Battle of Amoy

Overview

The Battle of Amoy was fought between British and Qing forces at Amoy on Xiamen Island, Fujian, in the Qing Empire on 26 August 1841 during the First Opium War. The British captured the forts at Xiamen and on nearby Gulangyu Island.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Amoy gave British forces control of Xiamen Island and the adjacent Gulangyu Island, securing a strategically positioned port on the Fujian coast during the First Opium War. The engagement demonstrated the ability of a British force of roughly 2,500 to overcome Qing defenders numbering between 5,600 and 10,000, inflicting approximately 500 Qing casualties in the process. Capture of the Amoy forts extended British naval reach along the Chinese coastline and maintained the momentum of offensive operations that would ultimately compel Qing concessions by 1842.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (2)