William Alexander Parsons Martin (April 10, 1827 – December 17, 1916) was an American Presbyterian missionary to China and translator, famous for having translated a number of important Western treatises into Chinese, such as Henry Wheaton's Elements of International Law. He graduated from Indiana University in 1846, known at that time as Indiana State University, and then studied theology at the Presbyterian seminary, New Albany, Indiana. In 1850 Martin arrived in Ningbo, Zhejiang, China, where he worked for the next ten years. Martin served as interpreter for the United States minister William B. Reed, in negotiating the treaty of From 1863 till 1868 he worked at Beijing. He was reputed to be the first foreigner to make the journey from Beijing to Shanghai on the Grand Canal of China, and described the trip in the "Journal of the Asiatic Society" (1866). In 1869 Martin became president of the Tongwenguan in Beijing and a professor of international law. He acted as an adviser of Chinese officials on questions of international law when disputes arose with European powers, notably during the conflict with France in 1884-1885. In the same year he was made a mandarin of the third class.
Martin received the degree of D.D. from Lafayette College in 1860, and that of LL. D. from the University of the city of New York in 1870. Published worksDr. Martin edited the Peking Scientific Magazine, printed in Chinese, from 1875 till 1878, and also published in the Chinese language:
Dr. Martin also contributed to American and English reviews and to the transactions of learned societies, and published in English:
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