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The '''War of Humiliation |
The '''War of Dutch Humiliation''' was a set of two wars simultaneously fought by the [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]] during the 1850s. Historians group these two discrete but related events together as the war that effectively ended Dutch hegemony in trade in East Asia and the Americas. It is composed of the [[Canton War]] and the [[2nd Dutch-Spanish War]]. |
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== Canton War == |
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The war led to a dramatic balance shift in East Asia and allowed for the rise of Canton, Corea and Taulandt as major regional powers. It is also known to many historians as the beginning of the Dutch Decline with the Kingdom of the Netherlands loosing influence in Southern China and simultaneously loosing the vast swatches of North American territory to the Spanish Empire in the Dutch-Spanish War (1850). |
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{{Main|Canton War}} |
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The war erupted primarily due to trade disputes in Asia between the British and the Dutch. In an attempt to break the Dutch's two-century monopoly on the Chinese trade, an Anglo-French coalition armed and supported a growing rebellion in Kwangtung against the [[Great Qing]]. The "Canton" rebels were able a significant part of Southern China. However, the Qing and the Dutch were able to repel the rebels. Britain and France openly declared war on the Qing and the Netherlands when a Dutch ship had sunk a British ship supplying the rebel troops. The war ended in an Anglo-French victory, splitting the Great Qing and half, creating a new Anglo-friendly nation in southern China: [[Canton]]. |
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== 2nd Dutch-Spanish War == |
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{{Main|2nd Dutch-Spanish War}} |
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The Dutch established a base on the island of Formosa in the 1620s. Although not universally welcomed, they fostered a good but informal relationship with the Ming on the mainland. However, in the 1640s, with the rise of the Qing dynasty, the Dutch completely cut their ties with the Ming and allied with the burgeoning Qing instead. This had developed into a formal military alliance, and throughout the 18th century, the Dutch possessed unfettered and uncontested trading rights in China, much to the envy of other European powers. |
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Seeing that the Dutch were fighting in another war in Asia, the Spanish declared war on the Netherlands in an attempt to seize territory from the Dutch colony of [[Tussenland]]. The overextended Dutch were unable to effectively repel the Spanish invasions in from the east. The war ended in a Spanish victory. In the resulting treaty, the Dutch ceded a huge portion of their North American territory to New Spain, and North Maluku which was shortly incorporated into the viceroyalty of the [[Philippines]]. |
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== See also == |
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=== Breaking the Monopoly: The Coming of France and Britain === |
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Britain and France had long desired to break the Dutch monopoly on Asian trade. They had continuously chased any opportunity that came knocking at their door. In the early 1800s, Britain had started to establish a small presence in the southern regions of China (particularly Canton). The Qing, however, were not receptive to this. They started to enact more restrictive trade policies in Canton, leading to the disgruntlement of British and Chinese merchants alike. The influx of Christian missionaries in Canton did not help the situation either, only further alienating the populace from the ruling Qing. An insurrection was brewing in Canton, and this was exactly the opportunity the British and French had longed for. |
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* [[Canton War]] |
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== The Kingdom of Canton and The War of Humiliation (1850-1857) == |
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* [[2nd Dutch-Spanish War]] |
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The unrest in Canton grew into an open revolt by 1847. The Qing were slow to respond and faced multiple defeats at the hands of the rebels. The Canton rebels were well-equipped and well-supported by British and French arms, while the Qing army was languishing in their antiquated systems of fighting. By early 1848, the rebels were able to take substantial portions of the southern China region. |
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{{Gallery|File:RTL_Canton_War_Map.png|Aftermath of the [[Canton War]]|File:RTL_2nd_Dutch_Spanish_War.png|Aftermath of the [[2nd Dutch-Spanish War]]|align=center|title=Maps of the Wars of Humiliation}}{{Timeline and Lore}} |
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By late 1848, the leader of the rebellion had garnered enough support and legitimacy in the region. He established a new kingdom, dubbed by the west as the "Kingdom of Canton." This new kingdom would infuse Chinese tradition with western styles, particularly putting Christianity at its core. Britain and France were quick to recognize this new kingdom. |
