Opium Wars Opium Wars The Opium Wars were two wars in the mid-19th century involving China and the British Empire over the British trade of opium and China's sovereignty. The clashes included the First Opium War (1839–1842) and the Second Opium War (1856–1860). The wars and events between them weakened the Qing dynasty and forced China to trade with the other parts of the world. In 1820, China's economy was the largest in the world, according to British economist Angus Maddison. Within a decade after the end of the Second Opium War, China's share of global GDP had fallen by half. In
Anarchism in Singapore much of which came to Singapore due to political or economic reasons – such as migrants leaving southern China to escape economic hardships, and refugees from the First Opium War (1839–1842) and Second Opium War (1856–1860) – has historically been a driving force behind radical political ideologies in the country. During the anti-Manchu upheavals of the late 19th and early 20th century in China, Chinese anarchists played an influential part opposing and eventually overthrowing the Qing Dynasty. Singapore played an important role in this process, serving as a center for Chinese revolutionary activity. In 1906 it became the headquarters of