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Howqua's Garden in Honam, China This is a repository copy of Uncovering the garden of the richest man on earth in nineteenth-century Canton: Howqua's garden in Honam, China. White Rose Research Online URL for this paper: http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/114939/ Version: Accepted Version Article: Richard, J.C. (2015) Uncovering the garden of the richest man on earth in nineteenth-century Canton: Howqua's garden in Honam, China. Garden History, 43 (2). pp. 168-181. ISSN 0307-1243 Reuse Unless indicated otherwise, fulltext items are protected by copyright with all rights reserved. The copyright exception in section 29 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 allows the making of a single copy solely for the purpose of non-commercial research or private study within the limits of fair dealing. The publisher or other rights-holder may allow further reproduction and re-use of this version - refer to the White Rose Research Online record for this item. Where records identify the publisher as the copyright holder, users can verify any specific terms of use on the publisher’s website. Takedown If you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing [email protected] including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request. [email protected] https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/ Uncovering the garden of the richest man on earth in nineteenth century Guangzhou s garden in Henan, China. (owqua Abstract Gardens in Lingnan, particularly those located in and around Guangzhou (Canton), were among the first Chinese gardens to be visited by Westerners, as until the Opium Wars, movements of foreigners were restricted to the city of Guangzhou, with the exception of a few missionaries who were able to enter Beijing. Thus Guangzhou gardens, and more specifically the Hong (or merchant) gardens of the 19th century, have largely informed Western understanding of Chinese gardens at a time when Suzhou gardens were inaccessible to foreigners. However, despite its historical importance the Lingnan region has been little explored by Western scholars, and research in China has only seen local exposure. This paper will present a conjectural reconstruction of Co-Hong merchant s, built at the beginning of the 19th century in the suburbs of Guangzhou. This reconstruction is based on Western diaries, records and photographs, as(owquas well as Chinesegarden sources such as gazetteers and export paintings. Introduction During almost a century, Guangzhou (Canton) was the only harbour opened to Westerners1 wanting access to China: Qianlong emperor (1735-1796) was at the origin of this policy, usually referred to as the Canton Trade period (1757-1842)2. This restriction was instituted in part to prevent ambitious foreigners to reach other Chinese harbours north of Guangzhou; these were located much closer to the capital Beijing, and a foreign presence in these parts would have jeopardised Chinese imperial security. Throughout the Canton Trade period merchants wanting to make business with China were also obliged to use specific intermediaries during their transactions: this group of men was named the Co-Hong or Hong, and hand picked among the wealthiest of Cantonese traders. One of the most respected Hong merchants, Howqua, had the reputation of being the richest man on earth at the peak of his career just before the first Opium War (1839-42). His fortune was evaluated between 15-25 million dollars3, in any solvency4. As the head of the Hong, Howqua had accumulated a fortune that allowed him tocase build so someimportant of the mostas to talked guarantee about thegardens security of ni neteenthof the whole century of China.(ong merchants 1 Unfortunately there are no remains of this once flourishing gardens visited by both Chinese elites and Western traders. Careful research in both Chinese and Western written and pictorial sources appears as the only mean to obtain an idea of their appearance. This task is rendered considerably arduous because of the multiplicity of languages in which relevant records are written, as well as the fact that these pictures, paintings and books are scattered across the world in countless museums, libraries and private collections. However the current trend for libraries and museums to scan their collections and make them available to the public has made it now possible to reconstitute large portions of the gardens through the processing of these diverse materials, as will be exposed in this paper. It appears timely as the bulk of Chinese garden studies has been overly focused on most well known examples located around Suzhou and Beijing, and offers an alternative vision of the Chinese gardens as Westerners first encountered it5. Howqua, richest man on earth in the first half of the nineteenth century Howqua or Wu Bingjian (1769 1843), was in fact the second Howqua in name: 6 Howqua was the title of his father Wu Guoying (1731 