China: 'Pacifying the South China Sea', section of an 18m long scroll documenting the suppresion of piracy in the South China Sea in the mid-Jiaqing period (1796–1820), Hong Kong Maritime Museum. anon., early 19th century

The pirate Zhang Baozai operated six fleets in the South China Sea with over 70,000 followers, presenting perhaps the largest maritime security problem any nation has ever faced.

An extraordinary ink painting scroll entitled ‘Pacifying the South China Sea’ which is 18 metres in length, depicts the nine-day Battle of Lantau that heralded the strategy of Viceroy Bailing to rid the Chinese seas of this blight. It was painted in the early 19th century by an unknown artist to commemorate the defeat of the pirates who prowled the waters around Guangdong in the mid-Jiaqing period (1796–1820).

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