What was the underlying cause of the trade conflict known as the Opium War? 🔊
The underlying cause of the trade conflict known as the Opium War (1839-1842) was the British trade of opium in China. The British East India Company was exporting opium from India to China, creating widespread addiction and social issues. To combat the opium crisis, the Chinese government, led by Commissioner Lin Zexu, took measures to suppress the opium trade, which included destroying opium stocks. The British, seeing their lucrative trade threatened, responded with military force, leading to a conflict that subsequently revealed the weakness of the Qing Dynasty and resulted in the Treaty of Nanking, which imposed unequal terms on China.
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