Battle of Chuenpee
Encyclopedia
The First Battle of Chuenpee was fought between British and Chinese ships at the entrance of the Bocca Tigris
, China, on 3 November 1839 during the First Opium War
. The British Hyacinth
and Volage opened fire on Chinese ships they perceived as being hostile.
for trade, Chinese authorities required a signed bond agreeing not to trade opium. Captain Charles Elliot
, Chief Superintendent of British Trade in China, ordered British ships not to sign the bond since it stated that if opium was found, the cargo would be confiscated and the perpetrators executed. It also interfered with their free trade goal. In October 1839, the Thomas Coutts cargo ship under Captain Warner arrived in Canton from Singapore. The ship carried cotton from Bombay and since Warner was not trading opium, he defied Elliot's request by signing the bond. He held a legal view that Elliot's ban on the signing was not valid under English law.
Before Warner left China, Imperial Commissioner Lin Zexu
gave him a letter addressed to Queen Victoria in which he disapproved the use of opium and requested the opium trade to stop. After arriving in London, he handed the letter to a co-owner of the Thomas Coutts who asked for an appointment with Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston. After Palmerston's office refused to see him, Warner forwarded the letter to The Times
which published it. Viewing Warner's defiance as a threat to his authority, Elliot ordered HMS Hyacinth
and HMS Volage to be positioned 1 miles (1.6 km) south of the Chuenpee battery
on 27 October for a blockade.
fired a warning shot across the Royal Saxons bow. In response, Chinese war junks
under Admiral Kuan T'ien-p'ei
moved out to protect the Royal Saxon. After Elliot gave in to Smith's pressure for an attack, the more maneuverable British ships approached the Chinese vessels and fired broadside
s at them from starboard.
Smith wrote, "I did not conceive that it would be becoming the dignity of our flag, the safety of the merchant shipping below, and my own character, to retire before such an imposing force, sent out at that moment evidently for the purpose of intimidation." According to a Chinese account by Wei Yuan
, "five of our war-ships went to preserve order on the sea-board" and "the English mistook our red flags for a declaration of war, and opened fire;—for in Europe a red flag means war, and a white one peace."
One Chinese fire raft
immediately sank and a war junk
exploded after its magazine
was struck. After the first run, the Volage and Hyacinth turned and repeated the same maneuver using their port broadsides. The stationary guns on the Chinese vessels could not be aimed effectively. One junk was blown up, three were sunk, and several others were damaged. Faced with superior fire power, the Chinese fleet sailed away except for Kuan's 12-cannon flagship
which returned fire. Since it posed a minimal threat, Elliot ordered Smith to stop firing, allowing the damaged flagship to sail off. The Volage sustained light damage on its sail
s and rigging
, and the mizzen-mast of the Hyacinth was hit by a 12 pound (5.4 kg) ball. One British sailor was wounded and 15 Chinese were killed.
. According to historian Bruce A. Elleman, "the origin of this battle was not even between the British and the Chinese, but was really as a result of the British Navy fighting to stop one of Elliot's own British ships that had refused to uphold his free-trade principles. The 'Battle of Chuanbi,' perhaps more than any other conflict during the Opium War, vividly revealed the underlying free-trade tensions."
Bocca Tigris
The Bocca Tigris, Bogue, or Humen is a narrow strait in the Pearl River Delta, Guangdong, People's Republic of China, where the Pearl River discharges into the South China Sea. The strait is formed by the islands of Chuenpee and Anunghoy on the eastern side and Tycocktow on the western side...
, China, on 3 November 1839 during the First Opium War
First Opium War
The First Anglo-Chinese War , known popularly as the First Opium War or simply the Opium War, was fought between the United Kingdom and the Qing Dynasty of China over their conflicting viewpoints on diplomatic relations, trade, and the administration of justice...
. The British Hyacinth
HMS Hyacinth (1829)
|HMS Hyacinth was an 18-gun Royal Navy sixth-rate sloop. She was launched in 1829 and surveyed the north-eastern coast of Australia under Francis Price Blackwood during the mid 1830s. She took part in the First Opium War, destroying, with HMS Volage, 29 Chinese junks...
and Volage opened fire on Chinese ships they perceived as being hostile.
Background
For foreign ships to be allowed to dock in CantonGuangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
for trade, Chinese authorities required a signed bond agreeing not to trade opium. Captain Charles Elliot
Charles Elliot
Sir Charles Elliot, KCB , was a British naval officer, diplomat, and colonial administrator. He became the first administrator of Hong Kong in 1841 while serving as both Plenipotentiary and Chief Superintendent of British Trade in China...
, Chief Superintendent of British Trade in China, ordered British ships not to sign the bond since it stated that if opium was found, the cargo would be confiscated and the perpetrators executed. It also interfered with their free trade goal. In October 1839, the Thomas Coutts cargo ship under Captain Warner arrived in Canton from Singapore. The ship carried cotton from Bombay and since Warner was not trading opium, he defied Elliot's request by signing the bond. He held a legal view that Elliot's ban on the signing was not valid under English law.
