Lot# 5091

The cover bears Great Britain adhesives of 4d (two) and 1d (one), paying a total rate of 9d, cancelled by an Aberdeen circular date stamp dated 7 June 1859. On the front is a manuscript arrival notation “24 July 1859”, indicating delivery to Canton approximately six weeks after dispatch.
The correspondence falls within a significant military phase of the Second Opium War, arriving shortly after the Second Battle of the Taku Forts (25–26 June 1859) in which the Anglo-French forces suffered a setback. During this period, British command was reorganizing and reinforcing its military presence in China. The 65th Regiment of Native Infantry, part of the British Indian Army establishment, was likely deployed as a reinforcement unit to Southern China, assisting in maintaining British control over treaty ports such as Canton.