Battle of Tonkin River

Battle of Tonkin River
Part of Piracy in Asia
Destruction of Shap Ng tsai's fleet
Date October 20–22, 1849 Location near Hai Phong, Tonkin River, Vietnam Result British/Chinese/Tonkinese victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom Qing dynasty Nguyen dynasty	Shap Ng-tsai's pirates
Commanders and leaders
John C. Hay Admiral Wong	Shap Ng-tsai
Strength
Land: unknown land forces Sea: 2 sloops-of-war 1 brig 8 war-junks	Land: ~1,400 pirates Sea: 64 war-junks
Casualties and losses
British: none 2 sloops-of-war damaged 1 brig damaged Chinese: unknown Vietnamese: unknown	~2,400 killed or wounded ~300 captured 58 junks sunk

Part of a series on the
History of Haiphong
List Battle of Tonkin River (20–22 October 1849) 1881 Haiphong typhoon (27 September – October 8 1881) Haiphong incident (23 November 1946) Operation Custom Tailor (10 May 1972) Operation End Sweep (6 February – 27 July 1973)
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The Battle of Tonkin River was a major naval battle fought in northern Vietnam between the pirates of Shap Ng-tsai and the British Royal Navy with aid from the Qing Chinese navy and the Tonkinese. The 1849 expedition led to the destruction of Shap Ng-tsai's fleet and the loss of over 2,000 men. The battle occurred over a three-day period at the mouth of the Tonkin River, near present-day Hai Phong.^[1]