Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 3.djvu/763

 CHINA

683

CHINA

Indies". The " English Company Cor General Society) trading to the Easl Indies" also called the" NewCom- pany" was incorporated by William 111, ."> Sept., 1698, and the two were amalgamated in 1708 9 bj Queen Anne, under the title of "The United Com- pany of Merchants of England trading to the East Indies", commonly known as "the Honourable East India Company".

The Russians crossed the Ural Mountains in the middle oi the ixteenth century under Ivan IV, and subjugated Siberia; from the Lena River they passed, in 1642, into the basin of the Amur. Step- anof, one of their chiefs, mel the Chinese for the first time in 1654, when exploring the Sungari River. After withstanding two sieges of their principal fort, Albasin, the Russians signed a treaty with the Chi- nese ai Nerchinsk 27 Aug., 1689), which destroyed their influence in tin region of Amur, and from which they did not recover until the middle of the nine- teenth century. In 1727 Count Sava Vladislavitch signed a treaty regulating the inland trade between the two countries.

In 1660 the French organized a "Compagnie de Chine" which in liiiil was amalgamated with the "Compagnie des ludes", which gave up its China privileges in 1697 us to "Compagnie Jourdan, la Coulange el I ' " ". which made Canton a trading centre. New companies were organized for the commerce of China in October, 1705, and November, 1.712. Finally, in 171!t. all the companies wire merged into the "Compagnie des Indes", whose privilege was suspended in 1769, and which was finally dissolved 6 Vpril, 1770. A new "Compagnie des End irporated It April, 1785, and dis-

solved :; April, IT'.M. A French consulate wa lished at Canton :: Feb., 177n. Tie- Danes had two companies organized in 1612 and 1670. Austria was represented bj tic Ostend Company, incorporated 17 Dec, 1722, and th< he t Company. Prussia had tic Emden Company. In 1627 a Swedish company organized; in 1655 Nils Matson Kioping visited China. On 14 June. 1731, a charter was granted by King Frederick of Sweden to a company organized at Gothenburg. The first American commercial expedition to China was undertaken by the Empress

i en nded by John < Ireen, which

from New York for Canton. 22 Feb., 1784.

Trading was carried on at Canton through privi-

nls called Hong merchants, whose coun- cil, called Co-hong, was incorporated in 1720. Their number varied, but never exceeded thirteen. The traded in thirteen hongs, or fac- ibo 00 feet from the banks of the Pearl River, and about 1000 Feel broad. The Hong merchants, hard pressed by the Hoj

>m mandarin, ran into debt with the foreign

merchants. \ irisH "I Commodore Anson (1742), a

special mission of Captain Panton, evens transfer of

mother part of the empire, did not rem-

i mces of Europeans, who

were not allowed to reside permanently at Canton.

but were' compelled to retire to Macao when business

i ■ < I nglisa -in! an embassy, headed by Macartney, in the I, ion and tie- Hindi tney reached Peking. 21 Aug., 1793, but did not

obtain permission for the English to trade at Chusan,

Ning-po, and T'ien-tsin, or to have a warehi

Peking for their goods. Macartney's

£80,000 about (380,000), but was without result.

Still |i ' was the emba j ol I ord \m

herst (1816). Lord Napier, who was sent on a

ted worn out by his negotiations. Grievances continued to increase year aftei until the destruction (June, 1839) of 20,283 chests of opium by Commissioner Lin brought matters to a climax.

On 9 June, 1810, a blockade of the Canton

was proclaimed by Admiral Sir John Gordon Bremer Ting-hai (Chusan) was captured, 7 July, 1841. Sir Henry Pottinger was now appointed plenipotentiary, and Sir William Parker commander-in-chief. Amoy was captured 27 August, Ning-po 13 Oct., 1841, Shanghai, 16 June, 1842, and the British squadron

1 the Ta-kiang (Yang-tze). Finally a treaty of thirteen articles was signed at Nan-king by Pot- linger and Ki-ying, 20 Aug., 1842, on board thi Cornwallis. Canton, Amoy, Fu-chou, Ning-po, and Shanghai were to be opened to trade, and consuls appointed to reside at each of these cities. The island of Hong-Kong was ceded to Great Britain, and indemnities were paid: 80,000,000 for the opium seized, $12,000,000 for the expenses of war, ami $3,000,000 for the debts of the Hong merchants, whose guild was abolished. The United States and France followed the example of Great Britain. A treaty was signed with the United States at \\ ang- ina, near Macao, 3 July, 1844, by Caleb dishing, and one with France by Theodose de Lagrene' at Wham- poa, L'l Oct., 1844. Am agreement with Belgium was signed at Canton, 25 July, 1845, and a treaty with Norway and Sweden, 20 March, 1847. The Chusan Archipelago was surrendered to the Chinese in 1*17 by Sir John F. Davis, governor of Hong-Kong. Hong-Kong had been declared a free port, Feb., 1842 to the great damage of Macao.

The advantages, however, obtained through the Treaty of Nan-king were soon found insufficient. The murder of the French priest Chapdelaine in Kwang-si ( 12»"> Feb., 1856) and the seizure at Canton of the lorcha Arrow (8 Oct., 1856) by the Chinese fur-

! the pretext for a joint action of England and France against China. The bombardment of Canton (27 29 I let., 1 Soli i. the great rebellion in India (May, L857), the appointment of Lord Elgin and Baron tiros as envoys to China by the two belligerents, the capture of Canton (29 Dec, 1857) and of the Taku forts i20 May. 1S",S|, are the chief events which preceded the signing of the English (26 June) and French (27 June. 1858) tn aties of T'ien-tsin. These treaties permitted the appointment of French and

h ambassadors to Peking, and allowed the ( Ihinese a like privilege of appointing ambassadors at

the Court of St. James and the Court of Paris,

provided for the opening of the ports of New ch Tang-chou (Che-fu), Tai-wan (Formosa), Chao-chou (Swatow), and Kiung-chou (Hai-nan), granted an in- demnity of 2,000,000 taels for damages to the British and a like sum to both powers for war expenses, besides an indemnity to French subject-, for the lo

sustained through plunder, when ''anion was taken, and guaranteed the punishment of the murderer of Father ( hap.lelaine.

On the 25th of June, 1859, the plenipotentiaries, Bruce and Bourboulon, who were on their Peking to have these treatii ratified, were fired upon by the Taku forts. A second war ensued.

Elgin and Gros wen- appointed special envo

China; Sir Hope (Irani and Admiral Hop.-. General

de Montauban and Admiral Charner were placed in

command of the British and French land and naval

forces. The forts of Taku were recaptured (21 Aug.,

I860). The allies married past T'ien tsin, and. aftei withstanding a treacherous attack by the Chin Tung i-lioii i is Sept.. I860

the I'a-li k'iao bridge 21 - iptured

the Summer Palace (Yuan-ming-yuan), 6 Oct., which was plundered. ban, another

pin of id.- imp. rial summer resort, was burnt by

order of Lord Elgin (18 Oct

l.arou oflicted upon tic I

oners taken in tie- dastardlj attack at Tun The emperor Bed to Shehol, and his brother, Prim-. Kung, who had remained at Peking, signed thi ventfone of 24 1 25< >ct, I860, with the allies. The