9. Lord Palmerston established war aims which imposed British authority over Chinese trade
The war aims of the British government were established in writing in a letter sent by Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston to Elliot. They included Britain being given most favored trading status, the opening of several additional trading ports in addition to Canton, British legal authority over British residents in China, reparations for British property destroyed, and the Chinese law over dealing in contraband (such as opium) not be applied to British subjects. They also included the seizure of Chinese territorial islands which could be used as defense positions by the British military. At the same time, a letter was dispatched to the Daoguang Emperor informing him of a British military expedition to enforce the demands.
Both the British Army and troops of the East India Company’s Army were prepared for war, supplemented with additional troops from the Empire. In the summer of 1840, the British forces captured Dinghai, on the island of Zhoushan, for use as a staging base for attacks on mainland China. In August the British forces drove Chinese forces out of Macau and Portugal remained neutral, though allowing the British to use the harbor there as another staging area for future attacks against the Chinese mainland. Britain then focused its efforts on Canton and the Pearl River.