Canton was taken by the British in December 1857. The Taku Forts fell in May 1858 and Tientsin was occupied. Negotiations were attempted but failed. An allied force of British and French landed in 1860, marched on Peking, and the Chinese yielded. Political Result: By the treaty of October 24, 1860, the Chinese paid an indemnity of eight million taels. The right of Europeans to travel in the interior was granted, and freedom guaranteed to the preaching of Christianity. By the customs tariff agreed upon the import of opium was legalized. In the course of 1861 British, French, and Russian legations were permanently established at Peking, and in the following years the same right was conceded to other European nations. By treaties with Russia in the same year China ceded all its territory north of the Amur to Russia, and in this territory Vladivostock was founded. Good relations having been established, the Chinese Government, with the assistance of Gordon, carried out a successful campaign against the Taipings, and the Manchu dynasty was restored. Remarks: This was the opening of the door into China, and from henceforth the Western Powers began to compete for commercial and territorial prizes in the Chinese Empire. AMERICAN CIVIL WAR 1861–1865 Belligerents: The Northern states of North America. The Southern states of North America. Cause: The cultivation of cotton progressed under very different conditions in the North and South. In the North the white man had to work vigorously to overcome the disadvantages of the soil. In the South the negro labourer could be used with profit to his owner, and was held as a slave. By 1860 the thirteen original states were enlarged to thirty-three. The territories of the North-east found their prosperity in free labour, the South throve on the cotton crop and continued to exploit negro labour. The Southern states gradually combined together, and between 1830 and 1850 gained a predominant voice in the control of Federal affairs. The North also became consolidated, and a strong movement against slavery grew up, chiefly owing to the efforts of W. Lloyd Garrison. A new Republican party gained strength in its opposition to the dominating differences of the South, and sectional political differences were intensified. The prospect of the abolition of slavery was not the only issue. The South resented the idea that coercive measures might be used to keep the lower South in the Union. They believed this to be an attack on the doctrine of the sovereignty of states. A widespread feeling in favour of secession grew up. Occasion: The Republican party triumphed at the election, and Abraham Lincoln became President in November, 1860. South Carolina seceded, ten other states followed, and the Confederate States were established under the Presidency of Jefferson Davis. The attack on Fort Sumter by the Confederates on April 4, 1861, made war inevitable. Course of the War: