How many unequal treaties are there in Chinese history?

There have been many unequal treaties in Chinese history, but the main unequal treaties were signed after the Opium War in modern times. The main ones include: "Treaty of Nanjing", "Treaty of Wangxia", "Treaty of Huangpu", "Treaty of Tianjin", "Treaty of Aihun", "Treaty of Beijing", "Treaty of Ili", "Treaty of Yantai", "Concise Summary of the Sino-French Conference" Treaty", "Sino-French New Treaty", "Treaty of Shimonoseki", "Treaty of Southern Liaoning", "Treaty of Xinchou", etc.

1. "Treaty of Nanking" (the first unequal treaty in modern Chinese history), signed on August 29, 1842

"Treaty of Nanking" (Treaty of Nanking) is also known as The "Jiangning Treaty" and the "Ten Thousand Years Peace Treaty" were the first unequal treaties in modern Chinese history. The appointment was made on August 29, 1842 (July 24, the 22nd year of Daoguang), by the Qing government's imperial ministers Qiying and Yilibu and the British representative Poting Cha on the British ship Gao moored on the Xiaguan River in Nanjing. The signing on the Huali marked the end of the First Opium War.

Thirteen paragraphs of the "Treaty of Nanjing" require China to: (1) cede Hong Kong Island; (2) compensate Britain for the price of opium, cigarettes, commercial debt, and military expenses*** 2,110 Thousands of silver dollars; (3) Five ports of trade, opening Guangzhou, Fuzhou, Xiamen, Ningbo, and Shanghai as treaty ports, allowing British people to live and send consulates; (4) Agreement on tariffs, British merchants should pay import and export taxes, Chinese Customs has no autonomy in terms of rates and fees; (5) Abolish the public service system and allow British businessmen to trade freely in China, etc. In addition, it also stipulates equal exchanges between officials from both sides, the release of the other side's soldiers and civilians, and the withdrawal of British troops.

On July 22 and October 8, 1843, Qiying and Pu Dingcha signed the Sino-British "Five-port Trade Charter" and the "Treaty of Humen" successively as a supplement to the "Treaty of Nanjing" and The detailed rules will implement the agreed tariff and concession systems, and enable the UK to obtain consular jurisdiction, comprehensive most-favored-nation treatment and other rights.

Impact of the Treaty: The Treaty of Nanjing destroyed China's territorial integrity and tariff sovereignty, facilitated the export of British goods to China, and made China begin to become a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society. After the Treaty of Nanjing was signed, Western powers took advantage of the situation and forced the Qing government to sign a series of unequal treaties, which further violated China's sovereignty, destroyed China's natural economy, and accelerated the decline of the Qing Dynasty.

2. The Treaty of Wangxia between China and the United States was signed on July 3, 1844

The Treaty of Wangxia, also known as the "Sino-U.S. Five-Port Trade Charter", was signed in 1844 (Daoguang II). The unequal treaty signed between the Qing Dynasty and the United States in Wangxia Village, Macau on July 3, 14th year (14th year) was also the first unequal treaty signed between the Qing government and the United States. The U.S. Treaty of Wangxia contains Section 34, with customs and tariff rules attached. The main content is that the United States enjoys the same rights as the United Kingdom in terms of trade, diplomacy, etc.

In other words, the United States obtained all the special rights and interests that Britain obtained through the Opium War, except for the cession of territory and compensation, and in many ways harmed China more severely: the U.S. "Wangxia Treaty" was more powerful than the Sino-British "Treaty of Wangxia" The Treaty of Nanjing, the Sino-British Treaty of Humen and its annexes are more detailed and complete unequal treaties. It was another heavier yoke placed on China and became a model for the subsequent Sino-French Treaty of Whampoa and other unequal treaties signed by other imperialist powers with China.

3. The "Treaty of Huangpu" between China and France was signed on October 24, 1844

The Qing Dynasty and France were signed in Huangpu, Guangzhou on August 14, 1844 (the 24th year of Daoguang). The unequal treaty was also France's first unequal treaty when it invaded China. This treaty also laid the first foundation stone for foreign invaders to use missionary rights to openly invade China. The "Treaty of Huangpu", like the "Treaty of Wangxia", further undermined China's autonomy in judicial, customs and territorial waters.

