John Bowring
Encyclopedia
Sir John Bowring, KCB (Chinese translated name:
寶寧,寶靈 or 包令) (17 October 1792 – 23 November 1872) was an English political economist, traveller, miscellaneous writer, polyglot
, and the 4th Governor of Hong Kong
.
of an old Puritan
family, apparently a Unitarian
family, and educated in a Unitarian school, Bowring at one stage wished to become a minister. In early life he came under the influence of Jeremy Bentham
, and later became his friend. He did not, however, share Bentham's contempt for belles lettres. He was a diligent student of literature and foreign languages, especially those of Eastern Europe.
Bowring ranked with Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti
and Hans Conon von der Gabelentz
among the world's greatest hyperpolyglots – his talent enabling him at last to say that he knew 200 languages, and could speak 100. His chief literary work was the translation of the folk-songs of most European nations, although he also wrote original poems and hymns, as well as works on political and economic subjects. The first fruits of his study of foreign literature appeared in Specimens of the Russian Poets (1821–1823). These were followed by Batavian Anthology (1824), Ancient Poetry and Romances of Spain (1824), Specimens of the Polish Poets, and Serbian Popular Poetry, both in 1827, and Poetry of the Magyars (1830).
, of which he was appointed editor in 1825. By his contributions to the Review he obtained considerable reputation as political economist and parliamentary reformer. He advocated in its pages the cause of free trade
long before it was popularized by Richard Cobden
and John Bright
.
He pleaded earnestly on behalf of parliamentary reform
, Catholic emancipation
, and popular education
. In 1828 he visited the Netherlands
, and in February 1829 the University of Groningen
conferred on him the degree of doctor of laws. In the following year he was in Denmark
, preparing for the publication of a collection of Scandinavia
n poetry. Till 1832 he was Foreign Secretary of the British and Foreign Unitarian Association
.
Bowring was appointed Jeremy Bentham's literary executor
, and was charged with the task of preparing a collected edition of his works. This appeared in eleven volumes in 1843.
; and in the following year he was appointed head of a government commission to be sent to France to inquire into the actual state of commerce between the two countries. He was engaged in similar investigations in Switzerland
, Italy, Syria
and some of the states in Imperial Germany.
The results of these missions appeared in a series of reports laid before the House of Commons
. After a retirement of four years he sat in parliament from 1841 until 1849 as member for Bolton
. During this busy period he found leisure for literature, and published in 1843 a translation of the Manuscript of the Queen's Court, a collection of Czech medieval poetry, today considered as falses by Czech poet Václav Hanka
. In 1846 he became President of the Mazzinian People's International League.
Without inherited wealth, or income as MP for Bolton, Bowring sought to sustain his political career by investing heavily in the south Wales iron industry during the mid 1840s. He led a small group of wealthy London merchants and bankers as Chairman of the Llynvi Iron Company and established a large integrated ironworks at Maesteg
in Glamorgan during 1845–6. He installed his brother, Charles, as Resident Director and lost no time in naming the district around his ironworks, Bowrington. Although he lost his capital in the trade depression of the late 1840s, John Bowring had gained a reputation in the Maesteg district as an enlightened employer. A contemporary commented that ‘he gave the poor their rights and carried away their blessing.’ The failure of his venture in south Wales led directly to Bowring’s acceptance of Palmerston’s offer of the consulship at Canton.
), and superintendent of trade in China, a post which he held for four years.
After his return, Bowring distinguished himself as an advocate of decimal currency, and published a work entitled The Decimal System in Numbers, Coins and Accounts (1854). The introduction of the florin
as a preparatory step was chiefly due to his efforts.
.
During his governorship, a dispute broke out with the Chinese and the irritation caused by his spirited or high-handed policy led to the Second Opium War
(1856–1860). At the same time, he allowed the Chinese citizens in Hong Kong to serve as jurors in trials and become lawyers. Finally, Bowring is credited with establishing Hong Kong's first commercial public water supply system and establishing the Hong Kong buildings ordinance, ensuring the safer design of all future construction projects in the colony.
He had developed the eastern Wan Chai
at a river mouth near Happy Valley
and Victoria Harbour
. He elongated the river as canal and the area was named Bowring City (Bowrington).
In 1855 he visited Siam, and negotiated with King Mongkut
a treaty of commerce, now commonly referred as the Bowring Treaty
. Bowring retired in March 1859 and received a pension for his duties.
As the 4th Governor, several places in Hong Kong came to be named after him. Bowring Praya West and Bowring Praya Central were two roads built on reclaimed land during his tenure, but were respectively renamed Des Voeux Road West and Des Voeux Road Central in 1890 after the Praya Reclamation Scheme
. The road has since been merged into Des Voeux Road
.
