The Opium War

"This book is hugely readable, because of its sure grasp of historical narrative. I love the way that Peter Ward Fay uses individual stories, testimonies and voices to bring the story alive. And as you just said, it spells out very clearly the trade triangle involving opium, tea and silver between India, China and Britain. Importantly, it also shines a light on links between British merchants in China and Indian merchants. This Anglo-Indian story is a very important one of the Opium War and of the opium trade, and I think it has often been overlooked. The economic impact of the opium trade on India itself has long been relatively forgotten. There is one niggling criticism I have of the book, which Peter Ward Fay himself acknowledges, in that he neglects the Chinese story. It’s an account told from European and mainly Anglophone materials. He himself admits he is no Sinologist. And that is a curious feature of the landscape of much Western writing about the Opium War. Until 20-odd years ago, most accounts written in English made detailed use of the English language sources while neglecting the rich array of Chinese evidence. So readers were left with a collection of rather Euro-centric interpretations."