4. The "Treaty of Tianjin" was signed on June 13, 1858

The "Treaty of Tianjin" was signed by Britain, France, and Russia during the Second Opium War in the eighth year of Xianfeng's reign in the Qing Dynasty (1858). , the United States forced the Qing government to sign separate unequal treaties in Tianjin. The Second Opium War was an aggressive war launched by Britain and France against China in order to further expand their aggressive privileges. It broke out in October 1856 and ended in October 1860. In 1858, the British and French fleets, with the support of the United States and Russia, attacked Dagukou. The Dagu fort fell, and the British and French forces invaded Tianjin. The Qing government sent imperial envoys Guiliang and Huashana to sign the Treaty of Tianjin with representatives of Russia, the United States, Britain and France

5. The Treaty of Aihun between China and Russia was signed in May 1858

The "Aihui Treaty", also known as the "Aihui Peace Treaty", was signed by Tsarist Russia and Qing Dynasty Heilongjiang General Yishan on May 28, 1858 (April 16, the eighth year of Xianfeng) in Aihui (today's (Heihe Aihui District, Heilongjiang Province). This treaty caused China to lose about 600,000 square kilometers of territory north of Heilongjiang and south of the Outer Xing'an Mountains. It was the largest treaty to cede territory at one time in China's modern history.

6. The "Treaty of Beijing" was signed from October 24 to November 14, 1860.

The "Treaty of Beijing" includes the "Sino-British Treaty of Beijing" and the "Sino-French Treaty of Beijing" " and the "Sino-Russian Treaty of Beijing" were unequal treaties signed by the Qing government in Beijing in 1860 with Britain, France, and Russia after the Second Opium War.

The Qing government appointed Imperial Envoy Yi? as the representative for negotiation and signing. The signing place was at the Libu Yamen in Beijing, at the southeast corner of today's Anmen Square. In addition, the "Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Peace and Trade" signed with Portugal in 1887 is also known as the "Sino-Portuguese Treaty of Beijing".

7. The Sino-Russian Treaty of Ili was signed on February 24, 1881

The Sino-Russian Treaty of Ili, also known as the "Sino-Russian Revision of the Treaty" and the "St. Petersburg Treaty", is On February 24, 1881 (the seventh year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu), the Qing Dynasty and Tsarist Russia signed a treaty in St. Petersburg regarding the return of the Ili region of Xinjiang. According to the treaty and its sub-treaties, although China recovered the territory near the nine cities of Ili and the Tekes River Basin, it still ceded more than 70,000 square kilometers of territory northeast of Tacheng and west of Ili and Kashgar.

8. The Sino-British Treaty of Yantai, also known as the "Treaty of Yunnan Cases", was signed on September 13, 1876

The "Sino-British Treaty of Yantai" is also known as the "Treaty of Yunnan Cases" ” and “Articles of the Sino-British Conference” were unequal treaties signed between the Qing Dynasty and Britain in Yantai on September 13, 1876 (the second year of Guangxu). The signing of the treaty ended the "Dian Case", but also gave Britain the "treaty right" to invade China's southwest border.

9. The "Concise Treaty of the Conference" between China and France was signed on May 11, 1884.

The "Concise Treaty of the Conference between China and France", also known as the "Li Fu Agreement", was signed in May 1884. The treaty signed between Li Hongzhang and Fulunuo on the 11th. The main ones are: 1. The Qing government recognized the unequal treaty between France and Vietnam; 2. Allowed the opening of ports for trade on the Sino-Vietnamese border; 3. Repatriated Chinese troops in Vietnam. The treaty recognized France's protective rights over Vietnam and agreed to open the Sino-Vietnamese border for trade.

10. The "New Sino-French Treaty", also known as the "Vietnam Treaty", was signed on June 9, 1885

The "Sino-French New Treaty" is the "Vietnam Treaty between China and France" "or "Vietnam Clause", also known as "Sino-French Peace Treaty" and "Liba Treaty", was an unequal treaty signed by the Qing Dynasty and France on June 9, 1885 (the eleventh year of Guangxu) to end the Sino-French War. The signing of the "Sino-French Peace Treaty" enabled France to open the "back door" to China. Since then, China and France have successively signed treaties such as the "Vietnam Border Commerce Charter", "Renewal of the Border Affairs Treaty", "Renewal of the Commerce Treaty", etc., which concretely established France's rights to invade, making southwest China gradually become a French sphere of influence.

11. The "Treaty of Shimonoseki" between China and Japan was signed on April 17, 1895

The "Treaty of Shimonoseki" was signed between the Qing Dynasty government of China and the Meiji government of Japan on April 17, 1895 (March 23, Guangxu 21st year) The unequal treaty signed in Shimonoseki (today's Shimonoseki City), Japan, was originally called the "New Treaty of Shimonoseki" and was called the "Treaty of Shimonoseki" or "The Treaty of Nissei" in Japan. and Treaty. The signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki marked the end of the Sino-Japanese War of Sino-Japanese War. The plenipotentiary representatives of the Chinese side are Li Hongzhang and Li Jingfang, and the plenipotentiary representatives of the Japanese side are Ito Hirobumi and Mutsu Munemitsu. Japan obtained 200 million taels of silver from China through the Treaty of Shimonoseki (200 million taels in compensation for military expenses, 30 million taels for redemption of Liaoning, and 1.5 million taels for Weihai Guard defense), which was repaid in 8 installments with interest. Pay off last 4 times. At the exchange rate at the time, this compensation was equivalent to 360 million yen.

