Treaty of Nanjing
The Treaty of Nanjing, signed on 29 August 1842, formally ended the First Opium War between Great Britain and Qing China. It opened five Chinese ports to British trade and residence, ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain, abolished the Cohong trading monopoly for British merchants, and required China to pay an indemnity. The agreement is often described as the first of China's unequal treaties.
Context and signing
The First Opium War (1839–1842) grew out of disputes over British commerce in China, especially the illegal opium trade and Qing efforts to suppress it. The conflict ended in a British victory. On 29 August 1842, representatives of Great Britain and the Qing government concluded the Treaty of Nanjing, also called the Treaty of Nanking. The agreement formally ended the war and established terms for British commercial access and diplomatic contact.
Main provisions
The treaty opened five ports—Canton (now Guangzhou), Amoy (Xiamen), Foochow (Fuzhou), Ningpo (Ningbo) and Shanghai—to British residents and merchants. It provided for British consular officers at those ports and ended the requirement that British merchants trade only through the licensed Hong merchants, known as the Cohong. The treaty also required the Qing government to establish and publish a regular customs tariff for trade at the ports.
Hong Kong and the indemnity
The Qing emperor ceded Hong Kong Island to Britain. This was the island, not the whole area that today forms Hong Kong; other territories came under British control through later arrangements. The treaty also required payment of 21 million dollars. The sum comprised compensation for opium surrendered at Canton in 1839, debts owed by Cohong merchants to British interests, and costs attributed to the British military expedition. The treaty's own text itemized these obligations and specified a schedule for payment.
Historical interpretation and limits
The Treaty of Nanjing is often grouped among the first 'unequal treaties' imposed on China by foreign powers. The phrase reflects the circumstances of a peace settlement made after military defeat and provisions that expanded British commercial access while constraining Qing control over tariffs and trade. The treaty's language also used the framework of agreements between sovereign states, so historians distinguish its formal diplomatic terms from the unequal material conditions under which it was concluded. A related point is often overlooked: the Treaty of Nanjing itself did not establish extraterritorial jurisdiction for British residents. Oxford Public International Law identifies the 1844 Treaty of Wanghia between China and the United States as the first treaty to introduce that regime.
Key facts
- Date
- Signed on 29 August 1842.
- Parties
- Great Britain and Qing China.
- War ended
- The First Opium War (1839–1842).
- Ports opened
- Canton, Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo and Shanghai.
- Territorial cession
- Hong Kong Island was ceded to Britain; the treaty did not cede all of present-day Hong Kong.
- Indemnity
- The Qing government undertook to pay a total of 21 million dollars.
- Important legal distinction
- The treaty itself did not establish extraterritorial jurisdiction; Oxford Public International Law identifies the 1844 Treaty of Wanghia as the first to introduce that regime.
Timeline
1839–1842
The First Opium War was fought between Great Britain and Qing China.
29 August 1842
The Treaty of Nanjing formally ended the war and set out its peace and commercial terms.
1844
China and the United States signed the Treaty of Wanghia, a later agreement that introduced extraterritorial jurisdiction for U.S. citizens in China.
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References
- 1.Treaty of Nanjing Definition, Terms, & Facts
Encyclopaedia Britannica · other · reliability: high · retrieved 20 October 2026
Supports: The treaty's date, role in ending the First Opium War, Hong Kong cession and commercial provisions.
- 2.Excerpts from the Treaty of Nanjing, August 1842
Asia for Educators, Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University · other · reliability: high · retrieved 20 October 2026
Supports: Primary-source excerpts of treaty articles on the five ports, Hong Kong Island, the Cohong, tariffs and indemnity payments.
- 3.Hong Kong and the Opium Wars
The National Archives (United Kingdom) · other · reliability: high · retrieved 20 October 2026
Supports: Historical context for the First Opium War and the distinction between Hong Kong Island and later territorial additions.
- 4.Nanjing (1842): Unequal Treaties and the Right to War
Oxford Public International Law, Oxford University Press · other · reliability: high · retrieved 20 October 2026
Supports: Scholarly analysis of the treaty's international-law setting, commercial terms, indemnity and the later introduction of extraterritorial jurisdiction.
- 5.The Opening to China Part I: the First Opium War, the United States, and the Treaty of Wangxia, 1839–1844
Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State · other · reliability: high · retrieved 20 October 2026
Supports: The historical setting of the First Opium War and the 1844 Treaty of Wanghia as an American counterpart to the Treaty of Nanjing.
References are suggested by the research engine and may be incomplete. Unverified URLs are omitted rather than guessed.
Article history
- Version 120 October 2026 · EditorCreated by Zapia