Editing Chinese Embassy
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| − | In late 1805, a '''Chinese Embassy''' arrived in Britain to demand the return of the Celestial dragon [[Lung Tien Xiang]] (known to the British as [[Temeraire]]). They had come to Britain on four ships confiscated from the East India Company, a choice which one embassy member explained to a British naval officer as "they were the largest of your ships in Canton at the time." | + | In late 1805, a '''Chinese Embassy''' arrived in Britain to demand the return of the Celestial dragon [[Lung Tien Xiang]] (known to the British as [[Temeraire]]). |
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| + | The Embassy's original destination and departure date are unknown. They had come to Britain on four ships confiscated from the East India Company, a choice which one embassy member explained to a British naval officer as "they were the largest of your ships in Canton at the time." The "East Indiamen" of that time typically took about one year to sail from China to Britain, which would have begun their outbound journey in late 1804. | ||
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| + | However, at that date, Temeraire's egg was still unhatched and in French possession aboard the ''Amitie''. | ||
| + | This suggests that the Embassy initially left for France with the intention of checking on Temeraire's welfare, before heading for England after hearing the details of the [[Battle of Dover]]. This does not explain why the Embassy targeted British ships for confiscation, unless all foreign-owned ships were being viewed on a roughly equal basis and the East Indiaman were Canton's largest ships of any non-Chinese nationality. | ||
The Embassy spent several months in England attempting to persuade Temeraire to leave behind his captain, [[William Laurence]], and return to China, something that he refused to do. In the end, Temeraire was convinced to travel to China on the condition that Laurence and his crew were to accompany him. The Chinese Embassy then journeyed with them on the HMS [[Allegiance]] back to China. | The Embassy spent several months in England attempting to persuade Temeraire to leave behind his captain, [[William Laurence]], and return to China, something that he refused to do. In the end, Temeraire was convinced to travel to China on the condition that Laurence and his crew were to accompany him. The Chinese Embassy then journeyed with them on the HMS [[Allegiance]] back to China. | ||
| − | Following this, the Embassy may have disbanded, as their services were no longer required. No more contact was made with Temeraire or his crew, save | + | Following this, the Embassy may have disbanded, as their services were no longer required. No more contact was made with Temeraire or his crew, save for Prince Yongxing and the two envoys, the latter of whom were on good terms with the aviators. |
== Members of the Embassy == | == Members of the Embassy == | ||
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*About twelve other men, including a poet. Two known Chinese passengers; [[Ye Bing]] and [[Li Honglin]], may have been part of this group. | *About twelve other men, including a poet. Two known Chinese passengers; [[Ye Bing]] and [[Li Honglin]], may have been part of this group. | ||
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[[Category:A-Z]] | [[Category:A-Z]] | ||
[[Category:Chinese]] | [[Category:Chinese]] | ||