12. The Sino-Japanese "Liaonan Treaty" was signed on November 8, 1895

Also known as the "Sino-Japanese Treaty on the Return of the Southern Area of ??Fengtian Province", it was signed by Li Hongzhang and Japan's plenipotentiary representative Lin Dong (Japanese: はやしただす) signed in Beijing on November 8, 1896 AD. The treaty stipulates that Japan will return the Liaodong Peninsula; the Qing government will repay Japan 30 million taels of Kuping silver as "reward"; Japan will withdraw its troops from Liaodong within three months after the payment.

13. "Treaty of Xinchou" September 7, 1901

The "Treaty of Xinchou", also known as the "Peace Treaty of Xinchou Countries" and the "Beijing Protocol", was a document of the Qing Dynasty of China A peace agreement signed between the government and Britain, the United States, Japan, Russia, France, Germany, Italy, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands after the Boxer Rebellion failed and the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded Beijing. The treaty was signed on July 25, the 27th year of Guangxu (1901), the year of Xinchou, hence the name Xinchou Treaty. Because the treaty was signed on September 7 of the Gregorian calendar, there is a saying of "National Humiliation of 1997". The "Xinchou Treaty" is an unequal treaty with the largest amount of compensation and the most serious loss of sovereignty in China's modern history.

The treaty stipulates: China’s compensation price and interest totaled 980 million taels of silver. Beijing’s Dongjiaomin Lane was designated as the embassy boundary. All countries were allowed to station troops for protection, and Chinese people were not allowed to live within the boundary. The Qing government guaranteed that people were strictly prohibited from participating in the rebellion. During the Imperial Movement, the Qing government demolished the forts fortified along the line from Dagukou in Tianjin to Beijing, and allowed the great powers to station troops in important places along the railway from Beijing to Shanhaiguan. This treaty marked that the Qing government had completely become a tool of imperialism to rule China, and China had completely degenerated into a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society.

Extended information:

Unequal treaties refer to international treaties and agreements that undermine national sovereignty and unfairly distribute rights and obligations among contracting states. According to the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties: (1) A treaty that is forced to conclude by force or the threat of force is absolutely invalid; (2) A treaty that is concluded in conflict with the peremptory rules of general international law is invalid.

Unequal treaties, which favor stronger countries with more rights and more obligations with weaker countries, essentially violate the principle of sovereign equality of states and have been widely condemned internationally.

Before 1949, China was forced to conclude many unequal treaties with foreign countries, and the People's Republic of China successively abrogated them through diplomatic negotiations.

The concept of unequal treaties was first proposed by the Chinese Kuomintang in the 1920s:

1. On January 1, 1923, Sun Yat-sen issued the "Chinese Kuomintang Manifesto", which included " We have unequal treaties with other countries. Although the Qing Dynasty has been overthrown, we are still trapped in the status of a colony of the great powers."

2. In January 1924, the first national meeting of the Chinese Kuomintang was held in Guangzhou. The Congress formulated a political platform and proposed the policy of "abolition of unequal treaties and repayment of foreign debts" in terms of foreign policy.

3. In August 1924, the Communist Party of China issued the "Fourth Proposal on the Current Situation" and proposed the idea of ??"abolition of all unequal treaties".

4. On September 18, 1924, the "Chinese Kuomintang's Declaration of the Northern Expedition" was issued, which included "requests to re-examine all unequal treaties".

Unequal treaties are the opposite of equal treaties. Equality treaties generally refer to treaties with equal rights and obligations voluntarily agreed upon by sovereign states under the premise of equality and mutual benefit. An unequal treaty refers to a treaty that is finally concluded, and the rights and obligations of the parties are not equal. The most common reason for this is that one party (or parties) uses force or threatens to use force to coerce the other party (i.e., imposes a treaty). However, some people believe that the conclusion of an unequal treaty does not necessarily involve force, as long as the content of the treaty is unequal to the parties. Under this expanded definition, unequal treaties can include the following situations:

1. The content of the treaty was originally equal to both parties; however, due to unforeseen changes, the actual implementation of the obligations of both parties became unequal.

2. The content of the treaty is not equal to both parties; regardless of the actual effect.

3. Use or threaten to use economic pressure or force to achieve the first situation.

4． Use or threaten to use economic pressure or force to achieve the second situation.

5. The treaty was equal in content but achieved using economic pressure.

6． The treaty was equal in content, but it was reached through the use of force.

Reference links:

Treaty of Nanjing-Baidu Encyclopedia

Treaty of Wangxia-Baidu Encyclopedia

Treaty of Whampoa-Baidu Encyclopedia

Treaty of Tianjin-Baidu Encyclopedia

Treaty of Aihun-Baidu Encyclopedia

Treaty of Beijing-Baidu Encyclopedia