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Turkey: Ahmed Cevdet Pasha (1822 - 1895), Ottoman period historian and scholar, and head of the Mecelle commission that codified Islamic law.<br/><br/> The Mecelle was the civil code of the Ottoman Empire in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell, CBE (14 July 1868 – 12 July 1926) was an English writer, traveller, political officer, administrator, archaeologist and spy who explored, mapped, and became highly influential to British imperial policy-making due to her extensive travels in Greater Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Arabia.<br/><br/> Along with T. E. Lawrence, Bell helped establish the Hashemite dynasties in what is today Jordan as well as in Iraq. She played a major role in establishing and helping administer the modern state of Iraq, utilizing her unique perspective from her travels and relations with tribal leaders throughout the Middle East.<br/><br/> During her lifetime she was highly esteemed and trusted by British officials and given an immense amount of power for a woman at the time. She has also been described as 'one of the few representatives of His Majesty's Government remembered by the Arabs with anything resembling affection'.
In 717-718, Abe no Nakamoro was part of the Japanese mission to Tang China (Kentoshi) along with Kibi no Makibi and Genbo. They returned to Japan; he did not.<br/><br/> In China, he passed the civil-service examination. Around 725, he took an administrative position and was promoted in Luoyang in 728 and 731. Around 733 he received Tajihi Hironari, who would command the Japanese diplomatic mission. In 734 he tried to return to Japan but the ship to take him back sank not long into the journey, forcing him to remain in China for several more years. In 752, he tried again to return, with the mission to China led by Fujiwara no Kiyokawa, but the ship he was traveling in was wrecked and ran aground off the coast of Vietnam, but he managed to return to Chang'an in 755.<br/><br/> When the An Lushan Rebellion started later that year, it was unsafe to return to Japan and Nakamaro abandoned his hopes of returning to his homeland. He took several government offices and rose to the position of Governor-General of Annam between 761 and 767, residing in Hanoi. He then returned to Chang'an and was planning his return to Japan when he died in 770.
In 717-718, Abe no Nakamoro was part of the Japanese mission to Tang China (Kentoshi) along with Kibi no Makibi and Genbo. They returned to Japan; he did not.<br/><br/> In China, he passed the civil-service examination. Around 725, he took an administrative position and was promoted in Luoyang in 728 and 731. Around 733 he received Tajihi Hironari, who would command the Japanese diplomatic mission. In 734 he tried to return to Japan but the ship to take him back sank not long into the journey, forcing him to remain in China for several more years. In 752, he tried again to return, with the mission to China led by Fujiwara no Kiyokawa, but the ship he was traveling in was wrecked and ran aground off the coast of Vietnam, but he managed to return to Chang'an in 755.<br/><br/> When the An Lushan Rebellion started later that year, it was unsafe to return to Japan and Nakamaro abandoned his hopes of returning to his homeland. He took several government offices and rose to the position of Governor-General of Annam between 761 and 767, residing in Hanoi. He then returned to Chang'an and was planning his return to Japan when he died in 770.
In 717-718, Abe no Nakamoro was part of the Japanese mission to Tang China (Kentoshi) along with Kibi no Makibi and Genbo. They returned to Japan; he did not.<br/><br/> In China, he passed the civil-service examination. Around 725, he took an administrative position and was promoted in Luoyang in 728 and 731. Around 733 he received Tajihi Hironari, who would command the Japanese diplomatic mission. In 734 he tried to return to Japan but the ship to take him back sank not long into the journey, forcing him to remain in China for several more years. In 752, he tried again to return, with the mission to China led by Fujiwara no Kiyokawa, but the ship he was traveling in was wrecked and ran aground off the coast of Vietnam, but he managed to return to Chang'an in 755.<br/><br/> When the An Lushan Rebellion started later that year, it was unsafe to return to Japan and Nakamaro abandoned his hopes of returning to his homeland. He took several government offices and rose to the position of Governor-General of Annam between 761 and 767, residing in Hanoi. He then returned to Chang'an and was planning his return to Japan when he died in 770.