Bowrington, or Bowring City, was an area Bowring had built around the estuary of the Wong Nai Chung river, and is the site of the Bowrington Market. He built an extension named the Bowrington Canal, over which the Bowrington Road (now called Canal Road
) and the Bowrington Bridge passed.
and envoy extraordinary from the Hawaiian
government to the courts of Europe, and in this capacity negotiated treaties with Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain and Switzerland.
, was a Member of Parliament for Exeter from 1868 to 1874. E. A. Bowring is also known as an able translator in the literary circles of the time.
His daughter became a Roman Catholic nun, Sister Emily Aloysia Bowring. She was the first headmistress of the Italian Convent School (now known as the Sacred Heart Canossian College
) in Hong Kong, serving from 1860 to 1870.
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
寶寧,寶靈 or 包令) (17 October 1792 – 23 November 1872) was an English political economist, traveller, miscellaneous writer, polyglot
Polyglot (person)
A polyglot is someone with a high degree of proficiency in several languages. A bilingual person can speak two languages fluently, whereas a trilingual three; above that the term multilingual may be used.-Hyperpolyglot:...
, and the 4th Governor of Hong Kong
Governor of Hong Kong
The Governor of Hong Kong was the head of the government of Hong Kong during British rule from 1843 to 1997. The governor's roles were defined in the Hong Kong Letters Patent and Royal Instructions...
.
Early life
Bowring was born in ExeterExeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
of an old Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
family, apparently a Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
family, and educated in a Unitarian school, Bowring at one stage wished to become a minister. In early life he came under the influence of Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham was an English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer. He became a leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law, and a political radical whose ideas influenced the development of welfarism...
, and later became his friend. He did not, however, share Bentham's contempt for belles lettres. He was a diligent student of literature and foreign languages, especially those of Eastern Europe.
Bowring ranked with Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti
Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti
Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti was an Italian cardinal and famed linguist and hyperpolyglot. Born and educated in Bologna, he completed his theological studies before he had reached the minimum age for ordination as a priest; he was ordained in 1797. In the same year, he became professor of Arabic at...
and Hans Conon von der Gabelentz
Hans Conon von der Gabelentz
Hans Conon von der Gabelentz was a German linguistic researcher and authority on the Manchu language. He was prime minister of the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg from 1848 to 1849.- Life :...
among the world's greatest hyperpolyglots – his talent enabling him at last to say that he knew 200 languages, and could speak 100. His chief literary work was the translation of the folk-songs of most European nations, although he also wrote original poems and hymns, as well as works on political and economic subjects. The first fruits of his study of foreign literature appeared in Specimens of the Russian Poets (1821–1823). These were followed by Batavian Anthology (1824), Ancient Poetry and Romances of Spain (1824), Specimens of the Polish Poets, and Serbian Popular Poetry, both in 1827, and Poetry of the Magyars (1830).
Political economist career
During this period he began to contribute to the newly founded Westminster ReviewWestminster Review
The Westminster Review was a quarterly British publication. Established in 1823 as the official organ of the Philosophical Radicals, it was published from 1824 to 1914. James Mill was one of the driving forces behind the liberal journal until 1828....
, of which he was appointed editor in 1825. By his contributions to the Review he obtained considerable reputation as political economist and parliamentary reformer. He advocated in its pages the cause of free trade
Free trade
Under a free trade policy, prices emerge from supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. 'Free' trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by price strategies that may differ from...
long before it was popularized by Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden
Richard Cobden was a British manufacturer and Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with John Bright in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League as well as with the Cobden-Chevalier Treaty...
and John Bright
John Bright
John Bright , Quaker, was a British Radical and Liberal statesman, associated with Richard Cobden in the formation of the Anti-Corn Law League. He was one of the greatest orators of his generation, and a strong critic of British foreign policy...
.
He pleaded earnestly on behalf of parliamentary reform
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
, Catholic emancipation
Catholic Emancipation
Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity, the Test Acts and the penal laws...
, and popular education
Popular education
Popular education is a concept grounded in notions of class, political struggle, and social transformation. The term is a translation from the Spanish educación popular or the Portuguese educação popular and rather than the English usage as when describing a 'popular television program,' popular...
. In 1828 he visited the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and in February 1829 the University of Groningen
University of Groningen
The University of Groningen , located in the city of Groningen, was founded in 1614. It is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands as well as one of its largest. Since its inception more than 100,000 students have graduated...
conferred on him the degree of doctor of laws. In the following year he was in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, preparing for the publication of a collection of Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n poetry. Till 1832 he was Foreign Secretary of the British and Foreign Unitarian Association
British and Foreign Unitarian Association
The British and Foreign Unitarian Association was the major Unitarian body in Britain from 1825. The BFUA was founded as an amalgamation of three older societies: the Unitarian Book Society for literature , The Unitarian Fund for mission work , and the Unitarian Association for civil rights...
.
