A Letter from Xo Ho A Chinese Philosopher at London

A Letter from Xo Ho, a Chinese Philosopher at London, to His Friend Lien Chi at Peking is a 1757 satirical pamphlet by Horace Walpole (1717-1797), the English man of letters, member of Parliament, and fourth Earl of Orford. Walpole wrote the piece in the voice of an imagined Chinese visitor commenting on the trial and execution of Admiral John Byng, the British naval officer shot on his own quarterdeck after the loss of Minorca in 1756. Walpole uses the Chinese frame to mount a sharp criticism of the political scapegoating of Byng and of the wider conduct of British government during the Seven Years’ War. The pamphlet was widely read, went through several editions, and is a primary source for the public debate around the Byng affair. Walpole is now better remembered for his Gothic novel The Castle of Otranto and for his enormous correspondence. Free PDF download available on BDeBooks.