Bias Bay lay close to Hong Kong and remained a major pirate base, but the Navy could not chase every report while fulfilling wider regional commitments. China Station commanders had to divide ships among protection of British interests, observation of China, intelligence on Japan, and direct piracy suppression. A vessel owned and registered by a company based in Britain gave commanders a clear basis for action under restrictive rules of engagement. That ownership test helped satisfy the requirement that British lives or property faced a real threat. The policy could appear selective, yet it reduced legal ambiguity and conserved a limited force for cases it could confidently prosecute.
Notable Point · 33:21-35:14
Why protection focused on clearly British shipping
Restricting protection to unmistakably British-owned and British-registered ships simplified legal authority while scarce China Station vessels balanced piracy, China, and Japan.