The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word NANKING
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
N
A
N
K
I
N
G
More clues leading to the result NANKING
- Granny meets monarch in Chinese port
- City's ruler looked down on by senior woman
- Bread head gets past capital
- Eastern port making grandad queen then?
- Old woman and man in Chinese port
- Old female ruler in old Chinese port
- Top Indian baker’s city?
- Old capital — depending on changing leadership
- Last Sovereign, one who ruled the city
- Eminent ruler leaves for northern city
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Eastern port/Eastern port" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case eastern port/eastern port = nanking.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.