Sir George Staunton, 2nd Baronet

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Early life

Lady Jane Staunton (d. 1823) with her son, afterwards Sir George Thomas Staunton Bart. (1781–1859), and a Chinese attendant holding a chest of tea. (John Hoppner, circa 1792)

Born at Milford House near Salisbury, he was the son of Sir George Leonard Staunton (1737–1801), first baronet, diplomatist and Orientalist.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1792, at the age of 12, he accompanied his father, who had been appointed secretary to Lord Macartney's mission to China, to the Far East (1792–1794).<ref name="Gladwyn">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Prior to the trip the young George Staunton had begun to learn Chinese alongside Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and for the duration was therefore given the role of Page to Lord Macartney.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp During the mission his Chinese proved good enough to engage in diplomatic banter and he received a personal gift from the Qianlong Emperor.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp In 1797 he spent two terms at Trinity College, Cambridge.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp

In the employ of the East India Company

In 1798 was appointed a writer in the British East India Company's factory at Canton (Guangzhou), and subsequently its chief.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp During this time his knowledge of Chinese increased.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp In 1805 he translated a work of Dr George Pearson into Chinese.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp Five years later, he published an English translation of a significant part of the Chinese legal code.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp

In 1801 he succeeded his father to the baronetcy and in April 1803 was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead link</ref>

Many people came to ask for help in both learning the Chinese dialect there and staying, including Robert Morrison and Thomas Manning.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 1816 Staunton proceeded as second commissioner on a special mission to Beijing with Lord Amherst and Sir Henry Ellis.<ref name="Gladwyn" />Template:Rp During the mission he landed in Hong Kong in July 1816. He walked from the shore of Hong Kong to Hong Kong Village via Wong Chuk Hang. After the trip, Wong Chuk Hang was named Staunton Creek and the valley where Hong Kong Village was located was named Staunton Valley. Staunton Creek later became a large sampan slum - it and was eventually cleared and boat people moved into Wong Chuk Hang Estate. Said village was most likely Wong Chuk Hang Lo Wai; only Wong Chuk Hang San Wai still exists at the bottom of Shouson Hill. After the ceding of Hong Kong to Britain, Staunton Street in Central was named after him.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

The embassy was unsuccessful - and suffered a serious ship-wreck on the return journey - and shortly afterwards Staunton decided to leave Canton permanently.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp

Back in Britain

One of the follies that Staunton had built on his Leigh estate

George Staunton had been looking for a country home for some years before his permanent return from China and in 1818 put in a bid for Newstead Abbey but was outbid by Thomas Wildman.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp In 1820 he purchased the Leigh estate in Hampshire<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp which included what was to become Staunton Country Park. He lived there for part of each year and made substantial alterations to the buildings and the landscape.

Three years later he was heavily involved with the founding of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp Their Sir George Staunton Prize is awarded annually.

Between 1818 and 1852 he was MP for several English constituencies, finally for Portsmouth. He latterly described himself as being during his early years in parliament a liberal Tory who looked to George Canning for leadership.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp He was a member of the East India Committee, and in 1823, in conjunction with Henry Thomas Colebrooke founded the Royal Asiatic Society.

From 1829 until 1856 he was a member of the Society of Dilettanti.<ref name=Gladwyn />Template:Rp

He had never married and the baronetcy became extinct on his death (in London). He left his Irish estate, Clydagh House, to his eldest cousin George Staunton Lynch (who took the additional surname of Staunton) and Leigh Park and his London house (17, Devonshire Street, Marylebone) to George Staunton Lynch's younger brother, Captain Henry Cormick Lynch.

Publications

His publications include translations of Great Qing Legal Code, known as the Fundamental Laws of China (1810)<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> and of the Narrative of the Chinese Embassy to the Khan of the Tourgouth Tartars (1821); Miscellaneous Notices Relating to China and our Commercial Intercourse with that Country (1822); Notes of Proceedings and Occurrences during the British Embassy to Peking (1824); Observations on our Chinese Commerce (1850). For the Hakluyt Society he edited Juan González de Mendoza's History of the Great and Mighty Kingdom of China.

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External links

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