CHAPTER 23

Asian Transitions in an Age of Global Exchange

Learning Objectives

23.1 Where were the major centers of the Indian Ocean trading system located? For which products did the Portuguese seek to use force to monopolize and ship back to Europe? How successful were they, and why?

23.2 Why were European merchants and missionaries so interested in relations with China and establishing bases there? Why were the Chinese so resistant to their overtures?

23.3 Why did the rulers of Japan initially welcome European traders and missionaries, and why did they ultimately expel all but the Dutch?

Chapter Outline

I. The Asian Trading World and the Coming of the Europeans

European discoveries

Products not wanted in East

Muslim traders control Indian Ocean, southern Asia

Missionary activity blocked by Islam

Asian political divisions advantageous

The Asian Sea-Trading Network, circa 1500

Arab zone

Glass, carpet, tapestries

Indian zone

Cotton textiles

Chinese zone

Paper, porcelain, silk goods

Marginal regions

Japan, southeast Asia, east Africa

Raw materials

Ivory, spices

Conditions

Followed coastline

No central control

No military protection

A. Trading Empire: The Portuguese Response to the Encounter at Calicut

Portuguese use military force

Diu, 1509

Defeated Egyptian-Indian fleet

Forts for defense

Ormuz, 1507

Goa, 1510

Malacca 1511

Goal: monopolize spice trade, control all shipping

B. Portuguese Vulnerability and the Rise of the Dutch and English Trading Empires

17th century

English and Dutch challenge Portuguese control

Dutch

1620, took Malacca

Fort built at Batavia, 1620

Concentrated on certain spices

Generally used force less

Used traditional system

English

India

C. Going Ashore: European Tribute Systems in Asia

Europeans restricted to coastlines

Permission needed to trade inland

Sporadic conflict

Portuguese, Dutch used force in Sri Lanka

Cinnamon

Spanish

Philippines

Took North

D. Spreading the Faith: The Missionary Enterprise in South and Southeast Asia

Robert di Nobili

Italian Jesuit

Limits of success beyond stigmatized groups

Success in the Philippines

Not previously exposed to a world religion

Role of friars – conversion of local leaders

Filipino Christianity blended Catholicism and traditional beliefs

II. Ming China: A Global Mission Refused

Ming dynasty (1368–1644)

Founded by Zhu Yuanzhang

Helped expel Mongols

Took name Hongwu, 1368

Mongols forced north of Great Wall

A. Another Scholar-Gentry Revival

Restoration of scholar-gentry

High offices

Imperial schools restored

Civil service exam re-established

B. Reform: Hongwu’s Efforts to Root Out Abuses in Court Politics

Chief minister

Position abolished

Hongwu took powers

Imperial wives from modest families

C. A Return to Scholar-Gentry Social Dominance

Agricultural reforms

To improve peasants’ lives

Balanced by encroaching landlord power

Women

Confined

Bearing male children stressed

D. An Age of Growth: Agriculture, Population, Commerce, and the Arts

American food crops

Marginal lands farmed

Chinese manufactured goods in demand

Merchants profited

Patronage of fine arts

Innovations in literature

Woodblock printing

E. Ming Expansion and Retreat and the Arrival of the Europeans

Emperor Yunglo

1405–1423, expeditions

Indian Ocean

African coast

Persia

Admiral Zheng He

Chinese Retreat and the Arrival of the Europeans

Isolationist policy

(1390, overseas trade limited)

Missionaries

Franciscans, Dominicans

Jesuits tried to convert elite

Matteo Ricci, Adam Schall

Found place at court

Not much success at conversion

F. Ming Decline and the Chinese Predicament

Weak leaders

Public works

Failures led to starvation, rebellion

Landlords exploitative

1644, dynasty overthrown

III. Fending Off the West: Japan’s Reunification and the First Challenge

Nobunaga

Daimyo

Use of firearms

Deposed Ashikaga shogun, 1573

Killed, 1582

Toyotomo Hideyoshi

Nobunaga’s general

1590, ruled Japan

Invaded Korea, unsuccessful

Died, 1598

Succession struggle

Tokugawa Ieyasu

Emerged victorious

1603, appointed shogun

Concentrated on political consolidation at home

Edo (Tokyo)

Direct rule of Honshu

Elsewhere, ruled through daimyos

Restoration of unity

250-year rule by Tokugawas

A. Dealing with the European Challenge

Traders, missionaries to Japan since 1543

Firearms, clock, presses for Japanese silver, copper, finished goods

Nobunaga protects Jesuits

To counter Buddhist power

Hideyoshi less tolerant

Buddhists weakened

B. Japan’s Self-Imposed Isolation

Foreign influence restricted from 1580s

Christianity

Persecutions by 1590s

Banned, 1614

Ieyasu

Increased isolation

1616, merchants restricted

By 1630, Japanese ships forbidden to sail overseas

By 1640s, Dutch, Chinese traded only at Deshima Island

Complete isolation from mid-1600s

Tokugawa

Neo-Confucian revival

Replaced by National Learning school

Chapter Summary

Vasco Da Gama’s voyage to India had opened the way to the East for Europeans, but its initial impact was greater for Europe than for Asia. Europeans had little to offer Asians in exchange for their desired products. Asians were not interested in converting to Christianity, and their states were too strong to be conquered. Asian civilizations developed according to their own diverse internal workings and the influences of neighboring states and peoples. Only the islands of southeast Asia were vulnerable to European naval power.

