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The British ambassador to China is the United Kingdom's foremost diplomatic representative in the People's Republic of China, and in charge of the UK's diplomatic mission in China. The ambassador's official title is His Brittanic Majesty's Ambassador to the People's Republic of China.[1]
 British Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China | |
|---|---|
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| Style | Her Excellency |
| Reports to | Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs |
| Residence | Chaoyang District, Beijing |
| Inaugural holder | Frederick Wright-Bruce First Ambassador to Imperial China Sir John Jordan First Ambassador to the People's Republic of China |
| Formation | 1840 Ambassador to Imperial China 1910 Ambassador to the People's Republic of China |
| Website | British Embassy - Beijing |
The UK recognized the People's Republic of China in 1950, although the PRC did not agree to the exchange of ambassadors until 1972. Prior to this, the United Kingdom had sent ministers to the Qing Empire and variously ministers and ambassadors to the Republic of China. The Embassy offices have been located in Peking (Beijing), Nanking (Nanjing), or both. Currently the British Ambassador to China is Caroline Wilson, she became ambassador in September 2020.
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1792–1794: George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney 1815-1817: William Pitt Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst
Envoys extraordinary and ministers plenipotentiary
Imperial China (during the First Opium War)
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British Monarch | Chinese Emperor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sir George Elliot | February 1840 | November 1840 | Queen Victoria | Daoguang Emperor |
| Sir Charles Elliot | November 1840 | 12 August 1841 |
Imperial China (held by the governor of Hong Kong)
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British Monarch | Chinese Emperor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sir Henry Pottinger | 12 August 1841 | 8 May 1844 | Queen Victoria | Daoguang Emperor |
| Sir John Francis Davis | 8 May 1844 | 18 March 1848 | ||
| Sir George Bonham | 18 March 1848 | 1853 | ||
| Sir John Bowring | 20 December 1853 | 17 April 1857 | Xianfeng Emperor |
Imperial China
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British Monarch | Chinese Emperor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Earl of Elgin | 1857 | 1860 | Queen Victoria | Xianfeng Emperor |
| Sir Frederick Bruce | 7 November 1860 | 19 June 1864 | ||
| Sir Thomas Francis Wade | 19 June 1864 | 7 December 1865 | Tongzhi Emperor | |
| Sir Rutherford Alcock | 7 December 1865 | 1 November 1869 | ||
| Hugh Fraser | 1 November 1869 | 28 November 1869 | ||
| Sir Thomas Francis Wade | 28 November 1869 | 6 November 1876 | ||
| Hugh Fraser | 6 November 1876 | 29 June 1879 | Guangxu Emperor | |
| Sir Thomas Francis Wade | 29 June 1879 | 14 August 1882 | ||
| Thomas Grosvenor | 14 August 1882 | 17 September 1883 | ||
| Sir Harry Smith Parkes died in office | 28 September 1883 | 21 March 1885 | ||
| Sir Nicholas Roderick O'Conor (chargé d'affaires) | 22 March 1885 | 15 June 1886 | ||
| Sir John Walsham, Bt | 15 June 1886 | 28 September 1892 | ||
| William Nelthorpe Beauclerk chargé d'affaires | 28 September 1892 | 19 November 1892 | ||
| Sir Nicholas Roderick O'Conor | 19 November 1892 | September 1895 | ||
| William Nelthorpe Beauclerk chargé d'affaires | September 1895 | 24 April 1896 | ||
