Hongpiao 紅票 [Vermilion Document aka Red Manifesto]

In 1706, at the height of the Chinese Rites Controversy, the Kangxi Emperor appointed two Jesuit missionaries, Fathers Antonio de Barros and Antoine de Beauvollier, as his special envoys to Rome. Their mission ended tragically when their ship capsized within sight of the Portuguese coast.
Not having any news from them, the Emperor appointed Fathers José Ramón Arxo and Giuseppe Provana, also Jesuit missionaries, as his representatives in Rome. Arxo and Provana left Macau in 1708. Arxo died in Spain in 1711 and Provana died in 1720 on the return voyage to China. Since no word of their deliberations came to the Emperor, he had this document, the Red Manifesto, or Hongpiao (紅票), written and all missionaries resident in Beijing sign it, and ordered it given to any Europeans who came to the capitol. He states that he will not give credence to any documents regarding the Rites Controversy until his envoys return.
Note that the term piao (票) already had special meaning in the early history of Catholicism in China, referring to the "permit" that missioners were required to sign stating they would adhere to the principles established (by Ricci and the early Jesuits) and practiced during the early Kangxi era. Once Clement XI's decree of 1715 (unknown in China at the time the Manifesto was written) declared those practices heretical, the Jesuit project in China lost significant momentum.
The Manifesto is written in Manchu, Chinese, and Latin, and printed in vermilion ink with a border of five-clawed dragons reserved for proclamations of the Emperor. It is block-printed, 39 x 93 cm. The original was written in Manchu by the Kangxi Emperor himself at Anzuling. Officials of the Imperial printers at the Wuyingdian rendered the Manchu into Chinese, which the Emperor himself corrected. Jesuit missionaries at court provide the Latin translation, and their signatures may be seen in that section.

English Translation (Paragraphing created throughout to aid comparison of the three texts.)

In compliance with His Majesty's Imperial Order, We, the Intendants of the Imperial Press at the Wuyingdian, Yi Duli, Wang Daohua, and Zhao Chang, respectfully announce to all who have come from West the following manifesto:
In the 45th year of the Kangxi reign the Westerners Fr. António de Barros, S.J. [Long Anguo] and Fr. Antoine de Beauvollier, S.J. [Bo Xianshi] were appointed Imperial envoys. During the 47th year of the Kangxi reign the Westerners Fr. Giuseppe Provana, S.J. [Ai Ruose], and Fr. José Raimundo de Arxo, S.J. [Lu Ruose], were likewise appointed envoys, received their Imperial orders, and departed for the West.
For these many years until the present, there has not only been no written contact from them, but other missives difficult to interpret or validate have been received. For this reason another letter [to Rome] was sent via the Russians which we hope reached its destination.
Certainly until the men we dispatched have returned and these matters settled no credence can be placed in other explanations. If our envoys fail to return, we will have no positive evidence for whatever other letters may be had, and thus we cannot place our trust in them.
Therefore, fearing that our [most recent] letter will fail to reach its destination, this manifesto, with Western language text appended, has been printed and given the seal of the Provincial Governor of Guangdong Province. It is an open-letter to be copied and distributed among all Westerners who arrive that they may carry back for distribution.
[Dated] 17th day of the 9th month of the 55th year of Kangxi [October 31, 1716]

武英殿等處監修書官伊都立王道化趙昌等字寄與自西洋來的衆人我等僅遵
㫖於康熙四十五年已曾差西洋人龍安國薄賢士四十七年差西洋人艾若瑟陸若瑟奉㫖往西洋去了
至今數年不但沒有信來時以難辨真假又有亂來之信因此與鄂羅斯的人又帶信去想是到去了
必竟我等差去人回時事情都明白之後方可信得若是我等差去之人不回無真憑據雖有甚麼書信總信不得
因此唯恐書信不通寫此字兼上西洋字刊刺用廣東巡撫院印書不對緘凡來的衆西洋人多發與帶去
康熙五十五年九月十七日