The Asian Trading World and the Coming of the Europeans. The first Portuguese arriving in India discovered that their products, apart from silver bullion, were too primitive for profitable exchange for Asian goods. They saw that Muslim traders dominated the Indian Ocean and southern Asian commerce, and that Islam blocked the spread of Roman Catholicism. The Europeans also noticed that political divisions divided Asians, who did not understand the threat posed by the new intruders. The trading network stretched from the Middle East and Africa to east Asia and was divided into three main zones. An Arab division in the West offered glass, carpet, and tapestry manufacturing. In the center was India, producing cotton textiles. China, in the East, manufactured paper, porcelain, and silk textiles. Peripheral regions in Japan, southeast Asia, and east Africa supplied raw materials. Among the latter were ivory from Africa and spices from Sri Lanka and Indonesia. In the overall system, profits were gained from commerce in both long-distance luxury items and shorter-distance bulk goods. Most of the trade passed along safer coastal routes, converging in vital intersections at the openings of the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, and the Straits of Malacca. The system had two critical characteristics: no central control and a lack of military forces.

Trading Empire: The Portuguese Response to the Encounter at Calicut. Since they did not have sufficient acceptable commodities for profitable trade to Asia, the Portuguese used force to enter the network. Their ships and weaponry were unmatched, except by the Chinese. Taking advantage of the divisions between Asians, the Portuguese won supremacy along the African and Indian coasts. They won an important victory over an Egyptian-Indian fleet at Diu in 1509. To ensure control, forts were constructed along the Asian coast: Ormuz on the Persian Gulf in 1507, Goa in western India in 1510, and Malacca on the Malayan peninsula. The Portuguese aimed to establish a monopoly over the spice trade and, less successfully, to license all vessels trading between Malacca and Ormuz.

Portuguese Vulnerability and the Rise of the Dutch and English Trading Empires. The Portuguese had limited success for some decades, but the small nation lacked the manpower and ships necessary for market control. Many Portuguese ignored their government and traded independently, while rampant corruption among officials and losses of ships further hampered success. Dutch and English rivals challenged the weakened Portuguese in the 17th century. The Dutch captured Malacca and built a fort at Batavia in Java in 1620. They decided to concentrate on monopolizing key spices. The English were forced to fall back to India. The Dutch trading empire resembled that of the Portuguese, but their ships were better armed, and they controlled their monopoly with great efficiency. The Dutch discovered that the greatest long-run profits came from peacefully exploiting the established system. When the spice trade declined, they relied on fees charged for transporting products from one Asian place to another. They also bought Asian products and sold them within the system. The English later adopted Dutch techniques.

Going Ashore: European Tribute Systems in Asia. Europeans were able to control Asian seas, but not inland territories. The vast Asian armies offset European technological and organizational advantages. Thus, Europeans accepted the power of Asian rulers in return for permission to trade. Only in a few regions did war occur. The Portuguese and Dutch conquered coastal areas of Sri Lanka to control cinnamon. In Java, the Dutch expanded from their base at Batavia to dominate coffee production. By the mid-18th century, they were the paramount power in Java. In the Philippines, the Spanish conquered the northern islands but failed in the Islamic South. The Europeans established tribute regimes resembling the Spanish system in the New World. Indigenous peoples lived under their own leaders and paid tribute in products produced by coerced labor under the direction of local elites.

Spreading the Faith: The Missionary Enterprise in South and Southeast Asia. The Protestant Dutch and English were less interested in winning converts than were Roman Catholic Portugal and Spain. Success in Asia was minimal. Islam and Hinduism were difficult foes. During the 1660s, the Italian Jesuit Robert Di Nobli unsuccessfully attempted to win converts among upper-caste members through the study of

Sanskrit and Indian culture. General conversion occurred only in isolated regions, such as the northern Philippines. Once conquered, the government turned indigenous peoples over to missionary orders. Converted Filipino leaders led their peoples into European ways, but traditional beliefs remained strong within the converts’ Catholicism.

Ming China: A Global Mission Refused. The Ming dynasty (1368–1644) ruled over the earth’s most populous state. China possessed vast internal resources and advanced technology. Its bureaucracy remained the best organized in the world, and its military was formidable. The dynasty emerged when Zhu Yuanzhang, a military commander of peasant origins, joined in the revolts against the Mongols and became the first Ming emperor, taking the name Hongwu, in 1368. Zhu strived to drive out all Mongol influences and drove the remaining nomads beyond the Great Wall.

Another Scholar-Gentry Revival. The poorly educated Zhu was suspicious of the scholar-gentry, but he realized that their cooperation was necessary for reviving Chinese civilization. They were given high government posts, and imperial academies and regional colleges were restored. The civil service exam was reinstated and expanded. The highly competitive examination system became more systematic and complex, allowing only the most talented, ambitious individuals to become eligible for the highest posts.

Reform: Hongwu’s Efforts to Root Out Abuses in Court Politics. Hongwu sought to limit the influence of the scholar-gentry and to check other abuses at the court. He abolished the post of chief minister and transferred to himself the considerable powers of the office. Officials failing in their tasks were publicly and harshly beaten. Other reforms included choosing imperial wives from humble families, limiting the number of eunuchs, and exiling all rivals for the throne to provincial estates. Writings displeasing to the ruler were censored. Later rulers of the dynasty let the changes lapse.

