The once all-powerful French Emperor Napoleon had a famous saying about China. A common quote is: "China is a sleeping lion. Once it awakens, it will shock the world." This may be Napoleon's most popular saying. one. So in history, did Napoleon really say what he said, or has the story changed? And on what occasion was it said?
Various contemporary media, whether newspapers or online articles, have many research studies on this passage, and there are also romantic versions. Among them, the most informative and reliable Chinese material is "The Stagnant Empire" written by the late French contemporary historian and statesman Perefit. If you start with the most original first-hand information, you can find that Napoleon's remarks about China are basically from the memoirs "Voice from St. Helena" by his personal doctor O'Meara. However, there is no reference to "sleeping lion" in the original text, which is left to the understanding of later generations.
St. Helena is the place where Napoleon was exiled after he was defeated by Britain and other anti-French allies. O'Meara was the Irish doctor assigned to Napoleon at the time. He later became Napoleon's friend and stayed on the island after leaving the island. Napoleon's remarks during this period were compiled and published as "Voices from St. Helena". In this book, there are three main paragraphs of Napoleon's remarks about China, all of which were conversations with Dr. O'Meara, which took place in March, May and August of 1817 respectively. The content is that O'Meara talked about the British mission to the Qing Dynasty and Lord Amherst who passed by St. Helena Island on his way back home.
Lord Amherst’s mission to China was another British mission more than 20 years later, after sending the huge Macartney mission to China in 1792, with the purpose of promoting China’s opening up to trade with Britain. Mission. To clarify the historical background of this period, we have to start with the Macartney Mission.
(1) Macartney Mission
In September 1792, the British government sent Macartney as the chief envoy and Staunton as the deputy envoy, including more than a hundred The mission staff, including more than 700 sailors, set off on a mission to China. This was the first time that a Western country sent an official mission to China. The purpose of the mission was to congratulate the Chinese Emperor Qianlong on his 80th birthday. At the same time, the more important task was to open the way for Britain to trade with China. The mission brought with them muzzle-loading rifles, telescopes, astronomical instruments, clocks, and a model of Britain's most powerful warship (a first-class battleship) that represented advanced technology at the time.
The mission arrived in China in August 1793 and soon had a dispute with Qing officials over the etiquette of meeting the emperor. The British were extremely reluctant to perform the three-kneeling and nine-kowtow ceremony that Chinese courtiers used when meeting the emperor. Macartney proposed that if he insisted on using the Qing Dynasty's three kneels and nine kowtows, he would give the same great gift to the British King: either find a Qing official of the same level to salute the emperor in the mission and salute the British King's portrait at the same time; or announce it to the public , when officials from the Qing Dynasty paid a return visit, they also had to kneel three times and kowtow to the King of England. Qing Dynasty officials were naturally very angry about this method and could not accept it. After some debate, a compromise was finally reached, and the British envoy changed to kneeling on one knee instead of kowtowing.
Although the British mission finally preserved their dignity on the issue of etiquette, the substantive issues related to trade were completely frustrated. The British envoy's requests for opening a small number of trade ports, establishing embassies, making tax concessions public, and allowing missionaries were all rejected. Emperor Qianlong's idea was very simple: He had everything he needed in China, and there was no need to trade with foreign countries. And those "kid-kat" things are not rare for us either. Qianlong's edict said: "Your king has brought in all kinds of things this time. In consideration of his sincerity and sincerity, he specially ordered the Yamen to take them. In fact, the virtue of the Celestial Dynasty is far away, and kings from all countries have come. All kinds of valuable things have been collected by the ladder. I have it. Your envoys have seen it in person. However, it is not expensive and there is no need for it to be made by your country."
The British mission returned in disgrace and was met with cold treatment and the humiliation of being treated as a minister. One member of the mission made an exaggerated statement: "When you enter Beijing, you look like a beggar, when you live there, you look like a prisoner, and when you leave, you look like a thief." Sexy sigh. At the same time, sharp-eyed British people also saw the real weakness under the arrogance of the Qing Dynasty. Macartney’s travel notes mentioned that Chinese civilization has not only not improved since the Marco Polo era, but has also regressed, at least in the past hundred years. In the past fifty years, while we were developing science and art, they had degenerated into semi-savages relative to Europe." In terms of domestic affairs, "there were uprisings breaking out in provinces almost every year" and "the government was a small number of Tatar nobles." Relying on tyranny to rule 300 million Chinese people.
"The official editor of this travelogue is the deputy envoy of the mission, George Staunton. His twelve-year-old son, Little Staunton, also serves as a page boy and becomes a member of the mission. This little Staunton is very smart. , studied Chinese diligently during the voyage and journey, and became the only person in the mission who was roughly proficient in Chinese. Twenty-three years later, this page boy stood in his father's position and became the next British mission.
