咸豐九(一八五九)年、上海における外國人襲撃事件について

Abstract

On the eve of the Peking treaty, the coolie trade had reached a peak. In the summer of 1859, a series of raids on fo reigners ocurred in the open port of Shanghai. Because the popular anger against the coolie trade was the reason for the raid, this incident is worth noting in the history of the coolie trade. At this time the supply of coolies in Guangdong 廣東 province had become quite chaotic, people were kidnapped, sold and bought, and the situation escalated to even violence against coolies from the side of the people. Because of these difficulties in recruiting, the coolie trade was extended toward the north, and signs were given that Shanghai should be made into a coolie trade port. The instigated raid against foreigners was a blind one, but it had the effect that the foreign missions and Western traders in Shanghai grew more and more distant to the coolie trade, consequently Shanghai could not be finally made a coolie trade port. In this sense we should remember the incident of 1859 as well as the large scale riot against the coolie trade in Amoy 厦門 in 1852. Bearing these facts in mind, one can understand the incident in Shanghai properly.