Macartney Embassy - Knowledge

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equals, and thus he would only show Qianlong the same level of respect he would show his own king (he saw the Kowtow as too excessive). Throughout his meetings with Chinese officials, Macartney was repeatedly urged to perform the kowtow during his audience with the emperor. In one message to legate Zhengrui and viceroy Liang Kentang during Macartney's stay in Tianjin, Heshen had instructed the two men to inform Britain's representative that he would be regarded as a "boor" and a "laughingstock" if he did not perform the ritual when the time came. Officials also told Macartney in private that the kowtow was just a "mere exterior and unmeaning ceremony" and he should perform it. Nevertheless, Macartney submitted to Zhengrui a written proposal that would satisfy his requirement of equal status: whatever ceremony he performed, a Chinese official of equal rank would do the same before a portrait of George III. He believed it demeaning that Britain would have to go through the same rituals (and be seen as equal to) Chinese vassal states like Korea.

905: 1016: 464: 811:. The British were not permitted to leave the premises for the duration of their stay. Wanting to be closer to China's political centre, Macartney received permission from Zhengrui to move to a different residence in Beijing, which had been intended to house the embassy after the meeting with the emperor. In Beijing, responsibility for the embassy on the Chinese side would be shared between Zhengrui and two other officials: Jin Jian (金簡), a minister of public works, and his vice minister Yiling'a. The gifts brought by the embassy were stored amongst other tribute items in the throne room at the Old Summer Palace, which Macartney was the first Briton to visit. Barrow and Dinwiddie were responsible for assembling and arranging the gifts. The most important item, the planetarium, was so complex that it took 18 days to assemble. 1096:". However, after the publication in the 1990s of a fuller range of archival documents concerning the visit, these claims have been challenged. One historian characterized the emperor and his court as "clearly clever and competent political operators", and concluded that they acted within the formal Qing claims to universal rule; they reacted prudently to reports of British expansion in India by placating the British with unspecified promises in order to avoid military conflicts and loss of trade. Qianlong also said that he could have revoked Britain's existing privileges due to the king's behavior, but he would not. He said he felt sympathy for England because it is remote and ignorant of the great Chinese civilization. This angered the king and the public in England. 323: 1079:

Macartney's refusal to kowtow in the presence of the Emperor, as is sometimes believed. It was also not a result of the Chinese reliance on tradition in dictating foreign policy, but rather a result of competing world views which were uncomprehending and to some extent incompatible. After the conclusion of the embassy, Qianlong sent a letter to King George III, explaining in greater depth the reasons for his refusal to grant the several requests presented to the Chinese emperor by Macartney. The requests had included a call for the relaxation of the restrictions on trade between Britain and China, the acquisition by Britain of "a small unfortified island near

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references to Christianity and turning the letter into Honorific form (so the word "emperor" is written larger). He was followed by George Staunton, and finally Thomas Staunton. As Thomas had studied the Chinese language, the emperor beckoned him to speak a few words (Thomas said in his diary that he thanked the emperor for the gifts). The British were followed by other envoys, about whom little is written. A banquet was then held to conclude the day's events. The British were seated on the emperor's left, in the most prestigious position.

946:, which requires an individual to kneel with both knees on the ground and bow so as to touch their forehead to the ground, presented a particular dilemma. The kowtow was required not only when meeting the emperor, but also when receiving imperial edicts from his messengers. While Portuguese and Dutch merchants in Canton (now Guangzhou) had acquiesced to the ritual, British subjects, who regarded the act as slavish and humiliating, generally avoided kowtowing to the emperor's edicts by leaving the room when such messages were received. 681:

its own port of arrival. The British officials pointed out, however, that the ships carried many large, precious items that might be damaged if taken overland. Moreover, as the governor noted in his report to the emperor, the embassy had journeyed a great distance, and would be greatly delayed if sent back to Guangzhou from Tianjin. The Qianlong Emperor agreed to the request, and instructed his officials to lead the embassy to him with the utmost civility. The emperor's response was brought back to Guangzhou by General

22: 652:, where they arrived on 19 June 1793. There, George Staunton disembarked to meet with officials of the East India Company. The two Chinese Catholic priests who had been offered free passage to Macau departed there, along with one of the two priests from Naples, leaving only one Chinese interpreter with the mission. For the next leg of the trip, Macartney and Dundas had intended to avoid Guangzhou altogether. Instead of proceeding overland from there, the plan was for the embassy to continue by sea to 1257: 191: 787:

advised Liang not to accompany Macartney to the capital, so as to avoid giving the British too high a sense of their own status. According to Qianlong, "treated too favorably, a Barbarian becomes arrogant". Instead of the viceroy, Zhengrui would act as the mission's liaison. The mission continued up the Hai River on small boats pulled by men along the shore using ropes and harnesses. It landed at Tongzhou on 16 August.

