MAC 



MACARTNEY, George, Earl of, in Blogniphy, tlie 

 ton of George Macartney, efq. of Aucliinleck in Scotland, 

 was born in Ireland in 1737, and was educated as a fellow- 

 commoner in Trinity-college, Dublin, where he took his 

 degrees in 1759. Shortly after this, he travelled with the 

 fons of the late lord Holland. This, perhaps, was his 

 introduction to court. His education had been liberal, and 

 he had improved the advantages which he poileflcd from a 

 fortunate train of circumftances. He had an afpiring mind, 

 and excellent talents, and, was ambitious of fome public em- 

 ployment. His own wilhes were feconded by the zeal of 

 his friends, and he was, in 1764, appointed envoy extra- 

 ordinary to the emprefs of Ruffia. The objeft of this mif- 

 fion, and of the appointment of this young man, was the 

 great importance of the commercial and political relations 

 between Great Britain and the empire of Rufiia ; and 

 it was neccflary, at that period, tg. counteraft the in- 

 fluence of France at the Ruffian court?* The charafter and 

 policy of that court required to be particularly ftndied ; and 

 hence the embafTy from this country included an office that 

 required much penetration, vijiilance, and difcretion, as well 

 as inlinuating manners, and an agreeable addrefs. Thefe 

 quahfications were thought, by the moft difcerning judges, 

 to be united in Mr. Macartney. The principal bufuiefs of 

 his miflion was to negociate a commercial treaty, for the 

 benefit of the Ruflia merchants trading to Ruffia. Of the 

 interefts of the Ruffian trade he was well informed. His 

 addrefs furmounied every difficulty of accefs to the emprefs 

 and her minifters : he knew how to feizc the proper moment 

 for negociation ; and he had coolnefs and patience to con- 

 quer every obftacle which might be oppofed to his views by 

 the artifices of others. He in a fliort time procured the 

 Ruffian court to agree to a treaty fatisfatlory to the wiihes 

 of the Britifh merchants at Peterfburgh, and fuitable to the 

 inttrudlions which he had received at home. An addrefs 

 from the merchants of the Britifh faftory at St. Peterfbui'gh ; 

 the honour of the knighthood of the Pohih order of the 

 White Eagle, conferred by a monarch who was himfelf at 

 once a man of falhion, tal1:e, and pleafure, and a man of 

 pohtical talents ; and tlie elevation to the charafter ot am- 

 balTador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the Britilh 

 court, in which he finally concluded the treaty of commerce, 

 ■were, among the teftimonies of approbation and relpeft 

 which fir George Macartney obtained by his conduft in this 

 diplomatic miffion to the north. Thus fuccefsful and dif- 

 tinguilhed, he returned to the Britifti court about the clofe 

 of the year 1767. Early in the following year he married 

 lady Jane Stuart, fccond daughter of the earl of^ Bute. By 

 this marriage he had contradted a relationffiip to fir James 

 Lowther, afterwards the earl of Lonfdale ; and by that 

 gentleman's interell with, or influence over, the eleftors, he 

 was chofen, in the fame year, one of the reprefentatives of 

 the borough of Cockermouth ; after which we find him 

 chofen a reprefentative in the Iridi parliament for the bo- 

 rough of Armagh. In 1769 fir George was nominated 

 principal fecretary to the late marquis Townlhend, in the 

 high office which he then filled of lord lieutenant of Ireland. 

 In 1772 he was nominated by his fovcivign knight of the Bath, 

 and in 1775 went out as governor of Grenada and Tobago. 

 He continued there till J 779, when, on the capture of tliofe 

 iflands by the French, he was taken prifoner, and fent to 

 France. In 1776 he had been made an Irilh peer by the 

 title r.f lord Macartney, baron LiiTanoure, in the county of 

 Antrim. As the lofs of Grenada had not occurred from 

 any mifconduft in him, but the defence of it had indeed 

 been fignahzed by the mod iliullrious difplay of all his great 

 qualities, he met with a very gracious reception from his 

 Vox.. XXI. 



