Thomas Phillips (1760-1851)
Bringing China to Wales Roderic Bowen Library and Archives
Exhibition Plan
Display R4 Great Wall of China
Display R3 Emperor of China
Display L5 Chinese Music
Display L4 Chinese Design
Display L3 Chinese language
Display L6 Chinese History
Display L7 Chinese Philosophy
Display 1 Thomas Phillips’ Life
Display R5 Life in China
Display R2 China at the time of Phillips’ visit
Display R7 People of China
Display L2 Phillips’ interest in the Orient
Display 8 Sailing the South China Sea
Display R6 Chinese Edifices
University of Wales Trinity Saint David’s Earliest Connections with China In 1796, Thomas Phillips (1760-1851), then a surgeon attached to an infantry regiment and an employee of the East India Company, visited Macao and Canton following a recruitment tour in Australia. Unfortunately we have little information about his journey or his experiences in China. The significance of his journey was to emerge years later, when Phillips made a bequest of more than 22,500 valuable books to the newly founded Saint David’s College, now the University of Wales Trinity Saint David. Amongst the consignments of precious volumes received over a span of 18 years were dozens of books relating to China. We can only speculate how these books were selected by Phillips; however, the very fact he wished to make available books that would give an insight into China to students of the new college in Lampeter, reflects that China had made a deep impression upon him. The books in this exhibition, all donated by Phillips, reveal contemporary European understanding of the China that he experienced. Many of these materials, which have been safely kept in our archives for almost two hundred years, contain exquisite illustrations of the Chinese landscape, China’s architectural gems, and the costumes of its citizens in the late eighteenth century. Also of particular interest were the religious insights afforded by the books on Confucianism to an institution where many students were at the time training to be clergy.
He became a familiar figure to London booksellers as a buyer of books to give away, chiefly to his educationally starved fellow-countrymen. A. J. Sambrook
Thomas Phillips - a Generous Benefactor Born in London to Welsh parents, Phillips developed a love for Wales during his childhood, which he spent living with his uncle in the beautiful surroundings of Radnorshire and working as an apprentice in Hay-on-Wye. His adult years were almost all lived far from home, working as a surgeon for the East India Company. After retirement, Phillips settled in London but his thoughts were still with his fellowcountrymen here in Wales. So it was that he began shipping large quantities of academic books and manuscripts all the way from London to Wales. Between the years of 1834 and 1851, he sent no fewer than sixty consignments of books and manuscripts to this institution, totalling over 22,000 volumes.
Phillips was a widely-travelled man, and large parts of his bequest to Lampeter bear eloquent testimony to his enthusiasm and love for the Orient... John Morgan-Guy
Phillips’ Interest in China That Phillips took an interest in China is evident from the great number of books he donated relating to all aspects of that vast country. The topics covered by these books include all aspects of Chinese culture, such as language, history, geography, religion, philosophy and design – to name a few. In those days Saint David’s was primarily a theological college whose students may well have shown great interest in the volumes on Chinese religion and philosophy. Indeed, Confucianism had already gained the attention of scholars in Europe by the 17th century, with the result that our volume of translated Confucian texts shows clear evidence of being frequently used!
China at the Time of Phillips’ Visit In 1796, Phillips visited Canton and Macao after completing an expedition to enlist recruits in Australia. Sadly, no account of his sojourn in China has yet been located. We can, however, see how China was depicted by studying the published account of the British Embassy’s tour of China in 1793. Thanks to Phillips’ generous donations, we have in our possession the official written report, picture book, and atlas documenting the Embassy’s official visits and observations. The exquisite illustrations were produced by the embassy’s artist, William Alexander (1767 – 1816). The image of a lady and her son with a servant on the left is one example of his very fine work.
Sailing the South China Sea At the time of Thomas Phillips’ journey to Australia and China, sailing the sea was extremely dangerous. Indeed, on his way home to the UK not long after, Phillips was captured by the French and only released because he was ill. When Phillips sailed the South China Seas in 1796, he travelled aboard the Britannia. Among the most precious donations made by Thomas Phillips to our university are copies of the plans, charts and views that the captain of the Britannia, William Raven, used for navigation. Produced by Alexander Dalrymple, hydrographer to the East India Company, they were of great national value because they enhanced Britain’s ability to trade with other countries. Now they are of great national value to Wales on account of their scarcity.
Bibliography and further reading Thomas Phillips: Morgan-Guy, John, ʻA Cultivated and Well-Stored Mind' Thomas Phillips MRCS, Benefactor of St David's College Lampeter, http://www.uwtsd.ac.uk/rbla/online-exhibitions/thomas-phillips-exhibition/ biography-of-thomas-phillips/ Sambrook, A. J., ʻThomas Phillipsʼ, Province (1960), pp. 127-31 Macartney Embassy: Hevia, James L., Cherishing Men from Afar: Qing Guest Ritual and the Macartney Embassy of 1793, (Duke University Press, 1995) Macartney, Lord, An Embassy To China: Being The Journal Kept By Lord Macartney During His Embassy To The Emperor Ch'ien-Lung 1793-1794, (Folio Society, 2004) General: Kitson, Peter J., Forging Romantic China: Sino-British Cultural Exchange 1760-1840, (Cambridge Studies in Romanticism, 2013) Portrait of Thomas Phillips by C.A. Mornewick is held at Llandovery College which was founded by Phillips in 1848. Images courtesy of Roderic Bowen Library and Archives
Acknowledgements This exhibition has been made possible through the support of Hanban, the Office of Chinese Language Council International. The exhibition forms part of the celebrations at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David to mark the 10th Anniversary of Confucius Institutes around the world. It is fitting that this exhibition should recall one of the earliest connections between the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and China. We wish to thank Hanban, the Embassy of the Chinese People’s Republic, and Beijing Union University, our partner in China, for their continued generous support. Thanks also go to director of the Roderic Bowen Library and Archives, Peter Hopkins for his unstinting help with research, and generous access to the archives. Our final thanks go to researcher Laura Newton who selected the materials, organised the exhibition and wrote the associated exhibition literature, and to Krystyna Krajewska, exhibition director and editor, for conceiving the project. Confucius Institute, 27th September 2014
Thomas Phillips (1760-1851)
Bringing China to Wales
Confucius Institute Enriching lives through Chinese language and culture