(2) Tijin Mission
There was an episode a year after the Macartney mission’s visit, when the Netherlands sent a 7-member delegation. A small mission came to Beijing to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Emperor Qianlong's accession to the throne. The mission was led by Isaac Tizin, who was an official of the Dutch East India Company in Batavia (now Indonesia). He had been stationed in Indonesia earlier. The Japanese business plenipotentiary met with the Japanese shogunate of Edo. The Tijin mission adopted the attitude of "it is not surprising to many people", including kneeling three times and kowtowing nine times. It is inevitable to suffer hardships, including the Emperor Qianlong. A three-hundred-pound sturgeon was given as a gift, and he had to kneel and kowtow three times. The standard of treatment he received was relatively higher than that of the British mission, but there were many people in the mission who thought it was not worthy of his "payment." This was just. This mission was basically for the purpose of paying tribute, but it was also the last mission to see the Chinese emperor before the Opium War in 1840.
The translator in the Tijin mission was stationed in Guangzhou. Frenchman De Guigne. After returning to France, De Guigne published his reminiscences in 1808. At this time, the French Emperor Napoleon also became interested in China and ordered De Guigne to compile a book. A Chinese-French-Latin dictionary. This dictionary took more than 5 years to complete and is basically based on the Chinese-Latin dictionary written by Gremona a century ago.
(3) Ami. The German Mission
Britain sent another large-scale mission more than 20 years after the Macartney mission. In the more than 20 years between the two missions, Europe was in a state of crisis. During the French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic War, Napoleon's French troops roamed Europe for more than ten years and were almost invincible. As France's main enemy, Britain was very worried that its overseas commercial areas would fall into French hands. The Portuguese territory of Macau was occupied to prevent the threat of France, but relations with China also became more tense.
After many years of war, Napoleon was finally defeated by the great powers at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. At the end of his career, after the defeat, Napoleon was exiled to the island of St. Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. At this time, Britain's influence in Europe became stronger, its national power became stronger, and Lord Amherst's need to expand the world market became stronger. It was against this background that the mission's main mission was to urge the Qing government to abolish the public system that had been used for many years to "use officials to control business and business to control barbarians", open more commercial ports, and expand trade freedom. < /p>
The envoy of the mission, Amherst, is a general. His father is Lieutenant General William Amherst. One uncle is an admiral, and the other uncle is a famous British army general in the Seven Years' War. Marshal Geoffrey Baron Amherst. Since his uncle, Marshal Jeffrey Amherst, had no offspring, he became his heir to the title. Influenced by his uncle, he had a keen interest in diplomacy early on and served as a diplomatic envoy during the Napoleonic era. One of his deputy envoys was the son of the deputy envoy of the Macartney Mission and the little page boy of the mission at that time, Sir Staunton the Younger. After more than 20 years of experience, this former page boy has become the chairman of the British East India Company's Special Committee in Guangzhou, and is also an authentic China expert.
The mission set out in February 1816, arrived in Guangzhou in July, and in Tianjin in August. Just like last time, there was an immediate dispute with Qing officials over the etiquette of the meeting. The Qing government insisted on kneeling three times and kowtowing nine times to the current emperor Jiaqing, but Amesh was only willing to take off his hat three times and bow nine times instead. The two sides were in a stalemate, and the mission had to stay in Tongzhou outside Beijing.
During this period, Qing court officials continued to persuade Amesh to accept three kneels and nine kowtows. The deputy envoy, Staunton Jr., and others strongly opposed this, believing that it was detrimental to British dignity. Before Amherst set off, the British government had stated that it could make some compromises on etiquette if necessary, but after Amherst considered it, he decided to put honor first. But the mission must be completed as hard as possible, so Amesh proposed to kneel down on one knee and lower his head three times, and repeat it three times.
The officials of the Qing court could not resist, so they had to go to Emperor Jiaqing to criticize foreigners, saying that "it is unnatural for foreigners to get up and kneel down, but it is not a proper etiquette", and they had practiced kowtow many times. Jiaqing heard the news and planned to summon him.
However, the mission hurriedly traveled through the night to Beijing. The journey was dusty and exhausted, and the vehicle carrying official uniforms and credentials could not keep up. Amesh asked to rest before talking. Unexpectedly, the official responsible for the introduction was clever and lied to Jiaqing that the British envoy was ill, which offended the emperor Long Yan. In anger, Emperor Jiaqing ordered the mission to be expelled. Although Emperor Jiaqing later figured out the whole story, he gave the mission higher courtesy on their return trip and relaxed some restrictions on British businessmen. But in the end, the envoy did not even meet the emperor, and most of their demands failed, making the British extremely angry.
