Ming and Qing Dynasties
Last 3 Dynasties (Beijing)
• Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368)
– Mongolian
– north of China proper
• Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)
– Han Chinese
• Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)
– Manchu
– northeast of China proper
Confucian culture
• modern concept of political nation state
• Chinese defined by Confucian culture
• civil service exam (605-1905)
– social mobility
– reward diligence, discipline, and willpower, but
not talent or innovation
• law of avoidance
• “sum of social relationships”
Social hierarchy and mobility
• scholar-officials, farmers, artisans, and
merchants
• scholar-official-landlord
– learning, political power, and economic wealth
• local elite (gentry) and lineage
• lack of work ethic
– literati’s long gown
– foot-binding for women
Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644)
China’s Tributary System
• Traditional system for managing foreign
relations
• The ``Central Kingdom” worldview
• Ming dynasty had the most extensive
tributary system
– tributes from East Asia, South Asia, Southeast
Asia, and even West Asia and Africa
Zheng He’s fleet (1405 - 1433)
• Over 300 ships & 20,000 men
• trade and commerce
• Southeast Asia, South Asia,
West Asia, and East Africa
Zheng He’s expeditions
Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1912)
• Ming dynasty fell in 1644 amid peasant
uprisings and Manchu invasion
• Manchu and Han Chinese
Ming and Qing Emperors
Mandate of Heaven
The 6 Bu
• Ministries
• 6-Bu system
started in
early Tang
Dynasty (618
- 907)
The 6 Bu (ministries)
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ministry of Personnel
Ministry of Revenue
Ministry of Rites
Ministry of Military
Ministry of Criminal Justice
Ministry of Public Works
Emperor & Macartney (1793)