| Sir Claude Maxwell MacDonald[2] | 24 April 1896 | 25 October 1900 | ||
| Sir Ernest Mason Satow | 25 October 1900 | 1906 | Edward VII | |
| Walter Beaupré Townley chargé d'affaires | 3 December 1902 | 21 August 1903 | ||
| Sir John Jordan | 19 September 1906 | 12 March 1910 | ||
| William Grenfell Max-Muller | 12 March 1910 | 28 November 1910 | Xuantong Emperor |
Republic of China
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British Monarch | Chinese President |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sir John Jordan | 28 November 1910 | 1 March 1920 | George V | Sun Yat-sen→Yuan Shikai→Li Yuanhong→Feng Guozhang→Xu Shichang |
| Sir Beilby Alston | 1 March 1920 | 1922 | Xu Shichang→Zhou Ziqi→Li Yuanhong | |
| Robert Clive chargé d'affaires | 1922 | 1922 | ||
| Sir James Ronald Macleay | 1922 | 20 December 1926 | Li Yuanhong→Gao Lingwei→Cao Kun→Huang Fu→Duan Qirui→Hu Weide→Yan Huiqing→Du Xigui→Wellington Koo | |
| Sir Miles Lampson | 20 December 1926 | 3 September 1933 | Wellington Koo→Zhang Zuolin→Chiang Kai-shek→Lin Sen | |
| Edward Ingram | 5 May 1932 | 3 September 1933 | Lin Sen | |
| Hon. Sir Alexander Cadogan | 3 September 1933 | 19 May 1935 |
Ambassadors to the Republic of China
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British Monarch | Chinese President |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hon. Sir Alexander Cadogan | 15 June 1935 | 5 April 1936 | George V | Lin Sen |
| Sir Robert George Howe | 5 April 1936 | 2 September 1936 | Edward VIII | |
| Sir Hughe Knatchbull-Hugessen[3] | 23 September 1936 | 20 December 1937 | ||
| Sir Archibald Clark Kerr | 23 September 1936 | 16 January 1942 | George VI | |
| Sir Horace James Seymour | 16 January 1942 | 23 May 1946 | ||
| Ralph Stevenson[4] | 21 June 1946 | 1948 | Chiang Kai-shek |
Chargés d'affaires to the People's Republic of China
The United Kingdom recognized Communist China in January 1950 and posted a chargé d'affaires in the new capital of Beijing. However, China was unwilling to exchange ambassadors until the British consulate in Taipei was withdrawn in 1972.[5]
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British monarch | Chinese leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Hutchison[4] | 12 October 1949 | 1951 | George VI | Mao Zedong |
| Leo Lamb[4][6] | 13 February 1951 | 1953 | ||
| Humphrey Trevelyan[4] | 22 August 1953 | 1955 | Elizabeth II | |
| Con O'Neill[4] | 26 June 1955 | 1957 | ||
| Duncan Wilson | 1957 | 1959 | ||
| Michael Stewart | 28 August 1959 | 1962 | ||
| Terence Garvey | 1962 | 1965 | ||
| Donald Hopson | 1965 | 1968 | ||
| Percy Cradock | August 1968 | February 1969 | ||
| John Denson | 1969 | 18 November 1971 |
Ambassadors to the People's Republic of China
| Name | Tenure begin | Tenure end | British Monarch | Paramount leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sir John Addis | 26 January 1972 | 17 June 1974 | Elizabeth II | Mao Zedong |
| Sir Edward Youde | 29 August 1974 | 1978 | ||
| Sir Percy Cradock | 15 June 1978 | 1984 | Hua Guofeng | |
| Sir Richard Evans | 23 January 1984 | 1988 | Deng Xiaoping | |
| Sir Alan Donald | 26 May 1988 | 1991 | ||
| Sir Robin McLaren | 20 June 1991 | 1994 | ||
| Sir Leonard Appleyard | 24 September 1994 | 1997 | Jiang Zemin | |
| Sir Anthony Galsworthy | 29 December 1997 | 2002 | ||
| Sir Christopher Hum | 4 April 2002 | 2006 | ||
| Sir William Ehrman | 15 March 2006 | 2010 | Hu Jintao | |
| Sir Sebastian Wood | 3 March 2010 | 2015 | ||
| Dame Barbara Woodward | 14 April 2015 | 2020 | Xi Jinping | |
| Dame Caroline Wilson | September 2020 |
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