The expedition was the first time a European vessel traversed the passage, and was believed by the Chinese to be inaccessible to foreigners due to the shallowness and intricacy of the channel as well as the forts along the banks.

The iron steamship Nemesis had a shallow draught of 6 feet (1.8 m), which was a major advantage in navigating the river.

[5] Captain James Scott commanded the fleet, which consisted of HMS Samarang and the East India Company steamships Nemesis and Atlanta.

A British officer wrote that the interpreters' "knowledge of the language and their good judgment frequently enlisted in our favour the people of the country, who might have offered great annoyance, and they were often able to mitigate the hardships even of war itself.

"[5] List of forts captured (and the number of guns) in chronological order on 13 March: Further up the river, the fleet reached the trading town of Heangshan (Zhongshan).