First Record of a Journey East

马建忠Nanhai Publication Company · ChinaJun 2024

4.0

Word count: 18K words
Chapters: 2

Summary

In the spring of the eighth year of the Guangxu reign, the renwu year, Korea, our eastern tributary, concluded a treaty of commerce with the United States of America. Its government, unfamiliar with foreign affairs, asked that a high Chinese official be present at the signing. The Hefei Fu Xiang therefore petitioned the throne, and I, Jianzhong, was appointed to go. Admiral Ding Yuting, commander of the Beiyang Fleet, was on a cruise and took three warships—the Weiyuan, the Yangwei, and the Zhenhai—to proceed with me to Yantai, where we were to join the American plenipotentiary Xue Fu'er and sail to Korea to negotiate the treaty.

Editor's review

First Record of the Eastward Journey recounts how, in the spring of the eighth year of Guangxu (the renwu year), Korea, a tributary land to the east, began treaty relations and trade with the United States. Its government, unfamiliar with foreign affairs, asked that a Chinese high official attend the signing, and so the Hefei Minister requested imperial approval and dispatched Ma Jianzhong. Ding Yuting, commander of the Beiyang Fleet, on a cruise mission, led three ships—the Weiyuan, Yangwei, and Zhenhai—to rendezvous at Yantai and sail with the American plenipotentiary Seward to Korea to negotiate the treaty. Written from a first-hand perspective, the book sets out the origins of the mission, its personnel, and the movement of ships; though brief, it vividly conveys late Qing China's mediating role in the trade negotiations with Korea. Its strength lies in placing diplomatic treaty-making and naval cruising side by side, showing both the ceremonies of documents and the actions at sea, and offering direct material for research on modern Sino-Korean-American relations and Beiyang coastal defense. The prose is classical narrative, concise and restrained, and is best read together with Eastward Journey, Continued for the complete itinerary. Readers interested in late Qing diplomatic history, the self-strengthening movement, and travel writing abroad will find details and a sense of immediacy beyond official histories.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars researching late Qing Sino-Korean relations and trade with Korea
Military history readers interested in the early activities and vessel configuration of the Beiyang Fleet
Readers interested in the procedures of modern diplomatic treaty-making and the protocol of missions
Readers who enjoy classical narrative travel records and are willing to read historical sources closely

Not a good fit for

General readers expecting light narrative or literary travelogues
Beginners lacking the patience for classical Chinese and unwilling to look up background

Reading tips

First review the historical background of Korea's treaty with the United States in the eighth year of Guangxu, then enter the text.
Read in sequence with Eastward Journey, Continued to connect the origins of the mission with the later journey.
Note the names of the Weiyuan, Yangwei, and Zhenhai and of figures such as Ding Yuting and Seward; brief notes on persons and ships may help.

About the publisher

Nanhai Publication Company China · Founded in 1988

Nanhai Publication Company is a comprehensive publisher known for its literature and arts titles, covering fields such as classical poetry, martial arts fiction, and folk literature. Judging from the more than 1,600 books in the database, the company has released classical poetic works including the Nineteen Old Poems and the Nine Songs, as well as multiple volumes of Huanzhulouzhu's series The Swordsmen of Mount Shu, along with related writings by authors such as Guan Hanqing, Qu Yuan, Zuo Si, and Wang Zhihuan. Its publishing character lies in balancing the organization of classic texts with the dissemination of popular literature, placing poetry anthologies alongside long martial arts novels and presenting a relatively diverse literary profile. Public information is limited, and further details about its editorial practices and series planning remain to be supplemented.

版权信息
东行初录

FAQ

What event does First Record of the Eastward Journey describe?

It recounts how, in the spring of the eighth year of Guangxu (the renwu year), Korea began treaty relations and trade with the United States. Because the Korean government was unfamiliar with foreign affairs, it asked that a Chinese high official attend the signing; Ma Jianzhong was ordered to accompany Ding Yuting, commander of the Beiyang Fleet, with the three ships Weiyuan, Yangwei, and Zhenhai to Yantai, and to sail with the American plenipotentiary Seward to Korea to negotiate the treaty, along with the origins of the mission.

What is the historical value of this book?

From a first-hand perspective it records late Qing China's mediating role in trade negotiations with Korea and presents the movement of Beiyang Fleet ships and cruise operations, placing diplomatic treaty-making alongside coastal defense operations. It thus provides direct and concrete evidence for research on modern Sino-Korean-American relations, self-strengthening diplomacy, and the early activities of the Beiyang Navy.

Which of the two books should be read first?

It is advisable to read First Record of the Eastward Journey first, as it sets out the origins and initial arrangements of the spring mission to Korea to negotiate the treaty; then read Eastward Journey, Continued, which picks up the second commissioned journey east that summer, the meeting with the German envoy, and the voyage aboard ship. Reading in chronological order makes the figures and events clearer.

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About the author

马建忠 Author

Ma Jianzhong was an important Chinese linguist and writer of the modern period. Public information about him is limited, and no systematic record of his birth and death years, native place, or biographical details is available. Judging from the five works collected here, his writing spans two fields: linguistics and travel literature. Ma shi wen tong (The Grammar of Mr. Ma), his representative work, is a foundational text of Chinese grammar. Building on traditional philological materials, it systematically examines classical Chinese function words and syntax, and its influence on later Chinese grammatical research has been profound; it remains an important reference for the study of classical Chinese. The Dongxing chu lu, Dongxing xu lu, Dongxing san lu, and the collected Dongxing lu are travel accounts that record what he saw and felt on his journey east. Their style is plain and attentive to direct observation, giving them value both as historical sources and as literature. The works are classified on this site under classic works and folk literature, suggesting that readers regard them both as traditional scholarly texts and as readable narrative writing.