Second China War Medal

 

The Second China War 1857 - 1860.

 

Further relevant historical context can be found at the foot of this entry.

 

 

The Second China War Medal was a British Empire campaign medal presented for service during the Second China War. The medal was instituted in March 1861 and was awarded to members of the British Army Royal Marines and Royal Navy who took part in what was also known as the Second Opium War of 1856 to 1860 against China.

 

Those who had undertaken service to qualify for this medal and who had also qualified for the China War Medal from 1842 were supposed to receive the clasps awarded for this medal only. These clasps were intended to be fixed to the first medal but due to the difference in the width and style of the suspender it was not known how this was actually to be done.

 

Consequently, as a result the clasps awarded for this medal were often simply slipped over the ribbon for the China War Medal from 1842 whose ribbon was sometimes replaced with the narrower one that was supplied with this medal.

 

Many service personnel who had served in both wars actually received both medals, and subsequently did not declare possession of the first.

 

 

The medal is circular, 36mm in diameter and was struck in silver. The obverse of this medal bears the head of Queen Victoria and the inscription; 'VICTORIA REGINA'.

 

The reverse depicts the same coat of Royal Arms and shield found on both the First and Third China War medals with the inscription; ‘ARMIS EXPOSCERE PACIM’ and the inscription; ‘CHINA’ below.

 

The ribbon suspender is the same design as that for the India Mutiny Medal being of an ornate horn design attached to the medal by a claw mount.

 

The recipient's details can be found on the medal's rim indented in Roman capitals for both the army and marines while naval medals were issued un-named.

 

 

 

There were two types of ribbon associated with this medal, the original ribbon (which was never used) is 32mm wide and has has five separate green, white red, yellow and blue strips with a narrow red stripe along either edge.

 

 

The later ribbon issue (the only one used) was also 32mm wide and crimson in colour with a narrow yellow stripe along either edge.

 

 

The medal was issued with the following clasps:-

 

 

Further relevant historical context can be found at the foot of this entry.

 

 

 

* It should be noted that the values quoted above reflect the average price that a medal dealer may expect to sell this medal for - please see the ‘things you should know’ web page for more details about valuing medals.

 

 

This section contains information on:-

 

- The First Opium War.

- The Second Opium War.

- The Battle Of Fatshan Creek.

- The Battle Of Canton.

- The Taku Forts.

- The First Battle Of Taku Forts.

- The Second Battle Of Taku Forts.

- The Third Battle Of Taku Forts.

- The Battle Of Palikao.

 

The First Opium War - The First Opium War (1839-42), also known as the Opium War and as the Anglo-Chinese War, was fought between Great Britain and China over their conflicting viewpoints on diplomatic relations, trade, and the administration of justice for foreign nationals.

 

Prior to the conflict Chinese officials wished to end the spread of opium, and confiscated around 20,000 chests of opium (approximately 1.21 million kilograms or 2.66 million lb) from British traders. The British government, although not officially denying China's right to control imports of the drug, objected to this seizure and used its military power to enforce violent redress.

 

In 1842, the Treaty of Nanking - the first of what the Chinese later called the unequal treaties - granted an indemnity to Britain, the opening of five treaty ports, and the cession of Hong Kong Island, thereby ending the trade monopoly of the Canton System.

 

The failure of the treaty to satisfy British goals of improved trade and diplomatic relations led to the Second Opium War (1856-60).

 

The war is now considered in China as the beginning of modern Chinese history

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Second Opium War - The Second Opium War, the Second Anglo-Chinese War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a war pitting the British Empire and the Second French Empire against the Qing Dynasty of China, lasting from 1856 to 1860.

 

It was fought over similar issues as the First Opium War.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Battle Of Fatshan Creek - The Battle of Fatshan Creek was a naval engagement fought between the United Kingdom's Royal Navy and Chinese pirates on June 1, 1857. Commodore Henry Keppel sought out and destroyed the Chinese fleet before advancing to the city of Canton for its capture.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Battle Of Canton - The Battle of Canton was fought by British and French forces against China on 28-31 December 1857 during the Second Opium War.

 

The British High Commissioner, Lord Elgin, was keen to take the town as a demonstration of power and to capture Chinese official Ye Mingchen who had resisted British attempts to implement the 1842 Treaty of Nanking. Elgin ordered an Anglo-French force to take the town and an assault began on 28 December.

 

Allied forces took control of the city walls on 29 December but delayed entry into the city itself until 5 January. They subsequently captured Ye and some reports state they burnt down much of the town.

 

The ease with which the allies won the battle was one of the reasons for the signing of the Treaty of Tientsin in 1858.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Taku Forts - The first fort was built during the reign of the Ming Jiajing Emperor between 1522 and 1527. Its purpose was to protect Tianjin from attack by wokou sea raiders.

 

Later, in 1816, the Qing government built the first two forts on both sides of the Haihe estuary in response to increased concerns about seaborne threats from the West. By 1841, in response to the First Opium War, the defensive system in Dagukou was reinforced into a system of five big forts, 13 earthen batteries, and 13 earthworks.

 

In 1851, Imperial Commissioner Sengge Rinchen carried out a comprehensive renovation of the forts, building 6 large forts: two on the south of the estuary, three to the north, and the sixth, was built on a small ridge on the northern shore.

 

Each fort had three large guns and 20 small caliber guns. Forts were constructed of wood and brick with an external curtain of two feet of concrete, the layering designed to avoid spalling and minimize penetration by artillery rounds. The forts were around 10 to 15 metres (33 to 49 ft) high, which located as they were in an exceedingly flat landscape, provided a critical vantage point.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The First Battle Of Taku Forts - The First Battle of Taku Forts was the first invasion of Anglo-French alliance taking the Taku Forts on May 20, 1858 during the Second Opium War.

 

The British and French sent a squadron of gunboats, under Admiral Sir Michael Seymour, to attack China's Taku Forts. The battle ended as an allied success.

 

However the first phase of the Second Opium War would end with the Treaties of Tianjin and the forts were returned to the hands of the Qing Army, leading to the Second Battle of Taku Forts in 1859.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Second Battle Of Taku Forts - The Second Battle of Taku Forts, in June 1859, was an Anglo-French attack on a series of Chinese forts protecting Taku, China during the Second Opium War.

 

A chartered American steamship arrived on scene and assisted the French and British in their attempted suppression of the Taku Forts.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Third Battle Of Taku Forts - The Third Battle of Taku Forts was an engagement of the Second Opium War, part of the British and French 1860 expedition to China. It took place on July 30 1860.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.

 

The Battle Of Palikao - The Battle of Palikao also known as the Battle of the Eight-Mile Bridge was fought at the bridge of Palikao by Anglo-French forces against China during the Second Opium War on the morning of 21 September 1860.

 

It allowed Western forces to take the capital Pekin (now Beijing) and eventually led to the defeat of the Qing Empire.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.