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Was colonized by Spain

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Was colonized by Spain

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Was colonized by Spain

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Was colonized by Spain

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Was colonized by Britain

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Was colonized by Spain

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Was colonized by Britain

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Was colonized by Britain

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Was colonized by the United States

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Was colonized by France

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Was colonized by France

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Was colonized by Britain

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Was colonized by Belgium

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Was colonized by Britain

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Was colonized by France

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Were colonizers

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Were colonizers

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Were colonizers

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Were colonizers

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Were colonizers

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Were colonizers

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Were colonizers

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The South African/Boer War was a war by the British to unite the South African territories.

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A man made waterway dividing Africa and Asia that is vital to shipping between Europe and Asia.

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The Italian invasion of Ethiopia was an invasion under Benito Mussolini where atrocities like poison gas and concentration camps were used.

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The British Raj or Crown rule was the period between 1858 and 1947 where Britain directly ruled over India.

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The Opium Wars were two wars waged against China by Britain and later France due to China's banning of Opium.

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In the First Opium War, throughout the 1700s, Britain had been illegally importing opium from India to China. While opium was used as medicine throughout China, it became a problem in 1820 when large amounts of imported opium caused people to get addicted to the drug itself. This widespread addiction tanked the economy and caused major disruptions. As a result, in 1839, China destroyed and banned opium throughout China. This, along with conflict between the British and Chinese governments, resulted in Britain attacking a Chinese blockade in Hong Kong in 1840. In 1841, the city of Canton and others were attacked as a result. With the British having a superior force, and the capturing of Nanjing in 1842, China surrendered, with the Treaty of Nanjing being signed. The big things the British gained were Hong Kong and more legal trade ports. In the Second Opium War, the British decided to extend their trading rights in China. In 1856, using the excuse of traders being arrested in China, they bombarded Canton with skirmishes ensuing. Later that year, China burned down foreign factories stationed in Canton, worsening the tensions between the two countries. France soon joined, as they used the murder of a French missionary to participate. Throughout 1857 and 1858, military campaigns were run throughout China by Britain and France. After capturing Tianjin, China was forced to negotiate, resulting in the treaties of Tianjin being signed. The terms include residence for foreign envoys, opened ports for western trade, right of foreign travel, and legalization of opium.

For Britain, the banning of opium was only one reason to start the First Opium War. In July of 1839, two British sailors murdered a Chinese Villager. While China wanted to try the men, Britain didn’t want British citizens to be tried by a foreign legal system. As such, Britain refused to hand them over, increasing tensions between the two powers. Before the Second Opium War, a British ship was boarded with their occupants being arrested, and the British flag being lowered. As for the French, a missionary was murdered within the borders of China. These two countries teamed up and started the Second Opium War.

I believe China was in the right for banning opium and fighting back. This is due to the fact that opium was causing disruptions, and with foreign powers looking to expand their influence. Before the occurrence of the First Opium War, Britain was illegally importing opium to China, which caused the disruption of the economy and social order. As such, China did nothing wrong when it decided to ban opium. The murder of the Chinese citizen was also in China’s right to try them, since the murder occurred within China. Before the Second Opium War, when it came to the arrests on the British ship, the occupants were actually Chinese and were later released with no repercussions. The French seem to be justified, but they didn’t act until the British did. Therefore, China was in the right when it came to the First and Second Opium Wars.