ABSTRACT
The signing of the revised Anglo-Japanese commercial treaty on 16 July finally eradicated the biggest thorn which had frustrated the two countries for over a quarter of a century. After the Japanese military managed to drive the Qing presence out of Korea in mid-September, the General Headquarters started preparing for further operations towards the Liaodong peninsula. All of the factors contributed to the British government upholding its neutrality over the First Sino-Japanese War. In April, Japanese naval authorities captured the British steamer Yiksang for carrying contraband of war, and for the first time during this war a neutral commercial vessel was brought to the prize court, but the Foreign Office perceived that the Japanese dealt with this case reasonably. In November, Japanese newspapers reported that H. M. S. Mercury had interfered with the Japanese squadron which was trying to launch a night attack against Chinese warships stationed at Weihaiwei at the early stage of war.