182:, who rejected all of the British requests. Although the mission failed to achieve its official objectives, it was later noted for the extensive cultural, political, and geographical observations its participants recorded in China and brought back to Europe. It came to light in 1796 that a court official Heshen was stealing state funds and frustrated the mission. 656:, the closest major port to Beijing. Such a route had never been charted by European sailors as all trade had been through Guangzhou. Macartney wanted to continue to Tianjin instead of taking the inland route partially because of precious items on the boat, but he also wanted to use the mission to explore the Yellow Sea for future missions. 481:

jurisdiction. He was also to establish a permanent embassy in Beijing so as to create a direct line of communication between the two governments, cutting out the Cantonese merchants who had served as middlemen. Finally, he was to gather intelligence on the Chinese government and society, about which little was known in Europe at the time.

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rails would dramatically increase the productivity of Britain in a few years time. The flexibility of steel swords was noted by courtiers, but the model steam engine was not unpacked. Instead it was given to Dinwiddie to show off in India. China would not acquire advanced steel production until several decades into

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emperor alone, stopping each night at one of the lodges prepared for the emperor's use along the way. Guard posts punctuated the route at roughly five mile intervals, and Macartney observed a large number of troops working to repair the road in preparation for the emperor's return to Beijing later in the year.

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abdication of Qianlong and forced him to commit suicide. As an official, Heshen acquired silver worth an estimated US$ 270 billion. Heshen's insistence that the British pay for tea in silver would frustrate trade for the next half century. As was typical of imperial edicts, the letter contained commentary in

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Critics in England said the problem with the embassy was that it "acknowledged the inferiority of its country ". Macartney himself became ridiculed, with caricatures showing him debasing himself before the Emperor. Macartney became more hostile and negative towards China in his later writings, saying

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One of the goals of the embassy was to demonstrate the utility of British science and technology, in hopes of encouraging Chinese purchases of British goods. In keeping with these objectives, the mission was to bring with it a number of gifts including clocks, telescopes, weapons, textiles, and other

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made a survey of the Great Wall's fortifications with his men, thereby contributing to the intelligence-gathering aspect of the mission, though at the expense of arousing suspicion among their Chinese hosts. Some of the men, meanwhile, took bricks from the Wall as souvenirs. Past the Great Wall, the

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On 24 August, legate Zhengrui brought a letter to Macartney from Sir Erasmus Gower, who reported that the ships of the embassy had reached Zhoushan as ordered. Macartney replied with instructions for Gower to continue on to Guangzhou, but Zhengrui secretly forwarded the letter to the emperor at Rehe

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was to discover in 1823. Banks advised the embassy to gather as many plants as possible in their travels, especially tea plants. He also insisted that gardeners and artists be present on the expedition to make observations and illustrations of local flora. Accordingly, David Stronach and John Haxton

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mission like any other. Despite Macartney and Staunton's insistence that the items the embassy brought were "gifts", Chinese officials saw them as "tribute" items. Macartney himself was to be seen as only a "conveyor of tribute", not a "legate of the sovereign" as he had earlier referred to himself

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Even before Macartney's departure from Britain, he and Dundas had anticipated that there might be some disagreement with the Chinese side on the details of the ceremonies and rituals to be performed at the meeting between Macartney and the emperor of China. Dundas had instructed Macartney to accept

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Despite this dismissal, Qianlong had noted the military superiority implied by several gifts: six brass cannon, a flintlock with an advanced firing mechanism and a model of HMS Royal Sovereign. The gifts that might really have shifted Chinese perceptions were steel and steam: locomotives and steel

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The meeting with the Qianlong Emperor took place on 14 September. The British set off, with Macartney in a palanquin, from their residence at 3 AM in the darkness, arriving at the imperial encampment at 4 AM. Macartney was accompanied by servants, musicians, and other representatives. The ceremony

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to guide the British visitors, and the governor did so. However, Chinese officials had not anticipated that the British intended to sail the high seas rather than hopping from port to port in shallow waters along the coast, as was typical of Chinese vessels. They expressed surprise at the size and

