Opium, Modern China & The Long Memory Of War With Britain

In this session, Professor Anne Gerritsen from the History Department at Warwick, will begin with the Opium War (1839-1842), and give an insight into why these two great empires (the British and the Qing) clashed so violently in the first half of the nineteenth century.

The session will then focus on the Treaty of Nanking, signed in 1842, and ask why this came known as the first of the so-called Unequal Treaties. The second half of the talk will focus on how the Opium War, and especially the Unequal Treaties, have shaped China in the twentieth century. Here, we will discuss why the Opium Wars and the ‘century of humiliation’ have had such lasting impact on China’s perception of itself as a modern nation.

Our events are designed so that a group of students can take part from a classroom or students and teachers can take part as individuals, either from school or from home.

Suitable for: Year 12 and 13 students (and equivalent) studying, or with a possible interest in studying, History, and Humanities more generally. Please feel free to make it a class event.

Preparation/Pre-Reading: No pre-reading is required although students may choose to discuss some of the key issues, as they see them, and consider questions they might like to ask.