The return voyage of the Amherst mission was also not smooth, and they returned from Macau on January 28, 1817. The ship sank once and encountered pirates. It was not until the end of June that we arrived at St. Helena, Napoleon's place of exile. However, news was faster than people. Around March, the news of Amherst's experience and arrival at St. Helena had already reached Napoleon's ears. He had three wonderful conversations about this incident with his personal doctor, the Irishman O'Meara, before Amherst arrived and after he left. Of course, due to the incomplete information received from the island, some of the details in the comments may not be complete, and As Britain's old enemy, there is also an element of "making fun of" the British in the comments. As for Amherst when he arrived at the island to stay, Napoleon did not have an in-depth conversation with him, probably because he did not want to add salt to the wound of the unlucky envoy in person.
(4) Napoleon's three comments
The first conversation between Napoleon and O'Meara was three months before Amerst arrived.
March 25, 1817 (translated from Dr. O'Meara's recollections):
I told the Emperor that Lord Amherst (the British envoy who had recently been to China) was passing some time. The day is coming here. He said that he thought that the British ministers had been wrong not to have previously ordered him to comply with the customs of the country where he was sent, or that they should not have sent him at all. I pointed out that the British would consider it an insult to the country if Amherst agreed to submit to the required decency. If concessions are made on this point, the Chinese may not be satisfied, and may also demand etiquette such as those demanded by the Japanese and complied with by the Dutch with disgrace. Besides this, Lord Amherst had agreed to pay the same courtesy to the Chinese Emperor as he had to the King of England. Napoleon replied: "These are two different things. One is just a ceremony, where the top officials of the country salute the head of the country. The other is a country specially used to make foreigners grovel. In my opinion, no matter what the customs of a country are, as long as it is Foreigners will not be ashamed if they follow the etiquette of important officials of the country towards the head of the country. In England, if you kiss the king's hand in the palace, this would be considered ridiculous in France, and anyone who does this will become a laughing stock. . But the French ambassador still does this when he comes to England. In Britain, if the king asked people to kneel to serve him, this kind of etiquette is still there in Spain. But it is not degrading. When a person goes to another country, he should follow the local customs. No matter what etiquette Lord Amherst uses, as long as it is the courtesy of a high-ranking official to the Chinese emperor, it is not degrading. The Chinese emperor follows the same etiquette as meeting the British king, but you have no right to send people to China to tell them that because of a certain etiquette, the British must follow this etiquette. To give a hypothetical example, if the British custom is not to kiss the king's hand. , but the king’s butt. Should the Chinese emperor also take off his pants? "
This passage was accompanied by exaggerated actions, which made me laugh. The emperor also laughed humorously.
"If I," he continued, "should send an envoy to China, I would order him to first become acquainted with the etiquette in the presence of the emperor from the senior Chinese officials, and to submit to the same etiquette if required. , without adding any extraneous details. Now, because of a stupid thing, you may lose the friendship of a country and lose huge commercial interests. "I said that we can easily force China to agree to more favorable terms with a few warships. For example, we can use some cruisers to anchor at suitable blockade locations and cut off their salt supply. Napoleon replied: "Waging a war against a huge empire like China, with its vast resources, is the biggest mistake that can be made in many years. You will undoubtedly succeed at first, capturing their ships and destroying their commerce. But you will let them Realize their own strength. They will be forced to find ways to resist you and defend themselves. They will think and say: Why should we be oppressed by people from so far away and let them do what they want? We must make ourselves the same as this country. powerful.
We have to build ships, we have to put cannons on them, we have to have the same equipment as they do. "The emperor continued: "They will also find craftsmen and shipbuilders from France and the United States, and even go to London to find them. They will build a fleet and sooner or later, they will defeat you. "
May 27, 1817 (translated from Dr. O'Meara's memories): - Napoleon's condition improved, but his right cheek was still swollen. I had a conversation with him about the envoy issue. "What if," He said, “Give China’s top official one million francs and all problems will be solved. Because that mission does not represent the honor of the country. It is, and should be, viewed more as a commercial matter rather than directly affecting the country. He was actually an envoy sent to China by the British tea merchants, so he could gain both fame and fortune through bribery. In addition, when you send envoys to deal with barbarians, you must please them and comply with their customs. They won't look for you. They will neither send envoys back to you nor ask you to send anyone. Now, Britain may lose huge commercial interests, and the result may be war with China. If I were an Englishman, I would consider those who advocate war with China to be the country's most dangerous enemies at the moment. You will eventually be defeated and perhaps an Indian revolution will follow. ”
On June 27, 1817, Amherst arrived at St. Helena. Some articles often regard Napoleon’s conversation with O’Meara in March as a conversation with Amherst. In fact, Napoleon The conversation with Amherst was basically domestic and he did not express any actual opinions.