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Representatives of the East India Company met with the military governor of Guangdong ahead of Macartney's arrival, in order to request permission for the embassy to land at Tianjin instead of Guangzhou. The governor at first refused, as it was considered improper for a tributary mission to select

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retained permanent positions at the imperial court. Macartney was instructed to negotiate a relaxation of the Canton System, such that British traders could operate in more ports and markets, and to obtain a small island on the Chinese coast from which British merchants could operate under British

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for the residence of British traders, storage of goods, and outfitting of ships"; and the establishment of a permanent British embassy in Beijing. However, Qianlong's letter's continuing reference to all Europeans as "barbarians", his assumption of all nations of the earth as being subordinate to

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Although ultimately unsuccessful in its primary objectives, the circumstances surrounding the mission provided ample opportunity for both British and Chinese parties to feel totally satisfied about the compromises and concessions they had made. The failure of the primary objectives was not due to

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By the late 18th century, British traders felt confined by the Canton System and, in an attempt to gain greater trade rights, they lobbied for an embassy to go before the emperor and request changes to the current arrangements. The need for an embassy was partly due to the growing trade imbalance

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Having left behind the planetarium and other gifts at the Old Summer Palace, about seventy members of the mission, among them forty soldiers, departed Beijing on 2 September, heading north towards Jehol, where the Qianlong Emperor awaited. The mission proceeded alongside a road reserved for the

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The Macartney Embassy is historically significant for many reasons, most of them visible only in retrospect. While to a modern sensibility it marked a missed opportunity by both sides to explore and understand each other's cultures, customs, diplomatic styles, and ambitions, it also prefigured

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For Macartney, one sticking point was the relative status of the two sovereigns, George III and Qianlong. Macartney believed that Britain was now the most powerful nation on Earth. However, as a diplomat, he had decided that whatever ceremony he participated in must present the two monarchs as

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legate Zhengrui, who stipulated that all gifts were to be brought to Rehe and laid at the emperor's feet in accordance with protocol. However, Macartney convinced the viceroy to permit some of the gifts to be left in Beijing to avoid damaging them on the journey to Rehe. The imperial court had

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September (the day of the embassy's arrival in Chengde), was that Macartney could perform a single prostration in lieu of the nine typically called for. However, Staunton submitted Macartney's proposal to Heshen the day after their arrival, reiterating the British stance on the issue. With no

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north of the Great Wall each autumn. During the reign of Qianlong's grandfather Kangxi, an imperial city was built near the hunting grounds at Chengde to house the emperor and his entourage while he was away from Beijing. It was at Chengde that Qing emperors often greeted foreign dignitaries,

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Despite the misgivings of the East India Company about the potential downsides of the mission, the company was compelled by the government to fund the effort. Dundas and Macartney prioritised national interests over those of the company, which feared the loss of its monopoly position, and the

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Macartney stepped up to the platform first, kneeling once, exchanging gifts with Qianlong and presenting King George III's letter. King George's letter had been translated into Chinese by European missionaries in China. They had made the letter more respectful towards the Emperor by removing

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and a favourite of the emperor, stipulated that Zhengrui was not to make reports alone without the signatures of Jin Jian and Yiling'a, nor make decisions unilaterally. Heshen is now regarded as the most corrupt official in Chinese history. The Jiaqing Emperor realised this in 1796 after the

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increasing British pressure on China to accommodate its expanding trading and imperial network. The mutual lack of knowledge and understanding on both sides would continue to plague the Qing dynasty as it encountered increasing foreign pressure and internal unrest during the 19th century.

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Historians both in China and abroad long presented the failure of the mission to achieve its goals as a symbol of China's refusal to change and inability to modernize. They explain the refusal first on the fact that interaction with foreign kingdoms was limited to neighbouring

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products of technology. Macartney intended the display of technical prowess to reflect Britain's "national character", one of ingenuity, exploration, and curiosity about the natural world. Nevertheless, Dundas reminded him that the mission was not "a delegation of the

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at its zenith, was wary of the transformations of Chinese society that might result from unrestricted foreign access. Chinese subjects were not permitted to teach the Chinese language to foreigners, and European traders were forbidden to bring women into China.

