Sir John Francis Davis, 1st Baronet KCBThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the medieval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(
Chinese Translated Name:Chinese or the Sinitic language is a language family consisting of languages mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
戴維斯 or the obsolete term 爹核士) (1795 - 1890) was a
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name and the state form of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927...
diplomat, Sinologist, and the 2nd Governor of
Hong KongHong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a highly autonomous territory of the People's Republic of China, facing Guangdong to the north and the South China Sea to the east, west and south...
. He was the son of Samuel Davis and nephew to
William Thomas MercerWilliam Thomas Mercer was a British colonial administrator who served as the Colonial Secretary of Hong Kong from 1854 to 1868. He ruled Hong Kong as the Administrator for one year, between 15 March 1865 to 11 March 1866...
(later
Colonial SecretaryThe Chief Secretary for Administration , commonly known as Chief Secretary and abbreviated as CS, is the second highest position of the Hong Kong Government...
of Hong Kong).
John Davis was appointed writer in
East India CompanyThe East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
's factory at
CantonCanton in China may refer to:* Canton City : Guangzhou, traditional English name used in most documents.* Canton Province : Guangdong, of which Guangzhou is the capital and the largest city. This usage is rare and was not documented in major lexica of the English language. When used, it must be...
in 1813. Because of his linguistic abilities, he was chosen to accompany
Lord AmherstWilliam Pitt Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst GCH PC was a British diplomat and colonial administrator. He was Governor-General of India between 1823 and 1828.-Background and education:...
on his embassy to
PekingBeijing is a metropolis in northern China and the capital of the People's Republic of China...
in 1816.
On the return of the mission, Davis again took up his duties in the factory at Canton, and was promoted to be president in 1832.
Sir John Francis Davis, 1st Baronet KCBThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the medieval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(
Chinese Translated Name:Chinese or the Sinitic language is a language family consisting of languages mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
戴維斯 or the obsolete term 爹核士) (1795 - 1890) was a
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name and the state form of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927...
diplomat, Sinologist, and the 2nd Governor of
Hong KongHong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a highly autonomous territory of the People's Republic of China, facing Guangdong to the north and the South China Sea to the east, west and south...
. He was the son of Samuel Davis and nephew to
William Thomas MercerWilliam Thomas Mercer was a British colonial administrator who served as the Colonial Secretary of Hong Kong from 1854 to 1868. He ruled Hong Kong as the Administrator for one year, between 15 March 1865 to 11 March 1866...
(later
Colonial SecretaryThe Chief Secretary for Administration , commonly known as Chief Secretary and abbreviated as CS, is the second highest position of the Hong Kong Government...
of Hong Kong).
Early career
John Davis was appointed writer in
East India CompanyThe East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
's factory at
CantonCanton in China may refer to:* Canton City : Guangzhou, traditional English name used in most documents.* Canton Province : Guangdong, of which Guangzhou is the capital and the largest city. This usage is rare and was not documented in major lexica of the English language. When used, it must be...
in 1813. Because of his linguistic abilities, he was chosen to accompany
Lord AmherstWilliam Pitt Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst GCH PC was a British diplomat and colonial administrator. He was Governor-General of India between 1823 and 1828.-Background and education:...
on his embassy to
PekingBeijing is a metropolis in northern China and the capital of the People's Republic of China...
in 1816.
On the return of the mission, Davis again took up his duties in the factory at Canton, and was promoted to be president in 1832. He was appointed the joint commissioner in China with
Lord NapierWilliam John Napier, 9th Lord Napier was a Royal Navy officer, politician and diplomat.He was the son of Francis Napier, 8th Lord Napier and the father of Francis Napier, 10th Lord Napier and 1st Baron Ettrick .William John Napier served during the battle of Trafalgar as a midshipman...
in 1834.
Governor of Hong Kong
In 1844, Davis became British plenipotentiary and chief superintendent of British trade in China, and governor and commander-in-chief of the colony of
Hong KongHong Kong , officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a highly autonomous territory of the People's Republic of China, facing Guangdong to the north and the South China Sea to the east, west and south...
, until 1848.
On 8 May 1844, he was appointed to be the governor of Hong Kong.
On 16 July 1844, his home was robbed.
During his tenure, Davis was very much hated amongst Hong Kong residents and British merchants during his administration because of the establishment of various taxes, which increased the burden of all citizens, and his abrasive treatment of his subordinates. On a much lighter note, weekend racing began during his tenure, which gradually evolved as a Hong Kong institution.
Also, during his tenure, Davis organized the first
Hong Kong CensusPopulation census in Hong Kong , a collection of demographic data in Hong Kong, is conducted by Census and Statistics Department of Hong Kong Government. The census was held every ten years and by-census is held between two census...
, and it indicated that at that time, there were 23,988 people living in Hong Kong.
On 21 March 1848, his row with the local British merchants increased, and Davis resigned his commission and left Hong Kong.
Legacy
Mount Davis, as well as Mount Davis Path, Mount Davis Road, and
Davis StreetDavis Street is a street in Kennedy Town on the Hong Kong Island of Hong Kong. The street spans from the praya, New Praya, Kennedy Town, across Catchick Street, Hau Wo Street and Belcher's Street, to Forbes Street....
in Hong Kong were all named after him.
Awards and Honours
- Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown known as a baronetcy...
, 1845
- Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the medieval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, 1854
- Doctor of Civil Law
Doctor of Laws is a doctoral degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country, and includes degree such as the LL.D., Ph.D., Dr. iur., D.C.L., and S.J.D. or J.S.D...
, Oxford University, 1876
Works
- John Francis Davis, The Chinese: A General Description of the Empire of China and Its Inhabitants (London: Charles Knights, 1836). volume one; volume two
- China, during the war and since the peace
External links