Second Anglo-Chinese War

The Second Anglo-Chinese War (第二次中英戰爭) also known as the Arrow War is a war between Qing China and United Kingdoms. It lasted from 1856 to 1858 resulting in a French and British victory with the signing of the Treaty of Tientsin.

Taiping Rebellion
Following the First Anglo-Chinese War, many chinese were upset about the Qing government and many uprisings followed. One of the largest was the Taiping Rebellion. Led by Hong Xiuquan, he established a christian cult with himself as the leader and controlled much of the Yangtze River Delta. The rebellion started in 1850 up to 1864 after the war was over. The rebellion serverly weakened the Qing Dynasty.

Auguste Chapdelaine
In 1856, French missionary Father Auguste Chapdelaine was arrested in Guangxi Province for illegal preaching in the province. He refused to pay the fine and was beaten to death by the local authorities. This sparked tensions between the French and the Chinese and outraged the French government. This was the main reason of the French intervention in the war.

The Arrow
The Arrow is a British vessel but was known to conduct piracy in the region. In 1856, the Canton authority boarded the ship while it was docked there and arrested the crew. The British sent diplomats to deal with the Situation, speaking with Viceroy of the Liangguang Ye Mingchen, who agreed to release captured sailors, but not all of the crew. Refusing further British Demands, negotiations ended. Using this as a cause, Britain was furious and fustrated and finally started the war in October that year.

The War
The British sailed up the Pearl River, shelling and taking over Canton, with the Americans taking over the house of Viceroy Ye Mingchen, with Ye himself being taken by the British, and sent to Bengal. The US declared Neutrality after taking his house though, and soon the lone Anglo-French froces sailed up to Tientsin, capturing the Tagu forts. The Court pressured the Emperor to settle the issue with diplomacy, and the Yifeng Emperor agreed, sending men to handle peace talks.

Treaty of Tientsin
Keying, who had handled peace talks after the first Anglo-Chinese war, would once again lead negotiations on behalf of the Emperor, and would negotiate the treaty of Tientsin in 1858 with the French, British, and Americans. The treaty opened further ports for trading, Legalized Christianity, and Establish Legations in Peking. Emperor Yifeng was upset with the terms, however with the Internal issues plaguing the country, and the Russians attempting to push their own treaty, he accepted the treaty.

Treaty of Aigun
Later the Russians, who also jumped on the chance to expand her borders, singed the treaty of Aigun with China. Russia had hoped to get the Northern part of Manchuria, however China, now at peace with the west, forced a more fair treaty, ceding some western lands and officially establishing the borders.

Yifeng Reforms
With the humiliating defeat to the British, French and the Russians, Yifeng had decided to start a massive reform within the country to modernise the military and economy known as the Yifeng Reforms.