The Treaty of Wanghia (also known as the Treaty of Wangxia; Treaty of peace, amity, and commerce, between the United States of America and the Chinese Empire; ) was the first of the
unequal treaties
Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...
imposed by the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
on
China. As per the terms of the
diplomatic agreement, the United States received the same privileges with China that Great Britain had achieved under the
Nanjing Treaty in 1842. The United States received additional privileges as well, including the right to
cabotage
Cabotage () is the transport of goods or passengers between two places in the same country. It originally applied to shipping along coastal routes, port to port, but now applies to aviation, railways, and road transport as well.
Cabotage rights ar ...
on preferential terms and the expansion of
extraterritoriality
In international law, extraterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations.
Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually cl ...
. Imperial China's
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...
signed the treaty with the United States on July 3, 1844, in the
Kun Iam Temple
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. The treaty was subsequently passed by the
U.S. Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washin ...
and ratified by President
John Tyler
John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States, serving from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president in 1841. He was elected vice president on the 1840 Whig tick ...
on January 17, 1845. The Treaty of Wanghia was formally in effect until the signing of the 1943
Sino-American Treaty for the Relinquishment of Extraterritorial Rights in China.
Name of the Treaty
The treaty was named after a village in northern
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
where the temple is located, called Mong Ha or Wang Hia ().
It is now a part of the territory's
Our Lady of Fátima Parish.
Treaty contents
The United States was represented by
Caleb Cushing
Caleb Cushing (January 17, 1800 – January 2, 1879) was an American Democratic politician and diplomat who served as a Congressman from Massachusetts and Attorney General under President Franklin Pierce. He was an eager proponent of territor ...
, a
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
lawyer dispatched by President
John Tyler
John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States, serving from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president in 1841. He was elected vice president on the 1840 Whig tick ...
under pressure from American merchants concerned about British dominance in trade with China.
Physician and missionary
Peter Parker
Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appearance, first appeared in the anthology comic book ''Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August ...
served as Cushing's
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
interpreter. The
Qing Empire was represented by
Keying, the
Viceroy of Liangguang
The Viceroy of Liangguang or Viceroy of the Two Guangs, was one of eight regional Viceroys during the Ming and Qing dynasties. The two ''Guang'' referred to Guangdong and Guangxi provinces. The areas under the Viceroy's jurisdiction included pre ...
, who held responsibility for the provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi.)
The treaty was modeled after the treaties of
Nanking
Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...
and
the Bogue between the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and China, but differed in being more detailed.
Among other things, it contained provisions for:
*
Extraterritoriality
In international law, extraterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations.
Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually cl ...
, where Chinese subjects would be tried and punished under Chinese law and American citizens would be tried and punished under the authority of the American consul or other public functionaries authorized to that effect
* Fixed tariffs on trade in the treaty ports
* The right to buy land in the five
treaty ports
Treaty ports (; ja, 条約港) were the port cities in China and Japan that were opened to foreign trade mainly by the unequal treaties forced upon them by Western powers, as well as cities in Korea opened up similarly by the Japanese Empire. ...
and erect churches and hospitals there
* The right to
learn Chinese by abolishing a law which thitherto forbade foreigners to do so
* The U.S. received
most favored nation status, resulting in the United States receiving the same beneficial treatment China gave to other
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
powers, and received the right to modify the treaty after 12 years.
The United States also granted the Chinese Empire powers to confiscate American ships if operating outside treaty ports, and withdrew consular protection in cases where American citizens were trading in opium under articles 3 and 33, respectively.
Furthermore, the U.S. agreed to hand over any
offenders to China. (
Americans entered the opium trade with less expensive but inferior Turkish opium and by 1810 had around 10% of the trade in Canton.
[Tyler Dennett, ''Americans in Eastern Asia'' pp 115-124.])
See also
*
Western imperialism in Asia
The influence and imperialism of Western Europe and associated states (such as Russia, Japan, and the United States) peaked in Asian territories from the colonial period beginning in the 16th century and substantially reducing with 20th century ...
*
Unequal treaty
Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...
*
China–United States relations
Footnotes
References
* Dennett, Tyler. ''Americans in eastern Asia; a critical study of the policy of the United States with reference to China, Japan and Korea in the 19th century'' (1922
online* Downs, Jacques M., and Frederic D. Grant Jr. ''The Golden Ghetto: the American commercial community at canton and the shaping of American China Policy, 1784–1844'' (Hong Kong University Press, 2014
online
* Henson, Jr., Curtis T. '' Commissioners and Commodores: The East Indian Squadron and American Diplomacy in China'' (U of Alabama Press, 1982)
* Kuo, Ping Chia. "Caleb Cushing and the Treaty of Wanghia, 1844". ''The Journal of Modern History'' 5, no. 1 (1933): 34–54
online* Le Pichon, Alain. "Howqua And the Howqua: how a Chinese monopolist saved American free-traders from financial ruin." ''Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch'' 50 (2010): 99–121
online* Swisher, Earl, ed. ''China's Management of the American Barbarians; a Study of Sino-American Relations, 1841–1861, with Documents''. New Haven, CT: Published for the Far Eastern Association by Far Eastern Publications,
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
, 1953.
* Welch, Richard E. "Caleb Cushing's Chinese Mission and the Treaty of Wanghia: A Review." ''Oregon Historical Quarterly'' 58.4 (1957): 328–357
online
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of Wanghia
China–United States relations
Unequal treaties
Treaties of the United States
1844 in China
1844 treaties
Treaties of the Qing dynasty