Hugh Clifford intended to follow his father, a distinguished colonial general, into the British Army, but later decided to join the civil service in the Straits Settlements, with the assistance of his relative Sir Frederick Weld, the then Governor of the Straits Settlements and also the British High Commissioner in Malaya. He was later transferred to the British Protectorate of the Federated Malay States. Clifford arrived in Malaya in 1883, aged 17.<br/><br/>He first became a cadet in the State of Perak. During his twenty years in Perak, Clifford socialised with the local Malays and studied their language and culture deeply. He served as British Resident at Pahang, 1896–1900 and 1901–1903, and Governor of North Borneo, 1900–1901.<br/><br/>In 1903, he left Malaya to take the post of Colonial Secretary of Trinidad. Later he was appointed Governor of the Gold Coast, 1912–1919, Nigeria, 1919–1925, and Ceylon, 1925–1927. He continued to write stories and novels about Malayan life. His last posting was as Governor of the Straits Settlements and British High Commissioner in Malaya from 1927 until 1930. He wrote Farther India, which chronicles European explorations and discoveries in Southeast Asia.
General Sir James Hope Grant GCB (22 July 1808 – 7 March 1875), British general, was the fifth and youngest son of Francis Grant of Kilgraston, Perthshire, and brother of Sir Francis Grant, President of the Royal Academy.<br/><br/> He entered the British Army in 1826 as cornet in the 9th Lancers, and became lieutenant in 1828 and captain in 1835. In 1842 he was brigade-major to Lord Saltoun in the First Opium War, and specially distinguished himself at the capture of Chinkiang, after which he received the rank of major and the CB. In the First Anglo-Sikh War of 1845–1846 he took part in the battle of Sobraon; and in the Punjab campaign of 1848–1849 he commanded the 9th Lancers, and won high reputation in the battles of Chillianwalla and Guzerat (Gujarat).<br/><br/> After serving with distinction in operations against the Indian Rebellion of 1857, in 1859 he was appointed, with the local rank of lieutenant-general, to be Commander of British Troops in China and Hong Kong and to lead the British land forces in the united French and British expedition against China.<br/><br/> The object of the campaign was accomplished within three months of the landing of the forces at Pei-tang (1 August 1860). The Taku Forts had been carried by assault, the Chinese defeated three times in the open and Peking occupied.
General Sir James Hope Grant GCB (22 July 1808 – 7 March 1875), British general, was the fifth and youngest son of Francis Grant of Kilgraston, Perthshire, and brother of Sir Francis Grant, President of the Royal Academy.<br/><br/> He entered the British Army in 1826 as cornet in the 9th Lancers, and became lieutenant in 1828 and captain in 1835. In 1842 he was brigade-major to Lord Saltoun in the First Opium War, and specially distinguished himself at the capture of Chinkiang, after which he received the rank of major and the CB. In the First Anglo-Sikh War of 1845–1846 he took part in the battle of Sobraon; and in the Punjab campaign of 1848–1849 he commanded the 9th Lancers, and won high reputation in the battles of Chillianwalla and Guzerat (Gujarat).<br/><br/> After serving with distinction in operations against the Indian Rebellion of 1857, in 1859 he was appointed, with the local rank of lieutenant-general, to be Commander of British Troops in China and Hong Kong and to lead the British land forces in the united French and British expedition against China.<br/><br/> The object of the campaign was accomplished within three months of the landing of the forces at Pei-tang (1 August 1860). The Taku Forts had been carried by assault, the Chinese defeated three times in the open and Peking occupied.
