Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson, 1st Baronet, FRS (17 November 179631 December 1878), was a Scottish opium trader and

taipan Taipans are snakes of the genus ''Oxyuranus'' in the elapid family. They are large, fast-moving, extremely venomous, and endemic to Australia and New Guinea. Three species are recognised, one of which, the coastal taipan, has two subspecies. Ta ...

. Born in Shiness,

Lairg Lairg (, meaning "the shank/shin") is a village and parish in Sutherland, Scotland. It has a population of 891 and is at the south-eastern end of Loch Shin. Lairg is unusual in the northern Highlands in being a large settlement that is not on ...

, Sutherland, Scotland, he was the son of Captain Donald Matheson. He attended

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

's Royal High School and the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. He and William Jardine went on to co-found the Hong Kong-based trading conglomerate Jardine Matheson & Co. that became today's

Jardine Matheson Holdings Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited (also known as Jardines) is a Hong Kong–based, Bermuda-domiciled British multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate. It has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and secondary listings on ...

China and Hong Kong

After leaving university, Matheson spent two years in a London agency house before departing for

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

, India and a position in his uncle's trading firm, Mackintosh & Co. In 1807, Matheson was entrusted by his uncle with a letter to be delivered to the captain of a soon-to-depart British vessel. He forgot to deliver the missive and the vessel sailed without it. Incensed at his nephew's negligence, the uncle suggested that young James might be better off back in Britain. He took his uncle at his word and went to engage a passage back home. However, a chance encounter with an old sea captain instead led to Matheson departing for Canton (

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

). Matheson first met William Jardine in Bombay in 1820. The two men later formed a partnership which also included

Hollingworth Magniac Hollingworth Magniac (1786–1867)Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 3, p. 4138. was a merchant and conno ...

and

Daniel Beale Daniel Beale (1759–1842) was a Scottish merchant and fur trader active in the Far East mercantile centres of Bombay, Canton and Macau as well as at one time the Prussian consul in China. Biography Daniel Beale was the purser of, succes ...

. At first, the new firm dealt only with trade between Canton, Bombay and Calcutta, at that time called the "country trade" but later extended their business to London. In 1827 Alexander Matheson lent James a small hand press for the printing of the ''

Canton Register ''The Canton Register'' was an English language newspaper founded by Scottish merchants James Matheson and his nephew Sir Alexander Matheson, 1st Baronet, Alexander together with Philadelphian William Wightman Wood, the first editor. First publishe ...

'' which James founded as the first English language news sheet in China, which was edited by

William Wightman Wood William Wightman Wood ( ?1804 – ?) was an American journalist, businessman, naturalist and poet based in Macau and Canton, China. Biography He was the son of celebrated actors William B. Wood and Juliana Westray Wood. In 1827, W ...

, an American from

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

who would later work for rival trading house Russell & Co. On 1 July 1832, Jardine, Matheson and Company, a partnership, between William Jardine, James Matheson as senior partners, and Hollingworth Magniac, Alexander Matheson, Jardine's nephew Andrew Johnstone, Matheson's nephew Hugh Matheson, John Abel Smith, and Henry Wright, as the first partners was formed in Canton, and took the Chinese name 'Ewo' (怡和 "Yee-Wo" Literally ''Happy Harmony''). The name was taken from the earlier Ewo Hong founded by

Howqua Wu Bingjian (; 17694 September 1843), trading as "Houqua" and better known in the West as "Howqua" or "Howqua II", was a hong merchant in the Thirteen Factories, head of the '' E-wo hong'' and leader of the Canton Cohong. He was once the rich ...

which had an honest and upright reputation. In 1834, Parliament ended the monopoly of the British East India Company on trade between Britain and China. Jardine, Matheson and Company took this opportunity to fill the vacuum left by the East India Company. With its first voyage carrying tea, the Jardine ship left for England. Jardine Matheson began its transformation from a major commercial agent of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

into the largest British trading hong, or firm, in Asia from its base in Hong Kong. Jardine wanted the opium trade to expand in China and dispatched Matheson to England to lobby the Government to press the