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At this point, the fledgling kingdom became this unstoppable force aiming at the Qing capital. The Dutch Empire realized that their Asian monopoly was at stake. If this British-backed kingdom becomes the new master of the region, the Chinese trade would be open to other powers besides the Dutch. A Qing collapse would mean the end of the Dutch Empire's Asian enterprise. The Dutch had to act quickly. In the spring of 1849, with the consent of the Qing emperor, the Dutch landed their army on the mainland and launched naval attacks on Canton. |
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Britain and France nervously watched as the Dutch crushed the rebels marching towards the north. Although not officially in the war, they continued to provide logistical support to Canton. However, they are still looking for an opportunity to intervene in the war and turn the tides. An opportunity came on 1 March 1850, when a Dutch admiral had sunk a British ship carrying gunpowder to Canton: an open act of aggression. |
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As soon as Europe got word of the incident, Britain hastily declared war on the Dutch Empire. France soon joined on the side of Canton and the British. This quickly developed into a global conflict, with British and Dutch colonies being pitted against each other in the Americas, and multiple naval battles being fought on the English channel. In China, the Anglo-British-Cantonese alliance was slowly pushing back the Dutch and the Qing. Things started to look tragic for the Dutch, especially when the Spanish Empire declared a separate war against the distracted Dutch Empire in late 1850, hoping to take some of the territories from the Dutch [[Tussenland|Colony of Tussenland]] in America. Dutch Formosa was now being attacked on all sides, by Britain and France from Canton and the Spanish from Manila. |
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=== Aftermath === |
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The war ended in disaster for the Dutch and the Qing. In the resulting Treaty of Tchangtcheou (1857), the Kingdom of Canton was formally recognized by all nations, taking most of the southern Qing territory. Multiple treaty ports were opened, specifically Tchangtcheou (France), Foochow, Taichow, Ningpo, and Shanghai (Britain). The Dutch were forced to concede defeat and retract their monopoly on the Asian trade. All Dutch presence in China was removed. This war would later be known in the Dutch-speaking spheres as ''The War of Dutch Humiliation.'' |
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However, it was the Qing that suffered the most damage in the war. Although still holding a large territory, the situation in post-war Qing had devolved into a constant civil war between local warlords, and they would never recover from that point on/ The Qing would be known as the "Sick Man of Asia [亞洲病夫], and by the late 1880s, although the Qing state was still present ''de jure,'' it was already considered dead. The withering of the Qing in the 1880s had allowed for a new Asian power to enter the global stage: the Empire of Corea. |
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{{Timeline and Lore}} |
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Latest revision as of 14:54, 21 September 2021
The War of Dutch Humiliation was a set of two wars simultaneously fought by the Kingdom of the Netherlands during the 1850s. Historians group these two discrete but related events together as the war that effectively ended Dutch hegemony in trade in East Asia and the Americas. It is composed of the Canton War and the 2nd Dutch-Spanish War.
Canton War
The war erupted primarily due to trade disputes in Asia between the British and the Dutch. In an attempt to break the Dutch's two-century monopoly on the Chinese trade, an Anglo-French coalition armed and supported a growing rebellion in Kwangtung against the Great Qing. The "Canton" rebels were able a significant part of Southern China. However, the Qing and the Dutch were able to repel the rebels. Britain and France openly declared war on the Qing and the Netherlands when a Dutch ship had sunk a British ship supplying the rebel troops. The war ended in an Anglo-French victory, splitting the Great Qing and half, creating a new Anglo-friendly nation in southern China: Canton.
2nd Dutch-Spanish War
Seeing that the Dutch were fighting in another war in Asia, the Spanish declared war on the Netherlands in an attempt to seize territory from the Dutch colony of Tussenland. The overextended Dutch were unable to effectively repel the Spanish invasions in from the east. The war ended in a Spanish victory. In the resulting treaty, the Dutch ceded a huge portion of their North American territory to New Spain, and North Maluku which was shortly incorporated into the viceroyalty of the Philippines.
See also
Maps of the Wars of Humiliation
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Aftermath of the Canton War
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Aftermath of the 2nd Dutch-Spanish War
