Opium War
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The opium wars were two or three battles that took place in the middle of the 1800s. The battle was between Britain and China, while in the second war France joined Britain in the fray. The Chinese Emperor (Dao Guang) had banned opium in China because it was harming many Chinese citizens. Meanwhile, the British Empire saw opium as a profitable good in China. The Chinese lost the Opium Wars and were forced to sign unequal treaties. Many countries followed Britain and forced more treaties on China.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who grew up in an extremely wealthy family, had a maternal grandfather (Warren Delano, Jr.) who made a fortune from selling opium to China.[1]
References
- ↑ Patrick D. Reagan, Designing a New America: The Origins of New Deal Planning, 1890-1943, p. 29 (2000)