1830s


The 1830s was the decade that began on January 1, 1830, and ended on December 31, 1839.
In this decade, the world saw a rapid rise in imperialism and colonialism, particularly in Asia and Africa. Britain saw a surge of power and world dominance, as Queen Victoria took to the throne in 1837. Conquests took place all over the world, particularly around the expansion of the Ottoman Empire and the British Raj. New outposts and settlements flourished in Oceania, as Europeans began to settle over Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States.

Politics

Pacific

China

China was ruled by the Daoguang Emperor of the Qing dynasty during the 1830s. The decade witnessed a rapid rise in the sale of opium in China, despite efforts by the Daoguang Emperor to end the trade. A turning point came in 1834, with the end of the monopoly of the East India Company, leaving trade in the hands of private entrepreneurs. By 1838, opium sales climbed to 40,000 chests. In 1839, newly appointed imperial commissioner Lin Zexu banned the sale of opium and imposed several restrictions on all foreign traders. Lin also closed the channel to Guangzhou, leading to the seizure and destruction of 20,000 chests of opium. The British retaliated, seizing Hong Kong on August 23 of that year, starting what would be known as the First Opium War. It would end three years later with the signing of the Treaty of Nanking in 1842.

Japan

The Padri War was fought from 1803 until 1837 in West Sumatra between the Padris and the Adats. The latter asked for the help of the Dutch, who intervened from 1821 and helped the Adats defeat the Padri faction. The conflict intensified in the 1830s, as the war soon centered on Bonjol, the fortified last stronghold of the Padris. It finally fell in 1837 after being besieged for three years, and along with the exile of Padri leader Tuanku Imam Bonjol, the conflict died out.

Vietnam

The British government appointed a series of administrative heads of British India in the 1830s : Lord William Bentinck, Sir Charles Metcalfe, Bt, and The Lord Auckland. The Government of India Act 1833 was enacted to remove the East India Company's remaining trade monopolies and divested it of all its commercial functions, renewing the company's political and administrative authority for another twenty years. It invested the Board of Control with full power and authority over the company.
The English Education Act by the Council of India in 1835 reallocated funds from the East India Company to spend on education and literature in India. In 1837, the British East India company replaced Persian with local vernacular in various provinces as the official and court language. However, in the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, Urdu instead of Hindi was chosen to replace Persian.
In 1835, William Henry Sleeman captured "Feringhea" in his efforts to suppress the Thuggee secret society. Sleeman's work led to his appointment as General Superintendent of the operations for the Suppression of Thuggee. In February 1839, he assumed charge of the office of Commissioner for the Suppression of Thuggee and Dacoity. During these operations, more than 1400 Thugs were hanged or transported for life.

Western Asia

Poland

United Kingdom

Royalty
In 1830, William IV succeeded his brother George IV as King of the United Kingdom. Upon his death in 1837, his 18-year-old niece, Princess Victoria. Under Salic law, the Kingdom of Hanover passed to William's brother, Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, ending the personal union of Britain and Hanover which had existed since 1714. Queen Victoria took up residence in Buckingham Palace, the first reigning British monarch to make this, rather than St James's Palace, her London home.
Politics and law
Britain had four prime ministers during the 1830s. As the decade began, Tory Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington led parliament. Wellington's government fell in late 1830, failing to react to calls for reform. The Whigs selected Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey to succeed him, who led passage of many reforms, including the Reform Act 1832, the Slavery Abolition Act 1833, and the Factory Acts.
In 1834 Grey retired from public life, leaving Lord Melbourne as his successor. Reforms continued under Lord Melbourne, with the Poor Law Amendment Act in 1834, which stated that no able-bodied British man could receive assistance unless he entered a workhouse. King William IV's opposition to the Whigs' reforming ways led him to dismiss Melbourne in November and then appoint Sir Robert Peel to form a Tory government. Peel's failure to win a House of Commons majority in the resulting general election made it impossible for him to govern, and the Whigs returned to power under Melbourne in April 1835. The Marriage Act 1836 established civil marriage and registration systems that permit marriages in nonconformist chapels, and a Registrar General of Births, Marriages, and Deaths.
There were protests and significant unrest during the decade. In May and June 1831 in Wales, coal miners and others rioted for improved working conditions in what was known as the Merthyr Rising. William Howley Archbishop of Canterbury has his coach attacked by an angry mob on his first official visit to Canterbury in 1832. In 1834, Robert Owen organized the Grand National Consolidated Trades Union, an early attempt to form a national union confederation. In May 1838, the People's Charter was drawn up in the United Kingdom, demanding universal suffrage. Chartism continued to gain popularity, leading to the Newport Rising in 1839, the last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in mainland Britain.
In 1835, James Pratt and John Smith were hanged outside Newgate Prison in London after a conviction of sodomy, the last deadly victims of the judicial persecution of homosexual men in England.

Western Europe

Germany