys' stay in Beijing, inland travel and Neijiang trade, and tried to prevent Britain and France from changing the Treaty in Beijing. 165438+ 10, Gui Liang and other representatives of Britain, France and the United States signed the Treaty on the Restoration of Trade Regulations, stipulating that the opium trade should be legalized; Customs levies taxes on import and export goods at 100% and 5% of the current price; Foreign goods are transported and sold in the mainland, only paying 2.5% sub-tax, and all domestic taxes are exempted; Hire an Englishman to help with customs and taxes. However, Britain and France are not allowed to amend the terms of the Tianjin Treaty, and insist on amending the Treaty in Beijing. ?

The Second Battle of Dagukou:

The British and French governments were far from satisfied with the privileges seized from the Tianjin Treaty, and deliberately used the opportunity of exchanging contracts to provoke war again. 1In June, 859, British Minister Proust, French Minister Brun and American Minister John Eliott Ward, after rejecting Gui Liang's proposal to exchange contracts in Shanghai, respectively led their fleets to Dagukou in an attempt to deter the Qing government from exchanging the ratification documents of the Tianjin Treaty by force. The Qing government fortified Dagu and ordered Hengfu, the governor of Zhili, to send a note to the British and French envoys, specifying to land in Beitang and go to Beijing to change the contract via Tianjin. Their entourage shall not exceed 20 people and shall not carry weapons. The British and French envoys flatly rejected the arrangement of the Qing government and insisted on returning to Beijing by the fleet through Dagukou. Since the British and French fleets retreated in 1858, the Qing government put Prince Horqin in charge of the defense of Dagu area. On June 25th, British Navy Commander Herb led 12 warship from Lanjiangsha to Haikou. At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, Herb ordered the British and French allied forces to attack Dagu Fort. Under the command of Senggelinqin, the Qing army bravely resisted and fought back, and the fighting was extremely fierce. Shi Rongchun, the magistrate of Zhili, and Ruyuan, the deputy commander of the Drum Club, took the lead and were killed successively. Due to the sufficient firepower and proper tactics of the Qing army, 10 enemy ship was sunk and wounded, nearly 500 enemy soldiers were killed, and Herb, commander of the British fleet, was seriously injured. The British and French Coalition forces suffered a fiasco, which was the only victory of the Qing army since the Opium War.

In August of the same year, American special envoy John Eliott Ward went to Beijing in disguise from Beitang. After returning to Beitang, he exchanged the ratification of Tianjin Treaty with Hengfu, governor of Zhili. Prior to this, the Russian representative had changed the contract in Beijing.

Britain and France invaded the capital;

News of the disastrous attack on Dagu by the British and French allied forces spread to Europe, and the ruling class in Britain and France set off an uproar of war, clamoring for "massive revenge" and "occupation of the capital" against China. 1February 860, the British and French imperialist authorities re-appointed Erkin and Gro as plenipotentiaries respectively, leading15,000 British troops and 7,000 French troops to expand the war of aggression against China. In April, the British and French allied forces occupied Zhoushan. In May and June, the British invaders occupied Dalian Bay, while the French invaders occupied Yantai and blocked the Bohai Bay as a forward base for attacking Dagukou. Russian special envoy ignatieff and American special envoy John Eliott Ward also arrived in Bohai Bay in July, and once again cooperated with Britain and France in the war of aggression against China in the name of "mediators". After the victory of Dagu Campaign, the Qing government dreamed of making peace with British and French imperialism. When the British and French warships approached Dagu Haikou, Emperor Xianfeng also instructed Sengqin and Hengfu not to "make peace after the war first" in order to avoid "the war will last until the end" and "the care bureau is always important", and sent Hengfu to negotiate with the British and French envoys. Former enemy commander-in-chief monk Lin Qinqin thought that the enemy was not good at land warfare, so he devoted himself to Dagu and gave up Beitang defense, giving the enemy an opportunity. Ignatieff provided Britain and France with unsuspecting information about Beitang.

