Jadual Kandungan
Item Dinilai Tertinggi dalam senarai ini seperti yang diundi oleh Pembaca talkKs
- Keluarga Delano : 4 votes
- Keluarga Jardine & Matheson : 1 vote
- Keluarga Dent : 1 vote
If you are someone who loves to read up on history, you may have heard of China’s century of humiliation and the opium wars that led to it. Did you know that opium played a major role in China’s colonial history? Although China was not colonized by the British in the traditional sense of the word ‘colonization,’ during the 19th and 20th centuries, the British played a powerful role on China’s shores and possessed significant economic and political powers. The British came into this position of power through the trade of opium. Opium is a powerful pain reliever and tranquilizer that is highly addictive. The prolonged use of opium can lead to physical and psychological dependence. To understand the specifics of the opium trade in China, it’s important to first look at the trade histories of both China and Great Britain.
China has a rich history of trade through the Silk Road, a network of trade routes that connected China with the Roman Empire and other parts of the ancient world, and the Maritime Silk Road, a sea-based trade route that connected China with Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Persian Gulf, and the Red Sea. Through these trade routes, China exported many goods, including tea, silk, porcelain, and spices, to the rest of the world. Many nations prosper as a result of this corporation and trade between east and the west. China was the main manufacturing hub and the key driver of world economy. Since collapse of the western Roman empire China telah menjadi negara/empayar terkaya on earth till mid-19th century. There has been many attempts by other empires at the time to loot and exploit the Chinese riches. Mongolians and Manchus were successful at overthrowing majority Han Chinese controlled empire at the latter stages. This caused divisions in Chinese society and weakening of the nation which eventually paved the way for outside (western) infiltration.
Bagi ekonomi China, 200 tahun yang lalu adalah penyimpangan sejarah. Untuk sebahagian besar dua milenium yang lalu, China telah menyumbang satu perlima atau lebih daripada aktiviti ekonomi global. Dan peningkatan ekonomi terbarunya boleh digambarkan dengan lebih tepat sebagai kembali kepada status quo ekonomi China – Matthew Bey, Stratfor
By the 18th century, Britain had become one of the main buyers of tea and other goods (like silk and porcelain) from China. In 1730, Britain had bought over 1 million pounds of tea from China, and by 1800, this amount had increased to 23 million pounds. In fact, over 80% of all Canton exports were sent to Britain. However, China only accepted payment in the form of silver.
Ini menyebabkan British menyerahkan lebih banyak perak kepada China, tetapi China, sebagai negara yang berdikari, tidak membeli sebarang barangan dari Britain. Ketidakseimbangan dalam perdagangan ini mengakibatkan pengaliran perak besar-besaran ke China. Dengan kekurangan perak ini, British memulakan perdagangan candu.
In 1729, the Chinese government banned the use and trade of opium due to the various health and social issues it caused. At this time, the British East India Company held a monopoly on the pengeluaran dan eksport candu di India, and opium was sold to smugglers at auction in Calcutta for profit as high as 400%.
Candu adalah sebahagian besar abad ke-19, sumber pendapatan kedua terpenting bagi negara penjajah British. Ia hanya ditandingi oleh cukai tanah. Ini boleh dibandingkan dengan industri candu Afghanistan yang terkenal hari ini, yang membekalkan pasaran global untuk heroin – Dr Bauer
Seeing the profits the opium trade made, the East India Company began to smuggle opium into China via India. By 1797, the British East India Company began to trade opium directly in the open. Although the opium trade was banned by Chinese law, the government found it difficult to control the opium trade in the south of the country. Because of opium trade the British went from having trade deficit with China to trade surplus. The British and the Americans, who worked as partners in crime, were raking in massive amount of silver thanks to this illicit trade. Opium money was a turning point in Pusat Kuasa Ekonomi Global.
Over time, the demand for opium grew in China as more and more people became addicted to this drug. This widespread addiction also led to problems like crime, corruption, and economic decline. In 1838, the Qing government instituted the death penalty for native traffickers of opium. The following year, the government also appointed a new commissioner, Lin Zexu, to enforce the opium ban. Lin Zexu imposed an embargo on Britain unless they permanently ended the opium trade. Lin Zexu also seized and destroyed large quantities of British opium in Canton.
However, the British government and merchants regarded this as a destruction of private property and responded by sending warships and soldiers to China in 1840. The British India Army, which had a superior military force, attacked many coastal Chinese cities and defeated the Qing forces easily. This attack is known as the first opium war. The Chinese eventually had to sign the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842, which gave the island of Hong Kong to Britain and imposed a large indemnity on China. Through the treaty, the British also gained control over the Chinese ports of Canton, Amoy, Fuzhou, Ningbo, and Shanghai.
