For a few years after the evacuation of the “Small Swords” fromthe city of Shanghai， the Settlements enjoyed peace and prosperity， butthey were soon threatened with a more serious danger， that of invasionby the Taiping Rebels.
Mr. Laurence Oliphant， who visited Shanghai at that time， in hisnarrative of Lord Elgin"s Mission， gives the following picture of life inthose days. He describes people “riding or gyrating daily on the racecourse， as though they were being lounged. Those who prefer gossipto exercise frequent The Bund， a broad quay which extends the wholelength of the Settlement， and which is crowded with Chinese porters allthe morning and sprinkled with European ladies and gentlemen in theafternoon. The harmony and hospitality of Shanghai make it infinitelythe most agreeable place of residence in China to the Mission.“Origin of the Taiping RebellionThe Taiping Rebellion began in the Province of Kwangsi in1850. Its leader， Hung Hsiu-ch"uan， had been influenced by Christianteaching， and his original purpose was a crusade against idolatry， andthe establishment of a society called the “Shangti Hui，” “Associationfor the Worship of God.“He believed in using force for the promotion of his object， andsoon came into conflict with the authorities. This led to open rebellionon his part， and the heading of a movement for the overthrow ofthe Manchu Dynasty and the inauguration of a new dynasty to beknown as the “Tai-ping-tien-kuo，” that is， “Great， Peaceful， HeavenlyKingdom.“He became more and more fanatical in his religious views，claiming for himself the Third Place in the Divine Trinity—consistingof God （the Heavenly Father）， Jesus Christ （the Heavenly ElderBrother）， and himself （the Heavenly Younger Brother）。
Spread of the RebellionThe rebellion spread northwards through Hunan to the YangtzeRiver and established its capital at Nanking on March 19th， 1853. Theexpedition sent to the North to attack Peking was repulsed at Tientsinand the rebels were obliged to fall back on Nanking. Here they wereclosely invested by the Imperialist forces， but one of the four princes，Chung Wang （Loyal Prince）， who had been appointed by Hung Hsiuch"uanas his principal assistant， cut his way out from Nanking andbegan the invasion of Chekiang and Southern Kiangsu. Throughthe activity and strategy of this leader the rebellion， when a bout tocollapse， entered on a new lease of life.
Taking of Soochow
After the taking of Soochow by the Taipings in June， 1860， therewas consternation in Shanghai， as it was felt that before long an attackwould be made on the rich Settlements.
Policy of NeutralityThe original policy adopted by the foreign Powers towards theTaiping Rebellion was that of neutrality. Among the foreign officialsand missionaries some were inclined to sympathize with the rebellion，and to regard it as the dawn of a new era for China， when a bettergovernment than that of the Manchus would be established. Theirhopes， however， were soon dispelled， when it was discovered that thewhole movement was destructive， and had nothing constructive aboutit.
Another reason for following a neutral policy was that Englandand France were at war with China.
This second war between Great Britain and China began in 1856，and may be divided into three stages.
In the first， hostilities were confined to the South， and an attackon Canton; in the second， Lord Elgin， who had been sent out fromEngland to be commander-in-chief， carried the war to the North，and forced the Chinese Government to agree to the Treaty of Tientsin，which was signed on June 26th， 1858 ； in the third， the British andFrench armies advanced on Peking because of the refusal of theChinese authorities to permit the exchange of the ratification of theTreaty in the capital. This led to the taking of that city by the Alliedforces（British and French）and to the signing of the Treaty of Peking，October 22nd， 1860.
Among the public monuments in Shanghai there is one erectedto some members of the British force who took part in the advanceon Peking in 186 0. Lord Elgin had sent forward a small party underMr. （afterwards Sir） Harry Parkes to carry a letter to the Highcommissioners at Tungchow， who had been appointed by the ChineseGovernment to treat with the English and French commanders. Ontheir way back they were seized and sent to Peking， where they wereimprisoned and suffered great indignities. Of the twenty-six Britishseized on September 18th， thirteen， including Mr. Parkes and Mr.
Lock and one English dragoon， were returned alive， the other thirteen，according to Lord Elgin"s account， “were barbarously murdered.” Someof the bodies were sent back， but some were never recovered.
Of the thirteen French seized， five were released alive， the bodiesof six were returned， and two were not accounted for.
A large granite cross was sent out from England in memory ofthose who lost their lives. As there were difficulties connected withits being put up in Peking， it was erected in Shanghai， and stands onthe lawn in front of the British Consulate. On the sides of the stepsforming the base of the cross are inscribed the names of William deNorman， Robert B. Anderson， John Phipps， Luke Brabrazon， andThomas William Bowlby， with the dates of their birth and death.
The cross bears the following quaint inscription：Born in its light，Passing through the dark valley，In its Power，Resting in its shadow.
In its great glory，
Behold it， O Heathen，Enquire， believe， and live 。
The Treaty of Tientsin and OpiumIt is unnecessary here to give the full terms of the Treaty ofTientsin， but one of the provision of the Treaty， that of legalizing theopium trade， calls for some remarks as it had much to do with thecommercial life of Shanghai.