He wrote a famous letter to Queen Victoria appealing to her morality (which she likely never saw) [4, 5]. He blockaded foreign merchants in Canton [1, 3].

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Britain had an insatiable demand for Chinese goods, particularly , silk , and porcelain [1, 4]. However, China operated under the "Canton System," which restricted trade to a single port and required payment in silver [3, 4]. This created a massive trade deficit for Britain, draining its silver reserves [1, 6]. The Solution: Opium

Britain, viewing the destruction of the opium as an attack on private property and free trade, dispatched a naval task force to China in 1840 [1, 2]. The British Royal Navy, equipped with advanced steamships and superior artillery, easily overwhelmed the outdated Chinese coastal defenses [3, 6]. The Treaty of Nanking

China was forced to pay 21 million silver dollars for the destroyed opium and war costs [1, 5].

The island was ceded to Britain "in perpetuity" [1, 2].