晚清澳门军火走私贸易问题探析

An Analysis of the Smuggling Trade of Macao Arms in the Late Qing Dynasty

晚清时期政局动荡不安,各种社会力量叠加兴起。随着对军火的需求陡增,使得澳门因其相对宽松自由的交易环境以及界址不清等因素成为这一时期军火走私内地,特别是广东地区的主要来源地。通过火药承充的专营制度,澳门华商基本控制了从火药原料到相关行业的军火买卖,充当了澳门军火走私运入内地的重要桥梁。澳门军火走私使得华南地区,尤其是广东地区的局势更加动荡,增加了社会的不稳定性。

In the late Qing Dynasty,the political situation was turbulent,various social forces were superimposed,and the demand for arms increased sharply. All these factors together with the relatively loose and free trading environment and the undecided boundaries contributed to making Macao a major source of arms smuggling into China’s mainland,especially in Guangdong province. Through the franchise system covered by gunpowder,Chinese merchants in Macao basically controlled the arms sales from gunpowder raw materials to related industries,and served as an important bridge for the smuggling of Macao arms into China’s mainland. The social impact of the smuggling of arms in Macao is complex. Generally,the situation in South China,especially in Guangdong province,has become more volatile and has produced a negative impact on the social stability.