trade bases

• Importance of Singapore- The EIC sought expansions on traded with China but the conditions set out by China weren't ideal. Foreign trade was heavily regulated and Europeans couldn't leave the base at Canton. They were only allowed to trade with Hongs and were taxed greatly by the governor. The way to reach Canton was difficult too as ships had to pass through the Straits of Malacca which was controlled by the Dutch. The Dutch often refused British entry or charged high tariffs alongside piracy. The traded route from China to India was long, expensive and dangerous.
• Securing Singapore (1819)- Sir Stamford Raffles was a colonial administrator who aided Britain in the Napoleonic Wars. He wanted to undermine the Dutch in Malaysia through opening up trade with China. He located Singapore and created a treaty with leaders to establish a trading post. The British were unaware of this and the Dutch were mad. The Dutch called for them to withdraw but the port's rapid growth meant they wouldn't leave. In the first year, 400000 Spanish dollars passed through the port. Britain instead offered Bencoolen and Sumatra to the Dutch to keep Singapore.
• The growth of Singapore- As an entrepot, Singapore allowed ships of all nationalities to dock without taxes. This meant merchants were drawn in to trade there, along with goods from all over South-East Asia. Ships also could offload in the port and transfer them to other ships, so they didn't have to make the whole journey. Merchant houses were then built with 20 made by 1846. This demonstrated the possibilites stemming from free trade and a new era for trade with nations across the world.
• Problems with Chinese trade- Britain had been restricted to Canton and couldn't travel up the river network to negotiate directly with producers of goods. Ambassadors had failed to negotiate changes and pirates remained in the seas between Canton and Singapore. The EIC had began to improve its opium supplies in India through trading at the source. This was smuggled into China with 75 tons imported in 1800. In 1833, 2500 tons of opium had been imported and 4-12 million men and women were regular users. The balance of trade was reversed and silver bullion flowed out of China.
• The Chinese blockade (1839)- China blockaded the settlement in Canton, demanding the surrender of goods. In response to the opium addiction, they seized over 1000 tons and burned it. Lord Palmerston wanted to defend the opium traders so sent the Royal Navy, beginning the use of Gunboat diplomacy. The steam-powered British ships defeated the Chinese boats, seizing Canton and dictating the new terms of the base. They seized the island of Hong Kong that had one of the best deep-water harbours in the world.
• Aquisition of Hong Kong- At first, the island was a staging post for the Navy but later became an entrepot. The opening of the port coincided with China being forced to open up ports to foreign trade in addition to Canton. It was an ideal and secure location for ocean-going vessels to offload cargo without paying tariffs. The goods could then be transferred to coastal and river traders with the population of the city growing to 300000 in 1900.
• The aftermath of Hong Kong- The Treaty of Nanking was signed in 1842 with the Chinese due to Britain's naval defeat of China and their seizure of Hong Kong. The Chinese signed stating they would pay 6 million dollars to pay for the burned opium, 3 million in debt to merchants in Canton and 12 million in reparations for the war. They had to allow Britain to take over Hong Kong and opened ports like Foochow and Ningpo to traders. They also had to removed the tariffs at Canton and grant British citizens legal protection in China.
• Shanghai's importance- The city was at the mouth of the Yangtze river which opened up water of around 1000 miles to inland China. Shanghai was already a principle Chinese trading port and the EIC had labelled it as promising in 1832 but hadn't been authorised by China. Under the Treaty of Nanking, they had access to the port and the land the Yangtze river opened up to them.
• Self-government in Shanghai- Although it was still technically still Chinese territory, the settlement there was basically self-governing. The Americans and French joined settlements there too and in 1854, businessmen formed the Shanghai Muncipal Council. This council co-ordinated services like road maintenance and waste disposal, effectively beginning to govern the city. This was a new development in the Empire as they weren't answerable to the country the land belonged too or the imperial powe. It became an internantional city, governed by businessmen focused on trade.
• Shanghai's success- The opium trade boomed and imports grew to 6500 tons in 1880. British merchants sold the opium to Chinese middlemen in Shanghai due to the Taiping Rebellion that occured when the Chinese emperor was undermined. The Rebellion caused a civil war where 20-30 million died. The international community weren't threatened by the warfare due to British gunboats and weapons. Businessmen in Shanghai also supplied arms to the emperor and took control of collecting Chinese tariffs to create profit. It provided jobs for 3000 people and was a profitable British enterprise.
• Construction of the Suez Canal- Construction was overseen by French diplomat, de Lesseps. It cost 200 million francs and took 10 years. It was finished in 1869 with 1-3 thousand deaths of workers. 55% of shares in the Canal were French and 42% were Egyptian. Initially, there was little interest from other European powers.
• British acquisition of the Canal- Khedive Ismail was indebted to foreign lenders due to his extravagant lifestyle. He had £97 million in debt and had to sell his Canal shares to make up for his losses. Britain needed to protect its route to India and in 1875, Disraeli borrowed £4 million from the Rothschilds to buy the 42% of Egyptian shares.
• Importance of the Suez Canal- Using the Canal shortered journey times to Asia by 5 weeks. Only steamships could enter the Canal which benefitted the Navy as all of their ships were steampower by 1871. By 1870, 290000 tons of British goods passed through the Canal alongside 75% of ships through the Canal being British. They saw the Suez Canal as key to their imperial aspirations and securing posts and colonies in the Far East and India.
• Disraeli's aims for the Canal- He wanted it to 'secure a highway to our Indian Empire' and expand the imperial control in Asia.
• Zanzibar's importance- Before British involvement, Zanzibar had become an entrepot where goods were bought from coastal traders and shipped to the Middle East and India. Trade relied on slaves and ivory and had deep influence into Eastern Africa. It also was key in suppressing the slave trade and safeguarding a route to India.
• Britain in Zanzibar- Britain gained Zanzibar through diplomatic efforts of officers, backed up by the Royal Navy. The intimidation by the Navy allowed them to influence Zanzibar's rulers. When attempting to abolish the slave trade, the British were drawn into their domestic policies and increased its status as an entrepot between India and Europe. Merchants could aquire ivory and rubber and the number of ships increased from 65 to 96 from 1859-79.
• Gaining Zanzibar- Germany expanded into East Africa with Karl Peters in 1884. This made the British try to gain Zanzibar. In a 1890 treaty, the Germans gave up Zanzibar for a small island in the North Sea and a protectorate was established in the area. Salisbury thought that the protectorate status was more acceptable for non-white colonies rather than a complete colonial status.
• Importance of Weihaiwei- It allowed the British Empire to spy and watch the development of the Russian Port Arthur. If they needed to, they could block off the Russian trade route. They pressured the Chinese government into leasing Britain Weihaiwei after Japan had abandoned it in 1898.
• The significance of Weihaiwei- It showed how the economic expansion of the Empire was no longer the sole reason for taking new colonies. The port had no commercial value and Hong Kong was a much better source of money and trade. The intervention showed the political motives of the British in their attempt to continue surveillance on Russia.