Burning Yuanmingyuan:

August 1860, 1, 18000 British and French troops landed from Beitang and occupied Tianjin. British and French troops landed in Beitang without any resistance. 14, conquer Tanggu, and attack Dagu North Shore by land and water. Under the command of Le Shan, the governor of Zhili, the Qing army guarding Taiwan fought bravely. However, the Qing government did not have the determination to resist Japan, and Emperor Xianfeng ordered Sengqin to leave the camp and retreat. The Qing army fled Dagu and retreated to Tongzhou (now Tongzhou District, Beijing) via Tianjin. 1860 August 2 1, Dagu fell. The invading army entered and occupied Tianjin on the 24th. The Qing government urgently sent Gui Liang to Tianjin to make peace. Britain and France proposed that in addition to fully accepting the Tianjin Treaty, Tianjin should be opened as a trading port, compensation should be increased, and thousands of troops from various countries should be sent to Beijing to exchange contracts. The Qing government refused and the negotiations broke down. The invading army invaded Beijing from Tianjin. ?

The Qing government sent Zai Yuan, Prince of Yong, and Yin Mu, Minister of War, instead of Gui Liang, to make peace in South Zhangjiawan, Tongzhou. Due to the dispute between the two sides, the talks broke down again, and 39 people, including Parkes and soldiers sent by Britain to negotiate a ceasefire, were captured.

On September 1860, 18, the British and French invaders captured Tongzhou. 2 1 day, the Qing army and the British and French allied forces launched a fierce battle at Baliqiao, and the commander-in-chief monk Qin and others took the lead in fleeing, and the Qing army was wiped out. On September 22nd, Emperor Xianfeng and others left Beijing and fled to Jehol Summer Resort with the Queen and Yi Guifei in the name of Beishou. 65438+1October 13 Allied forces invaded Beijing from Andingmen. The Allies found that the Qing army abused many British and French diplomatic missions and killed them, so they decided to retaliate against China's barbaric behavior and teach the Qing royal family not to despise Britain and France in the future. 10 year 10 month 18 day, British and French troops occupied Beijing, looted and burned Yuanmingyuan. The British and French allied forces burned and looted the suburbs of Beijing for nearly 50 days, and the royal gardens in the suburbs of Beijing, such as Yuanmingyuan, Qingyi Garden, Jingming Garden (Yuquan Mountain), Jingyi Garden (Xiangshan) and Changchun Garden, were all set on fire. The Qing court appointed Yi Xin as the plenipotentiary, responsible for the Sino-British and Sino-French peace negotiations and the signing of the Beijing Treaty. Allied forces looted and burned Yuanmingyuan and Jingyi Garden. The Yuanmingyuan fire lasted for three days and nights, and more than 300 eunuchs and maids were buried in the fire. French writer victor hugo once strongly condemned this, calling it "the victory of two robbers".

101On October 24th and 25th, the British and French allied forces threatened to burn down the Forbidden City, forcing Prince Gong Yixin to exchange the ratification documents of the Tianjin Treaty with Er Jin and Ge Luo respectively, and conclude the unequal Sino-British Beijing Treaty and the Sino-French Beijing Treaty as a supplement to the Tianjin Treaty.

Russian aggression:

After the Opium War, the Qing government was busy dealing with foreign colonists and suppressing the Taiping Revolution, resulting in the emptiness of the northern border defense. Russia has stepped up its occupation and illegal occupation of many strategic places in the Heilongjiang River basin and south of Lake Balkhash, and has been looking for opportunities to fix the occupied territory of China in the form of treaties. 1856, the British and French allied forces attacked Guangzhou, and appointed Putyatin as the minister to negotiate the border issue with the Qing government. 1858 in may, Siberian governor Muraviev was captured by British and French allied forces, and forced Heilongjiang general Yishan to sign the sino-Russian love-fainting treaty by force. According to this treaty, Russia occupied more than 600,000 square kilometers of land north of Heilongjiang and south of Xing 'an Mountains. At the same time, the territory of China, about 400,000 square kilometers east of Wusuli River, was divided into two countries.

Russian ambassador to China Ignachev used "successful mediation" as an excuse to put forward new territorial claims. On June 4, 65438, the Qing government signed the Beijing Treaty with Russia, ceding 400,000 square kilometers of land east of Wusuli River to Russia, opening Kashgar as a commercial port, and setting up consulates in Kashgar and Cullen. At the same time, Russia also imposed its proposed western border direction on China. 1864, Russia forced the Qing government to conclude the Northwest Border Reconnaissance Contract, which occupied 440,000 square kilometers of land east of Kashi Lake in Dzhambar, and became the biggest beneficiary during the Second Opium War.

Yuanmingyuan was burnt down by the British and French allied forces (1860 10)

Baidu Encyclopedia-The Second Opium War