Episodes

  • The Opium Wars: Qiying's Secret Diplomacy

    The Opium Wars: Qiying's Secret Diplomacy
    Jun 15 2026
    Episode 100 of our Opium Wars series turns to the story of Qiying, the Manchu nobleman who became the Qing dynasty's chief negotiator after the First Opium War. We explore how he tried to manage the impossible task of placating both the British and the Daoguang Emperor, his role in drafting the Treaty of Nanking, the Treaty of the Bogue, and the Treaty of Wanghia, and his eventual fall from grace. The episode also covers his controversial legacy—was he a traitor or a pragmatist?—and his shadowy death by poison in 1858. Specific details include his negotiations with Henry Pottinger, his relationship with the Cohong merchants, his use of 'barbarian management' tactics, and how his secret correspondence with the emperor was later used to condemn him. The episode also touches on his earlier career as a military commander in Tibet and his governorship of Liangjiang. A fresh angle on a key figure often mentioned in passing but rarely examined in depth. #Qiying #OpiumWars #TreatyOfNanking #QingDynasty #DaoguangEmperor #HenryPottinger #TreatyOfWanghia #TreatyOfTheBogue #Cohong #BarbarianManagement #Liangjiang #Tibet #Manchu #FexingoHistory #History #19thCentury #China #Diplomacy Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 mins
  • The Opium Wars The Sikh Soldiers Who Fought for Britain

    The Opium Wars The Sikh Soldiers Who Fought for Britain
    Jun 15 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the role of Sikh soldiers—sepoys from the Khalsa army—who fought for the British East India Company during the Opium Wars. After the British annexation of Punjab in 1849, thousands of Sikhs enlisted in the Company's armies, drawn by pay, prestige, and the chance to serve under former commanders like Sir Hugh Gough. We follow Subedar Gurmukh Singh and his company of Sikh and Punjabi Muslim troops at the Battle of Chuenpi in 1841, where they stormed Qing fortifications under heavy fire. We unpack the complex loyalties of these men: why they fought for empire, how they were perceived by British officers and Chinese foes, and how their service shaped later Sikh military traditions. Along the way, we touch on the language of command—Urdu and English—and the material conditions of sepoy life. This episode offers a fresh angle on a war usually told through British and Chinese perspectives, and asks what it meant to be a Sikh soldier caught between two empires. #OpiumWars #SikhSoldiers #ImperialHistory #BritishEmpire #QingDynasty #BattleOfChuenpi #SubedarGurmukhSingh #Sepoy #Khalsa #Punjab #EastIndiaCompany #SirHughGough #ChineseHistory #MilitaryHistory #ColonialTroops #SikhMilitary #FexingoHistory #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    9 mins
  • The Opium Wars: How the Bogue Fleet Was Destroyed

    The Opium Wars: How the Bogue Fleet Was Destroyed
    Jun 14 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the pivotal naval battle that shattered Qing coastal defenses in 1841—the destruction of the Bogue Fleet at Humen. They examine the technological gap between British steam-powered warships like HMS Nemesis and China's traditional junks, the strategic failures of Commodore Chen Lianfeng, and the human cost of the engagement. The conversation also touches on the role of the Tanka boat people caught in the crossfire, the psychological impact of Congreve rockets on Chinese troops, and how this battle cleared the way for the Treaty of Nanking. Drawing on firsthand accounts from British officers and Qing records, the hosts illuminate a turning point that forced the Daoguang Emperor's court to confront the limits of their naval power. This episode dives into the specifics of ship design, crew composition, and the brutal realities of early modern naval warfare in the Pearl River Delta. #OpiumWars #BattleoftheBogue #HMSNemesis #QingNavy #Humen #PearlRiverDelta #CongreveRockets #ChenLianfeng #WilliamHutcheonHall #DaoguangEmperor #TreatyofNanking #CantonSystem #NavalHistory #19thCenturyWarfare #BritishEmpire #EastAsia #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins
  • The Opium Wars and the Rise of the Hong Kong Police Force

    The Opium Wars and the Rise of the Hong Kong Police Force
    Jun 14 2026
    In 1841, Britain seized Hong Kong Island as a base for the opium trade, but the new colony quickly descended into chaos. This episode follows the formation of the Hong Kong Police Force—the world's first colonial police force—as it battled pirates, triad gangs, and corrupt officers. We meet Captain William Caine, the colony's first magistrate, who tried to impose order on a lawless port city. We explore the 'police triad' phenomenon, where officers secretly ran protection rackets alongside the very criminals they hunted. And we uncover the story of the 1843 'Night of the Long Knives,' a crackdown that set the template for British colonial policing across Asia. It's a story of power, corruption, and the fragile line between order and oppression. #OpiumWars #HongKong #ColonialPolicing #WilliamCaine #Triads #Pirates #QingDynasty #BritishEmpire #HongKongPolice #OpiumTraffic #1840s #Crime #Corruption #NightOfTheLongKnives #CaptainWilliamCaine #FexingoHistory #History #EastAsia Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    Not Yet Known
  • The Opium Wars The Sikh Soldiers Who Fought for Britain

