Wars

Second Opium War

Modern

Citation Formats

General Reference

War and Military Atlas. "Second Opium War." Accessed September 8, 2026. https://military.interactiveatlas.org/wars/second-opium-war.

APA Style

War and Military Atlas. (n.d.). Second Opium War. Retrieved September 8, 2026, from https://military.interactiveatlas.org/wars/second-opium-war

BibTeX

@misc{warandmilitaryatlas-second-opium-war,
  author = {War and Military Atlas},
  title = {Second Opium War},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://military.interactiveatlas.org/wars/second-opium-war},
  note = {Accessed September 8, 2026}
}

The Second Opium War, also known as the Second Anglo-Chinese War or the Arrow War, was fought between the United Kingdom and France against the Qing dynasty of China from 1856 to 1860. It was the second major conflict in the Opium Wars, fought over the right to import opium into China, and it resulted in a second defeat for the Qing and the forced legalisation of the opium trade.

Facts

Start Year

1856 1

End Year

1860 1

Combatants

United Kingdom and France, with India and Russia and the United States in supporting roles, against Qing China 1

Outcome

Allied victory; forced legalization of the opium trade and territorial concessions to Western powers and Russia 1

Sources

1. Wikipedia: Second Opium War

Lead section, para 1

Quote, Lead section, para 1

The Second Opium War, also known as the Second Anglo-Chinese War or Arrow War, was fought between the United Kingdom and France against the Qing dynasty of China between 1856 and 1860.

View the Source

1. Wikipedia: Second Opium War

Infobox: Date

Quote, Infobox: Date