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Why did Hong Kong become a hub of opium smuggling before the First Opium War? |
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See answer below. |
William Jardine actively lobbied the British Parliament to declare war on China. He even proposed occupying an island or a port near Guangzhou. For him, Hong Kong was the ideal place. After Hong Kong was established as a free port, Jardine Matheson & Co. and the Jardine family thus developed great influence within the territory. One can tell from place names such as Jardine’s Lookout, Yee Wo Street (the namesake of Jardine Matheson & Co. in Chinese) and Jardine’s Crescent how significant both the company and family are in Hong Kong history.
According to the available statistics, it is estimated that Britain exported on an average 4,000 chests of opium every year from India to China during the first 20 years of the 19th century. The number surged in the 1830s and reached over 35,500 between 1838 and 1839. In 1820, opium took up 10 to 20 per cent of Britain’s export to China. Its proportion even exceeded 30 and 50 per cent in the mid-1820 and 1829 respectively.
Lintin Bay is situated along the route where ships sailed in and out of Guangzhou. It is connected to the Pearl River Estuary, Macao, and Hong Kong. Opium ships from India mostly sailed through the waters of Lintin Bay. This sea and its neighbouring islands, Hong Kong, and Macao thus became black spots for opium smuggling.
Opium smuggling was rampant nationwide, especially in Guangdong (廣東). Opium dens proliferated and many brothels served customers with opium. Addicts risked robbing or stealing just to buy opium. Apart from damaging people’s health and national finances, opium also exacerbated the crime rate and damaged social morality, harming Chinese society in innumerable ways.
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Why did Hong Kong become a hub of opium smuggling before the First Opium War? |
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These are the major reasons: 1. Hong Kong is close to Lintin Bay, which is situated along the route where ships sailed in and out of Guangzhou. It thus became a convenient anchorage for opium merchant ships before they sailed into Guangzhou. 2. The annual typhoon season of Guangdong’s coastal region was between May and October. The natural harbour of Hong Kong provided shelter for the opium merchant ships when necessary. 3. Docking the merchant ships in Hong Kong allowed foreign merchants to replenish supplies. On 4 September 1839, the Battle of Kowloon broke out between China and Britain after the Qing battleships stopped the British forceful acquirement of food supplies at Kowloon Mountain. |
