1839–1842 and 1856–1860 CE · two imperial wars · Asia · Trade
Britain fought Qing China in 1839–1842; Britain and France fought the second war in 1856–1860. Opium commerce, diplomatic conflict and military coercion produced unequal treaties and expanded treaty-port access.
Atlas dossier · Industrial & Imperial AgeFree device narration · synchronized English captions · transcript available
Why it matters
The First Opium War ran from 1839 to 1842 between Britain and Qing China. The second conflict, conventionally dated 1856–1860, included France as Britain’s ally. Combining them in one dossier should not erase the interval, changing pretexts or distinct treaty settlements.
UK National Archives: Opium Wars research shelf ↗Opium commerce and Qing enforcement were central to the first conflict, but the wars also concerned diplomatic relations, jurisdiction and sovereignty. Treaty ports and extraterritorial privileges were imposed under military pressure. British archival records require comparison with Chinese evidence rather than standing as a neutral account.
Academic research on the Opium Wars ↗Silent pan-and-zoom motion derivative of the Opium Wars reconstruction; not archival footage.
Enlarge and examine the picturePrimary Atlas editorial reconstruction for Opium Wars.
World History in Pictures · Public site artwork. This record does not grant third-party republication rights.
How Atlas classifies this artwork →
Enlarge and examine the pictureDetail crop from the same Opium Wars reconstruction; not an independent historical record.
World History in Pictures · Same editorial artwork package
How Atlas classifies this artwork →
Enlarge and examine the pictureContext crop from the same Opium Wars reconstruction; not an independent historical record.
World History in Pictures · Same editorial artwork package
How Atlas classifies this artwork →Supplemental archival visual
Opium War, 1840 is presented as a period visual interpretation or documentary record. It does not independently establish the dossier’s chronology; use the linked item page and source trail for its provenance and reuse terms.
Open the item page and rights record ↗Opium War, 1840 — Jean Ignace Isidore Gérard Grandville; Public Domain; via Wikimedia Commons
Enlarge and examine the pictureInterpretation note
This dossier distinguishes the event’s basic chronology from later arguments about meaning, responsibility and legacy. When comparing religious, national, Indigenous or scholarly interpretations, consult the primary and institutional sources above alongside peer-reviewed historical work.
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