In the late 18th century, the King of England sent representatives to China to increase trade. What did the Qing Emperor Qinglong's response say about...

Your question
refers to the Macartney Embassy, which was led by George Macartney. This embassy went to China
in 1793. It was meant to increase trade with China as well as to open a British embassy in
Peking. It failed on all counts. The emperors response clearly shows that the Qing
Dynasty felt that European goods were unnecessary and inferior.

Most of Emperor Qinglongs response to King George III is about his reasons for
rejecting the idea of a permanent British embassy in Peking. However, toward the end of the
response, he gives his reasons for rejecting increased trade. The most important line comes when
he says:

...we possess all things. I set no value on
objects strange or ingenious, and have no use for your country's manufactures. 

A little later in the document, he insists that China has never
needed imports from foreign countries. He says:

€¦our
Celestial Empire possesses all things in prolific abundance and lacks no product within its own
borders. There was therefore no need to import the manufactures of outside barbarians in
exchange for our own produce.

From these passages, we can
see that the Qing Dynasty felt that there was no need for European goods. Since China already
had all things in prolific abundance, there was nothing that it could want from Europe. The
emperor dismisses the English goods that Macartney brought as objects strange or ingenious. He
seems to be saying that they are mere curiosities, not things that would actually be useful.
From these lines, we can see that the Qing Dynasty did not think that European goods were useful
or necessary.

href="http://academics.wellesley.edu/Polisci/wj/China/208/READINGS/qianlong.html">http://academics.wellesley.edu/Polisci/wj/China/208/READI...