Reginald Johnston
Encyclopedia
Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston, KCMG
, CBE
, (1874–1938) was a Scottish
academic, diplomat
and tutor
to Puyi
, the last emperor of China
, and later appointed as the last Commissioner of Weihaiwei.
, Scotland
he studied at University of Edinburgh
and later Magdalen College
, Oxford
.
In 1898, he entered into colonial service and worked in Hong Kong
. After initial service in Hong Kong, Johnston was transferred to the British leased territory at Weihaiwei in 1906 on the coast of the Shandong Peninsula as a District Officer, working with Sir James Haldane Stewart Lockhart
.
of thirteen-year-old Puyi
who still lived inside the Forbidden City
in Beijing
as a non-sovereign monarch.
As the British-born tutor to the Dragon Emperor, Johnston and Isabel Ingram
, daughter of an American missionary and the empress' tutoress, were the only foreigners in history to be allowed inside the inner court of the Qing Dynasty
. Johnston carried high imperial titles and lived in both the Forbidden City and the New Summer Palace.
After Puyi was expelled from the Forbidden City
in 1924, Johnston served as Secretary to the British China Indemnity Commission (1926). In 1927, he was appointed the second civilian Commissioner at Weihaiwei. He ran the territory until it was returned to the Republic of China
on 1 October 1930. The dignity of Johnston's official departure — the first such by a British administrator from a British possession in China — to a waiting Royal Navy
vessel, was somewhat spoiled by his obvious irritation at a servant who had failed to pack properly all of his clothes.
in 1931, a post based at the School of Oriental and African Studies. In 1935 Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston bequeathed his library to the School of Oriental and African Studies in London England. His library, one of the finest collections of Chinese and East Asian books in the country, consists of over 16,000 volumes. He was not a natural teacher, and hated university administration.
He retained his ties with Puyi, which proved an embarrassment after the former emperor assumed the throne of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo
.
Johnston retired in 1937, having acquired the small island of Eilean Righ
in Loch Craignish
, Scotland, on which he created for himself a Chinese Garden and flew the flag of Manchukou. After a short illness, he died in Edinburgh. In his will, he requested that no religious ceremony be conducted. In accordance with his wishes, he was cremated. His ashes were scattered on the island of Eilean Righ and surrounding Loch
.
He never married but was at one stage engaged to the historian Eileen Power
, and was close to author Stella Benson
.
Mrs Elizabeth Sparshott, to whom he was engaged at the time leading up to his death, burned many of his letters and other materials, at Johnston's request.
Johnston's book Twilight in the Forbidden City
(1934) describes his experiences in Beijing and was used as a source for Bernardo Bertolucci
's film dramatization of Puyi's life The Last Emperor
. He was portrayed by Peter O'Toole
in the film.
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, CBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, (1874–1938) was a Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
academic, diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
and tutor
Tutor
A tutor is a person employed in the education of others, either individually or in groups. To tutor is to perform the functions of a tutor.-Teaching assistance:...
to Puyi
Puyi
Puyi , of the Manchu Aisin Gioro clan, was the last Emperor of China, and the twelfth and final ruler of the Qing Dynasty. He ruled as the Xuantong Emperor from 1908 until his abdication on 12 February 1912. From 1 to 12 July 1917 he was briefly restored to the throne as a nominal emperor by the...
, the last emperor of China
Emperor of China
The Emperor of China refers to any sovereign of Imperial China reigning between the founding of Qin Dynasty of China, united by the King of Qin in 221 BCE, and the fall of Yuan Shikai's Empire of China in 1916. When referred to as the Son of Heaven , a title that predates the Qin unification, the...
, and later appointed as the last Commissioner of Weihaiwei.
Early
Born in EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
he studied at University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
and later Magdalen College
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
.
In 1898, he entered into colonial service and worked in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. After initial service in Hong Kong, Johnston was transferred to the British leased territory at Weihaiwei in 1906 on the coast of the Shandong Peninsula as a District Officer, working with Sir James Haldane Stewart Lockhart
James Haldane Stewart Lockhart
Sir James Haldane Stewart Lockhart KCMG, LLD was a British colonial official in Hong Kong and China for more than 40 years. Born in Ardsheal, Argyllshire, Scotland to Anna R. C...
.
Tutor to Puyi, in the Forbidden City
In 1919, he was appointed tutorTutor
A tutor is a person employed in the education of others, either individually or in groups. To tutor is to perform the functions of a tutor.-Teaching assistance:...
of thirteen-year-old Puyi
Puyi
Puyi , of the Manchu Aisin Gioro clan, was the last Emperor of China, and the twelfth and final ruler of the Qing Dynasty. He ruled as the Xuantong Emperor from 1908 until his abdication on 12 February 1912. From 1 to 12 July 1917 he was briefly restored to the throne as a nominal emperor by the...
who still lived inside the Forbidden City
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum...
in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
as a non-sovereign monarch.
