“十五仔的旗帜”:道光年间中英合作打击海盗行动及其历史遗物

“The Flag of Shap Ng Tsai”:The Sino-British Joint Assault against the South China Pirates in 1849 and the Related Museum Collections

英国国家海事博物馆藏有一面据说属于19世纪中横行中国南海西部海域的海盗“十五仔”的旗帜。利用英国国家档案馆档案、英国国家海事博物馆藏私人日志、时人出版的书籍、报章报道等材料,比照中文档案及志书资料,尽管仍无法证明这面旗帜是否属于“十五仔”,甚至“十五仔”是否真有其人,但这面19世纪入藏博物馆的物品,以及当时所生产的许多有关两次鸦片战争之间中英打击中国海盗的种种叙述,本身便包含许多历史信息,值得探究。

Among the Chinese flag collection held by the National Maritime Museum,Greenwich,there is a peculiar object which was“said to be the flag of the Chinese pirate Shap Ng Tsai”.According to the museum’s description,“Shap Ng Tsai’s fleet of 27 junks was destroyed in a joint action by an Anglo-Chinese squadron under Captain John Charles Dalrymple Hay and Major General Hwáng on 20 October 1849”.Also held by the museum is a ceremonial parasol or canopy which is said to be that of Huang Kaiguang,a Qing regional commander,captured by Captain Charles Codrington Forsyth during the battle of Fatshan Creek on 1st June 1857.The provenance of both objects is in fact doubtful.Examining both English and Chinese documents,including military reports,unpublished journals,published memoirs,memorandum,local gazetteers,this article attempts to secure a more contextualized understanding of this“Shap Ng Tsai’s flag”,and discusses how we may evaluate the historical significance of a museum object of which the provenance is difficult to be documented from reliable sources.