In the wake of the Opium Wars of the mid-nineteenth century, China, defeated by the superior technology and firepower of the West, was in the unenviable position of having to sign treaties that in many respects worked to the nation’s detriment. These treaties came to be referred to as the “unequal treaties” because China was forced to concede territorial and sovereignty rights and get little in return. Put simply, China felt that it had been bullied by stronger nations such as the United States, Great Britain, and France. In the “Circular Letter on the Unequal Treaties”—“circular” because it was to be circulated among multiple recipients—the Zongli Yamen, or the Office of General Management, articulated China’s dissatisfaction with some of the terms of the treaties and in particular how the Western powers were abusing those terms.