The last embassy : the Dutch mission of 1795 and the forgotten history of western encounters with China / Tonio Andrade.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Andrade, Tonio, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Netherlands--Foreign relations--China.

Netherlands.

Netherlands--Foreign relations--1714-1795.

China--History--Qianlong, 1736-1795.

China.

China--Foreign relations--Netherlands.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (424 p.) : 26 b/w illus. 6 maps.

Place of Publication:

Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press, [2021]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

From the acclaimed author of The Gunpowder Age, a book that casts new light on the history of China and the West at the turn of the nineteenth centuryGeorge Macartney's disastrous 1793 mission to China plays a central role in the prevailing narrative of modern Sino-European relations. Summarily dismissed by the Qing court, Macartney failed in nearly all of his objectives, perhaps setting the stage for the Opium Wars of the nineteenth century and the mistrust that still marks the relationship today. But not all European encounters with China were disastrous. The Last Embassy tells the story of the Dutch mission of 1795, bringing to light a dramatic but little-known episode that transforms our understanding of the history of China and the West.Drawing on a wealth of archival material, Tonio Andrade paints a panoramic and multifaceted portrait of an age marked by intrigues and war. China was on the brink of rebellion. In Europe, French armies were invading Holland. Enduring a harrowing voyage, the Dutch mission was to be the last European diplomatic delegation ever received in the traditional Chinese court. Andrade shows how, in contrast to the British emissaries, the Dutch were men with deep knowledge of Asia who respected regional diplomatic norms and were committed to understanding China on its own terms.Beautifully illustrated with sketches and paintings by the Dutch delegation and by Chinese artists, The Last Embassy reveals that the Qing court, mischaracterized as arrogant and narrow-minded by British diplomats and historians, was in fact open, flexible, curious, and very cosmopolitan.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

List of Maps

A Note to the Reader

Prologue: A Clash of Cultures?

Chapter 1 The Center

Chapter 2 The Amateur

Chapter 3 Man Proposes, God Disposes

Chapter 4 The Delta

Chapter 5 Canton

Chapter 6 A Dreadful Prospect

chapter 7 The Imperial Way

Chapter 8 A Walk into Winter

Chapter 9 Beijing

Chapter 10 Ice Games

Chapter 11 Favored Guests of the Emperor

Chapter 12 A New Year

Chapter 13 The Purple Ray Pavilion, A Good Death, A Tour of Temples

Chapter 14 Stately Pleasure Gardens

Chapter 15 The Lantern Festival

Chapter 16 Goodbye, Beijing

Chapter 17 By Land through Beizhili and Shandong

Chapter 18 Sailing into Spring

Chapter 19 Zhejiang and Jiangxi

Chapter 20 An Uncertain Future

Conclusions: A Contested Embassy and the History of Sino-Western Relations

Acknowledgments

A Note on Place Names, Transliterations, Terms, and Sources

Abbreviations

Notes

Index

A note on the type

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780691219882

0691219885

OCLC:

1249475245