Qing government The Qing dynasty (1644–1912) was the last imperial dynasty of China. The early Qing emperors adopted the bureaucratic structures and institutions from the preceding Ming dynasty but split rule between the Han and Manchus with some positions als ...

to further open up trade. Matheson's mission proved unsuccessful and he was rebuked by the then British Foreign Secretary the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

. In a report, Matheson complained to Jardine over being insulted by an "arrogant and stupid man". Matheson expressed his views plainly, contemporaneously describing, "... the Chinese sa people characterised by a marvellous degree of imbecility, avarice, conceit and obstinacy..." Matheson returned to Asia in 1838 and the following year Jardine left for England to continue lobbying. Jardine's lobbying efforts proved more effective than his partner's and he succeeded in persuading the new British Foreign Secretary

Lord Palmerston Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865), known as Lord Palmerston, was a British statesman and politician who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1855 to 1858 and from 1859 to 1865. A m ...

to wage war on Qing China. The subsequent

First Opium War The First Opium War ( zh, t=第一次鴉片戰爭, p=Dìyīcì yāpiàn zhànzhēng), also known as the Anglo-Chinese War, was a series of military engagements fought between the British Empire and the Chinese Qing dynasty between 1839 and 1 ...

led to the

Treaty of Nanking The Treaty of Nanking was the peace treaty which ended the First Opium War (1839–1842) between United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain and the Qing dynasty of China on 29 August 1842. It was the first of what the Chinese ...

which allowed Jardine Matheson to expand from Canton to Hong Kong and Mainland China. After Jardine died a bachelor in 1843, his nephews David and Andrew Jardine assisted James Matheson in running the hong as

. Matheson retired as taipan during the early 1840s and handed over to David Jardine, another nephew of Jardine.

Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge in China

On 29 November 1834, Matheson became chairman of the newly formed "Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge in China". The committee members represented a wide section of the business and missionary community in Canton:

David Olyphant David Washington Cincinnatus Olyphant (March7, 1789June10, 1851) was an American trader in the Far East and "the father of the American Mission to China". He was an elected member of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) ...

, William Wetmore, James Innes, Thomas Fox,

Elijah Coleman Bridgman Elijah Coleman Bridgman (April22, 1801November2, 1861) was the first American Protestant Christian missionary appointed to China. He served with the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. One of the first few Protestant missionar ...

Karl Gützlaff Karl Friedrich August Gützlaff (8 July 1803 – 9 August 1851), anglicised as Charles Gutzlaff, was a Germans, German Lutheran missionary to the Far East, notable as one of the first Protestant missionaries in Bangkok, Thailand (1828) and in ...

and

John Robert Morrison John Robert Morrison (; 17 April 1814 – 29 August 1843) was a British interpreter and colonial official in China. Born in Macau, his father was Robert Morrison, the first Protestant missionary in China. After his father's death in 1834, Morr ...

John Francis Davis Sir John Francis Davis, 1st Baronet (16 July 179513 November 1890) was a British diplomat and sinologist who served as second Governor of Hong Kong from 1844 to 1848. Davis was the first President of Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong. Backgro ...

, at that time chief superintendent of British trade in China, was made an honorary member.

Return to Scotland

In 1844 Matheson bought the Scottish

Isle of Lewis The Isle of Lewis () or simply Lewis () is the northern part of Lewis and Harris, the largest island of the Western Isles or Outer Hebrides archipelago in Scotland. The two parts are frequently referred to as if they were separate islands. The t ...

for over half a million pounds and built

Lews Castle Lews Castle (Scottish Gaelic: ''Caisteal Leòdhais'') is a Victorian era castle located west of the town of Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, Scotland. It was built in the years 1844–51 as a country house for Sir James Matheson who had bought the who ...

, near

Stornoway Stornoway (; ) is the main town, and by far the largest, of the Outer Hebrides (or Western Isles), and the capital of Lewis and Harris in Scotland. The town's population is around 6,953, making it the third-largest island town in Scotlan ...