Transcription of the Latin Translation:
Nos Ytoury [伊都立] , Voamtaohoa [王道化], Tchaotcham [趙昌] , Aulæ Ouintien [武英殿], et ejusmodi, ubi libri conficiuntur. Locorum Mandarini, obedientes reverenter Imperatoris mandato, ad omnes qui ex Europa appulerunt, scribimus
. Anno Kam-Hi [康熙] 45o PP. Ants Barros et Ants Beauvolier: anno Kam-Hi 47o PP. Joses Provana et Raymondus de Arxo de mandato Impertoris in Europam missi sunt.
Multis ab hinc annis non modò nullam responsum venit, unde verum e falso discernis non potest, sed etiam confusi rumores afferuntur. Idcirco Muscovitis rursus tradita est Epistola deferenda, quam verisimile est pervenisse.
Certè quidem cum homines a nobis missi redierint, et negotia omnino clara fuerint, tunc adhiberi fides poterit. At nisi homines a nobis missi revertantur, dcerit verum fundamentum: et etiamsi quæcumque epistolæ vel nuntia venerint , omnino credi non potest.
Et veriti ne litteræ penetrare non possint, has scribimus: his versio europæa adjiciatur: omnia typis mandentur: Proregis Cantoniensis sigillo muniatur: non autem claudantur: pluriamque Exemplaria omnibus recenter advectis Europæis distribuantur, quæ ipsi secum asportent.
Datum An: Kam-Hi 55o (1716) 9æ Lunæ die 17a (Octob:31.)

De mandato Imperatoris subscripsimus:
Kilianus Stumpf, Soc Jesu
Dominicus Parrenin SocJ:
Joseph Baudinus [i.e. Baudino] S.J.
Petr. Vinc. De Tartre S.J.
Frantz Stadtlin S.J.
Mathaus Ripa Mys Aptious, Sac.Cong.Prop.Fide
Josephus Suares S.J.
Petrus Jartoux Soc:J.
Jacobus Brocard S.J.
Joachimus Bouvet Soc.J.
Tranc. Cardoso Soc.J.
Joseph da Costa S.J.
Theodor s Pedrini M.A.
Joan. Franc. Foucquet, S.J.
Johannes J Mourao S.J.
Joseph Castiglione S.J.

Sources:
Litterae patentes imperatoris Sinarum Kang-Hi. Sinice et Latine cum interpretatione Ignatii Koegleri; Ex archetypo sinensi edidit additis notitiis sinicis Christophorus Theophilus de Murr ... Norimbergae et Altdorfii: Bibliopolio Monathi et Kussleri, 1802. Includes detailed description of this document.

Apostolic Legations to China of the eighteenth century. Antonio Sisto Rosso, O.F.M. South Pasadena: Perkins, 1948.

康熙與羅馬使節關係文書 (Documents in Connection with the Negotiations between the Apostolic Delegate from Rome and Kangxi, Emperor of the Qing). Chen Yuan. 1932, 1974 rpt.

康熙的紅票 : 全球化中的清朝 (Emperor Kangxi's Red Manifesto : the Qing Dynasty in globalization).孫立天 商務印書館, 2024

Kangxi de hongpiao : Quanqiuhua zhong de Qingchao 康熙的紅票 : 全球化中的清朝 = Emperor Kangxi's Red Manifesto : the Qing Dynasty in globalization /  Sun Litian zhu  孫立天著.

