 Promotions piled up and by 1839 Yang had held titles including Military Commander of Guangdong and Guangxi as well as Governor-general of Gansu, Zhili, Hunan and Sichuan.When the First Opium War broke out (from the Chinese perspective) in June 1840, Qing Special Commissioners Lin Zexu and Deng Tingzhen were resolute in their opposition to the British but their successor Qishan instead sought compromise.In January the following year, Daoguang declared war on Great Britain.