A Return to Scholar-Gentry Social Dominance. Hongwu sought to improve the lives of the peasantry through public works that aided agriculture, opening new and untaxed lands, lowering forced-labor demands, and promoting handicraft industries supplementing household incomes. The beneficial effects of the measures were offset by the growing power of rural landlords allied with the imperial bureaucracy. Peasants were forced to become tenants or landless laborers. The Ming period continued the subordination of women to men, and youths to elders. Draconian laws forced obedience. Nonconforming activities, including those of women, had to go underground. Imperial women continued to be influential, especially with weak emperors. Outside the court, women were confined to the household; their status hinged on bearing male children. Upper-class women might be taught reading and writing by their parents, but they were barred from official positions. Nonelite women

worked in many occupations, but the main way to gain independence was to become a courtesan or entertainer.

An Age of Growth: Agriculture, Population, Commerce, and the Arts. The early Ming period was one of buoyant economic growth and unprecedented contacts with overseas civilizations. The commercial boom and population increase of late Song times continued. The arrival of American food crops allowed cultivation in marginal agricultural areas. By 1800, there were over 300 million Chinese. Chinese-manufactured goods were in demand throughout Asia and Europe, and Europeans were allowed to come to Macao and Canton to do business. Merchants gained significant profits, a portion of them passing to the state as taxes and bribes. Much of the wealth went into land, the best source of social status. The fine arts found generous patrons. Painters focused on improving established patterns. Major innovation came in literature with the full development of the novel, assisted by an increase in the availability of books through the spread of woodblock printing.

Ming Expansion and Retreat, and the Arrival of the Europeans. Under Emperor Yunglo, between 1405 and 1423 the Ming sent a series of expeditions to southeast Asia, Persia, Arabia, and east Africa under the command of Zheng He. The huge fleets of large ships demonstrated a Chinese potential for global expansion unmatched by other contemporary nations. However, after the end of the Zheng He expeditions, the Chinese developed a policy of isolation. In 1390, the first decree limiting overseas commerce appeared, and the navy was allowed to decline. Europeans naturally were drawn to the great empire. Missionaries sought access to the court. Franciscans and Dominicans worked to gain converts among the masses; the Jesuits followed the strategy di Nobili used in India, trying to win the court elite. They recognized that scientific and technical knowledge were the keys to success at the court. Jesuits like Matteo Ricci and Adam Schall displayed such learning, but they won few converts among the hostile scholar-gentry who considered them mere barbarians.

Thinking Historically: Means and Motives in Overseas Expansion: Europe and China Compared. Why did the Chinese, unlike Europeans, withdraw from overseas expansion? The small nation-states of Europe, aggressively competing with their neighbors, made more efficient use of their resources. European technological innovations gave them an advantage in animal and machine power that helped them prevail over China’s superiority in other areas. One answer to the differing approaches can be seen in the attitudes of the groups favoring expansion in each society. There was wide support in general European society for increasing national and individual wealth through successful expansion. Christian leaders sought new converts. Zheng He’s voyages were the result of an emperor’s curiosity and desire for personal greatness. Merchants, already profiting from existing commerce, were little interested. The scholar-gentry opposed the expeditions as a danger to their position and as a waste of national resources.

Ming Decline and the Chinese Predicament. By the late 1500s, the dynasty was in decline. Inferior imperial leadership allowed increasing corruption and hastened administrative decay. The failure of public works projects, especially on the Yellow River, caused starvation and rebellion. Exploitation by landlords increased the societal malaise. In 1644, the dynasty fell to Chinese rebels.

Fending Off the West: Japan’s Reunification and the First Challenge. During the 16th century, an innovative and fierce leader, Nobunaga, one of the first daimyos to make extensive use of firearms, rose to the forefront among the contesting lords. He deposed the last Ashikaga shogun in 1573, but he was killed in 1582 before finishing his conquests. Nobunaga’s ablest general, Toyotomo Hideyoshi, continued the struggle and became master of Japan by 1590. Hideyoshi then launched two unsuccessful invasions of Korea. He died in 1598. Tokugawa Ieyasu won out in the ensuing contest for succession. In 1603, the emperor appointed him shogun. The Tokugawas continued in power for two and a half centuries. Ieyasu, ruling from Edo (Tokyo), directly controlled central Honshu and placed the remaining daimyos under his authority. Gradually, outlying daimyos were also brought under Tokugawa’s rule. The long period of civil wars had ended; political unity was restored.

Dealing with the European Challenge. European traders and missionaries had visited Japan in increasing numbers since 1543. The traders exchanged Asian and European goods—the latter including firearms, clocks, and printing presses—for Japanese silver, copper, and artisan products. The firearms, which the Japanese soon manufactured themselves, revolutionized local warfare. Roman Catholic missionaries arrived during Nobunaga’s campaigns. He protected them as a counterforce to his Buddhist opponents. By the 1580s, the Jesuits claimed hundreds of thousands of converts. Hideyoshi was less tolerant of Christianity. The Buddhists had been crushed, and he feared that converts would give primary loyalty to their religion. Hideyoshi also feared that Europeans might try to conquer Japan.

Japan’s Self-Imposed Isolation. Official measures to restrict foreign influence were ordered from the late 1580s. Christian missionaries were ordered to leave; persecution of indigenous Christians was underway during the mid-1590s. Christianity was officially banned in 1614. Continued persecution provoked unsuccessful rebellions and drove the few remaining Christians underground. Ieyasu and his successors broadened the campaign to isolate Japan from outside influences. From 1616, merchants were confined to a few cities; by 1630, Japanese ships could not sail overseas. By the 1640s, only Dutch and Chinese ships visited Japan to trade at Deshima Island. Western books were banned. The retreat into isolation was almost total by the mid-17th century. The Tokugawa continued expanding their authority. During the 18th century, the revival of neo-Confucian philosophy that had flourished under the early Tokugawas gave way to a school of National Learning based on indigenous culture. Some of the elite, in

strong contrast to the Chinese scholar-gentry, continued to follow with avid interest Western developments through the Dutch residents in Deshima.

