Rebellions and Restoration
HI 168: Lecture 3
Dr. Howard Chiang
Partitioning of China
- Queen Victoria
- William II (Germany)
- Nicholas II (Russia)
- French Marianne
- Meiji Emperor
The Origins of Rebellion
• Sub-ethnic consciousness
• High degree of militarization
• Miao Rebellions (1795-1806 & 1855-72)
- Fu Nai – military agricultural colonies
• Secret societies of the south
- Triads - Three Harmonies Society (三
合會), Three Dots Society (三點會),
Heaven and Earth Society (天地會) or
collectively as Vast Gate (洪門)
- coexistence with orthodox society
The Origins of Rebellion
• Secret societies of the south
- ‘Overthrow the Qing and restore the
Ming’ (反清復明)
- 1786 major uprising in Taiwan
- extended to the rich counties around
the Pearl River Delta
- Red Turban Revolt of 1854
• The White Lotus Rebellion (白蓮教)
- Henan-Anhui to Hubei-SzechuanShanxi
The Origins of Rebellion
• The White Lotus Rebellion (白蓮教)
- 1793, Qing ordered investigation of
WL congregations in central China
- 1796, open revolt
- 1805, substantially annihilated
- suppression of internal rebellion
required the cooperation of local elite
and the hiring of mercenaries
- ruinous to the imperial treasury –
suppression costs 120 million taels
The Taiping Rebellion
• 1851-1864
• Social Background:
- Canton – problems associated with
opium smuggling, trafficking, and
smoking and opium war itself
- Guangxi – pirates 1795-1809;
Shanghai diverted trade away;
mercenaries demobilized; bureaucrats
increasingly powerless; a delegation
sent to Peking in 1850
Hong Xiuquan
洪秀全
Feng Yunshan
馮雲山
The Taiping Rebellion
• 1850: God Worshipping Society (拜上帝
會, Bai shangdi hui)
• 1851: Heavenly Kingdom of Great
Peace (太平天國, Taiping tianguo)
• Sep 1852: Changhsai, Hunan capital
• Jan 1853: Wuchang, Hubei capital
• March 19, 1853: Nanking, ‘Heavenly
Capital’ - ‘1st Nanjing Massacre’
• The Land Regulations of the Heavenly
Dynasty
Zeng Guofan
曾國藩
- Hunan Army (1853)
- Anhui Army (1862)
Other Rebellions
• The Nian Rebellion (捻軍起義, 18531868)
- ecological disasters, N. central China
- leader: Zhang Lexin (張樂行)
• Panthay Rebellion (1856-1873)
- Yunan; leader: Du Wenxiu (杜文秀)
- Kingdom of Panthay (平南國)
• Northwest Muslim Rebellion (陝甘回民
起義, 1862-1873)
- Shaanxi-Gansu area
Li Hongzhang
李鴻章
Zuo Zongtang
左宗棠
Self-Strengthening
Movement (1861-95)
• First Phase (1861-1884)
- conservative culturalists vs. selfstrengtheners
- Prince Gong, Zeng Guofan, Li
Hongzhang, and Zuo Zongtang
• Second Phase (1885-1895)
- more self-strengthening
- undercut by the lack of funds
• Empress Dowager Cixi
- China’s de factor ruler 1861-1908
Prince Gong
(1833-1898)
Fuzhou Shipyard
Empress
Dowager Cixi
(1835-1908)
Guangxu Emperor
(1871-1908)