General Sir James Hope Grant GCB (22 July 1808 – 7 March 1875), British general, was the fifth and youngest son of Francis Grant of Kilgraston, Perthshire, and brother of Sir Francis Grant, President of the Royal Academy.<br/><br/> He entered the British Army in 1826 as cornet in the 9th Lancers, and became lieutenant in 1828 and captain in 1835. In 1842 he was brigade-major to Lord Saltoun in the First Opium War, and specially distinguished himself at the capture of Chinkiang, after which he received the rank of major and the CB. In the First Anglo-Sikh War of 1845–1846 he took part in the battle of Sobraon; and in the Punjab campaign of 1848–1849 he commanded the 9th Lancers, and won high reputation in the battles of Chillianwalla and Guzerat (Gujarat).<br/><br/> After serving with distinction in operations against the Indian Rebellion of 1857, in 1859 he was appointed, with the local rank of lieutenant-general, to be Commander of British Troops in China and Hong Kong and to lead the British land forces in the united French and British expedition against China.<br/><br/> The object of the campaign was accomplished within three months of the landing of the forces at Pei-tang (1 August 1860). The Taku Forts had been carried by assault, the Chinese defeated three times in the open and Peking occupied.
Sir William Jeffcott (1800 - 1855), born in Dublin, was a judge. In 1849 he was appointed Recorder of Singapore and Malacca (Melaka). In October 1855 he was appointed as a judge in Bombay, but died before receiving notification.<br/><br/> Colonel John Alexander Bannerman (5 June 1759 – 8 August 1819) was appointed Governor of Prince of Wales' Island (Penang Island, Malaysia) and Province Wellesley (Seberang Perai) (both forming the settlement of Penang) in 1817 and also Treasurer from 1818.
Gertrude Margaret Lowthian Bell, CBE (14 July 1868 – 12 July 1926) was an English writer, traveller, political officer, administrator, archaeologist and spy who explored, mapped, and became highly influential to British imperial policy-making due to her extensive travels in Greater Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, and Arabia.<br/><br/> Along with T. E. Lawrence, Bell helped establish the Hashemite dynasties in what is today Jordan as well as in Iraq. She played a major role in establishing and helping administer the modern state of Iraq, utilizing her unique perspective from her travels and relations with tribal leaders throughout the Middle East.<br/><br/> During her lifetime she was highly esteemed and trusted by British officials and given an immense amount of power for a woman at the time. She has also been described as 'one of the few representatives of His Majesty's Government remembered by the Arabs with anything resembling affection'.
Paul-Louis-Félix Philastre (born 7 February 1837 in Brussels, died 11 September 1902, Buyat-Beayeau, France) was a French colonial administrator, diplomat and scholar.<br/><br/> Philastre graduated from the French naval academy in 1857 and took service on the Avalanche, arriving in Cochinchina in 1861. In 1863, Philastre was appointed inspector of native affairs in a village in the Mekong river delta and two years later he obtained the position of director of native legal affairs. In 1868, he became ill and was forced to return to France.<br/><br/> In 1873, Philastre returned to the French colonial service in Indochina. Philastre played an important role in mediating between the French colonial authorities in Annam and the royal court in Huế. In 1874, Philastre negotiated the Second Treaty of Saigon with the Annamese court. He also served in Cambodia. He left Indochina in 1889.<br/><br/> Philastre authored a number of works on Chinese and Vietnamese studies, the most important of which are the first French translation of the Yijing and a complete translation of Emperor Gia Long's Code, which was based on the Qing Code.
Mari (modern Tell Hariri, Syria) was an ancient Sumerian and Amorite city, located 11 km north-west of the modern town of Abu Kamal on the western bank of the Euphrates river, some 120 km southeast of Deir ez-Zor, Syria. It is thought to have been inhabited since the 5th millennium BCE, although it flourished with a series of superimposed palaces that span a thousand years, from 2900 BCE to 1759 BCE, when it was sacked by Hammurabi.<br/><br/> The citizens of Mari were well known for elaborate hair styles and dress, and are considered to be part of Mesopotamian culture, despite being 240 km (150 mi) upriver from Babylon. It is theorized by some that Mari functioned as a trading post for southern Mesopotamia.<br/><br/> The inhabitants of Mari worshipped a vast array of gods and goddesses. Dagan, the deity of storms, had an entire temple dedicated to him, as did Ishtar, the goddess of fertility, and Shamash, the Sun god. Shamash was believed to be all-knowing and all-seeing, and in many seals he is seen standing between two large doors. According to the Epic of Gilgamesh, these doors are between Mount Mashu, and are the eastern doors to heaven. Through Mari's extensive trade network, Sumerian gods and goddesses were taken to non-Sumerian cities such as Ebla and Ugarit and incorporated into their native religions.