    The Opium Wars The Sikh Soldiers Who Fought for Britain
    Jun 13 2026
    This episode peels back a little-known chapter of the Opium Wars: the role of Sikh soldiers in the British expeditionary forces. Lucas and Luna explore how the British East India Company deployed regiments of Sikhs from the recently annexed Punjab—men who had fought the British just years earlier at Sobraon and Chillianwala. They discuss the Battle of Ferozeshah's veterans who now marched on Canton, the complex loyalties of men like Subedar Gurmukh Singh, and the irony of colonial armies using conquered troops to conquer others. The episode examines the economic push factors: land taxes and debt pushing Sikh peasants into service, the lure of regular pay and pension, and the cultural gap between Sikh soldiers and their British officers. It also touches on how these soldiers were perceived by the Chinese, the impact of the battles on Sikh military tradition, and the post-war fate of these men—some settling in Hong Kong, others returning to Punjab with loot and stories that reshaped their villages. A nuanced look at empire through the eyes of those who served, not just those who commanded. #OpiumWars #SikhSoldiers #BritishEmpire #EastIndiaCompany #Punjab #Canton #BattleOfFerozeshah #SubedarGurmukhSingh #ColonialArmies #CasteAndEmpire #Khalsa #HongKong #LootAndPension #AngloSikhWars #China #19thCentury #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins
  • The Opium Wars: The Ship That Sank China's Junk Navy

    The Opium Wars: The Ship That Sank China's Junk Navy
    Jun 13 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna focus on a single warship that changed the course of the Opium Wars: HMS Nemesis. Built by John Laird in 1839, this iron-hulled paddle steamer was a radical new design — shallow-draft, heavily armed, and fast. We trace her journey from Liverpool to China, her role in the Battle of Chuenpi in January 1841, and her devastating effect on Qing coastal defenses. We discuss how the Nemesis could navigate rivers and shallow waters that British sailing ships couldn't reach, allowing her to bypass forts and bombard towns at will. We also look at the Chinese response — from fire rafts to chain barriers — and why nothing could stop her. Along the way, we touch on Captain William Hutcheon Hall, the Congreve rockets she carried, and the psychological impact on the Qing forces who called her a "devil ship." Finally, we reflect on how this single vessel symbolized the technological gap between the industrialized West and the agrarian Qing empire, a gap that would define the century to come. #OpiumWars #HMSNemesis #BattleOfChuenpi #WilliamHutcheonHall #CongreveRockets #IronHulledWarship #PaddleSteamer #JohnLaird #QingDynasty #DaoguangEmperor #LinZexu #GuanTianpei #BogueForts #Humen #NavalHistory #19thCentury #FexingoHistory #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins
  • The Opium Wars and the Green Standard Army's Last Stand

    The Opium Wars and the Green Standard Army's Last Stand
    Jun 12 2026
    Episode 94 of The Opium Wars takes an unflinching look at the Green Standard Army, the Qing dynasty's corrupt and underfunded military force that was tasked with defending China's coastline during the First Opium War. We trace the army's origins from the Ming dynasty to its collapse against British steamships and rockets. Along the way, we meet Commissioner Lin Zexu, who demanded the Green Standard Army enforce his anti-opium campaign but was betrayed by his own officials. We follow the tragic fate of Admiral Guan Tianpei, who died defending the Bogue Forts, and examine how the British, led by Charles Elliot and later Sir Henry Pottinger, exploited the army's weaknesses. The episode also explores the Green Standard's brutal crackdown on the Tanka boat people, who smuggled opium under their noses, and concludes with the humiliating Treaty of Nanking, which signaled the end of the Chinese world order. This is a story of hubris, neglect, and the human cost of imperial collapse. #OpiumWars #GreenStandardArmy #QingDynasty #LinZexu #GuanTianpei #BogueForts #HMSNemesis #CharlesElliot #HenryPottinger #TreatyOfNanking #TankaPeople #CrabBoats #DaoguangEmperor #ChineseMilitary #FirstOpiumWar #ColonialHistory #EastAsia #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    7 mins
  • The Opium Wars and the Man Who Burned the Opium

    The Opium Wars and the Man Who Burned the Opium
    Jun 12 2026
    Lin Zexu, the Chinese official who tried to end the opium trade by destroying thousands of chests of the drug, is one of the most controversial figures of the Opium Wars. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Lin's background as a reform-minded Confucian scholar, his famous letter to Queen Victoria, the massive opium destruction at Humen in 1839, and the consequences that followed. They discuss whether Lin's actions were heroic or catastrophic, how he became a symbol of resistance in modern China, and the complexities of his legacy. The episode also touches on the Green Standard Army's role, the British merchants' reactions, and the lead-up to the first Opium War. #LinZexu #OpiumWars #QingDynasty #DaoguangEmperor #Humen #OpiumDestruction #GreenStandardArmy #CharlesElliot #JardineMatheson #TreatyOfNanking #Confucian #BritishEmpire #Canton #PearlRiver #Cohong #History #FexingoHistory #EastAsia Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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    6 mins