Before Warner left China, Imperial Commissioner Lin Zexu
Lin Zexu
Lín Zéxú ; 30 August 1785 – 22 November 1850) was a Chinese scholar and official during the Qing Dynasty.He is most recognized for his conduct and his constant position on the "high moral ground" in his fight, as a "shepherd" of his people, against the opium trade in Guangzhou...
gave him a letter addressed to Queen Victoria in which he disapproved the use of opium and requested the opium trade to stop. After arriving in London, he handed the letter to a co-owner of the Thomas Coutts who asked for an appointment with Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston. After Palmerston's office refused to see him, Warner forwarded the letter to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
which published it. Viewing Warner's defiance as a threat to his authority, Elliot ordered HMS Hyacinth
HMS Hyacinth (1829)
|HMS Hyacinth was an 18-gun Royal Navy sixth-rate sloop. She was launched in 1829 and surveyed the north-eastern coast of Australia under Francis Price Blackwood during the mid 1830s. She took part in the First Opium War, destroying, with HMS Volage, 29 Chinese junks...
and HMS Volage to be positioned 1 miles (1.6 km) south of the Chuenpee battery
Artillery battery
In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit of guns, mortars, rockets or missiles so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield communication and command and control, as well as to provide dispersion for its constituent gunnery crews and their systems...
on 27 October for a blockade.
Battle
After a second British ship, the Royal Saxon, tried to defy Elliot's blockade on 3 November 1839, the Volage under Captain Henry SmithHenry Smith (1803–1887)
Admiral Sir Henry Smith, KCB , was a British officer in the Royal Navy. He served in the capture of Aden , First Opium War, and Crimean War. He was appointed a CB in 1840 and a KCB in 1873.- References :...
fired a warning shot across the Royal Saxons bow. In response, Chinese war junks
Junk (ship)
A junk is an ancient Chinese sailing vessel design still in use today. Junks were developed during the Han Dynasty and were used as sea-going vessels as early as the 2nd century AD. They evolved in the later dynasties, and were used throughout Asia for extensive ocean voyages...
under Admiral Kuan T'ien-p'ei
Kuan T'ien-p'ei
Guan Tianpei was a Chinese admiral of the Qing Dynasty who served in the First Opium War. His Chinese title was "Commander-in-Chief of Naval Forces". In 1838, he established courteous relations with British Rear-Admiral Frederick Maitland. Guan fought in the First Battle of Chuenpee , the Second...
moved out to protect the Royal Saxon. After Elliot gave in to Smith's pressure for an attack, the more maneuverable British ships approached the Chinese vessels and fired broadside
Broadside
A broadside is the side of a ship; the battery of cannon on one side of a warship; or their simultaneous fire in naval warfare.-Age of Sail:...
s at them from starboard.
Smith wrote, "I did not conceive that it would be becoming the dignity of our flag, the safety of the merchant shipping below, and my own character, to retire before such an imposing force, sent out at that moment evidently for the purpose of intimidation." According to a Chinese account by Wei Yuan
Wei Yuan
Wei Yuan , born Wei Yuanda , courtesy names Moshen and Hanshi , was a Chinese scholar from Shaoyang, Hunan. He moved to Yangzhou in 1831, where he remained for the rest of his life. Wei obtained the provincial degree in the Imperial examinations and subsequently worked in the secretariat of...
, "five of our war-ships went to preserve order on the sea-board" and "the English mistook our red flags for a declaration of war, and opened fire;—for in Europe a red flag means war, and a white one peace."
One Chinese fire raft
Fire ship
A fire ship, used in the days of wooden rowed or sailing ships, was a ship filled with combustibles, deliberately set on fire and steered into an enemy fleet, in order to destroy ships, or to create panic and make the enemy break formation. Ships used as fire ships were usually old and worn out or...
immediately sank and a war junk
Junk (ship)
A junk is an ancient Chinese sailing vessel design still in use today. Junks were developed during the Han Dynasty and were used as sea-going vessels as early as the 2nd century AD. They evolved in the later dynasties, and were used throughout Asia for extensive ocean voyages...
exploded after its magazine
Magazine (artillery)
Magazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse".-Ammunition storage areas:...
was struck. After the first run, the Volage and Hyacinth turned and repeated the same maneuver using their port broadsides. The stationary guns on the Chinese vessels could not be aimed effectively. One junk was blown up, three were sunk, and several others were damaged. Faced with superior fire power, the Chinese fleet sailed away except for Kuan's 12-cannon flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
which returned fire. Since it posed a minimal threat, Elliot ordered Smith to stop firing, allowing the damaged flagship to sail off. The Volage sustained light damage on its sail
Sail
A sail is any type of surface intended to move a vessel, vehicle or rotor by being placed in a wind—in essence a propulsion wing. Sails are used in sailing.-History of sails:...
s and rigging
Rigging
Rigging is the apparatus through which the force of the wind is used to propel sailboats and sailing ships forward. This includes masts, yards, sails, and cordage.-Terms and classifications:...
, and the mizzen-mast of the Hyacinth was hit by a 12 pound (5.4 kg) ball. One British sailor was wounded and 15 Chinese were killed.
Aftermath
The Royal Saxon sailed on to Canton and Elliot returned to MacauMacau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
. According to historian Bruce A. Elleman, "the origin of this battle was not even between the British and the Chinese, but was really as a result of the British Navy fighting to stop one of Elliot's own British ships that had refused to uphold his free-trade principles. The 'Battle of Chuanbi,' perhaps more than any other conflict during the Opium War, vividly revealed the underlying free-trade tensions."