Cover title also in English: Emperor Kangxi’s Red Manifesto : the Qing Dynasty in Globalization.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 354-376)

目錄 · · · · · ·
序/i
第一部 進入滿人權貴圈的西洋人001
第一章 佟家的奴才/003
戰場上的俘虜·康熙母親的娘家·滿人對西洋人的印象·神父與大砲生意·佟氏家族與傳教士·消除奴籍
第二章 滿漢之爭中的傳教士/029
傳教士被抓·滿漢路線之爭·滿人、漢人和洋人·楊光先的地位·傳統社會中的算命·湯若望參與算命·歷獄審判
第三章 從剷除鰲拜到《尼布楚條約》談判/065
康熙背後的勢力·傳教士登場·傳教士與宮廷政治·功不可沒的南懷仁·傳教士帶給康熙的世界·《尼布楚條約》簽訂
第四章 內務府的人/111
臣子和奴才·傳教士的名分·新來的傳教士·關係網·介紹中國·中西雙向交流
第二部分 紅票與中西交往153
第五章 教宗使團和康熙派出的洋欽差/155
康熙和他的江山·康熙眼中的教皇使團·初次接見·教皇使節與傳教士·多羅與禮儀之爭·傳教士筆下的歷史·辭行會見·康熙面試顏璫主教·領票
第六章 彼得大帝使團與教宗新使團/203
十四年的等待·康熙發給歐洲的公開信·康熙的耐心·彼得大帝來華使團·教皇第二個入華使團
第三部 榮耀後的沉默247
第七章 雍正爭位與禁教/249
康熙晚年的皇位爭鬥·雍正登位中的謎團·傳教士也盡力了·雍正為什麼要禁教？ ·雍正對禁教的解釋·當局者怎麼說？ ·雍正與佛教·作為佛教居士的雍正·皇位爭鬥與禁教的關聯
跋/289
註/311
附錄一 雍親王致年羹堯書/336
附錄二 內務府內傳道名錄/339
附錄三 顏璫關於中國禮儀佈告/344
附錄四 穆經遠判決書/349
參考文獻/354
致謝/377

本書以紅票作為敘事切入點， 圍繞清初皇室特別是康熙帝與湯若望、南懷仁為代表的北京傳教士群體之間的互動，抉出了一段中國與西洋深度接觸的往事。 進入中國的西洋傳教土， 與中國各階層有著廣泛的接觸， 上至皇帝高官、下至販夫走卒， 他們的交往交織若文化碰撞與私人恩怨，糾纏著國際競爭與內闈宮鬥。 作者精讀中西文獻， 細加論證， 在諸如清初歷獄、中西禮儀之爭、雍正禁教等熱點問題上均有原創性見解， 並對流傳巳久的＂閉關鎖國”“朝貢體系”“文明衝突” 等歷史論調提出了質疑， 是一本學術性與通俗性兼具的佳作。

This book takes the Red Manifesto as the starting point of the narrative, and centers on the relationship between the imperial family in the early Qing Dynasty, especially during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor, and Beijing missionaries such as Adam Schall and Ferdinand Verbiest. The Western missionaries who entered China had a wide range of contacts with all social levels, from emperors and officials to peddlers, and their interactions were intertwined with cultural clashes and personal grudges, and entangled in international rivalries. On the basis of Chinese and Western literature and sources, the author carefully examines hot issues such as the Calendar Case in the early Qing dynasty, the dispute between Chinese and Western rituals, and the Yongzheng’s ban on Christianity. This book challenges theories about China as a “closed country,” the “tribute system,” the “clash of civilizations” and other historical frameworks both for academic and popular audiences.

"Kangxichao Manwen zhupi zouzhe quanyi 康熙朝滿文朱批奏折全譯 (Complete translation of Manchu Kangxi imperially rescripted palace memorials), Yishuguan ... Includes more than 5,000 memorials, including those held in Taibei."--Cf. E. Wilkinson, Chinese history, a manual, p. 929.

Inserted is the article "Newly available Manchu documents pertaining to Sino-Western relations in the Kangxi Period" by Eugenio Menegon, excerpted from: Sino-Western Cultural Relations Journal XIX (1997). Dr. Menegon translates the title as: "A translation of the complete collection of Manchu language secret memorials with vermilion endorsements of the Kangxi period." He notes: "Approximately 125 Manchu memorials deal with the presence of the Jesuits at the Qing court, the Tournon legation, and Qing relations with Western powers..." (insert p. 23-24).

Local access dig.pdf. [Kangxichao Manwen.pdf]