KEY TERMS

caravels: Slender, long-hulled vessels used by Portuguese; highly maneuverable and able to sail against the wind; key to development of Portuguese trade empire in Asia.

Asian sea trading network: divided, from West to East, into three zones prior to the European arrival; an Arab zone based on glass, carpets, and tapestries; an Indian zone with cotton textiles; and a Chinese zone with paper, porcelain, and silks.

mercantilists: proponents of mercantilism; an economic theory that gave central importance to maintaining a positive balance of trade with other nations.

Ormuz: Portuguese establishment at the southern end of the Persian Gulf; a major trading base.

Goa: Indian city developed by the Portuguese as a major Indian Ocean base; developed an important Indo-European population.

factories: European trading fortresses and compounds with resident merchants; used throughout the Portuguese trading empire to ensure secure landing places and commerce.

Batavia: Dutch establishment on Java; created in 1620.

Dutch trading empire: the Dutch system extending into Asia with fortified towns and factories, warships on patrol, and monopoly control of a limited number of products.

Luzon: island of the northern Philippines; conquered by Spain during the 1560s; site of a major Catholic missionary effort.

Mindanao: island of the southern Philippines; a Muslim area able to successfully resist Spanish conquest.

Francis Xavier: Franciscan missionary who worked in India during the 1540s among outcast and lower-caste groups; later worked in Japan.

Robert di Nobili: Italian Jesuit active in India during the early 1600s; failed in a policy of converting indigenous elites first.

Hongwu: first Ming emperor (1368–1403); drove out the Mongols and restored the position of the scholar-gentry.

Macao and Canton: the only two ports in Ming China where Europeans were allowed to trade.

Matteo Ricci and Adam Schall: Jesuit scholars at the Ming court; also skilled scientists; won few converts to Christianity.

Chongzhen: last emperor of the Ming Dynasty; died in 1644.

Oda Nobunaga: the first Japanese daimyo to make extensive use of firearms; in 1573, deposed the last Ashikaga shogun; unified much of central Honshu; died in 1582.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi: general under Nobunaga; succeeded as a leading military power in central Japan; continued efforts to break power of the daimyos; became military master of Japan in 1590; died in 1598.

Tokugawa Ieyasu: vassal of Toyotomi Hideyoshi; succeeded him as the most powerful military figure in Japan; granted title of shogun in 1603 and established the Tokugawa shogunate; established political unity in Japan.

Edo: Tokugawa capital, modern-day Tokyo; center of Tokugawa shogunate.

Deshima: island port in Nagasaki Bay; the only port open to foreigners, the Dutch, after the 1640s.

School of National Learning: 18th-century ideology that emphasized Japan’s unique historical experience and the revival of indigenous culture at the expense of Confucianism and other Chinese influences.

LECTURE SUGGESTIONS

1. Compare and contrast the European entry into the African commercial system with their entry into the Asian trade network. Among the similarities were limited colonization, use of coastal and island trading forts to enter trade systems, inability to affect political development by conquest, and introduction of firearms that influenced political development (Africa and Japan). The Portuguese initiated the contact in Africa and Asia, and in both they attempted missionary work with limited success. Among differences was the role of slavery; it was a major feature of the African trade; Asian regions produced raw materials, spices, and manufactured goods. Asian civilizations opted for isolation, while many African states concluded commercial alliances with the West.

2. Discuss the European impact on Asian civilization during the period of early modern Western expansion. The greatest impact was on the periphery of Asian civilizations, especially on islands (Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Philippines) where European tribute systems were established. Another significant influence was the introduction of firearms to Japan during its period of political centralization. Otherwise, the impact was minimal. Europeans lacked goods desired in the Asian trade network; they basically acted as shipping agents for Asian products. Christianity had minimal success against Hinduism, Islam, or Buddhism. The only substantial exception was the northern Philippines. Some initial influence was felt in Japan, but later rulers suppressed Christianity. China and Japan opted for isolation from the Europeans, and their fundamental structures remained unchanged. China allowed a few Christian visitors out of intellectual curiosity.

CLASS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What was the nature of the Asian sea trading network?

2. What did the Portuguese discover when they arrived at Calicut, and how did they respond?

3. How were the Dutch able to displace the Portuguese, and how did their participation in the Asian trading network differ from that of the Portuguese?

4. Where did the Europeans establish tribute systems?

5. How successful were European Christian missionary efforts by the early 1660s?

6. How did the Ming restore the traditional Chinese forms of government?

7. Why did the Chinese withdraw from commercial expansion?

8. What steps led to the restoration of the Japanese shogunate?

9. Why did the Japanese resort to isolation as a response to European expansion?

PART IV RETROSPECTIVE

A Look Back at the Early Modern Period

Contacts and Their Limits. New levels of international contact were the significant change in world history in the early modern period. Europeans went further afield than before, aided by their superior arms. The Columbian Exchange was one product of the increased contact. While great changes occurred

in seaborne travel, connections were also forged in land empires such as that of the Russian tsars. During this period, exchange involved goods rather than ideas. European missionaries were not in short supply, but their success was limited. Rulers of China, Japan, and the Ottoman Empire were successful in controlling intellectual exchange. While no such restrictions existed in Europe, complacency kept out new ideas, although not goods such as coffee and sugar. Initial Asian toleration of foreigners changed over time in Japan, China, and India. Russia, on the other hand, turned eagerly to the West. Unlike trade with the East, the Columbian Exchange—which included animals, plants, and diseases—also included ideas. A great deal of fusion occurred, as native, European, and African traditions merged to create a new culture. In short, the early modern period saw greatly increased contact between world areas but also great variation in the paths by which contact developed. A new feature of this period is cosmopolitanism, limited but notable. European Christians became familiar with Hinduism and Confucianism. Ottoman diplomats were at home in Europe.