Bowring was appointed Jeremy Bentham's literary executor
Literary executor
A literary executor is a person with decision-making power in respect of a literary estate. According to Wills, Administration and Taxation: a practical guide "A will may appoint different executors to deal with different parts of the estate...
, and was charged with the task of preparing a collected edition of his works. This appeared in eleven volumes in 1843.
British MP
In 1835, Bowring entered parliament as member for Kilmarnock BurghsKilmarnock Burghs (UK Parliament constituency)
Kilmarnock Burghs was a district of burghs constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1832 to 1918. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post voting system....
; and in the following year he was appointed head of a government commission to be sent to France to inquire into the actual state of commerce between the two countries. He was engaged in similar investigations in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Italy, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and some of the states in Imperial Germany.
The results of these missions appeared in a series of reports laid before the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
. After a retirement of four years he sat in parliament from 1841 until 1849 as member for Bolton
Bolton (UK Parliament constituency)
Bolton was a borough constituency centred on the town of Bolton in the county of Lancashire. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons for the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the bloc vote system....
. During this busy period he found leisure for literature, and published in 1843 a translation of the Manuscript of the Queen's Court, a collection of Czech medieval poetry, today considered as falses by Czech poet Václav Hanka
Václav Hanka
Wenceslaus Hanka Czech: Václav Hanka was a Czech philologist.-Biography:He was born at Hořiněves near Hradec Králové . He was sent in 1807 to school at Hradec Králové, to escape the conscription, then to the University of Prague, where he founded a society for the cultivation of the Czech language...
. In 1846 he became President of the Mazzinian People's International League.
Without inherited wealth, or income as MP for Bolton, Bowring sought to sustain his political career by investing heavily in the south Wales iron industry during the mid 1840s. He led a small group of wealthy London merchants and bankers as Chairman of the Llynvi Iron Company and established a large integrated ironworks at Maesteg
Maesteg
Maesteg is a town and community in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. Maesteg lies at the northernmost end of the Llynfi Valley, close to the border with Neath Port Talbot. In 2001, Maesteg had a population of 17,859, but it is now at an estimate of 20,000....
in Glamorgan during 1845–6. He installed his brother, Charles, as Resident Director and lost no time in naming the district around his ironworks, Bowrington. Although he lost his capital in the trade depression of the late 1840s, John Bowring had gained a reputation in the Maesteg district as an enlightened employer. A contemporary commented that ‘he gave the poor their rights and carried away their blessing.’ The failure of his venture in south Wales led directly to Bowring’s acceptance of Palmerston’s offer of the consulship at Canton.
Consul
In 1849, Bowring was appointed British consul at Canton (today's GuangzhouGuangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
), and superintendent of trade in China, a post which he held for four years.
After his return, Bowring distinguished himself as an advocate of decimal currency, and published a work entitled The Decimal System in Numbers, Coins and Accounts (1854). The introduction of the florin
British Two Shilling coin
The British two shilling coin, also known as the florin or "two bob bit" was issued from 1849 until 1967. It was worth one tenth of a pound, or twenty-four old pence...
as a preparatory step was chiefly due to his efforts.
Governor of Hong Kong
On 13 April 1854, Bowring was sent to Hong Kong as governorGovernor of Hong Kong
The Governor of Hong Kong was the head of the government of Hong Kong during British rule from 1843 to 1997. The governor's roles were defined in the Hong Kong Letters Patent and Royal Instructions...
.
During his governorship, a dispute broke out with the Chinese and the irritation caused by his spirited or high-handed policy led to the Second Opium War
Second Opium War
The Second Opium War, the Second Anglo-Chinese War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a war pitting the British Empire and the Second French Empire against the Qing Dynasty of China, lasting from 1856 to 1860...
(1856–1860). At the same time, he allowed the Chinese citizens in Hong Kong to serve as jurors in trials and become lawyers. Finally, Bowring is credited with establishing Hong Kong's first commercial public water supply system and establishing the Hong Kong buildings ordinance, ensuring the safer design of all future construction projects in the colony.
He had developed the eastern Wan Chai
Wan Chai
Wan Chai is a metropolitan area situated at the western part of the Wan Chai District on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. Its other boundaries are Canal Road to the east, Arsenal Street to the west and Bowen Road to the south. The area north of Gloucester Road is often called...
at a river mouth near Happy Valley
Happy Valley, Hong Kong
Happy Valley is a mostly residential suburb of Hong Kong, located in the northern part of Hong Kong Island. Administratively, it is part of Wan Chai District....
and Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbour situated between Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on the South China Sea were instrumental in Hong Kong's establishment as a British colony and its subsequent...
. He elongated the river as canal and the area was named Bowring City (Bowrington).
