Could the first opium war been averted if queen victoria. Source for information on a letter to queen victoria. Opium was banned in china by emperor yongzheng back in. Apparently commissioner lin sent a letter to the young queen victoria exhorting her to acknowledge the laws of china that prohibited the importation and sale of opium, and warning that chinese officials would order the seizure and immolation of any ships found engaged in the trade. Excerpts from lin zexus letter to queen victoria, 1839 lin zexu 17851850 was the chinese commissioner in guangzhou canton, charged by the emperor with eliminating opium. However, this statement and belief is not influential towards his point of view. Lin zexu s letter of advice to queen victoria was written before the outbreak of the opium wars. Lin zexu 17851850, appointed to be the customs inspector at canton shortly before the outbreak of the opium war, addressed this letter to queen victoria as. The opium trade, the opium war, and the treaty of nanjing osu. What is lin zexus goal in writing the letter to britains queen victoria 2 see answers answer expert verified. Lin zexu lintsehsu writing to britains queen victoria. Lin zixu lin tsehs 1839 ce letter of advice to queen victoria from ssuyu teng and john fairbank, chinas response to the west, cambridge ma. The attempt failedmost likely, lins letter never reached the queenand lins other efforts to stop the traffic led to the opium war 18391842.
While lin zexus points make perfect sense from the point of view of china, they dont make convincing arguments to the british. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Lins forceful opposition to the opium trade was a primary catalyst. This letter was written by lin zexu, an important official in the qing dynasty, to queen. The letter is filled with confucian concepts of morality and spirituality. Lin zexu calls for an end to the opium trade 1839 in 1893 lin zexu, a scholar and qing mandarin, wrote an open letter to queen victoria of britain, calling on her to suspend the opium trade in china.
For example, he wrote an open letter to queen victoria questioning britains political support for the trade and the morality of pushing drugs. In 1839, lin also wrote an extraordinary memorial to queen victoria in the form of an open letter published in canton, urging her to end the opium trade. After a iona period of commercial intercourse, there appear among the crowd of barbarians both good persons and bad. Letter by lin zexu to queen victoria of the united kingdom. Points of view an analysis of the initiation of the. Led by lin zexu, a very capable and ambitious chinese government official.
Both her father and grandfather died in 1820, the year her uncle succeeded as king george iv. Commissioner lins letter lin zexu 17851850, appointed to be the customs inspector at canton shortly before the outbreak of the opium war, addressed this letter to queen victoria as part of his campaign to eradicate opium from chinese society. It was a remarkably frank document, especially given the usual highly stylized language of chinese diplomacy. He stated that opium was poisoning chinese society, leaving them without soldiers or farmers to work, and rapidly destructing the chinese economy. Lin ordered a large amount of opium seized and publicly destroyed and sent a letter to queen v ictoria about the problems caused by opium. He ended the letter by kindly expressing the emperors intention to solve the opium problem diplomatically. Could the first opium war been averted if queen victoria had. Commissioner lins letter a letter written to queen victoria by chinese customs inspector lin zexu urging the queen to end the opium trade.
Lin ordered a large amount of opium seized and publicly destroyed and sent a letter to queen victoria about the problems caused by opium. Lin zexu was a chinese scholarofficial of the cinv dynastv. The translation of international law in 19thcentury china and the. He wrote the letter to queen victoria of great britain. Excerpts from lin zexus letter to queen victoria, 1839 lin zexu 17851850 was the chinese commissioner.
C h a p t e r from letter to queen v ictoria 2 8 by lin zexu. Although the opium poppy was grown in china and opium derivatives had been used by the chinese in medicine for centuries, smoking opium as a narcotic dates from the seventeenth century, shortly after tobacco smoking was introduced by spaniards and portuguese. Letter to queen victoria from lin zexu about answers. In 1839, he wrote this open letter to queen victoria, urging her to end the opium trade. But after a long period of commercial intercourse trade, there appear among the crowd of barbarians both good persons and bad. In his letter to queen victoria, lin zexu openly admits to his respect and admiration of british rulers, generally speaking, the succeeding rulers of your honorable country have been respectful and obedient. I am told that in your own country opium smoking is forbidden.
A letter to queen victoriaintroduction lin zexus letter was an attempt to persuade queen victoria to ban the export of opium to china. There remains some question whether queen victoria ever read the letter. Lin zexu letter to queen victoria analysis milestone. Treaty of peace, friendship, commerce, indemnity, etc. Lin zexu lintsehsu writing to britains queen victoria to. Lin zexus letter was his best attempt to gain aid from the queen to enforce the laws of china. The empress dowager a brief biography of the empress dowager. Lin zexu 30 august 1785 22 november 1850, courtesy name yuanfu, was a chinese head of states viceroy, governor general, scholarofficial under emperor of the qing dynasty best known for his role in the first opium war of 183942. Letter to queen victoria, 1839 lin zexu his majesty the emperor comforts and cherishes foreigners as well as chinese. In march 1839, the daoguang emperor sent lin zexu 17851850, a widely respected official with a reputation for courage and honesty, to canton as an imperial commissioner, charged with the task of cutting off the opium tradea trade which had proved extremely lucrative to british traders in the region. He wrote in response to the growing opium trade in. This selection is from wallbank, et al, civilizations past and present, 1992. A letter written to queen victoria by chinese customs inspector lin zexu urging the queen to end the opium trade. Most scholars do not believe that the letter ever reached the queen.