Critical Themes. The early modern period introduced many opportunities for new levels and types of contact. The results were, however, highly varied, with less widespread cultural exchange than might have been anticipated. The early modern period also offers new opportunities to examine and compare the processes of state expansion and conflict as well as changes in labor systems. Finally, the Scientific Revolution initiated a process that would make science a legitimate cultural topic in world history from the 18th century forward.

PRIMARY SOURCE from The Journals of Matteo Ricci Matteo Ricci (1552–1610)

was an Italian Jesuit missionary who lived in China during the Ming Dynasty and served as the court astronomer and mathematician. During his 27-year stay in China, he kept journals that were posthumously published in Rome in 1615. What do you learn about Chinese culture from these journal entries? Section 2 Due to the great extent of this country north and south as well as east and west, it can be safely asserted that nowhere else in the world is found such a variety of plant and animal life within the confines of a single kingdom. The wide range of climatic conditions in China gives rise to great diversity of vegetable products, some of which are most readily grown in tropical countries, others in arctic, and others again in the temperate zones. The Chinese themselves, in their geographies, give us detailed accounts of the fertility of the various provinces and of the variety of their products. . . . Generally speaking, it may be said with truth that all of these writers are correct when they say that everything which the people used for their well-being and sustenance, whether it be for food or clothing or even delicacies and superfluities, is abundantly produced within the borders of the kingdom and not imported from foreign climes. I would even venture to say that practically everything which is grown in Europe is likewise found in China. If not, then what is missing here is abundantly supplied by various other products unknown to Europeans. To begin with, the soil of China supplies its people with every species of grain—barley, millet, winter wheat, and similar grains. Rice, which is the staple article of

Chinese diet, is produced here in far greater abundance than in Europe. Vegetables, especially beans, and the like, all of which are used not only as food for the people but also as fodder for cattle and beasts of burden, are grown in unlimited variety. The Chinese harvest two and sometimes three crops of such plants every year, owing not only to the fertility of the soil and the mildness of the climate but in great measure to the industry of the people. With the exception of olives and almonds, all the principal fruits known in Europe grow also in China. . . . Much the same can be said of the variety and quality of table vegetables and the cultivation of garden herbs, all of which the Chinese use in far greater quantities than is common among the people of Europe. In fact, there are many among the common folk who live entirely upon a vegetable diet through the whole course of their lives, either because they are forced to do so by reason of poverty or because they embrace this course of life for some religious motive. . . . This country is so thoroughly covered by an intersecting network of rivers and canals that it is possible to travel almost anywhere by water. Hence, an almost incredible number of boats of every variety pass hither and thither. Indeed there are so many of them that one of the writers of our day does not hesitate to affirm that there are as many people living on the water as there are dwellers on land. This may sound like an exaggeration and yet it all but expresses the truth, as it would seem, if one were to travel here only by water. In my opinion it might be said with greater truth and without fear of exaggeration, that there are as many boats in this kingdom as can be counted up in all the rest of the world. This statement is true if we restrict our count to the number of boats sailing on fresh water. As to their ships that pass out into the sea, they are very few and not to be compared with ours either in number or in structure. . . . Two or three things are entirely unknown to Europeans of which I must give a brief account. CHAPTER 19 © McDougal Littell Inc. All rights reserved. 74 Unit 4, Chapter 19 This country is so thoroughly covered by an intersecting network of rivers and canals that it is possible to travel almost anywhere by water. Hence, an almost incredible number of boats of every variety pass hither and thither. wh10a-IDR-0419_P10 11/24/2003 1:40 PM Page 74 An Age of Explorations and Isolation 75 © McDougal Littell Inc. All rights reserved. First, there is a certain bush from the leaves of which is decocted that celebrated drink, known to the Chinese, the Japanese, and to their neighbors as tea. Its use cannot be of long duration among the Chinese, as no ideography in their old books designates this particular drink and their writing characters are all ancient. Indeed it might be that this same plant can be found in our own fields. Here they gather its leaves in the springtime and place them in a shady place to dry, and from the dried leaves they brew a drink which they use at meals and which is served to friends when they come to visit. On such occasions it is served continually as long as they remain together engaged in conversation. This beverage is sipped rather than drunk and it is always taken hot. It is not unpleasant to the taste, being somewhat bitter, and it is usually considered to be wholesome even if taken frequently. . . . Finally we should say something about the saltpeter, which is quite plentiful but which is not used extensively in the preparation of gunpowder, because the Chinese are not expert in the use of guns and artillery and make but little use of these in warfare. Saltpeter, however, is used in lavish quantities in making fireworks for display at public games and on festival days. The Chinese take great pleasure in such exhibitions and make them the chief attraction of all their festivities. Their skill in the manufacture of fireworks is really extraordinary, and there is scarcely anything which they cannot cleverly imitate with them. They are especially adept in reproducing battles and in making rotating spheres of fire, fiery trees, fruit, and the like, and they seem to have no regard for expense where fireworks are concerned. When I was in Nankin I witnessed a pyrotechnic display for