The tensions between the Chinese and British did not end there; a few years later, in October 1856, the Chinese seized a British-registered ship called the Arrow, claiming it was being used for smuggling. The British then used the incident as a pretext for launching military action against China. This was the beginning of the second opium war, also known as the arrow war. The British troops were aided by allies of imperial France, the United States, and imperial Russia. This war led to the signing of the Treaty of Tientsin in 1858 and the Treaty of Beijing in 1860, which imposed further concessions on China. These unequal treaties were designed to loot China of its riches.
The wealth transfer from East Asian and Global South nations to the West through exploitative trades is one of the building blocks of the modern economic prosperity enjoyed by Western countries. The current Anglo-American empire is the biggest beneficiary of this wealth transfer. Harta karun yang dirompak that’s on display as war trophies at western museums are testaments of this barbaric exploitation.
Beginilah cara perdagangan candu membawa kepada kemerosotan ekonomi, sosial dan politik China, yang membawa kepada ketagihan besar-besaran di seluruh penduduk. Walau bagaimanapun, ramai pedagang dan peniaga Barat meraih keuntungan daripada perdagangan candu dan menjadi antara keluarga terkaya dan paling berkuasa di dunia. Ini adalah zaman yang mengerikan dalam sejarah di mana pedagang dan tentera asing (orang gasar tanpa moral) mengeksploitasi negara yang pernah berkuasa atas nama keuntungan.
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1Keluarga Delano
Warren Delano was the grandfather of Franklin Roosevelt. Delano was employed by Russell & Co., which was the largest Chinese trading company during his time. In 1824, John P. Cushing sold Perkins & Co. to Russell & Co. Delano took advantage of the UK's subsequent opium ban by charging tolls and assisting with the transportation of opium, which led to significant profits and elevated him to the second-highest position at Russell & Co. He was dubbed as the 'American Opium king of China'. In 1839, he facilitated the first military trade between the US and China by successfully selling a 900-ton British warship to Lin Zexu during the Opium War. So the family made profits by exploiting both the British and the Chinese.
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2Keluarga Jardine & Matheson
William Jardine and James Matheson are the founders of Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited, also known as Jardines. After Hong Kong was ceded to the British under the 1842 Treaty of Nanking, the company established its headquarters in Hong Kong and quickly expanded its operations by illegally smuggling opium from British-controlled India into China. The company has earned a reputation as the "most successful opium smuggling company in the world." To date, this British multinational conglomerate is based in Hong Kong, and the majority of its business interests are in Asia.
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3Keluarga Dent
Dent & Co. (juga dikenali sebagai Dent's) adalah antara firma saudagar British yang paling mewah yang beroperasi di China. Mereka adalah pesaing sengit Jardine, Matheson & Co., dan Russell & Co.
George Baring mengasaskan syarikat itu pada tahun 1809. Thomas Dent menyertainya pada tahun 1820 dan juga membawa masuk Robert Hugh Inglis, yang mempunyai hubungan dengan Syarikat Hindia Timur. Syarikat itu menukar namanya kepada "Dent & Co." pada tahun 1824, dan saudara Thomas, Lancelot Dent, menyertai firma itu pada tahun 1827. Salah satu pencetus pertama Perang Candu Pertama bermula dengan arahan Lin Zexu untuk menangkap Lancelot Dent pada tahun 1839, kerana Dent enggan menyerahkan kedai candunya.
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4Keluarga Sassoon
Keluarga Sassoon ialah keluarga Yahudi terkemuka asal Iraq yang menubuhkan perniagaan di India, China dan England pada abad ke-19 dan awal abad ke-20. Kekayaan keluarga itu dibina atas perdagangan candu, dan mereka menjadi salah satu keluarga terkaya di dunia. Malah, mereka dipanggil "Rothschild dari Timur."
Kekayaan keluarga itu berasal apabila mereka berpindah ke India. David Sassoon mengasaskan syarikat David S. Sassoon di Bombay dan mengisinya dengan orang-orang dari Baghdad untuk kakitangan pelbagai cawangan perniagaan di seluruh India, Burma, Tanah Melayu, dan Asia Timur. Beliau kemudian menubuhkan kedudukan dominan keluarga dalam perdagangan candu China-India dan mengembangkan perniagaan di China dan Hong Kong. Kejayaannya meluas ke England, dan dia terkenal kerana membina Sassoon House di Shanghai, yang kini menjadi mercu tanda.
