Two infamous Elgins in Chinese-relevant history. Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl (1766-1841), removed the Parthenon Marbles from Athens (still disputed today). His son James Bruce, 8th Earl (1811-1863), as British High Commissioner to China during the Second Opium War, ordered the looting and burning of
圆明园 (the Old Summer Palace) in 1860 — a wound still central to Chinese historical memory.