the celebration of the first month of the year, which is their great festival, and on this occasion I calculated that they consumed enough powder to carry on a sizable war for a number of years. The art of printing was practiced in China at a date somewhat earlier than that assigned to the beginning of printing in Europe, which was about 1405. It is quite certain that the Chinese knew the art of printing at least five centuries ago, and some of them assert that printing was known to their people before the beginning of the Christian era, about 50 B.C. . . . Their method of making printed books is quite ingenious. The text is written in ink, with a brush made of very fine hair, on a sheet of paper which is inverted and pasted on a wooden tablet. When the paper has become thoroughly dry, its surface is scraped off quickly and with great skill, until nothing but a fine tissue bearing the characters remains on the wooden tablet. Then, with a steel graver, the workman cuts away the surface following the outlines of the characters until these alone stand out in low relief. From such a block a skilled printer can make copies with incredible speed, turning out as many as fifteen hundred copies in a single day. Chinese printers are so skilled in engraving these blocks, that no more time is consumed in making one of them than would be required by one of our printers in setting up a form of type and making the necessary corrections. . . .

from Louis J. Gallagher, China in the Sixteenth Century: The Journals of Matthew Ricci (New York: Random House, 1953). Reprinted in Peter N. Stearns, ed., Documents in World History (New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1988), 50–52.

Discussion Questions Determining Main Ideas 1. What information about Chinese culture during the Ming Dynasty—diet, modes of transportation, inventions, and so on—did Ricci include in this journal entry? List at least three facts. 2. Comparing In what ways did Ricci compare China to Europe? 3. Forming and Supporting Opinions Do you think Ricci’s observations of Ming China were accurate? Why or why not?

JAN HUYGEN VAN LINSCHOTEN "His book "Itinerario: Voyage ofte schipvaert van Jan Huyghen van Linschoten naar Oost ofte Portugaels Indien" is a treasure of all the learning respecting the East and West Indies and the navigations thither... [was held] in the highest esteem for nearly a century, and was given to each ship sailing to India, as a log-book [ie., sailing manual]. Hence the many editions, which is also the cause why fine copies, especially with all the plates and maps, are so very rare.A large part of the book is occupied by translations of original Spanish and Portuguese documents on geography, ethnography, statistics, navigations, etc., and in these respects it is of the highest importance and authority.

Jan Huygen van Linschoten (1563-1611) a Dutchman born in Haarlem in 1563, had an "avaricious thirst for knowledge which enabled him to get detailed information of land and sea as far afield as the Spice Islands and China" (Penrose). Linschoten travelled to Goa in 1583 as a clerk of the newly-appointed Portuguese Archbishop of Goa. He made a few trips into Indian, compiling notes on his experiences, gleaned information on sea routes from Portuguese sailors, and collected information from other sources as well. Linschoten left India in 1589, hired as a pepper factor for the Fugger and Welser interests, where he learned about

the organization and administration of the spice trade. Returning to his hometown

Enkhuizen in 1592 (after a two-year stay in the Azores), he prepared his notes for the Amsterdam publisher, Claeszoon, in response to interest in the Netherlands and other European countries about commercial possibilities in Asia. As trade in the Far East was dependent on routes via America or Africa, his work eventually encompassed the entire globe, including Spanish and Portuguese activities in America. Linschoten's practical experience lent authenticity to his work, and it remains one of the most important of all travel books.

At return in Netherlands the Amsterdam publisher Cornelis Claesz, published in 1596 under the title "Itinerario: Voyage ofte schipvaert van Jan Huyghen van Linschoten naar Oost ofte Portugaels Indien … 1579-1592" his book.The Latin text edition of 1599 was followed by Dutch editions of in 1605, 1614, 1623 and 1644, and there are French editions in 1610, 1619, and 1638. The plates in the first French edition are copies of the reduced version based on those in the De Bry. The second and third French editions return to the original, folio-sized plates of the Dutch editionLach says that Linschoten's description of Goa is "one of the most original and reliable narratives prepared during the sixteenth century on life at the hub of Portugal's Eastern empire and still is regarded as one of the best sources for Goa's history at the peak of its glory....The original edition...contains a number of excellent maps, three of which are of great value for the study of Asia. These maps, which are much better and more detailed than earlier printed maps, were clearly derived from the latest and best Portuguese charts of the Eastern oceans and sea coats" - Lach. Parry calls Linschoten's work "a journal of human adventure and observation, an uplifting story that appeals on many levels." "Fine copies of this work with all the maps and plates are extremely rare" - Church catalogue.Reference works :Alden/Landis 638/37; Tiele 686-88; Burnell & Tiele, The Voyage of John Huyghen van Linschoten to the East Indies, Hakluyt Society (Old Series) LXX-LXXI (London 1885). Sabin (41374, the English 1598 edition, citing F. Muller, Catalogue of books on America, 1872); Church 252; Borba de Moraes [1983], pp. 486-7; JCB 1 (II): pp. 344-45. Rare. European Americana 596/63 & 596/64: JCB I, pp.343-345: Shirley 192, 182; Tiele 84-87; Klooster, Dutch in the Americas, p.8 & Catalogue Item 5; David E. Parry, The Cartography Of The East Indian Islands, p.84-85; Howgego L131; Borba De Moraes, pp.486-487; Wagner, Northwest Coast 184; Lach, Asia In The Making Of Europe, Volume 1, pp.198-204 & 482-489.

