论英国人在中国新疆的探察活动——19世纪中叶至20世纪中叶

The British Explorations in Xinjiang,China——From Mid-nineteenth Century to Mid-twentieth Century

自19世纪中叶起,英俄在中亚争夺势力范围的角逐日趋激烈,最终二者都将扩张视野集中到新疆。在此后的一个世纪中,英国不仅动用政治、外交、军事等手段继续扩大自身在新疆的政治影响和殖民利益,而且还常以经商、学术考察及探险为名,在新疆收集情报、窃取文物。在此背景下,许多英国商人、地理学家、地理测绘人员、考古学家、语言学家、社会学家等纷纷来到新疆,进行了规模空前的探察活动。从客观的角度来讲,这些来新疆考察的英国探险家中,也有一些人确实是本着科学探索的精神从事探察活动的,但他们从事的所谓科学考察,主要还是服务于英帝国的殖民活动,这势必给整个考察活动蒙上一层浓厚的政治色彩。

Since the middle of the nineteenth Century, The competition between Britain and Russia in the struggle for power in Central Asia is becoming increasingly fierce, in the end, the two all put their expansion into Xinjiang. In the next game, Britain not only uses political, diplomatic, military and other means to continue to expand its political and colonial interests in Xinjiang. But also the use of a government mission, officials, ambassadors, diplomats and political representatives, expedition and other means. Under this background, many British businessmen, geographers, geographic mapping personnel, archaeologists, linguists and sociologists came to Xinjiang on an unprecedented scale of exploration activities. Undeniable, from an objective point of view, to Xinjiang in the British explorer, there are some people who really is in line with the spirit of scientific inquiry in exploration activities, but very litde. Because most of them are engaged in the political behavior with the nature of aggression, it is bound to give a strong political color to the whole process of investigation.