Thistle and Bamboo – The Life and Times of Sir James Stewart Lockhart

Good to see a bio from Shiona Airlie of James Stewart Lockhart – Thistle and Bamboo – who served for 40 years in Hong Kong and China, perhaps most notably in Weihaiwei. Details and blurb below as normal.

“This biography of Stewart Lockhart tells much more than the life and work of one man as it shows how individuals such as Lockhart were caught up in the history of the China region and in the relationship between Great Britain and China in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.” — Robert Nield, author of The China Coast: Trade and the First Treaty Ports

– In her vivid biography of Stewart Lockhart (1858-1937), Shiona Airlie presents a portrait of an imperial official who helped to shape the future of Hong Kong by protecting its uniquely Chinese identity.

- When the colony was extended in 1898, Sir Lockhart was given the important task of delineating the boundaries of the New Territories and organising its administration.

– Providing valuable insight into Sir Lockhart’s character, career and friends, this is a book to be enjoyed by all readers interested in Hong Kong’s history.

Shiona Airlie has spent the last thirty years researching the British in Hong Kong and Weihaiwei and is also the biographer of Sir Reginald Johnston.