As the British-born tutor to the Dragon Emperor, Johnston and Isabel Ingram
Isabel Ingram
Isabel Ingram was an American tutor of Wan Rong, Empress and wife of the last emperor of China.-Early life:Born March 7, 1902, in Beijing , Northern China, Isabel Myrtle Ingram was the daughter of American Congregational missionary James Henry Ingram, MD and Myrtle Belle Ingram, his second wife...
, daughter of an American missionary and the empress' tutoress, were the only foreigners in history to be allowed inside the inner court of the Qing Dynasty
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
. Johnston carried high imperial titles and lived in both the Forbidden City and the New Summer Palace.
After Puyi was expelled from the Forbidden City
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum...
in 1924, Johnston served as Secretary to the British China Indemnity Commission (1926). In 1927, he was appointed the second civilian Commissioner at Weihaiwei. He ran the territory until it was returned to the Republic of China
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
on 1 October 1930. The dignity of Johnston's official departure — the first such by a British administrator from a British possession in China — to a waiting Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
vessel, was somewhat spoiled by his obvious irritation at a servant who had failed to pack properly all of his clothes.
After China
Johnston was appointed Professor of Chinese in the University of LondonUniversity of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
in 1931, a post based at the School of Oriental and African Studies. In 1935 Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston bequeathed his library to the School of Oriental and African Studies in London England. His library, one of the finest collections of Chinese and East Asian books in the country, consists of over 16,000 volumes. He was not a natural teacher, and hated university administration.
He retained his ties with Puyi, which proved an embarrassment after the former emperor assumed the throne of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo
Manchukuo
Manchukuo or Manshū-koku was a puppet state in Manchuria and eastern Inner Mongolia, governed under a form of constitutional monarchy. The region was the historical homeland of the Manchus, who founded the Qing Empire in China...
.
Johnston retired in 1937, having acquired the small island of Eilean Righ
Eilean Righ
Eilean Rìgh is an island in the Inner Hebrides of the west coast of Scotland. It lies in Loch Craignish, about 300 m off the Argyll coastline...
in Loch Craignish
Loch Craignish
Loch Craignish is a sea loch on the mid-Argyll coast.-Geography:Loch Craignish lies between Oban and the Crinan Canal. Its opens into the Sound of Jura and provides a safe anchorage for small craft....
, Scotland, on which he created for himself a Chinese Garden and flew the flag of Manchukou. After a short illness, he died in Edinburgh. In his will, he requested that no religious ceremony be conducted. In accordance with his wishes, he was cremated. His ashes were scattered on the island of Eilean Righ and surrounding Loch
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
.
He never married but was at one stage engaged to the historian Eileen Power
Eileen Power
Eileen Edna LePoer Power was an important British economic historian and medievalist. Eileen Power was the eldest daughter of a stockbroker and was born at Altrincham in 1889. She was a sister of Rhoda Power, the children's writer and broadcaster...
, and was close to author Stella Benson
Stella Benson
Stella Benson was an English feminist, travel writer, and novelist.-Early life:Benson was born to Ralph Beaumont Benson , a member of the landed gentry, and Caroline Essex Cholmondeley at Lutwyche Hall in Shropshire in 1892. Stella's aunt, Mary Cholmondeley, was a novelist. Stella was often ill...
.
Mrs Elizabeth Sparshott, to whom he was engaged at the time leading up to his death, burned many of his letters and other materials, at Johnston's request.
Johnston's book Twilight in the Forbidden City
Twilight in the Forbidden City
Twilight in the Forbidden City is Reginald Johnston's 486-page memoir of the Xuantong Emperor or Henry Puyi as he eventually became known.Johnston was tutor to the Emperor and an eyewitness to Chinese events in the years of the 1920s and 1930s...
(1934) describes his experiences in Beijing and was used as a source for Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci is an Italian film director and screenwriter, whose films include The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris, 1900, The Last Emperor and The Dreamers...
's film dramatization of Puyi's life The Last Emperor
The Last Emperor
The Last Emperor is a 1987 biopic about the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China, whose autobiography was the basis for the screenplay written by Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci. Independently produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was directed by Bertolucci and released in 1987 by Columbia Pictures...
. He was portrayed by Peter O'Toole
Peter O'Toole
Peter Seamus Lorcan O'Toole is an Irish actor of stage and screen. O'Toole achieved stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia, and then went on to become a highly-honoured film and stage actor. He has been nominated for eight Academy Awards, and holds the record for most...
in the film.
Sources
- Shiona Airlie, Reginald Johnston, 2001. ISBN 1-901663-49-3
- Robert Bickers, Coolie work: Sir Reginald Johnston at the School of Oriental Studies, 1931-1937, Journal of the Royal Asiatic SocietyJournal of the Royal Asiatic SocietyThe Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society is an academic journal which publishes articles on the history, archaeology, literature, language, religion and art of South Asia, the Middle East , Central Asia, East Asia and South-East Asia...
, Series III, 5, 3 (November, 1995). - Raymond Lamont-Brown, Tutor to the Dragon Emperor: The Life of Sir Reginald Fleming Johnston, 1999. ISBN 0-7509-2106-4