中英雙語話歷史 第88期:清朝(衰落)

The Way into Crisis：That such a vast empire like Qing China would meet conflicts with neighboring people is a natural cause. Already the occupation of the Yili Territory in the west has been without consequences for the loyalty of Muslim people of Chinese Turkestan. But expanding Russia also claimed these territories of In-ner Asia.

走向危機:清朝時期的中國如此遼闊與周邊國家發生摩擦是再自然不過的事情了。儘管清朝在西部擁有伊犁地區，但卻不能使中國土耳其斯坦的穆斯林效忠 清朝。擴張中的俄羅斯也聲稱擁有中亞地區。

Treaties with the Russian tsars helped to settle the border conflicts. Ch卜 nese troops proved the Qing sovereignty over Burma and Nepal. Chinese settlers in Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and Taiwan met rebellions of the aboriginal tribes that could only be subdued by military force. Muslim people stood up against the Qing regime in Gansu and Xinjiang.

清朝政府和沙皇俄國簽訂的條約有 助於解決邊境爭端。中國軍隊保證了清朝對波爾瑪和尼泊爾的統治,但是在雲南、貴州、四川和臺灣等地遇到了當地居民的強烈反抗，而這些只能用武力解決。穆斯 林也在甘肅、新疆起來抗擊清朝統治。

A Weakening China： The 19th century brought developments over China, which worsened the economical backwardness that was already seen after the long and glorious reigns of the three emperors Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong.

逐步衰弱的中國：19世紀給中國帶來了發展，也加劇了中國經濟的倒退，這一 點在清朝長時期統治和繁榮的康熙、雍正和乾隆三位皇帝時期既有顯現。

The two main problems are the question of centralized or decentralized administration, and to what extent the state should control the economy for the sake of the population and to fill the state treasure. Both questions should also be crucial for the economical, technical and political backwardness of the 19th century China.

清朝時 期兩大主要問題是高度的中央集權制或者說高度分散的集權制以及爲了國民和充 實國庫應該如何控制國民經濟的問題。這兩大問題對19世紀的中國經濟、技術、 政治的落後都起着決定性作用。

A political ,economical and social system that had been proved effectively for two thousand years seemed to have no need for change or modernization. In the eyes of the Westerners, therefore, the political and social sphere of China had been unchanged for thousands of years. The economical sphere meanwhile seemed to have been influenced by Europeans, and at least experienced some modernization after Chinese mandarins became aware of China’s economical backwardness.

2000年來證明在中國行之有效的政治、經濟、和 社會制度似乎無需改變或實現現代化。因此，在西方人的眼裏，中國政治、經濟已 經2000年沒有任何變動。中國經濟似乎是受歐洲的影響，至少當清朝大臣們意識 到中國經濟落後時中國還是體驗了一下現代化。

But in fact, economical changes already took place since the mid of 18th century. The long period of peace and the introduction of new crops from the America(peanuts, corn, and taro) resulted in a steady rise in the population.

事實上，18世紀中期中國經濟就 發生了重大變化。長期和平和從美國引進的農作物（如花生、玉米、芋頭）使中國人 口穩步上升。

With an increasing population ,there was also the need for a widespread commerce and trade network covering whole China, especially along the waterways of the great rivers and channels. Merchants needed banks for their funds to finance their business.

隨着人口的增長，需要在中國廣開商路和建立貿易網，尤其是要在長 江和運河地區開闢水路。商人需要銀行爲他們提供資金以資助企業發展。

The industry of Qing China was a highly sophisticated system of division of labour. Chinaware, tea, brocades and cotton was produced greatly in specialized regions and cities. Merchants and producers formed non-governmental guilds with comprehensive administratorial functions. While in the west of the USA, a lack of labour force led to the development of industrial agriculture, the surplus of labour force in China was an impediment for technification.

清朝時 期，中國手工業就有高度複雜的勞動分工。中國器具、茶葉、織錦和棉花生產在一 些專業生產地區高度發展。商人和生產商組成了非官方的具有廣泛管理職能的行 業協會。在美國西部，因缺乏勞動力而促成了機械化農業發展的同時，中國勞動力 的剩餘則阻礙了技術的發展。

And moreover, the social groups making profit and living in wealth, like fhe salt traders of the lower Yangtze valley, did consume their income rather for luxury instead of investing in long-term business like a heavy industry. The lack of governmental interference into the sphere of the economy left this field a prey for the penetrating Western merchants.

此外，那些掙了錢而生活奢靡的商人,如長江下游的 鹽商們，大肆揮霍錢財，過着奢侈生活,而不是把資金投資到像重工業這樣的長期 企業上去。政府也缺乏對經濟的干預，這使得這一領域逐步爲西方商人所滲透。

The Opium Wars and the Unequal Treaties：China as a country with a highly developed manufacturing industry had no need for imported cotton fabrics or similar items produced in the West. The British merchants, especially the East India Company, saw their chance in the import of opium.

鴉片戰爭和一系列不平等條約的簽訂:中國，作爲一個有着高度發達的手工制 造業的國家，無須從西方進口棉紡織品或諸如此類的產品。於是英國商人，特別是 東印度公司，看準只有向中國進口鴉片。

As the import of opium had been prohibited by the Chinese government already during the 18th century, the only way to make profit by selling Indian opium was the smuggling business. Opium does not only mean a danger for health, but also has a deep impact on public moral. Moreover, the export of tea, silk and chinaware was not able to cover the costs for opium imports： the Chinese trade balance tended to become negative.

