「著名的第十三款」之謎：圍繞1843年中英《善後事宜清冊附粘和約》的爭議

Mysteries over the ＂Famous Thirteenth Article＂: Controversies Arising from the Supplementary Treaty Signed by China and Britain in 1843

王宏志(Lawrence Wang-chi Wong)

《善後事宜清冊附粘和約》（《虎門條約》） ； 羅伯聃 ； 璞鼎查 ； 鴉片戰爭 ； 中英關係 ； Supplementary Treaty (Treaty of the Bogue) ； Robert Thom ； Henry Pottinger ； the Opium War ； Sino-British relations

近代史研究所集刊

103期（2019 / 03 / 01）

1 - 46

繁體中文

鴉片戰爭以後，中英兩國在1843年10月8日簽署《南京條約》的補充條約《善後事宜清冊附粘和約》（通稱《虎門條約》），中英文本存有嚴重歧異，引發連串風波，其中以第十三款爭議最大，史家稱之為「著名的第十三款」。但現在所見相關討論，並沒有能解釋為什麼這麼重要的條約會出現嚴重的錯誤，且一直沒有能夠確定責任誰屬。本文集中處理《善後事宜清冊附粘和約》第十三款中英文本的歧異，利用英國外交部以及其他原始資料，詳細分析和約中英文本產生和翻譯的過程，證明文本歧異並不在於中國官員狡黠欺騙，單方面修改條款，實因英方譯員羅伯聃在抄寫文本後沒有準確校對，未把英方對中方送來的文本所作的修改放進條約英文本內。本文又詳細分析事件被揭發後各方的應對，展示英方相關人士如璞鼎查、德庇時以至阿伯丁的反應，嘗試全面描繪事件的真相。

On 29 August 1842, China and Britain signed the Treaty of Nanking to conclude the First Opium War. Then on 8 October 1843, they signed the Supplementary Treaty (commonly known as the Treaty of the Bogue) to settle some outstanding trade issues. Nevertheless, the Supplementary Treaty brought great confusion because of serious discrepancies between the Chinese and English texts. The thirteenth clause caused the greatest controversies, and hence historians have called it the ＂famous thirteenth article.＂ Yet the whole incident remains a mystery, and no satisfactory explanation has been provided as to how the discrepancies emerged. By examining extensive first-hand materials, this article draws a comprehensive picture of how the two texts were produced and how the translation processes were conducted. By pointing out that the discrepancies were the results of negligence on the part of the British translator, Robert Thom, it challenges the view commonly held by Western historians that Chinese officials amended the Chinese version behind the backs of the British diplomats. It also analyses the reactions of the different parties involved, including the first two Hong Kong governors Pottinger and Davis, as well as the Foreign Secretary, Lord Aberdeen, thus constructing a more comprehensive and accurate account of the incident.

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