Overview

A fascinating look at the other side of the Opium Wars In this tragic and powerful story, the two Opium Wars of 1839-1842 and 1856-1860 between Britain and China are recounted for the first time through the eyes of the Chinese as well as the Imperial West. Opium entered China during the Middle Ages when Arab traders brought it into China for medicinal purposes. As it took hold as a recreational drug, opium wrought havoc on Chinese society. By the early nineteenth century, 90 percent of the Emperor's court and the majority of the army were opium addicts. Britain was also a nation addicted-to tea, grown in China, and paid for with profits made from the opium trade. When China tried to ban the use of the drug and bar its Western smugglers from it gates, England decided to fight to keep open China's ports for its importation. England, the superpower of its time, managed to do so in two wars, resulting in a drug-induced devastation of the Chinese people that would last 150 years. In this page-turning, dramatic and colorful history, The Opium Wars responds to past, biased Western accounts by representing the neglected Chinese version of the story and showing how the wars stand as one of the monumental clashes between the cultures of East and West.

Full Product Details

Author:   W Travis Hanes, Ph.D. ,  Frank Sanello ,  William Travis Hanes ,  W Hanes III, PH.D.
Publisher:   Sourcebooks, Inc
Imprint:   Sourcebooks, Inc
Edition:   Reprint
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 6.10cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.454kg
ISBN:  

9781402201493

ISBN 10:   1402201494
Pages:   352
Publication Date:   01 February 2004
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

"Introduction: Chemical Warfare Methods and Measures Chapter -1.Lord Elgin's Revenge Chapter -2.Disastrous Etiquette Chapter -3.Zero Intolerance Chapter -4.Canton Besieged Chapter -5.The Black Hole of Canton Chapter -6.The Battle in Britain Chapter -7. Drugs and Guns Chapter -8.Diplomacy by Gunboat Chapter -9.The Economics of Addiction Chapter -10.Crucifixion and Cages Chapter -11.Steamed Victory Chapter -12.A Price on His Head Chapter -13.The Sacking of Amoy, Ningbo, and Charles Elliot Chapter -14.Chinese Masada - Chapter -15.""Early Victorian Vikings"" Chapter -16.The Trade in Poison and Pigs Chapter -17.Strange Interlude Chapter -18.Outrageous Slings and the Arrow's Misfortune Chapter -19.Peer Pressure Chapter -20.Scottish Conquistador Chapter -21.Hostilities Renewed Chapter -22.Lord Elgin's Return Chapter -23.To the Gates of Peking Chapter -24.A Hostage Crisis Chapter -25.""I Am Not a Thief"" Chapter -26.Rescue and Retaliation Chapter -27.The Diktat of Peking Epilogue - Illustrations and Maps Notes Short Bibliography About the Authors Index"

Reviews

Author Information

Historian and educator W. Travis Hanes III, Ph.D., is an expert on nineteenth-century Britain and holds a doctorate in British Imperial History from the University of Texas at Austin. He has written two books on the twilight of the British Empire in Africa, Imperial Diplomacy in the Era of Decolonization and the upcoming Imperialism or Expatriate Nationalism? Frank Sanello is the author of 15 books on films and history. He was the film critic for the Los Angeles Daily News, and his articles have been syndicated worldwide. Both authors live in Los Angeles, California.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions