for Eng.Kelvin History assignment

Emperor Qianlong: Letter to King George III (1793)

Several nations had sent representatives to China in an effort to persuade the Qing emperors to open up their country to foreign business, with no success. In 1792, England decided to send Lord Macartney as an envoy to Beijing, in the same hope of establishing reasonable trade relations. Even before the English delegation landed, the Chinese forced them to run up a flag on the vessel that carried them up on which it was written, “Tribute-bearers from England.” This was quite in accordance with the Chinese custom of claiming all gifts brought by visitors to their emperor as tribute. Another custom was that whoever approached the throne of the emperor must perform the kowtow, that is, must kneel three times, and at each kneeling must bow three times till his head touched the floor. Lord Macartney told the Chinese legate that he would not perform the kowtow unless a high officer of state would kowtow before a picture of the King of England. Emperor Qian Long (r. 1735-1795) finally agreed to admit the ambassador, who only bent his knee, as he would have done before his own sovereign. Qian Long ruled China for much of the 18th century, the last period in which China was strong enough to resist, or better, disdain external influence. Below is the letter he wrote in response to the request from George III of Britain (r. 1760-1820) for trade privileges.

You, O King, live beyond the confines of many seas, nevertheless, impelled by your humble

desire to partake of the benefits of our civilization, have dispatched a mission respectfully

bearing your memorial. Your envoy has crossed the seas and paid his respects at my Court on the

anniversary of my birthday. To show your devotion, you have also sent offerings of your

country’s produce.

I have perused your letter: the earnest terms in which it is couched reveal a respectful humility

on your part, which is highly praiseworthy. In consideration of the fact that your ambassador and

his deputy have come a long way with your letter and tribute, I have shown them high favor and

have allowed them to be introduced into my presence. To manifest my indulgence, I have

entertained them at a banquet and made them numerous gifts. I have also caused presents to be

forwarded to the Naval Commander and six hundred of his officers and men, although they did

not come to Peking, so that they too may share in my all-embracing kindness.

As to your entreat to send one of your nationals to be accredited to my Celestial Court and to be

in control of your country’s trade with China, this request is contrary to all usage of my dynasty

and cannot possibly be entertained. It is true that Europeans, in the service of the dynasty, have

been permitted to live at Peking, but they are compelled to adopt Chinese dress, they are strictly

confined to their own precincts, and are never permitted to return home. You are presumably

familiar with our dynastic regulations. Your proposed envoy to my Court could not be placed in

a position similar to that of European officials in Peking who are forbidden to leave China, nor

could he, on the other hand, be allowed liberty of movement and the privilege of corresponding

with his own country; so that you would gain nothing by his residence in our midst.

Moreover, our Celestial dynasty possesses vast territories, and tribute missions from the

dependencies are provided for by the Department for Tributary States, which ministers to their

wants and exercises strict control over their movements. It would be quite impossible to leave

them to their own devices. Supposing that your envoy should come to our Court, his language

and national dress differ from that of our people, and there would be no place in which to bestow

him. It may be suggested that he might imitate the Europeans permanently resident in Peking and

adopt the dress and customs of China, but, it has never been our dynasty’s wish to force people

to do things unseemly and inconvenient. Besides, supposing I sent an ambassador to reside in

your country, how could you possibly make for him the requisite arrangements? Europe consists

of many other nations besides your own: if each and all demanded to be represented at our Court,

how could we possibly consent? The thing is utterly impracticable.

How can our dynasty alter its whole procedure and system of etiquette, established for more than

a century, in order to meet your individual views? If it be said that your object is to exercise

control over your country's trade, your nationals have had full liberty to trade at Canton for many

a year, and have received the greatest consideration at our hands. Missions have been sent by

Portugal and Italy, preferring similar requests. The Throne appreciated their sincerity and loaded

them with favors, besides authorizing measures to facilitate their trade with China. You are no

doubt aware that, when my Canton merchant, Wu Chao-ping, who was in debt to foreign ships, I

made the Viceroy advance the monies due, out of the provincial treasury, and ordered him to

punish the culprit severely. Why then should foreign nations advance this utterly unreasonable

request to be represented at my Court? Peking is nearly two thousand miles from Canton, and at

such a distance what possible control could any British representative exercise?

If you assert that your reverence for Our Celestial dynasty fills you with a desire to acquire our

civilization, our ceremonies and code of laws differ so completely from your own that, even if

your envoy were able to acquire the rudiments of our civilization, you could not possibly

transplant our manners and customs to your alien soil. Therefore, however adept the envoy might

become, nothing would be gained thereby.

Swaying the wide world, I have but one aim in view, namely, to maintain a perfect governance

and to fulfil the duties of the State: strange and costly objects do not interest me. If I have

commanded that the tribute offerings sent by you, O King, are to be accepted, this was solely in

consideration for the spirit which prompted you to dispatch them from afar. Our dynasty’s

majestic virtue has penetrated unto every country under Heaven, and Kings of all nations have

offered their costly tribute by land and sea. As your ambassador can see for himself, we possess

all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country's

manufactures. This then is my answer to your request to appoint a representative at my Court, a

request contrary to our dynastic usage, which would only result in inconvenience to yourself. I

have expounded my wishes in detail and have commanded your tribute envoys to leave in peace

on their homeward journey. It behooves you, O King, to respect my sentiments and to display

even greater devotion and loyalty in future, so that, by perpetual submission to our Throne, you

may secure peace and prosperity for your country hereafter. Besides making gifts (of which I

enclose an inventory) to each member of your mission, I confer upon you, O King, valuable

presents in excess of the number usually bestowed on such occasions, including silks and curios-

a list of which is likewise enclosed. Do you reverently receive them and take note of my tender

goodwill towards you!

In the same letter, a further mandate to King George III dealt in detail with the British

ambassador's proposals and the Emperor's reasons for declining them.

You, O King, from afar have yearned after the blessings of our civilization, and in your

eagerness to come into touch with our converting influence have sent an Embassy across the sea

bearing a memorial. I have already taken note of your respectful spirit of submission, have

treated your mission with extreme favors and loaded it with gifts, besides issuing a mandate to

you, O King, and honoring you with the bestowal of valuable presents. Thus has my indulgence

been manifested.

Yesterday your ambassador petitioned my ministers to remind me of your trade with China, but

his proposal is not consistent with our dynastic usage and cannot be entertained. Hitherto, all

European nations, including your own country's barbarian merchants, have carried on their trade

with our Celestial Empire at Canton. Such has been the procedure for many years, although our

Celestial Empire possesses all things in prolific abundance and lacks no product within its own

borders. There was therefore no need to import the manufactures of outside barbarians in

exchange for our own produce. But as the tea, silk and porcelain which the Celestial Empire

produces, are absolute necessities to European nations and to yourselves, we have permitted, as a

signal mark of favors, that foreign hongs [merchant firms] should be established at Canton, so

that your wants might be supplied and your country thus participate in our beneficence.

But your Ambassador has now put forward new requests which completely fail to recognize the

Throne's principle to “treat strangers from afar with indulgence,” and to exercise a pacifying

control over barbarian tribes, the world over. Moreover, our dynasty, swaying the myriad races

of the globe, extends the same benevolence towards all. Your England is not the only nation

trading at Canton. If other nations, following your bad example, wrongfully importune my ear

with further impossible requests, how will it be possible for me to treat them with easy

indulgence? Nevertheless, I do not forget the lonely remoteness of your island, cut off from the

world by intervening wastes of sea, nor do I overlook your excusable ignorance of the usages of

our Celestial Empire. I have consequently commanded my Ministers to enlighten your

Ambassador on the subject, and have ordered the departure of the mission. But I have doubts

that, after your Envoy's return he may fail to acquaint you with my view in detail or that he may

be lacking in lucidity, so that I shall now proceed . . . to issue my mandate on each question

separately. In this way you will, I trust, comprehend my meaning.

Your request for a small island near Chusan, where your merchants may reside and goods be

warehoused, arises from your desire to develop trade. As there are neither foreign hongs nor

interpreters in or near Chusan, where none of your ships have ever called, such an island would

be utterly useless for your purposes. Every inch of the territory of our Empire is marked on the

map and the strictest vigilance is exercised over it all: even tiny islets and far-lying sandbanks

are clearly defined as part of the provinces to which they belong. Consider, moreover, that

England is not the only barbarian land which wishes to establish . . . trade with our Empire:

supposing that other nations were all to imitate your evil example and beseech me to present

them each and all with a site for trading purposes, how could I possibly comply? This also is a

flagrant infringement of the usage of my Empire and cannot possibly be entertained.

The next request, for a small site in the vicinity of Canton city, where your barbarian merchants

may lodge or, alternatively, that there be no longer any restrictions over their movements at

Aomen, has arisen from the following causes. Hitherto, the barbarian merchants of Europe have

had a definite locality assigned to them at Aomen for residence and trade, and have been

forbidden to encroach an inch beyond the limits assigned to that locality.... If these restrictions

were withdrawn, friction would inevitably occur between the Chinese and your barbarian

subjects, and the results would militate against the benevolent regard that I feel towards you.

From every point of view, therefore, it is best that the regulations now in force should continue

unchanged....

Regarding your nation's worship of the Lord of Heaven, it is the same religion as that of other

European nations. Ever since the beginning of history, sage emperors and wise rulers have

bestowed on China a moral system and inculcated a code, which from time immemorial has been

religiously observed by the myriads of my subjects. There has been no hankering after heterodox

doctrines. Even the European (missionary) officials in my capital are forbidden to hold

intercourse with Chinese subjects; they are restricted within the limits of their appointed

residences, and may not go about propagating their religion. The distinction between Chinese

and barbarian is most strict, and your Ambassador's request that barbarians shall be given full

liberty to disseminate their religion is utterly unreasonable.

It may be, O King, that the above proposals have been wantonly made by your ambassador on

his own responsibility, or peradventure you yourself are ignorant of our dynastic regulations and

had no intention of transgressing them when you expressed these wild ideas and hopes.... If, after

the receipt of this explicit decree, you lightly give ear to the representations of your subordinates

and allow your barbarian merchants to proceed to Chêkiang and Tientsin, with the object of

landing and trading there, the ordinances of my Celestial Empire are strict in the extreme, and the

local officials, both civil and military, are bound reverently to obey the law of the land. Should

your vessels touch the shore, your merchants will assuredly never be permitted to land or to

reside there, but will be subject to instant expulsion. In that event your barbarian merchants will

have had a long journey for nothing. Do not say that I have not warned you.

From E. Backhouse and J. O. P. Bland, Annals and Memoirs of the Court of Peking (Boston, 1914) pp. 322331

http://academics.wellesley.edu/Polisci/wj/China/208/READINGS/qianlong.html