Portrait of George Macartney, mid-19th century

Lord Macartney (1737-1806) was Britain's first ambassador to China in 1792-94. He gained an audience with the Qianlong emperor but achieved nothing else. In this sense Macartney is a pivotal figure for, had his embassy succeeded, the sad history of relations between China and the west during the 19th century may never have turned out as it did and today's Hong Kong would not exist.