About the document by the early 1800s, the opium trade dominated by british merchants produced millions of chinese addicts. Source from letter to queen victoria by lin zexu in 1839 the qing emperor instructed lin zexu, an important chinese official, to end the opium trade with britain. We have heard that in your own country opium is prohibited with the utmost strictness and severitythis is strong proof that you know full well how hurtful it is. Commissioner lin s letter lin zexu 17851850, appointed to be the customs inspector at canton shortly before the outbreak of the opium war, addressed this letter to queen victoria as part of his campaign to eradicate opium from chinese society. Furthermore lin reiterated the consequences that would be bestowed on any countrymen that condones in the selling and smoking of opium. In 1839, lin zexu, the commissioner in canton, wrote an official letter to. One of the first things lin did following his appointment was to write a letter to queen victoria in an attempt to appeal to her moral responsibility in controlling her subjects activities. His goal was to appeal to queen victoria in order to slow down ideally to cease the opium trade in china and to unyoke themselves from great britain in that economic regard. Moral advice to queen victoria featuring document text, summary, and expert commentary. Excerpts from lin zexu s letter to queen victoria, 1839 lin zexu 17851850 was the chinese commissioner in guangzhou canton, charged by the emperor with eliminating opium. Britain wanted it but they had nothing to offer to china, but opium. Introduction lin zexus letter was an attempt to persuade queen victoria to ban the export of opium to china. Lin zexu lin tsehsu 1839 ce letter of advice to queen victoria use your browsers back button to return from ssuyu teng and john fairbank, chinas. Letter to queen victoria 1839 works by this author published before january 1, 1925 are in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
Chapter12 primary source from letter to queen victoria by lin zexu in 1839 the qing emperor instructed lin zexu, an important chinese official, to end the opium trade with britain. Overheads in teacher materials for mcdougal littell text see citation above. Nov 10, 2015 while lin zexu s points make perfect sense from the point of view of china, they dont make convincing arguments to the british. The letter was lin zexu basically asking the queen to halt the british trade of opium into china. Lin zexu 30 august 1785 22 november 1850, courtesy name yuanfu, was a chinese head. Lin zexus letter to queen victoria of great britain oxford. The selfstrengthening movement in china, 1898 a memorial written to the emperor advocating change and reform in the wake of numerous military defeats abroad and societal uprisings at home. Boek maken downloaden als pdf printvriendelijke versie. For his actions, he was both lauded initially and scolded after the fact by the emperor, whose own power was limited in dealing with the issue at hand. Lin wrote a memorial to queen victoria in the form of an open letter published in canton, urging her to. He fails to understand the british position and doesnt give an reason for the british to change their behavior oth. The opium war and foreign encroachment asia for educators. Lin zexus letter to queen victoria of great britain. This paper describes a brief study of lin zexus translation activities from the.
Copy of letter to queen victoria from lin zexu by dana. Nov 11, 2010 copy of letter to queen victoria from lin zexu published on nov 11, 2010 lin tse. Tegenstanders, waaronder lin zexu, wilde het verbod op opiumgebruik, dat al door keizer jiaqing was. Lin confiscated vast opium stocks, ordered them burned, and made merchants sign an. Fairbank, chinas response to the west, cambridge ma. Lin zexu lin tsehsu, letter of advice to queen victoria 1839 refer to the letter that commissioner lin zexu wrote to queen victoria in 1839. In 1839 the qing emperor instructed lin zexu, an important chinese of ficial, to end the opium trade with britain. Copy of letter to queen victoria from lin zexu published on nov 11, 2010 lin tse. Lins opiumbanning notice, opium turnover notice, and his letter to the queen of england. Discuss the four questions found at the end of the essay. Translations or editions published later may be ed. Although the opium poppy was grown in china and opium derivatives had been used by the chinese in medicine for centuries, smoking opium as a narcotic dates from the seventeenth century, shortly after tobacco smoking was. Letter to queen victoria, 1839 page 1 of 5 main other chinese web sites chinese cultural studies.
912 1268 749 835 326 166 1628 36 327 1286 1101 1246 911 629 272 427 1192 208 403 1615 1230 807 1226 12 668 834 1599 766 185 750 1115 1006 1380 684 844 1360 446 699 718 551 1377 104 790 187 7