How did The Opium Wars change the traditional Chinese society by forcing China to embrace the modern world?

The Chinese fought two Opium Wars: the first, in 1839-1842, was against the British, while the second (from 1856-1860) against the French and British. The result of both wars was that the Chinese, under the Qing, were forced to open up trade and and grant territories to foreigners. As a result, the Qing began to lose power.

In the First Opium War, the Chinese tried to prevent the British from trading opium in China, as...

The Chinese fought two Opium Wars: the first, in 1839-1842, was against the British, while the second (from 1856-1860) against the French and British. The result of both wars was that the Chinese, under the Qing, were forced to open up trade and and grant territories to foreigners. As a result, the Qing began to lose power.

In the First Opium War, the Chinese tried to prevent the British from trading opium in China, as the drug was having a disastrous effect on Chinese society and trade. The Chinese destroyed opium stored in Canton, and the British later destroyed a warship that was trying to enforce a blockade of the Pearl River in Hong Kong. The British were victorious in the war, and the resulting Treaty of Nanjing (or Nanking) gave the island of Hong Kong to the British and increased the number of treaty ports where the British could live and trade from one to five. The British gained the port of Shanghai, which became a major international city, and the Qing began to lose power to foreigners. In a later supplemental treaty, the British gained the right to try their citizens in their own courts and gave Britain most favored nation status--a right that was later given to other foreign powers, including France and the United States.

In the Second Opium War, the British attacked again while the Chinese were trying to quell the Taiping Rebellion, and the British were joined by French forces. The resulting treaties of Tianjin allowed foreigners to take residence in Beijing and opened up trade and travel at several more ports and into the interior of China. Christian missionaries were allowed into China, and the trade in opium became legal. The overall effect of the wars was to weaken the Qing and permit foreigners to begin to trade and travel widely in China.