#322 - Opium War 7: The Throat of the Empire

The History of China

Chris Stewart

History

4.6 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 19 March 2026

⏱️ 47 minutes

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Summary

The new envoy from London arrives at Qing's doorstep in August 1842 with a simple mandate: stop allowing Britain to be "humbugged" & finish the war Elliot started. What follows is the British Empire at its most efficient & brutal... and a treaty that, somehow, doesn't mention opium once...Time Period Covered:Aug. 1841–Aug. 1842 Major Historical Figures:The Qing Empire:The Daoguang Emperor (Aisin-Gioro Minning) [r. 1820–1850]Yijing, Imperial Commander [1793–1853]Qiying, Imperial Commissioner [1787–1858]Yilibu, Imperial Commissioner [1772–1843]Niu Jian, Governor-General of Liangjiang [1785–1858]Zhang Xi, intermediary [1840s]Yuqian, Zhejiang Imperial Commissioner [1841] The British Empire:Queen Victoria [r. 1837–1901]Sir Henry Pottinger, Plenipotentiary to China [1789–1856]Sir Hugh Gough, Commander of British Land Forces [1779–1869]Admiral Sir William Parker, Commander-in-Chief, East India Station [1781–1866]Captain William Hutcheon "Nemesis" Hall, HMS Nemesis [c. 1797–1878]Captain Henry Keppel, HMS Dido [1809–1904]Karl Friedrich August Gützlaff, Prussian missionary & Civil Magistrate of Ningbo [1803–1851] Colonel George Mountain [1789–1863]Harry Smith Parkes, attaché to Pottinger's staff [1828–1885] Major Sources Cited:Fay, Peter Ward. The Opium War, 1840–1842. Wakeman, Frederic Jr. "The Canton Trade and the Opium War" in The Cambridge History of China, Vol. 10.Lovell, Julia. The Opium War: Drugs, Dreams and the Making of China. Platt, Stephen R. Autumn in the Heavenly Kingdom. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.
0:04.6	Now, are all the traitors present?
0:07.0	Let's get started, shall we?
0:09.1	From rags to riches.
0:10.4	I'm so sick of this.
0:11.6	Working like a dog and being treated worse.
0:13.7	Yorkshire to New York.
0:15.3	Poor climbers, you and me.
0:17.0	A life dedicated to revenge.
0:18.7	Let's make this an occasion to remember.
0:21.5	A woman of substance on Channel 4, stream now.
0:30.2	Hello and welcome to the history of China.
0:37.2	Episode 32, The Throat of the Empire.
0:42.6	The most disadvantageous peace is better than the most just war.
0:49.2	Erasmus, 1500.
0:52.1	The situation now is like riding a tiger. It is difficult to dismount.
0:59.3	Former Imperial Commissioner Lin Zha Shu, quoting an old Chinese proverb from exile in Ili,
1:04.8	1842.
1:07.5	How could matters have come to this?
1:13.2	The Daugong Emperor, 1842.
1:20.0	Last time, we left Charles Elliott, where many a disgraced man has ultimately found himself,
1:22.0	waiting for the mail to arrive.
	...

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