Emperor Qian Long's Letter to King George III, 1793from: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1793qianlong.html

BACKGROUND: For many centuries China had little intercourse with other countries. Various European nations tried to form commercial relations with her, and there was buying and selling between them, but it was most unsatisfactory. The rules made by the Chinese were as fickle as the wind. Often the merchants, or "foreign devils," as the Chinese called them, were in danger of their lives. Several nations had sent representatives to China, and in 1793 England decided to send Lord Macartney as an ambassador to the emperor in the hope of establishing safe and reasonable relations of trade. Even before the ambassador landed, the Chinese contrived to run up a flag on the vessel that bore him up the Peiho, whereon was written "Tribute-bearer from England." This was quite in accordance with the Chinese custom of claiming all gifts as tribute. Another custom of theirs was that whoever approached the throne of the emperor must perform the kowtow, that is, must kneel three times, and at each kneeling must bow three times till his head touched the floor. This was the way in which the greater idols were approached and signified that the emperor was a god. Lord Macartney told the Chinese legate that he would not perform the kowtow unless a high officer of state would kowtow before a picture of the King of England. The emperor finally agreed to admit the ambassador, who bent his knee, as he would have done before his own sovereign.

Qian Long [Ch'ien Lung], (r. 1735-1795) ruled China for much of the 18th century, the last period in which China was strong enough to resist, or better, disdain external influence. Here is letter he sent in response to a request from George III of Britain (r. 1760-1820) as conveyed by Lord Macartney for trade privileges.

Emperor Qianlong Lord Macartney

You, O King, live beyond the confines of many seas, nevertheless, impelled by your humble desire to partake of the benefits of our civilisation, you have dispatched a mission respectfully bearing your memorial. Your Envoy has crossed the seas and paid his respects at my Court on the anniversary of my birthday. To show your devotion, you have also sent offerings of your country's produce.

I have perused your memorial: the earnest terms in which it is couched reveal a respectful humility on your part, which is highly praiseworthy. In consideration of the fact that your Ambassador and his deputy have come a long way with your memorial and tribute, I have shown them high favour and have allowed them to be introduced into my presence. To manifest my indulgence, I have entertained them at a banquet and made them numerous gifts. I have also caused presents to be forwarded to the Naval Commander and six hundred of his officers and men, although they did not come to Peking, so that they too may share in my allembracing kindness.

As to your entreaty to send one of your nationals to be accredited to my Celestial Court and to be in control of your country's trade with China, this request is contrary to all usage of my dynasty and cannot possibly be entertained. It is true that Europeans, in the service of the dynasty, have been permitted to live at Peking, but they are compelled to adopt Chinese dress, they are strictly confined to their own precincts and are never permitted to return home. You are presumably familiar with our dynastic regulations. Your proposed Envoy to my Court could not be placed in a position similar to that of European officials in Peking who are forbidden to leave China, nor could he, on the other hand, be allowed liberty of movement and the

privilege of corresponding with his own country; so that you would gain nothing by his residence in our midst.

Moreover, our Celestial dynasty possesses vast territories, and tribute missions from the dependencies are provided for by the Department for Tributary States, which ministers to their wants and exercises strict control over their movements. It would be quite impossible to leave them to their own devices. Supposing that your Envoy should come to our Court, his language and national dress differ from that of our people, and there would be no place in which to bestow him. It may be suggested that he might imitate the Europeans permanently resident in Peking and adopt the dress and customs of China, but, it has never been our dynasty's wish to force people to do things unseemly and inconvenient. Besides, supposing I sent an Ambassador to reside in your country, how could you possibly make for him the requisite arrangements? Europe consists of many other nations besides your own: if each and all demanded to be represented at our Court, how could we possibly consent? The thing is utterly impracticable. How can our dynasty alter its whole procedure and system of etiquette, established for more than a century, in order to meet your individual views? If it be said that your object is to exercise control over your country's trade, your nationals have had full liberty to trade at Canton for many a year, and have received the greatest consideration at our hands. Missions have been sent by Portugal and Italy, preferring similar requests. The Throne appreciated their sincerity and loaded them with favours, besides authorising measures to facilitate their trade with China. You are no doubt aware that, when my Canton merchant, Wu Chao-ping, who was in debt to foreign ships. I made the Viceroy advance the monies due, out of the provincial treasury, and ordered him to punish the culprit severely. Why then should foreign nations advance this utterly unreasonable request to be represented at my Court? Peking is nearly two thousand miles from Canton, and at such a distance what possible control could any British representative exercise?

If you assert that your reverence for Our Celestial dynasty fills you with a desire to acquire our civilisation, our ceremonies and code of laws differ so completely from your own that, even if your Envoy were able to acquire the rudiments of our civilisation, you could not possibly transplant our manners and customs to your alien soil. Therefore, however adept the Envoy might become, nothing would be gained thereby.

Swaying the wide world, I have but one aim in view, namely, to maintain a perfect governance and to fulfil the duties of the State: strange and costly objects do not interest me. If I have commanded that the tribute offerings sent by you, O King, are to be accepted, this was solely in consideration for the spirit which prompted you to dispatch them from afar. Our dynasty's majestic virtue has penetrated unto every

country under Heaven, and Kings of all nations have offered their costly tribute by land and sea. As your Ambassador can see for himself, we possess all things. I set no value on objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country's manufactures. This then is my answer to your request to appoint a representative at my Court, a request contrary to our dynastic usage, which would only result in inconvenience to yourself. I have expounded my wishes in detail and have commanded your tribute Envoys to leave in peace on their homeward journey. It behoves you, O King, to respect my sentiments and to display even greater devotion and loyalty in future, so that, by perpetual submission to our Throne, you may secure peace and prosperity for your country hereafter. Besides making gifts (of which I enclose an inventory) to each member of your Mission, I confer upon you, O King, valuable presents in excess of the number usually bestowed on such occasions, including silks and curios-a list of which is likewise enclosed. Do you reverently receive them and take note of my tender goodwill towards you! A special mandate.

