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A RECONNAISSANCE OF MA WAN AND
LANTAO ISLANDS IN 1794
J. L. CRANMER-BYNG AND A. SHEPHERD
Historical Background
The English East India Company started to trade at Canton at the beginning of the eighteenth century. By the last quarter of the century the trade had grown extensively, mainly because of the increasing demand for China tea in England. However, the more trade grew the more the Chinese officials at Canton controlled it through various regulations. Unfortunately many of these regulations were changed frequently, especially those concerning the dues and fees to be paid. The supercargoes of the East India Company were never certain how much money would be demanded of them from one year to another, and their complaints against what they often considered to be arbitrary exactions increased. At last the government of England was forced to take notice of the unsatisfactory relations existing at Canton between the supercargoes of the East India Company and the various Chinese officials. As a result it was decided to send an embassy direct to the Emperor Ch'ien-lung at Peking in the mistaken belief that if the Emperor knew of the grievances of the English merchants at Canton he would rectify them. At the same time the English government decided to use this opportunity to attempt to put the relations between Britain and China on a proper diplomatic footing as understood in the West. The man selected as ambassador was Lord Macartney, a skilled diplomat and administrator, who had been British Ambassador at St. Petersburg and recently Governor of the Presidency of Madras.
In order to impress the Chinese officials with the advanced state of civilization in Europe, and especially with Britain's skill in scientific inventions and technical achievements, Macartney was given a large suite which included a natural philosopher, an experimental scientist, a draughtsman, a metallurgist, a watch-maker, a mathematical instrument maker and a botanist. This was the first time that an English embassy had been sent to China, and certainly the first time that a group of Englishmen