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James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin, was British ambassador to China in the 1850s, and the chief British representative who signed the [[Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce]] in [[1858]].

James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin, was British ambassador to China in the 1850s, and the chief British representative who signed the [[Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce]] in [[1858]].

Having served as the chief British representative in the signing of the [[Treaty of Tientsin]] with China a month earlier (July, or 1858/5 on the Japanese calendar), Elgin came to Japan seeking similar terms. He arrived before [[Yevfimy Vasilyevich Putyatin]], but his meetings with the ''[[roju|rôjû]]'' were delayed, and in the end, the Anglo-Japanese Treaty was signed on August 26 (7/18), two weeks after the [[Dutch-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce|Dutch-]] and [[Russo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce|Russo-Japanese Treaties of Amity and Commerce]] were completed. Elgin presented the Japanese with a steam-powered pleasure ship, called the ''Emperor'' (and later renamed ''Banryû''), as a gift from [[Queen Victoria]], but was generally not too warmly received. After discussions with [[Townsend Harris]], Elgin opted to abandon the pursuit of a treaty similar to that of Tientsin, and instead agreed to a set of terms closely similar to those Harris had agreed to in the [[Harris Treaty|Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the United States and Japan]] earlier that year.

Having served as the chief British representative in the signing of the [[Treaty of Tientsin]] with China a month earlier (July, or 1858/5 on the Japanese calendar), Elgin came to Japan seeking similar terms. He arrived before [[Yevfimy Vasilyevich Putyatin]], but his meetings with the ''[[roju|rôjû]]'' were delayed, and in the end, the Anglo-Japanese Treaty was signed on August 26 (7/18), two weeks after the [[Dutch-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce|Dutch-]] and [[Russo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce|Russo-Japanese Treaties of Amity and Commerce]] were completed. Elgin presented the Japanese with a steam-powered pleasure ship, called the ''Emperor'' (and later renamed ''[[Banryu-maru|Banryû]]''), as a gift from [[Queen Victoria]], but was generally not too warmly received. After discussions with [[Townsend Harris]], Elgin opted to abandon the pursuit of a treaty similar to that of Tientsin, and instead agreed to a set of terms closely similar to those Harris had agreed to in the [[Harris Treaty|Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the United States and Japan]] earlier that year.

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