MAC 



fovi-reign on his return. In 1780 he was chofen to rejire- 

 fent BeeraUlone in the Britifli parliament ; and in the fol- 

 lowing winter he was appointed governor and refident of 

 Fort St. George at Madras, in the Eaft Indies: and he 

 went without delay to difcharge the funftions of his ap- 

 pointment, where his conducl obtained fuch univerfal appro- 

 bation, that, in 1785, he was appointed to the high office 

 of governor-general of Bengal ; which honour, however, 

 after due confideration, he chofe to decline, and returned to 

 England. In 1786 he received a flattering tetlimony of 

 refpcft from the court of direftors of the Eafl: India com- 

 pany, who granted him an annuity for his life of 1 500/. pir 

 annum, which was bellowed as a leward for the important 

 lerviccs which this iliullrious nobleman had rendered to the 

 company. The fame year he fought a duel with general 

 Stuart, whom he had fuperfeded in India. In 1788 he 

 took his feat for the firft time in the Irilh houfe of peers ; 

 and about the fame time was appointed one of the tniftees 

 of the linen manufafture for the province of Ulller, and alfo 

 cuftos rotulorum for the county of Antrim. He was pro- 

 moted likewife to the command of a regiment of dragoon* 

 in the Irifh militia. In 1792 he was felecled as the fitted 

 perfon for atnbafl'ador from the king of Great Britain to the 

 emperor of China. He was on the fame day nominated a 

 privy-counfellor ; and in a few weeks he was raifed to the 

 rank of an Iridi vifcount, under the title of vifcount Der- 

 vock, in the county of Antrim. He now proceeded, with- 

 outdelay, on his enibafi"y, attended by fir George .Staunton 

 as his fecretary, and a great train of followers and fervants. 

 A diip of war, under the command of fir Erafmus Gower, 

 was, with fmaller veflels, affigned for his voyage. Many 

 rich prefents were fent from the Britidi to the Chinefe fove- 

 reign. He arrived in fafety in the Indian feas ; and when 

 his approach was announced at the Chinefe court, the em- 

 peror and his ininider agreed, though not without fome 

 hefitation, to receive the ambadadors and prefents. In his 

 approach to Pekin, the northern capital of the empire, his 

 lordfhip was obliged to diredl his voyage round the South 

 Tea coad of China, by a traft hitherto almod unknown to 

 European navigators. The opportunity of exploring that 

 tradl was regarded as almod fufficient to compenfate for all 

 the difficulties and cxpence of the embady. As foon as he 

 landed, mandarins of the highed rank were appointed to 

 conduft him to the imperial court. His prefents were ac- 

 cepted, and he, with all his train, were treated in a hof- 

 pitable, and even fumptuous manner : but the main objeft 

 of the miffion was completely frudrated, tiiz. to obtain per- 

 miffion for the permanent refidence of a Britidi ambafiador 

 at the court ot China. This was abfolutely refufed, and 

 lord Macartney and his train returned o%'er land. His lord- 

 diip entered Canton in December 1793; and from thence 

 he proceeded to Macao ; and in March 1 794, he failed from 

 that port to Europe. He arrived in England in the fol- 

 lowing September, after an abfence of almod two years. 

 On his return he was created an Iridi earl ; and in 1796 he 

 was farther advanced to the dignity of a Britidi peer, by 

 the title of baron Macartney of Parkhurll, in Sudex. 

 After this, he was called to the adminidration. In this 

 high dation, as in the other offices which he filled, lord 

 Macartney difplaycd qualities which are honourable to his 

 talents as a llatefman, and his feelings as a man. His lord- 

 fliip died on the gid of March 1806. Monthly and 

 European Magazines. Britifli and Irifli Peerages. 



MACAS, in Geography, a province of the viceroyalty of 



New Granada, in South America, bounded on theeall by the 



government of Maynas, fouth by that of Bracanioros and Ya- 



guarfongo, and on the weit the eaft Cordillera of the Andes 



4 Z diTides 