Sir Charles Elliot, KCB (1801 – 9 September 1875, Chinese: 义律 YìlÇœ) was a British naval officer, diplomat, and colonial administrator. He became the first administrator of Hong Kong in 1841 while serving as both Plenipotentiary and Chief Superintendent of British Trade in China. He was a key founder in the establishment of Hong Kong as a British colony.<br/><br/> In late 1833, Elliot was appointed as Master Attendant to the staff of Lord Napier, Chief Superintendent of British Trade. His position was involved with British ships and crews operating between Macao and Canton. In 1839 Elliot wrote to Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston that he regarded the opium trade as a 'disgrace and sin ... I have steadily discountenanced it by all the lawful means in my power, and at the total sacrifice of my private comfort in the society in which I have lived for some years past'.<br/><br/> During the First Anglo-Chinese War, he was on board the Nemesis during most of the battles. In January 1841, he negotiated terms with Chinese Imperial Commissioner Qishan in the Convention of Chuenpee. Elliot declared, among other terms, the cession of Hong Kong Island to the United Kingdom. However, Palmerston disapproved of the terms and dismissed Elliot. Henry Pottinger was appointed to replace him as plenipotentiary in May 1841.<br/><br/> Responding to the accusation that 'It has been particularly objected to me that I have cared too much for the Chinese', Elliot wrote to Foreign Secretary Lord Aberdeen on 25 June 1842:<br/><br/> 'I submit that it has been caring more for lasting British honour and substantial British interests, to protect friendly and helpful people, and to return the confidence of the great trading population of the Southern Provinces, with which it is our chief purpose to cultivate more intimate, social and commercial relations.'
Kapitan Cina or Capitan China was originally a Portuguese title for the representative of a Chinese enclave. The 15th century rulers of Southeast Asia, such as Melaka (modern day Malacca) and Banten (or Bantam), chose to deal with a single individual from each ethnic group under their rule. This administrative method of indirect rule was later adopted by the Portuguese when they took over Melaka in the 16th century, as well as the Dutch in the Dutch East Indies, and the English in British Malaya.<br/><br/> Kapitan China Chung Keng Quee (traditional Chinese: 鄭景貴; simplified Chinese: 郑景贵; pinyin: Zhèng JÇngguì, 1821–13 December 1901) was the founder and administrator of modern Taiping. Appointed 'Captain China' by the British in 1877, he was a millionaire philanthropist and known as an innovator in the mining of tin. He was involved in many other industries including farming, pawnbroking and logging. He was respected by both Chinese and European communities in the early colonial settlement. His survival in the chaotic era owes much to his standing as leader of the Hai San, a Chinese secret society in British Malaya during the time of the Larut Wars (1862–73), a position he is said to have held till early 1884 although in all probability he continued to remain a leading member. The old fort at Teluk Batu was built by him to safeguard the mine that he opened there. He was a member of the Commission for the Pacification of Larut and sat as one of six members of the Advisory Perak State Council appointed by the British.
Born in Beckenham, Kent, Auckland was the second son of William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, and Eleanor, daughter of Sir Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet. His sister was the traveller and author Emily Eden, who would visit India for long periods and write about her experiences. He was educated at Eton, and Christ Church, Oxford, and was called to the Bar, Lincoln's Inn, in 1809. He became heir apparent to the barony after his elder brother William Eden drowned in the Thames in 1810.<br/><br/> Auckland was returned to Parliament for Woodstock in 1810 (succeeding his elder brother, William), a seat he held until 1812, and again between 1813 and 1814. The latter year he succeeded his father in the barony and took his seat in the House of Lords, supporting the reform party. In 1830 he became President of the Board of Trade and Master of the Mint under Lord Grey.<br/><br/> He was First Lord of the Admiralty under Grey and then Lord Melbourne in 1834 and again under Melbourne in 1835. He gave a commission to William Hobson to sail for the East Indies, which Hobson ultimately rewarded in the naming of his new town Auckland, New Zealand in 1840. The town of Eden, New South Wales and Auckland County, New South Wales were also named after him.<br/><br/> In 1836 Lord Auckland was appointed Governor-General of India. His private secretary was John Russell Colvin, who rose to be lieutenant-governor of the North-West Provinces and named his son after him. As a legislator he dedicated himself especially to the improvement of native schools and the expansion of the commercial industry of India. He held this position at the time of British India's participation in the First Opium War (1839-1842).
