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Auction: 16012 - Meiso Mizuhara, The Exhibition Collections, The Chinese Customs Post
Lot: 1504

China
Forerunner Period
Military Post Office China
1842 (20 Apr.) entire soldier's letter from Ningpo to Scotland, from William Meikle of the 26th Regiment and correctly countersigned by his commanding officer, Lieut Col. Mott. The flap bears a very fine strike of the oval "Military/Post Office/China" handstamp in cursive script in black, and which opens out well for display. Other postal markings are "calcutta/ship letter/free" c.d.s. in red, "india" in oval, London transit (13.10) overstruck by Paisley arrival the following day and the front bears a handstruck "2" in black for postage due.


The letter gives a graphic account of the closing part of the campaign, " ... this city was attacked on the 10th of last month during the night by about 4000 Chinese but they were gallantly repulsed with the loss of one half of their number and not one of ours touched, we then went out about 30 miles on the 16th and met them in the field ..."


There is some creasing and age wear to the paper which has been reinforced in places. Nevertheless this is believed to be the finest of only three covers recorded. Webb recorded only two.


It is thought that this postmark was used aboard one of H.M. ships which formed part of the expedition.


provenance: Major A.E. Hopkins, January 1956

Richard Canman

Ryohei Ishikawa, December 1980

W.H. Lu, February 1985,

Opening of China, November 1987




The regiment arrived off Chusan on 4 July, capturing it with little resistance the following day. The 26th was camped on a hill just inside the city, where heavy work, bad terrain and bad provisions soon caused illness to set in. Eventually two hundred and sixty men were evacuated to Manila in November, and by the end of the year two hundred and forty men had died, with a hundred and sixty-three sick in Chusan and a mere hundred and ten able-bodied men.



All available able-bodied men were moved north to support the attack on the Bogue forts, which fell on 7 January 1841. Whilst resting at Hong Kong, the 26th made an expedition against Amoy in August, before being moved up the coast to Ningpo at the end of December aboard HMS Jupiter, equipped with newly modified percussion muskets.



They arrived at Ningpo on 7 February 1842, and took up garrison there. The town was attacked on the night of 9–10 March, though the 26th were not involved in the defence, and a few days later participated in an expedition to attack two fortified camps nearby. In early May Ningpo was evacuated, and the 26th moved northwards again to support an attack on Chapu. Here, the 26th saw heavy fighting, with three men killed before the town was taken.



The other covers are dated 1842 (31 Jan.), a wrapper from Lieut. Mitchell to his sisters in Plymouth. The strike of the Military Post Office is applied across the flap. Ex Sir Percival David and Ryohei Ishikawa collections


A letter dated 1842 (3 Apr.) from Col. Clem Edwards to Ceylon. The strike of the Military Post Office is on the reverse, just transversing the flap. Ex Richard Chan collection

Sold for
HK$550,000