The Qing Dynasty under Stress, 1850-1900

Foreign Threats & Internal Rebellions

Opium War & Unequal Treaties, 1839-42

Treaty ports

Rise of Shanghai & Hong Kong

“Overseas Devils"

Rebellions 

*Taiping, 1850-64

*Nian (Nien), 1851-68

Yunnan Muslim Rebellion, 1855-73

NW Muslim Rebellion, 1862-78

Underlying causes of rebellions

Population

Population increase provides more inputs

Labor

Fertilizer

Arable land doubles, 1650-1800

Internal migration

Macroregion peripheries

Potatoes

Taiwan

Manchuria

Southwest

Effects of population growth

Increased landlessness, vagrancy, and banditry

Increased disillusionment among educated elite

Financial Administration

Government and military insufficient to meet demands of rising population

Granary system not kept up

Officialdom and army static in size

Manchu banner soldiers go soft?

Trade deficit

Opium imported

1842: 33,000 chests

1850: 53,000 chests of opium imported

Silver exports

1821-30: 85,000 kg
1831-40: 372,000 kg
1841-50: 2,900,000 kg

Tax rates in silver remain constant

Cost of silver doubles from 1800-1850

Taiping Rebellions

Hong Xiuquan (1814-64)

4 Exam failures, 1830-43

Road to rebellion

Meets missionary, 1836

Delirium, 1837

Spiritual awakening, 1843

Spiritual leader, 1844

Ideas

Against

Opium-smoking, Gambling, Drinking, Footbinding, Manchus, Polygamy

For

Heterodox Christianity

Egalitarianism

Retreat to Guangxi, 1847

10-20,000 followers, 1850

“Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace,” 1851

Military expansion, 1851-53

37,000 followers in 1852

Nanjing captured, 1853-6

Teetering on Brink of Collapse

Rebellions, 1862

Taiping, Nian, Yunnan Muslims, NW Muslims

2nd Opium War

“Arrow War” of 1860

2nd round of unequal treaties

Embassies in Beijing

Opium legalized

Tongzhi emperor (r. 1861-74)

Empress Dowager Cixi

Xianfeng emperor (r. 1851-61)