The name “Opium War” was first given to the war by a British newspaper opposed to the conflict. It was a derogatory label that implied the great British Empire, emancipator of slaves, was being lowered to doing the bidding of a bunch of British drug dealers selling opium mostly grown in British-controlled regions of India by a giant, private corporation.

In this episode, we’ll discuss how the war might just as easily go by the less catchy name “Silver Crunch War of 1839”. A global silver shortage combined with the unique vulnerabilities of the Qing economy to the resulting increase in silver prices will drive the Daoguang Emperor to crack down on a bunch of unruly British drug dealers.

*Image by: Numismática Pliego – Numismática Pliego, CC BY-SA 3.0

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This episode we’re going to take a bit of a scenic detour to learn about early policies of Ming expansionism and the tremendous voyages of Zheng He.

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“From the cry of a tiny insect, one can hear the sound of a vast world.” – Zhang Daye

Tiny Insect is a history podcast about the creation of the modern world. It takes a global perspective to tell the story of the world between 1206 and 1914. From the beginning of one era of global catastrophe, to the beginning of another.

This episode is an overview of what I want the show to be about.

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