1st Edition
Sir Rutherford Alcock First British Minister to Japan (1859-1865), Consul (1844-1859) and Minister (1865-1870) to China
By Robert Morton
Copyright 2024
314 Pages
by
Routledge
314 Pages
by
Routledge
314 Pages
by
Routledge
Also available as eBook on:
The son of a village doctor, Rutherford Alcock trained in medicine and became a battlefield surgeon, working in Portugal and Spain during the civil wars there in the 1830s. In a major career shift, he entered the consular service, went to China, and ended up as British Minister (the equivalent of today’s ambassador) to Japan and then China. This progression was unique, indeed bizarre, especially... Read more
Introduction, Chapter One - A Young Man in a Hurry, London, Hexham, Paris, 1809-1828, Chapter Two - Perseverance, courage and fortitude of conduct, Portugal, Spain, 1831-1838, Chapter Three - Highly qualified for any professional situation, London, 1838-1844, Chapter Four - The most able of our Consuls in China, Amoy, Fuzhou, 1844-1846, Chapter Five - Acting with promptness and decision, Shanghai, 1846-1853, Chapter Six - Desolation around and about me, Shanghai, England, Guangzhou, 1853-1859, Chapter Seven - I can hardly say I am disappointed, Edo, 1859-1862, Chapter Eight - The scum of the earth, Yokohama, 1859-1862, Chapter Nine - A hundred petty acts of annoyance, Edo, Yokohama, 1859-1862, Chapter Ten - Sir Rutherford, 1862-1864, London, Chapter Eleven - My service in the East thus terminates, Yokohama, 1864, Chapter Twelve - There is so much to fear and so little to hope, Beijing, 1865-1870, Chapter Thirteen - A Distinct and Disastrous Sacrifice of British Interests, Beijing, 1865-1870, Chapter Fourteen - Savourer the dignity of his position, 1870-1897, London, Afterword, Notes, Bibliography, Acknowledgements, Index.
Biography
Dr Robert Morton is a professor at Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan. He is the author of the prize-winning A.B. Mitford and the Birth of Japan as a Modern State and A Life of Sir Harry Parkes.