1800). Howqua I had created the Yihe Company in the 1780s, which his son Howqua II - designated as Howqua in this paper - had inherited in 1801. In the hands of the son, the company soon proved highly profitable7 and thus Howqua became the richest man on earth at the beginning of the nineteenth cent found in contemporary newspapers in Western languages, which reported him as not to be trusted for government matters,ury but Numerous perfectly reports trustworthy on (owquas as to commercial character affairs can be8. He was admired for his shrewd sense of commerce, his effectiveness and refined intellect; but his conservative personality9 was sometimes regretted. However he was, paradoxically, also considered to be exceptionally open-minded10 as well as being well disposed towards foreigners, which is why he occasionally invited a privileged few of them in his gardens. Hong merchants, aware of their role as the only intermediaries that Western traders could use for their transactions, took great care to entertain cordial relationships with their foreign counterparts. This friendly attitude was contrasted with a very tense atmosphere laid upon the city of Guangzhou at the first half of the 19th century: local intensified ChineseChineses - manydespise newspapers of foreigners reported grew homicides to unprecedent - and culminatinged highs withas opium their bombingsmuggling of the city during adding the tofirst the Opium constant War threat (1839-42). that foreign Until thisships date, crews during represented trade season to the11 Western visitors had been confined to a small number of locations in the city; including the factories where trade was conducted and a handful of local landmarks for recreation purposes. Therefore it is understandable that, when the opportunity of visiting gardens arose12, the lucky guests kept precise observations in their diaries, and later purchased views of the gardens as souvenirs: consequently making the study (owquas s possible even long after its actual destruction. of (owquas garden 2 The Wu Residence in Henan Island As the leader of the Hong merchants, the owner of the Yihe Company and the head of the Wu family , Howqua was in charge of a considerable household, which he had to house in appropriate style fitting to his rank. The origin of the Howqua residence -1722),s whichlocation made is linked them toforeigners the Wu familysin the eyes quest of localfor loca Cantol legitimacynese. First originated the lead of from the family,Fujian Wuprovince Chaofeng the Wu (1613-93) had moved settled to Guangdong in Xiguan, under a suburb emperor located Kangxis directly reign to the west of Guangzhou city walls (Figure 1). As the city of Guangzhou became wealthier as a harbour, so was the price of the land getting more expensive. However in 1783, his great-grandson Wu Guoying could afford to purchase land13 in Henan , on the southern bank of the Pearl River14 opposite the city of Guangzhou. The Wu estate was conveniently located on the opposite side of the river from the Factories (or Hong): established between the city walls and the northern bank of the river, the Thirteen Factories were warehouses where the foreign trade was taking place, with each trading nation attached in name to one specific building. Additionally, Henan had been a popular location for garden making since the Ming dynasty, reaching its peak during the transition between 18th and 19th century. Such a propitious location meant that the Wu cohabited with their direct rivals, the Pan family , also powerful in the maritime trade and originated from Fujian. The Pan and Wu estates were located on each side of a narrow watercourse named the Longxi Stream in the proximity of the Pearl River. This Buddhist institution was one of the largest centres of piety in local Cantonese society and coincidentallynear the Oceans one Bannerof the fewTemple locations that foreign traders were allowed to visit before 1842. Consequently, the temple was abundantly described in writing as well as paintings from both Chinese and Western origins, and descriptions of the temple came 15. The Wu estate occupied a roughly triangular piece of land positioned between the temple on the west, and the Pan estateusually on together the east with (Figure that 1)of ;the although adjoining the (owqualatter wass garden located beyond the narrow Longxi Stream. 3 (FIGURE 1) Simplified map of Guangzhou, adapted by L.Feng from Plan of the city and suburbs of Canton compiled by the Quarter-master generals department Chinese expeditionary force. Map dated of October 1857 and kept in Cambridge University Library. Legend: 1. Conjectural location of the Fuyinyuan in Huadi; 2. Wu Residence in Henan; 3. Pan Residence in Henan; 4. Ocean’s Banner Temple; 5. Thirteen Factories; 6. Conjectural location of the Wu’s house in Xiguan. in Henan, including its garden, reflected the different functions required by a high standing family in late Imperial China.
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