Can anyone ELI5 the 'Opium Wars' specifically in relation to the drug?

I am reading wikipedia and not finding much.. or am two stoned to understand

How was opium involved?

Did the British import it at lower than normal prices to cause problems in china?

What was the effect on the normal chinese user? is there any documented cases of big withdrawl issues post-opium war?

Does anyone know of concrete examples of these tactics being used with narcotics in other parts of the world? Im sure the cia is involved in some just can't remember off the top of me head...


Comments


[4 Points] Theeconomist1:

When I get to a laptop I can expand but essential the opium wars were an economic war. The Chinese were exporting a lot while not importing thus they had a trade surplus. The Chinese had an insatiable appetite for opium and this disrupted that trade surplus. So they sought to make it illegal. The Brits continued to smuggle it in. The demand for it led to an erosion of China's trade surplus. Brits wanted to legalize the trade so they could continue selling it. China didn't like that. They fought.

Tl;dr - it's always about the money.