In the same letter, a further mandate to King George III dealt in detail with the British ambassador's proposals and the Emperor's reasons for declining them.

You, O King, from afar have yearned after the blessings of our civilisation, and in your eagerness to come into touch with our converting influence have sent an Embassy across the sea bearing a memorial. I have already taken note of your respectful spirit of submission, have treated your mission with extreme favour and loaded it with gifts, besides issuing a mandate to you, O King, and honouring you with the bestowal of valuable presents. Thus has my indulgence been manifested.

Yesterday your Ambassador petitioned my Ministers to memorialise me regarding your trade with China, but his proposal is not consistent with our dynastic usage and cannot be entertained. Hitherto, all European nations, including your own country's barbarian merchants, have carried on their trade with our Celestial Empire at Canton. Such has been the procedure for many years, although our Celestial Empire possesses all things in prolific abundance and lacks no product within its own borders. There was therefore no need to import the manufactures of outside barbarians in exchange for our own produce. But as the tea, silk and porcelain which the Celestial Empire produces, are absolute necessities to European nations and to yourselves, we have permitted, as a signal mark of favour, that foreign hongs [merchant firms] should be established at Canton, so that your wants might be supplied and your country thus participate in our beneficence. But your Ambassador has now put forward new requests which completely fail to recognise the Throne's principle to "treat strangers from afar with indulgence," and to exercise a pacifying control over barbarian tribes, the world over. Moreover, our dynasty, swaying the myriad races of the globe, extends the same benevolence towards all. Your England is not the only nation trading

at Canton. If other nations, following your bad example, wrongfully importune my ear with further impossible requests, how will it be possible for me to treat them with easy indulgence? Nevertheless, I do not forget the lonely remoteness of your island, cut off from the world by intervening wastes of sea, nor do I overlook your excusable ignorance of the usages of our Celestial Empire. I have consequently commanded my Ministers to enlighten your Ambassador on the subject, and have ordered the departure of the mission. But I have doubts that, after your Envoy's return he may fail to acquaint you with my view in detail or that he may be lacking in lucidity, so that I shall now proceed . . . to issue my mandate on each question separately. In this way you will, I trust, comprehend my meaning....

(3) Your request for a small island near Chusan, where your merchants may reside and goods be warehoused, arises from your desire to develop trade. As there are neither foreign hongs nor interpreters in or near Chusan, where none of your ships have ever called, such an island would be utterly useless for your purposes. Every inch of the territory of our Empire is marked on the map and the strictest vigilance is exercised over it all: even tiny islets and farlying sandbanks are clearly defined as part of the provinces to which they belong. Consider, moreover, that England is not the only barbarian land which wishes to establish . . . trade with our Empire: supposing that other nations were all to imitate your evil example and beseech me to present them each and all with a site for trading purposes, how could I possibly comply? This also is a flagrant infringement of the usage of my Empire and cannot possibly be entertained.

(4) The next request, for a small site in the vicinity of Canton city, where your barbarian merchants may lodge or, alternatively, that there be no longer any restrictions over their movements at Aomen, has arisen from the following causes. Hitherto, the barbarian merchants of Europe have had a definite locality assigned to them at Aomen for residence and trade, and have been forbidden to encroach an inch beyond the limits assigned to that locality.... If these restrictions were withdrawn, friction would inevitably occur between the Chinese and your barbarian subjects, and the results would militate against the benevolent regard that I feel towards you. From every point of view, therefore, it is best that the regulations now in force should continue unchanged....

(7) Regarding your nation's worship of the Lord of Heaven, it is the same religion as that of other European nations. Ever since the beginning of history, sage Emperors and wise rulers have bestowed on China a moral system and inculcated a code, which from time immemorial has been religiously observed by the myriads of my subjects. There has been no hankering after heterodox doctrines. Even the European (missionary) officials in my capital are forbidden to hold intercourse with Chinese

subjects; they are restricted within the limits of their appointed residences, and may not go about propagating their religion. The distinction between Chinese and barbarian is most strict, and your Ambassador's request that barbarians shall be given full liberty to disseminate their religion is utterly unreasonable.

It may be, O King, that the above proposals have been wantonly made by your Ambassador on his own responsibility, or peradventure you yourself are ignorant of our dynastic regulations and had no intention of transgressing them when you expressed these wild ideas and hopes.... If, after the receipt of this explicit decree, you lightly give ear to the representations of your subordinates and allow your barbarian merchants to proceed to Chêkiang and Tientsin, with the object of landing and trading there, the ordinances of my Celestial Empire are strict in the extreme, and the local officials, both civil and military, are bound reverently to obey the law of the land. Should your vessels touch the shore, your merchants will assuredly never be permitted to land or to reside there, but will be subject to instant expulsion. In that event your barbarian merchants will have had a long journey for nothing. Do not say that

From E. Backhouse and J. O. P. Bland, Annals and Memoirs of the Court of Peking (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1914), pp. 322331