what is Manchu Dynasty?

Answer 1

The Manchu (Qing) Dynasty


In the early 17th century, the Nuchen tribes were growing in strength in the northern region known as Manchuria, and in the two decades from 1616 overcame Ming power in Manchuria and set up their own state and dynasty known as ‘Qing’. Repeated attacks south of the Great Wall were made by the Manchurian troops, and after being invited to help suppress rebel peasants by a Ming general, swept down through China, capturing Beijing and taking over the government of China in 1644. Over the next decade or so the Manchus fought to suppress native resistance, finally destroying the last Ming pretender in 1659 and establishing what was to be the last of the Chinese dynasties.

In order to set up a series of buffer zones around the ‘Celestial Empire’ the Manchus continued an expansionist policy, conquering Taiwan in 1683, and setting up Mongolia, Tibet and Burma as ‘protectorates’ in 1696, 1724 and 1769 respectively.

The Manchu people themselves were a small ethnic group within China, yet managed to dominate the enormous Chinese empire by creating a dual-occupied (i.e. one Chinese official and one Manchu) hierarchy of officialdom with entry by examination, maintaining the established army organisation, promoting trade with Europe through Chinese companies (the ‘Hong’ merchants), intellectually subjecting the masses- such as through the compulsory adoption of the pigtail hairstyle or 'queue'- and dogmatising Confucianism into a state-wide doctrine, the 16 rules known as the ‘Holy Edict’.

During the reign of the Emperor Ch’ien Lung, an orthodox Confucian who banned Christian missionary activity in China, the Manchu dynasty became increasingly conservative, inward looking and reactionary, with the occurrence of a literary inquisition that went so far as to burn books, the formation of secret societies and an increased distrust and intolerance of ‘foreigners’, particularly the growing European-controlled opium trade.

The Hong merchants successfully controlled trade with Europe up to the middle of the nineteenth century: 1840 however saw the fighting of the first ‘Opium War’ between Britain and China.

China had showed little interest in British trade goods such as waistcoats and fleece stockings and Britain paid for its imports of tea, silk and porcelain mainly with silver. The opium trade, however, changed all this, with the explosive growth of the opium habit (then new in China) in China, and a consequent net outflow of silver from China. Alarmed at this outflow, the Qing government banned the import and smoking of opium. When diplomatic moves failed to prevent the illegal trade of opium, in 1839 the areas of Canton where British and American merchants were permitted to operate were blockaded, and some 20,000 chests of opium seized and publicly destroyed on the Canton beaches. Britain declared war, and the first Opium War ended in a decisive defeat for China- whose bows and arrows and crude fire arms were no match for the superior European weaponry- and the humiliating Treaty of Nanjing. Here, five ports- Canton, Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo and Shanghai- were opened to foreign trade, Hong Kong island was ceded to the British, as well as the status of ‘extraterritoriality’ to her merchants- that is they were not subject to Chinese laws- and huge reparations were imposed for the destroyed opium. The USA and France extracted similar concessions two years later.

The remaining decades of the nineteenth century saw increased incursion into China by the European and American powers- who sought to partition China among themselves. In 1856, a relatively minor naval incident led to a renewal of war with Great Britain (who was later joined by France): the Lorcha or ‘Second Opium’ war’.

This ended yet again with defeat for China and the ‘Treaty of Tientsin’ in 1858, which legalised the opium trade, allowed freedom for Christian missionary activity, increased ports and trading privileges to Western merchants and imposed further war reparations. Importantly, foreign powers were also allowed to transport Chinese labour to work in their own lands and colonies by this treaty, notably in the mines and plantations of Malaya and building the transcontinental railway in the USA. When China delayed implementation of the treaty, Anglo-French forces occupied and sacked Beijing, forcing a further treaty and concessions. Following an 1870 rising in Tiensin and the murder of the French consul a further European retaliatory expedition was mounted, in 1885 Tongking was recognised as a French protectorate, and Burma was ceded to the British in 1886. After the murder of two missionaries, Germany occupied Tsingtao in 1897, and leased Kiaochow for 99 years. Similar leasing agreements were reached with Russia (for Dairen), Britain (Weihaiwei) and France (Kwangchowwan).

The intrusion of the West into China- by both the introduction and fostering of Western capitalism and the Christian missionaries (although their converting aspirations had little effect, their schools, hospitals etc. had a profound influence) fundamentally altered the traditional structure of Chinese society, causing revolutionary upheavals and the eventual end of the Manchu dynasty. Alongside Western incursions, the Manchu governments suffered the millennialist sect-inspired Taiping Rebellion between 1850 and 1864 and Moslem uprisings between 1864 and 1878, imperial order finally being restored under the Chancellor Li Hung Chang only with the aid of Western adventurers.

To compound Manchu troubles, war broke out with Japan in 1894. The Japanese conquered Dairen, Weihaiwei, Shatung and Seoul, with China finally ceding Taiwan and the Pescadores Islands in 1895, alongside payment of reparations.

Eighteen ninety-eight saw a coup d’etat by reactionary elements in the Chinese hierarchy, leading to the internment of the Emperor. Tacit support was given by the new regime to the Boxer rising of 1900, a movement against the ‘foreign devils’ which saw a massacre of Christians and murder of the the German ambassador and other European nationals. The rising was suppressed by a punitive expedition under the Germans.

The National People’s Party (Guomindang) was formed in 1905 with the aims of national autonomy, democracy and a guaranteed income for all, and the Manchu dynasty finally abdicated in 1912 following the ‘Revolution of the Young Chinese’ in 1911.

Answer 2

The last ruling dynasty of China prior to the Chinese Revolution in 1912. The Manchu dynasty began in Manchuria and ruled China from 1644 to 1912. The last ruler of the Manchu dynasty was set up as a puppet ruler for Manchuria (or Manchukuo) by the Japaneses during World War II.

Answer 3

as a results of fact they have been truly ineffective at combating western imperialism to boot as race conflicts as a results of fact the final public of the inhabitants exchange into Han chinese language and the Manchu subjugated them by snuffing out han way of existence

Answer 4

What Is Manchu

Answer 5

mongolian people who took over china

Answer 6

another group of chinese people