What led to the Second Opium War? Why wasn’t China colonised by Europeans? When did China start referring to this period as the “century of humiliation” and how did this narrative shape nationalism in the 20th century?

Anita and William are joined by Stephen R. Platt, author of Imperial Twilight, for the final instalment of this series in which they discuss the Second Opium War and how its legacy continues to shape geopolitics today.

Love History? Get our exclusive History Today deal! You can get started with a 3-month trial for only £5 at https://historytoday.com/empire 

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Email: [email protected]

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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Who won the First Opium War? Why did British troops feel guilty about their role? What treaty led to Britain taking control of Hong Kong?

Anita and William discuss the tragic imbalance of The First Opium War, and the traumatic ways in which Chinese citizens responded to the humiliation it entailed…

Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

You can get started with a 3-month trial for only £5 at https://historytoday.com/empire

For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com. 

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @empirepoduk 

Blue Sky: @empirepoduk 

X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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How did opium traders convince the British Cabinet to wage war on China? Who was Lord Palmerston? Why was China, one of the biggest empires in the world, so ill-prepared for war at sea?

William and Anita discuss how James Matheson launched a propaganda campaign in the British press which led to warships being sent to China, on the way to start The First Opium War…

Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @empirepoduk 

Blue Sky: @empirepoduk 

X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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Who was Commissioner Lin and how did he crack down on foreign opium in China? Why was Charles Elliot so hopeless that he landed Queen Victoria with a bill owing millions to drug dealers? What was the Canton factory system and what was it like to live there? 

Anita and William meander through the at-times shocking story of how Victorian drug dealers willingly handed over millions of pounds worth of their product to Commissioner Lin, the emperor’s right-hand man.

Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com. 

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @empirepoduk 

Blue Sky: @empirepoduk 

X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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Who were Jardine and Matheson? What was life like for workers growing opium in India? How does George Orwell relate to the East India Company opium trade? 

William and Anita explore how William Jardine and James Matheson accumulated immense power and wealth by becoming international drug dealers in the 1830s…

Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Email: [email protected]

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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How did the Macartney Mission fail so spectacularly? Where does the word ‘kowtow’ come from? Why were the diplomats banished from the Forbidden City?

Listen as William and Anita continue the story of how the Macartney expedition completely failed to develop diplomatic relations with imperial China in 1793.

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Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Email: [email protected]

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Blue Sky: @empirepoduk 

X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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Who led the first British envoy to China? What did Europeans think of China in the 1700s? Why did the diplomats bring a huge planetarium as a gift for the Chinese emperor? 

William and Anita continue the story of the build up to the Opium Wars with the story of the doomed British envoy to China. 

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Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Email: [email protected]

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X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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How did Britain create a violent monopoly on opium production in India in the 1700s? What was the Opium Agency? Why did Chinese elites use opium during sex? 

Anita and William discuss how the East India Company competed with other traders to sell Indian opium to China despite it being outlawed…

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Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Email: [email protected]

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X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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How did the British taste for tea start a war over the right to sell drugs to China? When did tea become fashionable in Britain? How did the Dutch bring tea to India? 

William and Anita explore how the nation’s love of tea created a domino effect that led to the East India Company running a more prolific international drug cartel than Pablo Escobar…

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Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, our exclusive newsletter, and access to our members’ chatroom on Discord! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @empirepoduk 

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X: @empirepoduk

Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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How did Ireland go from a farming economy to the home of Big Tech and Big Pharma in Europe in a few decades? Why were women imprisoned in “Magdalene Laundries” in Ireland until 1996? How did Irish society grapple with abuse within the Catholic Church?

To conclude our series on Ireland & Empire, Anita and William are joined by the brilliant Fintan O’Toole, author of We Don’t Know Ourselves, to reflect on how Irish society has transformed since the 1950s, and how the country’s colonial past informs its future.

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Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to live show tickets, bonus episodes, book discounts, and a weekly newsletter! Head to empirepoduk.com to sign up.

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Assistant Producer: Becki Hills

Producer: Anouska Lewis

Senior Producer: Callum Hill

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