In 1855 he visited Siam, and negotiated with King Mongkut
Mongkut
Phra Bat Somdet Phra Poramenthramaha Mongkut Phra Chom Klao Chao Yu Hua , or Rama IV, known in foreign countries as King Mongkut , was the fourth monarch of Siam under the House of Chakri, ruling from 1851-1868...
a treaty of commerce, now commonly referred as the Bowring Treaty
Bowring Treaty
The Bowring Treaty is the name given to an agreement signed on April 18, 1855 between the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Siam that liberalized foreign trade in Siam....
. Bowring retired in March 1859 and received a pension for his duties.
Places named after him
In the mid-nineteenth century a district of the Llynfi Valley, Glamorgan, south Wales was known as Bowrington as it was built-up when John Bowring was chairman of the local iron company. Bowring's ironworks community later became part of the Maesteg Urban District. The name was revived in the 1980s when a shopping development in Maesteg was called the Bowrington Arcade.As the 4th Governor, several places in Hong Kong came to be named after him. Bowring Praya West and Bowring Praya Central were two roads built on reclaimed land during his tenure, but were respectively renamed Des Voeux Road West and Des Voeux Road Central in 1890 after the Praya Reclamation Scheme
Praya Reclamation Scheme
The Praya Reclamation Scheme was a large scale reclaimed land project carried out by the Hong Kong Land company in Colonial Hong Kong under Sir Catchick Paul Chater and James Johnstone Keswick.-Early proposal:The project was first proposed in 1855...
. The road has since been merged into Des Voeux Road
Des Voeux Road
Des Voeux Road Central and Des Voeux Road West are two roads on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. They were named after the 10th Governor of Hong Kong, Sir George William Des Vœux...
.
Bowrington, or Bowring City, was an area Bowring had built around the estuary of the Wong Nai Chung river, and is the site of the Bowrington Market. He built an extension named the Bowrington Canal, over which the Bowrington Road (now called Canal Road
Canal Road, Hong Kong
Canal Road East , Canal Road West and the Canal Road Flyover are important roads in Wan Chai and Causeway Bay, Wan Chai District of Hong Kong....
) and the Bowrington Bridge passed.
Late career
His last employment by the British government was as a commissioner to Italy in 1861, to report on British commercial relations with the new kingdom. Bowring subsequently accepted the appointment of minister plenipotentiaryPlenipotentiary
The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...
and envoy extraordinary from the Hawaiian
Kingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...
government to the courts of Europe, and in this capacity negotiated treaties with Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain and Switzerland.
Personal life
Bowring had three sons. His eldest son, J.C. Bowring, presented Bowring's collection of coleoptera to the British Museum after Bowring's death. His youngest son, Edgar Alfred BowringEdgar Alfred Bowring
Edgar Alfred Bowring was a British translator, author and civil servant, serving as librarian and registrar to the Board of Trade , secretary to the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, and Liberal Member of Parliament for Exeter .He was the youngest son of Sir John Bowring, and brother of...
, was a Member of Parliament for Exeter from 1868 to 1874. E. A. Bowring is also known as an able translator in the literary circles of the time.
His daughter became a Roman Catholic nun, Sister Emily Aloysia Bowring. She was the first headmistress of the Italian Convent School (now known as the Sacred Heart Canossian College
Sacred Heart Canossian College
Sacred Heart Canossian College is a Roman Catholic girls' school in Pokfulam, Chi Fu Fa Yeun, west Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Founded in 1860, the school currently serves some 1,400 students and 70 teaching staff....
) in Hong Kong, serving from 1860 to 1870.
Honours
- KCB, 1854
- Member, Royal SocietyRoyal SocietyThe Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
and Royal Geographical SocietyRoyal Geographical SocietyThe Royal Geographical Society is a British learned society founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical sciences... - Knighted by several foreign governments
Literary works published
- Specimens of the Russian Poets (1821–1823)
- Peter Schlemihl, a German Story (Translation, 1824)
- Batavian Anthology (1824)
- Ancient Poetry and Romances of Spain (1824)
- Hymns (Privately published, 1825) This includes the hymns In the cross of Christ I Glory, and Watchman, Tell Us Of The Night, both still used in many churches.
- Specimens of the Polish Poets (1827)
- Serbian Popular Poetry (1827)
- Poetry of the Magyars (1830)
- Cheskian Anthology (1832)
- Bentham's Deontology (Editor, 1834). Volume I, Volume II
- Minor Morals (1834)
- Manuscript of the Queen's Court (1843)
- The Decimal System in Numbers, Coins and Accounts (1854)
- The Kingdom and People of Siam (1857)
- A visit to the Philippine Islands (1859)
- Translations from Hungarian poet Alexander Petofi (1866)
- Various other pamphlets
External links
- Autobiographical Recollections of Sir John Bowring (1877) at Google Book Search
- Biography Dictionary of Unitarian & Universalist Biography
- 8 portraits of John Bowring National Portrait Gallery