China was soundly defeated. Among other outcomes, it ceded the vast port city of Hong Kong to Britain at the end of the First Opium War. Hong Kong returned to China's dominion in 1997.

beginning with the First Opium War of 1839-42. In the first half of the 19th century, the British government faced an economic problem. Imports of tea, porcelain and silk from China had created a ...

The First Opium War began when China blocked British opium trade, leading to military action. Similarly, British trade restrictions on American ships contributed to the War of 1812.