由於中國政府在18世紀就曾下令禁止進 口鴉片，所以出售印度鴉片掙錢的唯一辦法就是走私。鴉片不僅危害人身健康，並 且對社會公衆道德也有極其深刻的影響。但是，茶葉、絲綢和瓷器的出口總額彌補 不了鴉片一項進口的差額:中國貿易出現逆差。

The court in Beijing was divided between ministers proposing a forced barter (opium against Chinese products) ； allowance of opium import but imposing high taxes on the drug ； or confrontation with the British merchants.

朝庭中的大臣分成兩派，一派主張 強行物物交換（用鴉片換中國商品），主張鴉片可以進口，但是要徵收高額關稅;另 一派主張直接反對英國商人經營鴉片。

A representative of the last group was Lin Zexu who acted as commissioner in Guangzhou (Canton) in 1839, the main import harbour of the south. He confiscated opium cases and tried to banish British merchants. However under the protection of their government, the Britain Captain Elliott attacked some small harbors, occupied islands and threatened the port of Tianjin with canon boats： the so-called Opium War began.

後一派則以林則徐爲代表。1839年他被 派到南方重要港口廣州任兩廣總督，沒收鴉片並極力驅逐英國商人。在英國政府 的庇護下，英國軍隊在伊里爾特上尉的統領下進攻幾個小港口，佔領了一些島嶼， 並直接用炮艦威脅天津港——鴉片戰爭開始。

A British fleet, commanded by Henry Pottinger, proceeded until Nanjing, when the Chinese government finally gave in and signed the Nanjing Treaty in 1842, the first of a long line of shameful treaties for the Qing government, called 4tunequal treatiesFor twenty centuries, Chinese emperors had dealt in the same way with penetrating M barbarians ： making concessions to them by granting them material presents like Chinese silk or sending them princesses.

1842年，一支英國艦隊，在亨利? 鮑丁格爾的指揮下，一直打到南京，中國政府投降並簽定了《南京條約》。這是中國 清政府所簽署的喪權辱國的第一個不平等條約。2000多年來，中國的皇帝一直以 同樣的方式來對應入侵的蠻夷，即以賞賜財物，如絲綢或送公主和親的辦法與他們 達成妥協。

In 1842, nobody in China was aware that the danger coming from the West was much deeper than a few nomad barbarians attacking the Chinese the Nanjing Treaty, the Qing government granted the British free (opium)trade in the harbors of Xiamen (Amoy), Shanghai, Ningbo, Fuzhou and Guangzhou, abolishing the monopoly of the Chinese merchant guilds in these cities. British goods were imposed with a very low import tax, and British subjects were allowed to move freely inside China. As a trade base, the island of Hong Kong was handed over to Great Britain.

1842年，中國沒人意識到來自西方的危險遠比幾個遊牧族侵擾邊境深 遠的多《南京條約》規定，清政府允許英國在廈門、上海、寧波、福州和廣州進行鴉片自 由貿易，取消中國商會在這些城市的壟斷。對英國商品徵收很低的進口稅，英國人 可以在中國自由往來。作爲商埠，香港島由英國管轄。

The financial damages China had to pay for the war counted 21 million silver dollars. Great Britain was officially recognized by the Qing government as a foreign power with equal rights. In an additional treaty, the Humen Treaty, Great Britain was allowed to establish concessional settlement territories where British subjects were exempt of Chinese jurisdiction.

中國賠償戰爭損失費2 100 萬兩白銀。大清政府承認英國和中國享有同等權利。在附加條約《虎門條約》裏， 大英帝國允許在中國建立租界，租界內的英國公民不受中國司法管轄。

But the most important item of this treaty was the Most Favorite Clausula, allowing Great Britain to obtain every contractual concession any other country should obtain. Following the British, France Treaty of Whampoa, the USA Treaty of Wangsha, and the minor European states forced treaties with the Chinese allowing them free trade inside a handful of harbor cities.

該條約中 最重要的一條就是最惠國待遇，即英國享有所有和其他國家簽定的條約中的一切 權利。繼英國之後，法國簽定了《黃埔條約》，美國鑑定《望廈條約》，其他幾個歐洲 國家也強行和中國簽定了允許在中國衆多港口自由貿易的條約。

In 1856, British and French saw their chance to revise the Nanjing Treaty. Unifying their armies, British and French occupied Guangzhou and forced the Qing government to sign the Tianjin Treaty in 1858 after their canon boats had bombarded the Tanggu Forts near Tianjin.

1856年，英法聯 軍認爲改寫條約的時機成熟，於是英法聯軍炮轟天津附近的塘沽港。1858年，英 法聯軍佔領廣州強迫清政府簽定《天津條約》。

But the French army invaded Beijing and burned down and plundered the Qing emperors’ summer residence in the Yuanmingyuan Garden； the court had fled to Jehol. These military actions are called the Second Opium War. Signed in I860, the Beijing Treaty.

但是，法國軍隊入侵北京，火燒和洗 劫了大清皇帝在圓明園的夏日行宮，清政府逃到了熱河，這些軍事行動稱爲第二次 鴉片戰爭。I860年簽定《北京條約》。

Meanwhile, Rus-sia also claimed rights on Chinese territory. The treaties of Nerchinsk was signed between Russia and Qing Government in 1689. In 1858 Russia occupied the territory north of the River Amur and claimed this territory as Russian, ensured in the Aihui Treaty.

與此同時，俄羅斯也到處強佔中國土地。 1689年簽定《尼布楚條約》，1858年俄羅斯佔領阿穆爾河以北的領地，並聲稱歸己 所有，並在《璦琿條約》中加以強調。