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Opium Wars 1839-42 and 1856-60, two wars between China and Western countries... The first was between... British merchants began smuggling opium into China in order to balance their purchases of tea for export to Britain… In 1839, China enforced its prohibitions on the importation of opium... Great Britain, which had been looking to end China's restrictions on foreign trade, responded by sending gunboats to attack several Chinese coastal cities... In 1856 a second war broke out following an allegedly illegal Chinese search of a British-registered ship... China agreed to open 11 more ports, permit foreign legations in Beijing, sanction Christian missionary activity, and legalize the import of opium. China's subsequent attempt to block the entry of diplomats into Beijing as well as Britain's determination to enforce the new treaty terms led to a renewal of the war in 1859.
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