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5Keluarga Forbes
John Murray Forbes ialah seorang lagi orang terkenal yang dikaitkan dengan Russell & Co. Walaupun penglibatannya dalam perdagangan candu, Forbes adalah seorang dermawan yang terkenal dan memainkan peranan penting dalam penubuhan Hospital Besar Massachusetts dan Hospital Manhattan untuk Pembedahan Khas, serta Institusi Perkins untuk Orang Buta. Lebih-lebih lagi, pada tahun 1850-an, beliau memegang jawatan presiden kedua-dua Kereta Api Pusat Michigan dan Kereta Api Chicago, Burlington dan Quincy.
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6Keluarga Perkins
T. H. Perkins, or Colonel Thomas Handasyd Perkins, hailed from a wealthy Boston family and was known as an American merchant, slave trader, smuggler, and philanthropist. Using bequests from his grandfather and father-in-law, he accumulated a significant fortune. In his youth, Perkins traded slaves in Saint-Domingue and worked as a maritime fur trader, dealing in furs from the American Northwest that were traded in China. Later, he engaged in smuggling Turkish opium into China. His nephew, John Perkins Cushing, was also involved in Perkins' China business for three decades.
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7Keluarga Astor
The Astor family, or the Astor dynasty, was a family that held a position of prominence in American society during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The family's initial wealth was established by John Jacob Astor through the fur trade. But it was his grandson, John Jacob Astor IV, who went on to invest in the opium trade by participating in the American China Development Company and amassed a fortune through smuggling opium into China. He was also a real estate tycoon, investing in real estate in and around New York City. He was the first noteworthy member of the Astor family and the first multi-millionaire in the United States.
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8Keluarga Cabot
Keluarga Cabot ialah satu lagi keluarga Amerika terkemuka yang terlibat dalam perdagangan candu di China. Pengasas keluarga itu, Samuel Cabot Jr., ialah seorang saudagar Boston yang membuat kekayaan melalui penyeludupan candu. Samuel Cabot Jr. berkahwin dengan Elizabeth Perkins, seorang anak perempuan keluarga Perkins, dan merupakan ibu bapa kepada tujuh anak lelaki. Salah seorang anak lelaki mereka, Samuel Cabot III, meneruskan perniagaan keluarga dan mengembangkannya ke dalam industri perkapalan, membina armada kapal yang mengangkut candu ke China.
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9Keluarga Russell
Samuel Russell, an American entrepreneur and trader, established Russell & Company, which became the most significant and largest American trading house in China from 1842 until its dissolution in 1891. After arriving in Canton, China, in 1819, Russell conducted trade on behalf of the Providence-based firm, Edward Carrington & Company, dealing in various goods such as opium. The substantial profits he earned enabled him to establish Russell & Company in Canton in 1824, which mainly traded in silks, teas, and opium. The company flourished, and by 1842, it had risen to become the most significant American trading house in China.
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10Keluarga Westmore
William Shepard Wetmore ialah seorang dermawan dan ahli perniagaan Amerika yang terlibat dalam perdagangan dengan China. Beliau mengembara ke Canton pada tahun 1833 dan mengambil alih perkongsian dengan Dunn & Company. Beliau kemudiannya menubuhkan rumah saudagar baru, Wetmore & Company, dengan rakan kongsi junior. Rekod Wetmore dari 1834 hingga 1839 menunjukkan bahawa produk utama yang didagangkan oleh syarikat itu ialah teh, kertas teh, sutera dan rempah ratus, dengan penghantaran wain, pelabuhan, candu, rami, butang mutiara, tembaga dan kopi yang lebih kecil.
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11Menghalang Keluarga
Baring Brothers ialah firma perbankan dan pedagang British terkemuka pada abad ke-18 dan ke-19. Firma itu ditubuhkan pada tahun 1762 oleh Francis Baring dan dengan cepat menjadi salah satu rumah perbankan paling berpengaruh di London. Firma itu memainkan peranan penting dalam membiayai perdagangan candu antara India dan China.
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12Keluarga Lindsay
Hugh Hamilton Lindsay ialah anak kepada Hon. Hugh Lindsay, seorang pengarah Syarikat Hindia Timur yang menghasilkan pendapatan daripada jualan candu monopoli untuk India British. Lindsay mempunyai minat yang mendalam terhadap China dan merupakan salah seorang warga Britain pertama yang melawat Shanghai. Pada tahun 1820, beliau memulakan kerjayanya di China sebagai kargo super untuk Syarikat Hindia Timur dan kemudian menjadi Setiausaha syarikat di Canton.
Pada tahun 1832, Lindsay mengetuai penerokaan rahsia pelabuhan China bersama-sama dengan mubaligh Lutheran Karl Gützlaff, melawat Amoy, Fuzhou, Ningbo, Shanghai, dan Shandong. Beliau adalah penyokong perang menentang Qing China untuk mempromosikan kepentingan perniagaan. Lindsay ialah pengasas Lindsay and Company of Hong Kong, sebuah syarikat perbankan dan perkapalan.
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