Christian missions, Chinese culture, and colonial administration: A study of the activities of James Legge and Ernest John Eitel in nineteenth century Hong Kong (United Kingdom)

This thesis aims to study the activities of James Legge and Ernest John Eitel in nineteenth century Hong Kong. Motivated by the missionary cause, they came to Hong Kong where they also developed their interests in things Chinese and both of them became well-known sinologists. Their educational undertakings, which was at first designed for the missionary end, served as the beginning of their participation in the colonial administration in Hong Kong. In other words, their activities crossed over the sacred and secular domains, namely, their call for the Christian missions, the use of their knowledge of the Chinese culture, and their participation in the colonial administration. To Legge and Eitel the boundaries between the secular and sacred were blurred, LMS churches, LMS schools, and their study of sinology had to be taken into account as an integral part of the LMS Hong Kong mission. Furthermore, they not only played the dual roles as service men in both sacred and secular domains but in doing more secular work they strengthen the LMS Hong Kong mission.