The Making of the Great Qing Empire

Question 1

Give two types of historiography relating to the Qing empire

Answer 1

Chinese world order - Confucian core at centre (china) pinnacle of civilisation, radiating outwards. Civilising influence. Used a lot until the 20thC to explain the Qing dynasty

New Qing history – scholars had a new approach. More useful to see the Qing imperial order as a multi-ethnic polity of different major groups ordered around the Qing imperial house

Question 2

What are the origins of the Manchus

Answer 2

Northeast Asian forest people with strong traditions of horse riding and archery

Originally speakers of a Tungstic language ‘Jurchen’

Much of north china was ruled by the Jin dynasty 12thC – by these groups.

Had relations with Choson Korea and Ming China

Question 3

How did the Manchus begin to gain significance

Answer 3

The Aisin-Gioro clan unified the Southern Jurchens

Patriarch of this clan (Nurhaci) founded the new dynasty ‘Later Jin’ in 1616 and launched a war against the Ming over “Seven great Dynasty’s”

• Succeeded in conquering pieces of Ming China, but in 1626 was killed
• Hong Taiji was his successor. Came to dominate diverse people northeast of the great wall
• In 1635, Taiji proclaimed a new identity as the ‘Manchu’ people.
• In 1636, the ‘later Jing empire’ was rebranded as the Qing empire

Question 4

What is the Manchu script

Answer 4

Derived from Mongol scripts

Adapted into a new language to represent the Manchus

Question 5

Give a reason why the Qing were so successful in their military conquests

Answer 5

The Eight Banners

• All Manchu would be incorporated into one of these 8 banners (colour coded sub-divisions)
• A military, administrative, and genealogical system of organisation
• Subsequently augmented by Mongol and Han-martial banners
• Was hereditary

Question 6

What is ethnicity and how does it relate to the study of the Qing Empire

Answer 6

All ethnic identities are socially constructed - don’t emerge organically

Can be contested and vague boundaries of who’s involved
- Does not encompass the later pseudo-scientific concepts of race

Some scholars think that ethnicity is too loaded to use in the Qing context at all, instead better to use words such as identity. Others argue it is essential in understanding Manchu rulership

Question 7

What was the situation for the Qing Empire like by 1645

Answer 7

Had breached the great wall and spread south into central china
- Opposition to Qing rule in southern china

The Qing regime adopted many crucial elements of Ming governance (Confucian examination systems)

Question 8

Give some Manchu practices imposed by the Qing Empire

Answer 8

Attire and the queue

The Queue Order decreed: “Loose your hair and keep your head or keep your hair and loose your head”. Decreed across all of China. Act of demonstrating submission to new order

Question 9

Was their opposition to the Qing Empire

Answer 9

Yes - considerably

Opposition, resistance and revolt was even undertaken by generals who originally sided with Qing rule

Question 10

Give some background to Taiwan

Answer 10

Originally considered beyond the pale despite proximity to the Ming empire (seen as a barbaric land and no interest to go there)

• Dutch colonisation 1624 – to set up trading posts and capture Chinese immigrants

Question 11

Why did Taiwan suddenly achieve attention with the rise of the Qing empire

Answer 11

662, the Ming loyalist Zheng clan were forced off the mainland and moved to Taiwan – expelled the Dutch colonists

However, the Qing empire banned all seafaring from mainland China from reaching Taiwan. Eventually conquered
- Taiwan and absorbed it into the Qing empire in 1683.

Question 12

How did the Qing empire conduct relations with the Mongol states

Answer 12

Saw inner-Asian Mongols as threats to Qing power

Qing emperors claimed to be Khans of the Mongols due to their relation to Genghis Khan

Mobilised Chinese resources to conquer them

Question 13

Give the background to Tibet

Answer 13

Strong traditions of pastoralism and Buddhism

By the 18thC, had come under Mongol overlordship but also held great religious influences over the Mongols

In 1720, the Qing ejected Zhunghar and installed Chinese troops in the region

Question 14

Give some areas the Mongol Zhunghar rule was prominent

Answer 14

Tibet

Mongolia

Xinjiang

Question 15

What did the Qing empire do in Xingjiang

Answer 15

The Turkic Uyghur Muslims had been under Zunghar rule since the late 17thC

Qing armies oust Zunghar and rush local opposition

Question 16

What is the Zunghar genocide

Answer 16

The Zughnagar empire was not only conquered but ultimately exterminated
- Qing troops eliminated them as a state and people

Together, with Russian encroachment into central Asia brought an end to nomad states which had existed for millennia.

Question 17

How did the Qing Emperors excursive their rule

Answer 17

Put great effort into reinforcing their own ethnic identity

• This involved garrisons, special high offices for Manchus, and special attempts to maintain Manchu culture and language.
• Physically restored the entry of Huan Chinese into the Northeast – proclaimed it as a Qing homeland

Emperors played many roles: claiming to be Chinese scholars, Mongol Khans etc, but continued to exercise their own distinct Manchu identity