Consular Letter to the Ministry of State and External Affairs about coin minting
This 1897 diplomatic despatch, issued by the General Consulate of Portugal in Shanghai (No. 38B, 5 November 1897), transmits confidential correspondence between Consul General Joaquim Maria Trindade Valdez and the Portuguese Minister in China concerning a protest by the Diplomatic Corps in Peking ag...
Saved in:
| Format: | Documents |
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| Language: | Portuguese |
| Published: |
Novembro 1897
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| Subjects: |
Academic Research Keywords
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Bukchins Indigenous Money Shops
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Centralised Regulation
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Confidential Correspondence
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Consul General Joaquim Maria Trindade Valdez
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Dean of Consular Corps
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Diplomatic Corps Beijing Protest
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Diplomatic Despatch No. 38B
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Financial System Fragmentation
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Foreign Coinage Importation
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Historical Document Analysis
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Late Qing Monetary Reform
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Mexican Dollars
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Portuguese Consulate Shanghai
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Provincial Emulation
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Shimonoseki Treaty
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Silver Currency Circulation
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Silver Dollar Standardisation
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Treaty Misapplication
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Treaty of Shimonoseki 1895
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Tung-ly-ga-mou Prohibition
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Viceroy Zhang Zhidong
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Documents
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| Online Access: | https://macau-legacy.usj.edu.mo/docs/BTYB6DMU/viewer_BTYB6DMU.html |
| Summary: | This 1897 diplomatic despatch, issued by the General Consulate of Portugal in Shanghai (No. 38B, 5 November 1897), transmits confidential correspondence between Consul General Joaquim Maria Trindade Valdez and the Portuguese Minister in China concerning a protest by the Diplomatic Corps in Peking against Tung-ly-ga-mou’s prohibition on the establishment of *bukchins*—indigenous Chinese money shops—for the circulation of silver currency. The restriction is attributed to a misapplication of treaty provisions. The document includes an annexed report dated 26 October 1897, authored by Valdez in his capacity as Dean of the Consular Corps, which contextualises the issue within broader challenges to monetary reform in late Qing China. It details efforts by Viceroy Zhang Zhidong to standardise a national silver dollar, undermined by provincial emulation and lack of centralised regulation, resulting in multiple non-uniform coinages and persistent reliance on Mexican dollars. The report further references the Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895), which permitted free importation of foreign coinage, complicating Beijing’s attempts to control minting machinery imports. The annotation in red ink summarises the diplomatic protest, while marginalia in blue and black ink, archival numbers, and official stamps reflect administrative handling. This primary source offers critical insights into Sino-foreign treaty port diplomacy, late-Qing monetary policy, and transnational financial governance at the close of the 19th century. |
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