The Opium War

In 1976, the journalist Brian Inglis published this excoriating analysis of the First Opium War (1839-1842) by which Britain forced the Chinese to accept opium imports; he traces the causes of the conflict, asking both who should be held responsible and why the opium trade had become crucial to the British economy. The book is now reissued in paperback to mark the authors centenary, with an introduction by his son Neil.