Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch - Volume 58 - Centenary of Korean-British Diplomatic Relations

Sep 1, 2026

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Transactions of the Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch, Volume 58 (1983) presents scholarly studies on Korea’s historical connections with Britain and the United States, alongside analysis of regional systems such as Korea’s role in the Chinese tributary framework. The contents include commemorative and biographical work, research on diplomatic relations from the seventeenth century through the late nineteenth century, and examinations of military advisory involvement. Introductory material frames the 1883 Korean-British treaty milestone and outlines the broader evolution of British interest and institutional activities in Korea.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPresentations

FormatDOCX

Pages76

Reading Time27 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

The Centenary of Korean-British Diplomatic Relations: Aspects of British Interest and Involvement in Korea 1600-1983

Travelling for Her Health: The Extraordinary Life of Isabella Bird Bishop

Shared Failure: American Military Advisors in Korea, 1888-1896

The Ming Connection: Notes on Korea’s Experience in the Chinese Tributary System

Introduction

Korean-British Relations Before the Treaty

Institutional and historical context

TRANSACTIONS of the Royal Asiatic Society, Korea Branch Volume 58 1983 Contents The Centenary of Korean-British Diplomatic Relations: Aspects of British Interest and Involvement in Korea 1600-1983 by J. E. Hoare page 1 Travelling for Her Health: The Extraordinary Life of Isabella Bird Bishop by James Huntley Grayson page 35 Shared Failure: American Military Advisors in Korea, 1888-1896 by Donald M. Bishop page 53 The Ming Connection: Notes on Korea’s Experience in the Chinese Tributary System by Donald N. Clark page 77 Contributors J. E. HOARE received his Ph.D. in Oriental History from the University of London in 1971. He joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Research Department in 1969, and became First Secretary Head of Chancery and Consul in the British Embassy in Seoul in June 1981. He has published a number of articles and book reviews in East Asia, and is the 1984 President of the Korea Branch, Royal Asiatic Society. JAMES HUNTLEY GRAYSON has lived in Korea for 13 years, first residing in Taegu where he taught at Kyongbuk National University and later at Keimyung University. Currently he is Associate Professor of Comparative Religion at the Methodist Theological Seminary, Seoul. It was before coming to Korea in 1971, through reading her account of the “Land of the Morning Calm” of the 1890’s, Korea and Her Neighbours, that Dr. Grayson became interested in Mrs. Bishop. During his period of doctoral research at the University of Edinburgh he discovered that Mrs. Bishop had adopted that city as her home. He has pursued research into her life as an avocation since that time. DONALD M. BISHOP is a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Information Service and is soon to join the American Embassy in Seoul. As an Air Force officer he served in Vietnam and Korea (Kwangju), and he taught history at the U.S. Air Force Academy. After joining the Foreign Service, he studied Mandarin and worked in information and cultural programs at the American Consulate General in Hong Kong. DONALD N. CLARK is Associate Professor of History at Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas. Ming-Korean relations was the topic of his doctoral dissertation at Harvard University (1978) and the subject of a chapter he wrote for volume VIII of The Cambridge History of China. In 1983-84 he was a Fulbright lecturer/researcher at Yonsei University in Seoul, working on a book about missionary-sponsored colleges in Korea. He served two terms (1975-76 and 1983-84) as a Councillor of the Korea Branch, Royal Asiatic Society, and is co-author (with Allen D. Clark) of the Society’s Seoul Past and Present (1969). [page 1] The Centenary of Korean-British Diplomatic Relations: Aspects of British Interest and Involvement in Korea 1600-1983* by J. E. Hoare INTRODUCTION At the end of October 1883, Sir Harry Smith Parkes, long the doyen of British diplomats in East Asia, arrived in Seoul to complete the negotiations for a treaty which was to replace that negotiated in 1882. That had aroused widespread opposition and had finally been abandoned. The negotiations in Seoul were successful, and a new Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation was signed in the Kyongbok Palace on 26 November 1883. Parkes left Seoul the next day, before the Han River froze for the winter, but he was to return the following April to exchange ratifications. Thus began formal relations between Korea and Britain. To mark the anniversary, numerous events were planned. The first ever official visit by a member of the British Royal Family took place in May, when His Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester came at the same time as the Royal Ballet. There was a second Royal visit in October, when the Duke of Kent led a British Overseas Trade Board mission to Korea. Other British visitors to Korea included the novelist Iris Murdoch, the playwright Arnold Wesker and the economist Professor Frank Hahn. From both countries, there were ministerial and other official exchanges. If t

FAQs

What diplomatic event anchors the centenary discussion in this volume?

The introduction centers on the successful 1883 negotiations that led to the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation signed on 26 November 1883 in the Kyongbok Palace.

What major themes do the volume articles cover?

The contents address British interest and involvement in Korea across centuries, biographical study of Isabella Bird Bishop, American military advisory roles in late nineteenth-century Korea, and Korea’s experience in China’s tributary system.

Does the introduction present the main essay as original research?

No. The introduction states the paper does not claim to be original research, though it includes some new material and updates the story to the present.

Sep 1, 2026

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