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who represented vassal states. Here too, Macartney's embassy was to meet Qianlong on the occasion of the emperor's birthday. Qianlong called off the hunt to return to Chengde for the ceremonies, as he had done previously in 1754 and 1780 for the visits of

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Henry Dundas laid out his goals for the mission in Macartney's official instructions. More British subjects had been trading in China than any other Europeans. Despite this, the British had no direct contact with the emperor, in contrast to the

265:, whose trade monopoly in the East encompassed the tea trade, was obliged by the Qing government to pay for Chinese tea with silver. To address the trade deficit, efforts were made to find British products that could be sold to the Chinese. 357:

It was difficult for Macartney to find anyone in Britain who could speak Chinese because it was illegal for Chinese people to teach foreigners. Chinese who taught foreigners their language risked death, as was the case with the teacher of

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A Narrative of the British Embassy to China in the years 1792, 1793, and 1794 – Containing the Various Circumstances of the Embassy, with Accounts of the Customs and Manners of the Chinese, and Description of the Country Towns, Cities,

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legal responsibility over commerce in Guangzhou. By the 18th century, Guangzhou, known as Canton to British merchants at the time, had become the most active port in the China trade, thanks partly to its convenient access to the

388:, which trained Chinese boys brought home by missionaries in Christianity. The two wanted to return home to China, to whom Staunton offered free passage to Macau. The 100-member delegation also included scholars and valets. 723:(known as the Pei Ho in European sources of the time) on 25 July, and dropped anchor, finding the muddy water impassable for the larger vessels. The gifts were unloaded from the British ships and transferred upstream to 1960: 1107:

Although the Macartney Embassy returned to London without obtaining any concession from China, the mission could be termed a success in that it brought back detailed observations of a great empire. The painter

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speed of the British ships. Anticipating that these vessels with their deep hulls would not be able to proceed upstream past Tianjin, they hired boats to carry the mission and its cargo to the capital.

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ink by the emperor's own hand. Calling Zhengrui "contemptible and ridiculous", Qianlong ordered him to send Macartney's letter to the viceroy of Zhejiang so the British vessels could leave Zhoushan.

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of the Qing military. William Alexander, who stayed behind in Beijing, expressed regret at being unable to see the Wall for himself. Under Macartney's orders, Lieutenant Henry William Parish of the

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which contained the emperor's throne at the center of a raised platform. Several thousand attendees were present, including other foreign visitors (from Burma and from Muslim tribes in near the

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possibility that the embassy would strain diplomatic relations instead of improving them. By sending a direct representative of the British crown, British politician and later Foreign Secretary

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possesses all things in prolific abundance and lacks no product within its borders. There is therefore no need to import the manufactures of outside barbarians in exchange for our own produce.

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itself, however, rejoined the squadron at Jakarta, after having turned back for repairs after the storm that had struck the ships at the start of their voyage. The full squadron sailed on to

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was charged with producing the official account of the expedition after their return. This multi-volume work was taken chiefly from the papers of Lord Macartney and from the papers of Sir

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The instructions from Dundas also stipulated that Macartney should establish trade relations with other nations of the East. To that effect, Macartney was given letters of credence to the

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had died of disease in August, and the squadron stopped in Zhoushan to recuperate. Having received word that the British ships were beset with illness, Qianlong instructed the viceroy of

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agreement in sight and the ceremony only days away, Qianlong grew increasingly impatient, and considered scrapping the meeting altogether. Finally, it was agreed that Macartney would

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China, and his final words commanding King George III to "...Tremblingly obey and show no negligence!" used the standard imperial sign off as if the king were a Chinese subject.

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Macartney chose George Staunton as his right-hand man, whom he entrusted to continue the mission should Macartney himself prove unable to do so. Staunton brought along his son,

855: 310:. Dundas, who had become Home Secretary, suggested in 1791 that Macartney himself take up the mission instead. Macartney accepted on the condition that he would be made an 170:, Great Britain's first envoy to China. The goals of the mission included the opening of new ports for British trade in China, the establishment of a permanent embassy in 2204:

Harrison, Henrietta (2017). "The Qianlong Emperor's Letter to George III and the Early Twentieth Century Origins of Ideas About Traditional China's Foreign Relations".

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Travels in China, Containing Descriptions, Observations, And Comparison, Made And Collected in the Course of a Short Residence at the Imperial Palace of Yuen-Min-Yuen

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which lasted a month. As young Thomas Staunton studied the Chinese language, Macartney learned everything he could about China from the books he had placed in the

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to ensure the British were quarantined at Zhoushan. The court reprimanded Zhengrui regarding his forwarding of Macartney's letter. An imperial edict written by

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China's power was an illusion and that Qing China would decline and eventually collapse. Macartney predicted that China might collapse within his lifetime.