On July 1, 1817, Amherst paid a visit to Napoleon.
(Quoted from: Stagnant. Empire (Perefit) Chapter 85 - Advice from Prisoners of War on St. Helena Island)
Lord Amherst met alone without anyone else attending, and no one was introduced except himself. Passed. Here’s what he said:
“There was this extraordinary man in front of me. He wore a green dress, white trousers, silk socks and knotted shoes. Under his arm was a tricorn hat. Wearing the medal of the Legion of Honor on his chest. I've seen paintings before that made him look a bit puffy; in fact, that's not the case at all. He is a bit fat and has a short neck; but his limbs are well proportioned and I think he can still get regular exercise. His eyes were cold and keen, and they came alive when he spoke. The conversation covered four main topics: my experience, China, his treatment on the island, and European politics. ”
When talking about China, the emperor did not criticize Amesid’s actions: “He asked me about my situation in Beijing and inquired about Tatar etiquette. But he didn't say anything about the possibility of my submission, as I was prepared to do... Later he asked me about my trip to China. He did not want to embarrass us about his own fate on the island. I was already reporting to the government on the failure of the mission, and it would be too much to ask me to bring an additional message... Then he sent for Ellis to come in. …The rest of the entourage soon entered the hall…He spoke to everyone, including my nephew Jeff. He thought he had a pretty face (original text in French) and asked him what he had brought home from his trip to China.
On July 2, 1817, Amherst left the island.
August 26, 1817 (translated from Dr. O'Meara's memories): Napoleon made the following remarks to our mission to China.
"It is said that your envoy Lord Macartney was forced to kowtow in 1793, otherwise he would not have been received. Your minister who sent Amherst must have foreseen this. Etiquette difficulties. Since it has been foreseen, he should be authorized to obey local etiquette, and it seems that his personal opinion is to follow local customs and was misled by wrong opinions."
"A man who has. The fallacy that many people believe is that envoys represent the monarch, but the envoy does not represent his monarch. In fact, the agreement he signs has no effect until it is approved. As for the ceremonial rank of envoys, no monarch treats them as equals. There is no precedent for a return visit, no need to make way for them, and no other treatment equivalent to what a foreign monarch deserves. "..." Lord Macartney, it seems. Lord Amherst wanted to use a method that the Russians had also tried. They suggested that a Qing official of equal rank should kowtow to the portrait of the British king at the same time, or publicly announce that if the Chinese court sends envoys to Britain, they must also kowtow. etiquette. China rejected this proposal for good reasons.
If a Chinese envoy is received in London, he has no right to kowtow, but should be received by the British King as a British prince, courtier, or knight of the Garter. In other words, the British version of kowtow. "...
"Your envoys have cost you hundreds of thousands of pounds. When money is lost, what may be gained is fundamental differences and hostility between China and your country. All of this is the result of ridiculous misunderstandings. When the customs of another country should be respected, you consider your own customs to be superior. The etiquette of respect which should be shown to a great foreign monarch has been changed to that of your country. "...
"You said you could use maritime force to intimidate them, thereby forcing the Chinese to obey European etiquette. This is a crazy idea. You have definitely made the wrong calculation. If you do this, you will prompt a country of 200 million people to arm itself and build a fleet to deal with you for self-defense. The unfortunate outcome is that every reasonable person in your country will decide that it is unwise to refuse to kowtow. ”
(5) Conclusion
The British mission to China twice was a collision of two different cultures, concepts and systems. Britain, a new generation of capitalist power with maritime hegemony , and the Qing Dynasty, they can say that they don't like each other. The etiquette dispute is just one of the microcosms. The British concept of "kneeling three times, kneeling on the ground, and kowtowing three times each time" is for ministers. Or a vassal, symbolizing the emperor's supreme authority. As an equal country, Napoleon said that "envoys do not represent national honor" and pointed out that the British made a fuss. After receiving the interview, he lost the opportunity to meet the emperor because of other people who accidentally offended Long Yan. However, even if he met the emperor, there was little hope of success due to differences in understanding of trade exchanges.
As for Britain's possible threat of force, Napoleon sided with China and pointed out quite prophetically that this would speed up China's awakening. Although the original text did not include "China will shock the world once it awakens." "But the basic meaning is similar. It's just that the process of awakening is much longer, more complicated and tortuous.