The Kwangtung Provincial Archives at the Public Record Office of London: A Progress Report

The predominance of British interests in China from the closing years of the eighteenth century up until the nineteen thirties has left us a voluminous documentation, not only of the activities of the British in China but also of the activities of other people, foreigners as well as the Chinese themselves. The English language records of the Foreign Office and missionary archives in London have already been consulted by scholars from all over the world. The recent addition of Chinese language materials, deposited at the Public Record Office (hereafter, PRO), undoubtedly makes London one of the most important centers outside China for research in modern Chinese history.