, clearing more than 500 families off the land by arranging their emigration to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. In 1845, he began a programme of improvements on the island, including drainage schemes and road construction. He increased the programme during the

Highland Potato Famine The Highland Potato Famine () was a period of 19th-century Scottish Highland history (1846 to roughly 1856) over which the agricultural communities of the Hebrides and the western Scottish Highlands () saw their potato crop (upon which they ha ...

and by 1850 had spent £329,000 on the island. Between 1851 and 1855 he assisted 1,771 people to emigrate. When in London Matheson lived at 13 Cleveland Row. He was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1846. As a result of his actions during the Highland Potato Famine, Matheson was awarded a

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1851. He became Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashburton from 1843 to 1852 on the death of William Jardine (the previous incumbent) and for

Ross and Cromarty Ross and Cromarty (), is an area in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. In modern usage, it is a registration county and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. Between 1889 and 1975 it was a Shires of Scotland, county. Historical ...

from 1852 to 1868. He led an active public life into his eighth decade, and for many years served as chairman of the

Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company P&O (in full, The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company) was a British shipping and logistics company dating from the early 19th century. Formerly a public company, it was sold to DP World in March 2006 for £3.9 billion. DP World ...

.DNB: "Matheson, Sir (Nicholas) James Sutherland"
/ref> His nephews succeeded him as directors of

Jardine Matheson Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited (also known as Jardines) is a Hong Kong–based, Bermuda-domiciled British multinational conglomerate. It has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and secondary listings on the Singapore Exchange ...

and Matheson & Company. Matheson died in 1878 at the age of 82 in

Menton Menton (; in classical norm or in Mistralian norm, , ; ; or depending on the orthography) is a Commune in France, commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera, close to the Italia ...

, France. He had married on 9 November 1843 Mary Jane Perceval the daughter of Michael Henry Perceval (1779–1829), illegitimate son of assassinated British Prime Minister

Spencer Perceval Spencer Perceval (1 November 1762 – 11 May 1812) was a British statesman and barrister who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1809 until his assassination in May 1812. He is the only British prime minister to have been as ...

, Commissioner of the

Port of Quebec The Port of Quebec () is an inland port located in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It is the oldest port in Canada, and the second largest in Quebec after the Port of Montreal. History In the 19th century, the Port of Quebec was one of the most im ...

from 1826 and a member, from Spencer Wood, of the

Legislative Council of Lower Canada The Legislative Council of Lower Canada was the upper house of the Parliament of Lower Canada from 1792 until 1838. The Legislative Council consisted of appointed councillors who voted on bills passed up by the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canad ...

. The Mathesons had no children and the baronetcy became extinct. The Lewis estate passed to his widow and subsequently to his nephew Donald (1819-1901) and great-nephew Colonel Duncan Matheson (1850-1930). His widow erected a memorial to him in the grounds of Lews Castle. He left £1,500 to help pay for the construction of the harbour at

Port of Ness Port of Ness () is a village on the Isle of Lewis in the community of Ness, in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland. Port of Ness is within the parish of Barvas. Port of Ness is situated at the end of the A857, which runs from Stornoway. In 2014, the N ...

.Second Annual Report of the Fishery Board of Scotland 1883 Appendix E No. 1 James Matheson Memorial.jpg, James Matheson Memorial built in 1880 in Stornoway Castle Grounds refurbished in 2006 Cemetery in Lairg Scotland with James Matheson's tomb in background.JPG, James Matheson's Tomb in Lairg Scotland James Matheson's tomb at cemetery in Lairg, Scotland.JPG, Poppy Wreath in James Matheson's Tomb in Lairg Scotland

References

;Bibliography *

External links

*
Overview of Sir James Matheson

The Opium Wars: how Scottish traders fed the habit
from ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact (newspaper), compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until ...

''
Sir James Matheson a 19th century improver
with links to references for further study {{DEFAULTSORT:Matheson, James 1796 births 1878 deaths People from Sutherland People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh 19th-century Scottish merchants Scottish newspaper founders Scottish company founders Matheson, James, 1st Baronet Jardines (company) Lord-lieutenants of Ross-shire Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Ashburton Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs 1865–1868 Fellows of the Royal Society Smugglers History of foreign trade in China