Editing Qing dynasty (section)

==Government==
{{Main|Government of the Qing dynasty}}
{{see also|List of diplomatic missions of the Qing dynasty}}
[[File:Qing Dynasty Mandarin.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|A Qing dynasty mandarin]]
The early Qing emperors adopted the bureaucratic structures and institutions from the Ming, but split rule between Han and Manchus, with some positions also given to [[Mongols]].{{sfnp|Spence|2012|p=39}} Like previous dynasties, the Qing recruited officials via the [[imperial examination system]], until the system was abolished in 1905. The Qing divided the positions into civil and military positions, each having nine grades or ranks, each subdivided into a and b categories. Civil appointments ranged from an attendant to the emperor or a Grand Secretary in the Forbidden City (highest) to being a prefectural tax collector, deputy jail warden, deputy police commissioner, or tax examiner. Military appointments ranged from being a field marshal or chamberlain of the imperial bodyguard to a third class sergeant, corporal or a first or second class private.{{sfnp|Jackson|Hugus|1999|pp=134–135}}

While the Qing dynasty tried to maintain the traditional [[tributary system of China]], by the 19th century Qing China had become part of a European-style community of [[sovereign state]]s{{sfnp|Rowe|2009|pp=211}} and established official [[diplomatic relations]] with [[Dates of establishment of diplomatic relations with the Qing dynasty|more than twenty countries around the world]] before its downfall, and since the 1870s it established [[legation]]s and [[consulate]]s.

===Central government agencies===
The formal structure of the Qing government centred on the Emperor as the absolute ruler, who presided over six Boards (Ministries{{efn|{{zh|c=六部|p=lìubù|links=no}}}}), each headed by two presidents{{efn|{{zhi|first=t|t=尚書|s=尚书|p=shàngshū}}; {{Lang-mnc|m={{ManchuSibeUnicode|lang=mnc|ᠠᠯᡳᡥᠠ<br />ᠠᠮᠪᠠᠨ}} |v=aliha amban|a=aliha amban}}}} and assisted by four vice presidents.{{efn|{{zhi|p=shìláng|c=侍郎}}; {{Lang-mnc|m={{ManchuSibeUnicode|lang=mnc|ᠠᠰᡥᠠᠨ ᡳ<br />ᠠᠮᠪᠠᠨ}} |v=ashan i amban|a=ashan-i amban}}}} In contrast to the Ming system, however, Qing ethnic policy dictated that appointments were split between Manchu noblemen and Han officials who had passed the highest levels of the [[Imperial examination|state examinations]]. The [[Grand Secretariat]],{{efn|{{zhi|first=t|p=nèigé|t=內閣|s=内阁}}; {{Lang-mnc|m={{ManchuSibeUnicode|lang=mnc|ᡩᠣᡵᡤᡳ<br />ᠶᠠᠮᡠᠨ}} |v=dorgi yamun|a=dorgi yamun}}}} which had been an important policy-making body under the Ming, lost its importance during the Qing and evolved into an imperial [[Chancery (medieval office)|chancery]]. The institutions which had been inherited from the Ming formed the core of the Qing "[[Outer Court]]", which handled routine matters and was located in the southern part of the [[Forbidden City]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zhu |first=Jianfei |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zk8IeVWD210C&dq=%22qing%22+%22outer+court%22&pg=PA133 |title=Chinese Spatial Strategies: Imperial Beijing, 1420–1911 |year=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-36620-0 |page=133}}</ref>
[[File:The emperor of China from 'The Universal Traveller'.jpg|thumb|upright|''The emperor of China from The Universal Traveller'']]

In order not to let the routine administration take over the running of the empire, the Qing emperors made sure that all important matters were decided in the "[[Inner Court]]", which was dominated by the imperial family and Manchu nobility and which was located in the northern part of the Forbidden City. The core institution of the inner court was the [[Grand Council (Qing dynasty)|Grand Council]].{{efn|{{zhi|first=t|p=jūnjī chù|t=軍機處|s=军机处}}; {{Lang-mnc|m={{ManchuSibeUnicode|lang=mnc|ᠴᠣᡠ᠋ᡥᠠᡳ<br />ᠨᠠᠰᡥᡡᠨ ᡳ<br />ᠪᠠ}} |v=coohai nashūn i ba|a=qouhai nashvn-i ba}}}} It emerged in the 1720s under the reign of the [[Yongzheng Emperor]] as a body charged with handling Qing military campaigns against the Mongols, but soon took over other military and administrative duties, centralising authority under the crown.{{sfnp|Bartlett|1991}} The Grand Councillors{{efn|{{zh|first=t|p=jūnjī dàchén|t=軍機大臣|s=军机大臣|links=no}}}} served as a sort of [[privy council]] to the emperor.
[[File:Qing Dynasty-2000 wen-1859.jpg|thumb|upright|2000–[[Chinese cash (currency)|cash]] [[Great Qing Treasure Note]] banknote from 1859]]