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Zhengrui objected to this proposal, on the grounds that this notion of reciprocal equality was incompatible with the Chinese view of the emperor as the

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believed that the ship was wrecked, but it actually survived and would reunite with the other ships later. Macartney bought another ship to replace the

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to sell in China. The company made a concerted effort starting in the 1780s to finance the tea trade with opium. Macartney, who had served in India as

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All members of the embassy except Barrow and Dinwiddie were moved to their new quarters in central Beijing on 26 August, as Macartney had requested.

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Chayet, Anne (2004). "Architectural wonderland: An empire of fictions". In Dunnell, Ruth W.; Elliott, Mark C.; Forêt, Philippe; et al. (eds.).

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over the proceedings. Macartney entered the tent along with George and Thomas Staunton, and their Chinese interpreter. The others waited outside.

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terrain became more mountainous and difficult for the men's horses to traverse, slowing their progress. The entourage arrived at the outskirts of

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The embassy continued to Tianjin, where it arrived on 11 August. Macartney and Staunton attended a banquet with viceroy Liang and the

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Symons, Van J. (2004). "The imperial tours to Chengde". In Dunnell, Ruth W.; Elliott, Mark C.; Forêt, Philippe; et al. (eds.).

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to return to Zhoushan at Macartney's request. He also informed Macartney that the meeting with the emperor was to take place at the

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The embassy departed Macao on 23 June. It stopped in Zhoushan, where Staunton went ashore to meet with the military governor of

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to serve as Britain's first ambassador to China. Cathcart became ill during the voyage, however, and died just before his ship,

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reasoned that the mission would be given greater attention than if it had been sent "only in the name of a trading company".

306:, reached China. After the failure of the Cathcart Embassy, Macartney proposed that another attempt be made under his friend 2475: 2168:; Chia, Ning (2004). "The Qing hunt at Mulan". In Dunnell, Ruth W.; Elliott, Mark C.; Forêt, Philippe; et al. (eds.). 1566: 1136: 167: 1285: 978:, as it was not customary for anyone to kiss the emperor's hand. He would do this in addition to the single prostration. 350:

would produce drawings and paintings of the mission's events. A group of scientists also accompanied the embassy, led by

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Radically decentered in the Middle Kingdom:interpreting the Macartney embassy to China froma contact zone perspective

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before the emperor as he would before his own sovereign, touching one knee to the ground, although without the usual

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Some Account of the Public Life, and a Selection from the Unpublished Writings, of the Earl of Macartney

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Series 62: Papers concerning publication of the account of Lord Macartney's Embassy to China, ca 1797.

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was responsible for selecting and arranging engraving of the illustrations in this official record.

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The embassy reached Beijing on 21 August. It was escorted to a residence north of Beijing, near the

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was sent to pilot the ships of the embassy to Tianjin, and joined the squadron when it reached the

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The expedition departed Rio de Janeiro on 17 December and sailed east once more, rounding the

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The Approach of the Emperor of China to His Tent in Tartary to Receive the British Ambassador

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Banks, Joseph. Papers of Sir Joseph Banks; Section 12: Lord Macartney's embassy to China;

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accompanied the embassy, and published numerous engravings based on his watercolours. Sir

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At the time of Macartney's mission to China, the East India Company was beginning to grow

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https://ora4-prd.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:4d8b8ce8-ae73-4daf-99ac-0321959a8645

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and William Scott), two secretaries, three attachés, and a military escort. Artists

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Harrison,H. Chinese and British diplomatic gifts in the Macartney Embassy of 1793.

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Our First Ambassador to China: An Account of the Life of George, Earl of Macartney

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of the reception that he expected Lord Macartney to get from the Qianlong Emperor

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To Begin the World Over Again: How the American Revolution Transformed the Globe

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Lieutenant-Colonel George Benson, Commandant of the fifty-man Ambassador's Guard

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It was the practice of the Manchu emperors of the Qing dynasty to lead a ritual

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Cherishing Men from Afar: Qing Guest Ritual and the Macartney Embassy of 1793

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New Qing Imperial History: The Making of Inner Asian Empire at Qing Chengde

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New Qing Imperial History: The Making of Inner Asian Empire at Qing Chengde

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New Qing Imperial History: The Making of Inner Asian Empire at Qing Chengde

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between China and Great Britain, driven largely by the British demand for

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confined all foreign maritime trade to Guangzhou. Qianlong, who ruled the

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One of Lieutenant Parish's technical drawings of the Great Wall of China

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