The Opium Wars

The British had traded with India. But with India it was more like the British had a lot of control.On the other hand, the way the British traded with China was more like the Chinese was making a lot of money off of the British. The British were tired of this so instead of just buying a lot of materials from the Chinese they decided to buy but also SELL.

This isn't a horrible idea. However, the British decided to sell drugs instead of good materials that the Chinese would've wanted. This drug was opium. Plus this also started because of the modernization that was occurring the East. China was a nation that wanted to be kept alone and isolated. But because of the new technology China had to open up to new ideas. Or be left behind.

It was called the opium war because that was the drug being sold to the Chinese. This drug was probably the first drug to be so addicting. And so destructing.

China was completely changed due to the drugs. Things changed a lot for the way China was run economically, relationships between people, and the government. This had to be stopped so a war started.

Britain won. During the war, Britain used gun powder and things like canons. They obviously beat the Chinese since they were advanced. Due to so many years of isolation, China lost a harsh defeat. While the British had ships doubled the size of the Chinese, their ships were also much stronger and not made of wood.