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British Opium Department

British Opium Department. Rob Hanson. Foreword.

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British Opium Department

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  1. British Opium Department Rob Hanson

  2. Foreword • “George Orwell was born Eric Arthur Blair on June 25, 1903, in Motihari, a small town in Bengal near the Nepalese border, and in the middle of a highly productive opium district. His father was there working as an agent for the British Opium Department, not arresting growers, but supervising the quality control of the product, in which Britain had long enjoyed a monopoly.”

  3. Papaver Somniferum-Opium • Requires approximately a 120 day growing period • Thrives in rich soil, but will grow in sandy and clay-filled soil • Best conditions are low humidity, warm and not much rain for early growth

  4. Making Opium • Not all pods mature at the same time, making more work for the farmhands • Timing is key • Tapping: After seed pod is mature and full, a sharp knife is used to make a slash on the side

  5. Making Opium cont. • Tapping process is repeated up to six times • Sap is collected and dried in the sun • The raw opium is cooked, boiled and pressed • Opium shipped in chests of forty, six inch diameter balls

  6. East India Trading Company • Formed in 1600 by British traders who made a business of importing spices from Southern Asia • Established trade routes from Asia and the Middle East to Western Europe • Out of business in 1873

  7. Export to China • British India first started exporting opium to China in 1780 • Within a few years, China was hooked on Opium • By 1800, anywhere from four million to twelve million Chinese were addicted

  8. Warren Hastings • The first governor of British India • “Opium is not a necessity of life, but a pernicious article of luxury which ought not be permitted, except for purposes of foreign commerce only, and which the wisdom of government should carefully restrain from internal consumption.”

  9. British Ignorance • Britain ignored Chinese trade laws forbidding Opium • Black market for Opium in China was very large

  10. First Opium War • March 1839: China captured British ships and merchants, collecting taking the opium and burning it • Over 20,000 crates stolen and burned • Britain fights back

  11. Treaty of Nanking • First War ended in 1842 with the Treaty of Nanking • Treaty included • Millions of dollars paid to Britain • The opening of five Chinese sea ports for the import of goods to foreign nations • Ceding Hong Kong to Britain

  12. The Second Opium War • 1854: Britain insisted that China give it priority trading rights • China refused, claiming that the Treaty of Nanking was more than sufficient • Multiple other nations got involved

  13. Convention of Peking • October 1860: China falls to Britain again, the conditions including: • More Chinese ports open to foreign trading ships • China’s payment of more money to Britain • Ceded sea ports to Britain • China had to export laborers to the Americas • Helped with the railroads

  14. Britain Leaves • After years of holding an opium monopoly in India, Britain left India in 1947 • Soon after, Afghanistan became the world’s largest producer of opium

  15. Orwell’s House • The house that George Owell grew up in is still standing in Motihari, next to a falling apart opium warehouse • The city officials plan to fix up the house and make a ten acre park

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