Lieutenant General Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet, GCB, PC (Chinese: 砵甸ä¹; 3 October 1789 – 18 March 1856), was an Anglo-Irish soldier and colonial administrator who became the first Governor of Hong Kong.<br/><br/> Pottinger accepted Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston's offer of the post of envoy and plenipotentiary in China and superintendent of British trade, thus replacing Charles Elliot. In 1841, when Pottinger was sent to China, Palmerston instructed him to 'examine with care the natural capacities of Hong Kong, and you will not agree to give up that Island unless you should find that you can exchange it for another in the neighbourhood of Canton, better adapted for the purposes in view; equally defensible; and affording sufficient shelter for Ships of War and Commerce'.<br/><br/> After Pottinger led the navy and defeated Yishan at Humen, he negotiated the terms of the Treaty of Nanking (1842), which ended the First Opium War and ceded Hong Kong Island to the United Kingdom. Pottinger became the second administrator of Hong Kong (1841–1843) and the first Governor of Hong Kong (1843–1844).<br/><br/> When he forwarded the treaty to Aberdeen, Pottinger remarked, 'the retention of Hong Kong is the only point in which I have intentionally exceeded my modified instructions, but every single hour I have passed in this superb country has convinced me of the necessity and desirability of our possessing such a settlement as an emporium for our trade and a place from which Her Majesty's subjects in China may be alike protected and controlled'.
Lieutenant General Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet, GCB, PC (Chinese: 砵甸ä¹; 3 October 1789 – 18 March 1856), was an Anglo-Irish soldier and colonial administrator who became the first Governor of Hong Kong.<br/><br/> Pottinger accepted Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston's offer of the post of envoy and plenipotentiary in China and superintendent of British trade, thus replacing Charles Elliot. In 1841, when Pottinger was sent to China, Palmerston instructed him to 'examine with care the natural capacities of Hong Kong, and you will not agree to give up that Island unless you should find that you can exchange it for another in the neighbourhood of Canton, better adapted for the purposes in view; equally defensible; and affording sufficient shelter for Ships of War and Commerce'.<br/><br/> After Pottinger led the navy and defeated Yishan at Humen, he negotiated the terms of the Treaty of Nanking (1842), which ended the First Opium War and ceded Hong Kong Island to the United Kingdom. Pottinger became the second administrator of Hong Kong (1841–1843) and the first Governor of Hong Kong (1843–1844).<br/><br/> When he forwarded the treaty to Aberdeen, Pottinger remarked, 'the retention of Hong Kong is the only point in which I have intentionally exceeded my modified instructions, but every single hour I have passed in this superb country has convinced me of the necessity and desirability of our possessing such a settlement as an emporium for our trade and a place from which Her Majesty's subjects in China may be alike protected and controlled'.
