William Jardine lived from 24 February 1784 to 27 February 1843. He was a ship's surgeon who went on to become one of the founders of Jardine Matheson trading company. The wider picture in Scotland at the time is set out in our Historical Timeline.
William Jardine was born on a farm near Lochmaben in southern Scotland. Jardine's father died when he was nine years old and his education was paid for by an older brother, David. In 1800 at the age of 16, he began to study for a medical degree at the University of Edinburgh. He graduated two years later and took up employment as a surgeon's mate on board the East India Merchant Ship "Brunswick". The East India Company allowed employees to trade on their own account, and even allocated cargo space to individual members of crew to allow them to do so. Jardine took full advantage, even renting space from fellow crew members to allow him to maximise his own trading profits.
In 1817 Jardine left the East India Company to become an independent trader. In 1824 he was invited to help run the established trading company Magniac and Co, from 1828 doing so in partnership with fellow Scot James Matheson. This proved to be a highly successful partnership and In July 1, 1832 they formed Jardine, Matheson and Company Ltd. with the aim of trading opium, tea and other goods to and from the Chinese market, working closely alongside the British East India Company. The following year the British Parliament revoked monopoly rights of the British East India Company to carry trade between Britain and China, and Jardine Mathesons rapidly displaced them as the most important British trading firm in Asia.
By 1841, Jardine Mathesons had 19 clipper ships, the intercontinental carriers of their day, compared with the 13 of their nearest rivals. They also owned hundreds of small ships, junks and smaller craft. Key areas of business included carriage of opium from India to China; trading spices and sugar from the Philippines; and tea and silk from China; acting as shipping and insurance agents and operators of port facilities. When the Chinese tried to stop the flow of opium into their country because of its serious impact on the population, William Jardine (with support from many other British traders) persuaded the British Government to declare war on China to enforce the resumption of the trade. The war lasted from 1839 to 1842. The British duly won, and the flow of opium into China was resumed, and with it the flow of profits to the trading companies. The First Opium War also led to the colonisation of Hong Kong by the British and their ownership of it until 1997.
In 1841, Jardine became the Liberal Party MP for Ashburton in Devon. He also built a London house at 6 Upper Belgrave Street and acquired the Lanrick estate in Perthshire. He did not have long to enjoy the fruits of his trading empire: he died of stomach cancer on 27 February 1843. The company he founded has long outlived him. Today the Jardine Matheson Group remains one of Asia's most dynamic trading companies.