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China lesson notes
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Notes taken from the Holder Education: China textbook
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Chapter 1: The Government and rules ofChina 1839-1989
China 1839-60
Nature of Manchu rule in 1839
The nature of Manchu rule
- What were the distinctive characteristics of Manchu China?
- 15 imperial dynasties ruled from 2200 BC until the early 20th century
- 1839 emperor was from the Manchu house, the last dynasty to rule before the revolution in
1911
The Manchu (Quing) dynasty 1644-1911
- Came from Manchuria, a large north-eastern state that was originally outside China, so their
rule was the imposition of foreign authority
- Manch came to absorb so many aspects of Chinese culture, but the Chinese never lost their
sense of being subject to alien rule
- Explains why Chinese nationalism (Strongly committed belief for China to re-establish its
independence and sovereignty) began to develop in the form of anti-Manchu agitation
An example was the people cutting off their traditional Manchu hairstyle of pigtails which
had been imposed on them
1. Imperial rule
How powerful was the emperor?
- Was entitled to complete obedience from his subjects and government officials
- Title was hereditary, claimed absolute authority
a) Confucianism
Who was Confucious and what were his beliefs?
- Not a religious thinker, Chinese scholar, whose ideas influenced China for thousands of years
and continue to shape Chinese thinking today
- Acceptance of the status quo
- Obedience of children to their parents
- Obedience of wives to their husbands
- Obedience of people to the emperor and his officials
Why did the emperor like Confucious’ ideas?
- Absolute right to the emperor to rule was originally established by force of arms
o Gave justification for holding power of which didn’t depend on military might
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, b) The Imperial court
Where was this and who were the key people?
- Emperor
- Forbidden City, Beijing
- Significant number of Eunuchs, to watch over the Concubines
c) The Mandarins
Who were these scholars?
- Scholars trained in the subtleties of Confucian learning
- Went through series of rigid examinations, once passed joined exclusive class of officials who
ran China under the authority of the emperor
- Mandate of heaven – Emperor having power, being good and corrupt
2) The Manchu view of China’s place in the world?
What was the Chinese belief of being Sino-centric?
What happened with Lord McCartney when he visited the emperor?
- Sino-centric – inward looking, preoccupied with China. ‘Sino’ is a prefix meaning Chinese.
Nature of Chinese thinking
- Refused to kowtow in traditional way – caused acute diplomatic embarrassment
Talks that followed – not a success, evident from letter handed to McCartney on his
departure
- McCartney allowed to enter the Forbidden City
Society under the Manchus
- Confucianism – Integral to Chinese culture
- Key precepts of placing the good of society before the rights of the individual
Status of women
- Imperial China – Patriarchal system. Confucious taught for harmonious society to follow a
set of rules, e.g., became traditional for women to be obedient towards their husbands
o Became traditional for women to be discriminated against in China
- Most women treated as subordinates
- Denied formal education – since their essential role was considered as domestic, raising
children, etc.
Forced marriage
- Arranged marriage were customary in Imperial China
o Love and compatibility were not a consideration – arrangement purely economic
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,Foot-binding
- Extreme example of the ill treatment that women were subject to – more common was the
practice of foot-binding
- Involvement of tight bandaging of the feet to prevent their growth
o To hobble the women, so as to restrict their movements and to make their more
attractive to potential husbands
o Chinese men regarded small feet as highly erotic
The imperial economy
- 1839, number of aspects of China’s economy that merit attention
Population
- Composed of 4 main people;
▪ Han 🡨 95% of the population
▪ Manchu
▪ Mongol
▪ Tibetan
- Han predominance that historically had given China its sense of size of being one nation,
despite its great size and many linguistic, regional, and climatic variations
Agrarian problems
- Internal economy – overwhelming agricultural
o Great mass of people being peasants who lived in villages and rented land on which
they worked
- Feudalism formally abolished in the 18 th century, relationship between landowner and
peasant were one of dependence
Trade
- Rulers claimed they had no need of trade with outside countries – foreign commerce
increased – lead to growth in size and importance of the coastal and river ports
- Exports principally furs, Tobacco, porcelain, silk, and tea
Porcelain, silk and tea being especially notable
- Huge demand for white tea that developed in Britain in later 18th century meant that within
a generation – became China’s most profitable export
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, The Opium Wars
● First open conflict broke out in 1839
▪ Manchu Govt. rejected British demands that China increase its purchases of
opium from British India
Long term causes
● By 1830’s, Britain’s expansion as a major European free trade power
▪ Led to exploration of China, both as market and source of materials
▪ Made war highly likely – Britain’s economic ways, alien to Chinese
● East India Company – control of opium trade in India and Burma and issued licences to
merchants
▪ Expanded rapidly by 1830’s
▪ 1776 – exported 1000 chests of opium to China
1800 – figure had risen to 4500 chests
By 1838 – figure stood at 40,000 chests
▪ One chest contained an average of 122 pounds of opium (60kg)
● Figures did not indicate growth in genuine Chinese demand. Was more a matter of the
licensed traders pressuring Chinese importers to take more
● Nor were the traders above using illegal means and ignored attempts of Chinese authorities
to restrict the imports, did deals with corrupt officials and smugglers to ensure that intake of
opium was maintained
● Money Britain received from opium trade – vital source of income – paid for increasing
imports of tea from China
Any serious disruption would affect Britain’s balance of payments
● Imperial China's lack of modernity – made it suspicious of European expansion. Unready
economically and culturally to adapt to Britain’s demanding style
● Britain’s awareness of China's relative military weakness, made it ready to push thing to the
point of conflict since it had every expectation of winning any war that might follow
● Stronger nations or powers tend to dominate weaker ones and force them to conform to
their territorial or economic demands
Short term causes
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