Restudy On Yunnan Case And The Yantai Treaty

No doubt occurrence of the Yunnan case lain in Britain, which attempted to make the influence permeate Yunnan Province of China, but the direct responsibility actually resulted in Qing Dynasty. First, Britain's exploring team is by no means"invading army"; second, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs permitted the prospecting team entered Yunnan Province from Burma; third, it was concerned with Qing government's suggestion, misleading that Augustus Raymond Margary was plundered and killed by the local people. Occurrence of the Yunnan case had the profound thought and the social root, namely, closed-up thought of the ruling class and ignorant of the world situation. Under Britain's threat in force, the Qing government was compelled in the negotiations to make the big compromise, and signed"the Yantai Treaty"finally. In the process of negotiations on Yunnan case, the Qing government made concessions, but it was initiative, positive and argued strongly on just grounds, even if the argument was conservative, defensive. The Qing government refused claims which made and had nothing to do with the Yunnan case. Moreover the Qing government made use of contradictions among the Great Powers to isolate and bring the pressure to bear on Thomas Francis Wade in diplomacy. So Thomas Francis Wade had to make concessions, which, to a certain extent, maintained Qing Dynasty's benefit. Generally speaking,"the Yantai Treaty"is inequable firmly, but the treaty provisions be all inequality, and need analysing concretely. Consular jurisdiction, establishing foreign settlements and other provisions have violated China's sovereignty seriously, and contradict with the modern international law. Although abolishing likin tax system , opening trading port, dispatching diplomatic agents as well as stationing Sino-UK official diplomacy etiquette's provisions have nothing to do with the Yunnan case, are the Britain power politics product, but they conform to the modern international diplomatic convention, or are essential for the Chinese modernizing."Rehabilitating the Yunnan case"and so on related provisions about the Yunnan case, which the Qing government should bear responsibility for, ought to be accepted. At that time, the Chinese national strength was on the decline, the border area presented the universal crisis; and Westernization groups set off Westernization Movement aimed"self-rejuvenation","making-rich", so a peace, the stable domestic and foreign environment is critical; Qing government's finance already had too many problems to tackle; in 1875, most districts of the various provinces in north part of China emerged signs of drought successively. It was helpless and wise to sign the treaty under specifically historical background.