Sir Thomas Francis Wade, GCMG, KCB (25 August 1818 – 31 July 1895), was a British diplomat and Sinologist who produced a syllabary in 1859 that was later amended, extended and converted into the Wade-Giles romanization for Mandarin Chinese by Herbert Giles in 1892. Thomas' Chinese name was Wei Tuoma (å¨å¦¥ç‘ª).<br/><br/> Born in London, he was the son of Major Wade of the Black Watch and Anne Smythe (daughter of William Smythe) of Barbavilla, County Westmeath, Ireland. He was educated at the Cape, in Mauritius, at Harrow and at Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1838, his father purchased for him a commission in the 81st Foot. Exchanging (1839) into the 42nd Highlanders, he served with his regiment in the Ionian Islands, devoting his leisure to the congenial study of Italian and modern Greek.<br/><br/> On receiving his commission as lieutenant in 1841 he exchanged into the 98th Foot, then under orders for Qing China, and landed in Hong Kong in June 1842. The scene of the First Opium War had at that time been transferred to the Yangtze River, and Wade was ordered there with his regiment. There he took part in the attack on Zhenjiang and in the advance on Nanking.<br/><br/> In 1845, he was appointed interpreter in Cantonese to the Supreme Court of Hong Kong, and in 1846 assistant Chinese secretary to the superintendent of trade, Sir John Francis Davis. In 1852 he was appointed vice-consul at Shanghai. The Taiping Rebellion had so disorganized the administration in the neighborhood of Shanghai that it was considered advisable to put the collection of the foreign customs duties into commission, a committee of three, of whom Wade was the chief, being entrusted with the administration of the customs. This formed the beginning of the imperial maritime customs service.<br/><br/> In 1855, Wade was appointed Chinese secretary to Sir John Bowring, who had succeeded Sir J. Davis at Hong Kong. On the declaration of the Second Opium War in 1857, he was attached to Lord Elgin's staff as Chinese secretary, and with the assistance of Horatio Nelson Lay he conducted the negotiations which led up to the Treaty of Tientsin (1858). In the following year he accompanied Sir Frederick Bruce in his attempt to exchange the ratification of the treaty, and was present at Taku when the force attending the mission was attacked and driven back from the Pei Ho (Hai River).<br/><br/> After retiring from working over forty years in the British embassies in China, he returned to England in 1883, and donated 4,304 volumes of Chinese literature to the Cambridge University Library's Oriental Collection three years later. In 1888, he was elected the first Professor of Chinese at the University of Cambridge. He held the position as a professor until his death in Cambridge at 77. He served as president of the Royal Asiatic Society from 1887 to 1890.
Ditsawarakuman Damrong Rajanubhab (Somdet Phra Chao Borommawong Thoe Phra Ong Chao Ditsawarakuman Krom Phraya Damrong Rachanuphap) ( 21 June 1862 – 1 December 1943) was the founder of the modern Thai education system as well as the modern provincial administration. He was also a self-taught historian, and one of the most influential Siamese intellectuals of his time.<br/><br/> Prince Damrong is credited as the father of Thai history, the education system, the health system (the Ministry of Health was originally a department of the Ministry of the Interior) and the provincial administration. On the centenary of his birth in 1962, he became the first Thai to be included in the UNESCO list of the world's most distinguished persons. Damrong worked as a self-educated historian, as well as writing books on Thai literature, culture and arts. Out of his works grew the National Library, as well as the National Museum.<br/><br/> His many descendants use the Royal surname Disakul.
Mari (modern Tell Hariri, Syria) was an ancient Sumerian and Amorite city, located 11 km north-west of the modern town of Abu Kamal on the western bank of Euphrates river, some 120 km southeast of Deir ez-Zor, Syria. It is thought to have been inhabited since the 5th millennium BCE, although it flourished with a series of superimposed palaces that span a thousand years, from 2900 BCE to 1759 BCE, when it was sacked by Hammurabi.<br/><br/> The citizens of Mari were well known for elaborate hair styles and dress, and are considered to be part of Mesopotamian culture, despite being 240 km (150 mi) upriver from Babylon. It is theorized by some that Mari functioned as a trading post for southern Mesopotamia.<br/><br/> The inhabitants of Mari worshipped a vast array of gods and goddesses. Dagan, the deity of storms, had an entire temple dedicated to him, as did Ishtar, the goddess of fertility, and Shamash, the Sun god. Shamash was believed to be all-knowing and all-seeing, and in many seals he is seen standing between two large doors. According to the Epic of Gilgamesh, these doors are between Mount Mashu, and are the eastern doors to heaven. Through Mari's extensive trade network, Sumerian gods and goddesses were taken to non-Sumerian cities such as Ebla and Ugarit and incorporated into their native religions.