From the early Qing, the central government was characterised by a system of dual appointments by which each position in the central government had a Manchu and a Han Chinese assigned to it. The Han Chinese appointee was required to do the substantive work and the Manchu to ensure Han loyalty to Qing rule.<ref>{{Cite news |title=The Rise of the Manchus |url=https://www-chaos.umd.edu/history/imperial3.html#regain |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081218120420/http://www-chaos.umd.edu/history/imperial3.html#regain |archive-date=18 December 2008 |access-date=2008-10-19 |publisher=University of Maryland}}</ref> While the Qing government was established as an [[absolute monarchy]] like previous dynasties in China, by the early 20th century however the Qing court began to move towards a [[constitutional monarchy]],<ref>{{Cite book |first=Albert H. Y. |last=Chen |title=The Changing Legal Orders in Hong Kong and Mainland China |publisher=City University of Hong Kong Press |year=2021 |isbn=9789629374501 |page=372}}</ref> with government bodies like the [[Advisory Council (Qing dynasty)|Advisory Council]] established and a [[1909 Chinese parliamentary election|parliamentary election]] to [[Preparative Constitutionalism|prepare for a constitutional government]].<ref>{{Cite book |first=David |last=Atwill |title=Sources in Chinese History: Diverse Perspectives from 1644 to the Present |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2021 |isbn=9780429560347 |page=272}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Wang |first=Jianlang |author-mask=Wang Jianlang (王建朗) |script-title=zh:两岸新编中国近代史．晚清卷 |publisher=Shehui kexuewen xianchubanshe |year=2016 |page=530 |language=zh}}</ref>

There was also another government institution called [[Imperial Household Department]] which was unique to the Qing dynasty. It was established before the fall of the Ming, but it became mature only after 1661, following the death of the [[Shunzhi Emperor]] and the accession of his son, the [[Kangxi Emperor]].{{sfnp|Rawski|1998|p=179}} The department's original purpose was to manage the internal affairs of the imperial family and the activities of the [[Forbidden City#Inner Court or the Northern Section|inner palace]] (in which tasks it largely replaced [[Chinese eunuch|eunuchs]]), but it also played an important role in Qing relations with [[History of Tibet#Khoshuts, Zunghars, and Manchus|Tibet]] and [[Mongolia during Qing rule|Mongolia]], engaged in trading activities (jade, [[ginseng]], salt, furs, etc.), managed textile factories in the [[Jiangnan]] region, and even published books.{{sfnp|Rawski|1998|pp=179–180}} [[Salt in Chinese History#Prosperity, culture, corruption, reform in the Qing dynasty|Relations with the Salt Superintendents and salt merchants]], such as those at Yangzhou, were particularly lucrative, especially since they were direct, and did not go through absorptive layers of bureaucracy. The department was manned by ''[[Booi Aha|booi]]'',{{efn|{{zh|p=bāoyī|c=包衣|links=no}}; {{Lang-mnc|m={{ManchuSibeUnicode|lang=mnc|ᠪᠣᡠ᠋ᡳ}} |v=booi|a=boui}}}} or "bondservants", from the Upper Three [[Eight Banners|Banners]].{{sfnp|Torbert|1977|p=27}} By the 19th century, it managed the activities of at least 56 subagencies.{{sfnp|Rawski|1998|p=179}}{{sfnp|Torbert|1977|p=28}}

=== Military ===
{{main|Military of the Qing dynasty}}
[[File:Great Rear Attack by Our Second Army at Weihaiwei.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.25|Japanese troops defeat Qing forces in Korea 1895.]]

The Qing dynasty was established by conquest and maintained by armed force. The founding emperors personally organised and led the armies, and the continued cultural and political legitimacy of the dynasty depended on the ability to defend the country from invasion and expand its territory. Therefore, military institutions, leadership, and finance were fundamental to the dynasty's initial success and ultimate decay. The early military system centred on the [[Eight Banners]], a hybrid institution that also played social, economic, and political roles.{{sfn|Elliott|2001|p=40}} The Banner system was developed on an informal basis as early as 1601, and formally established in 1615 by [[Jurchen people|Jurchen]] leader [[Nurhaci]] (1559–1626), the retrospectively recognised founder of the Qing. His son [[Hong Taiji]] (1592–1643), who renamed the Jurchens "[[Manchu people|Manchus]]," created eight Mongol banners to mirror the Manchu ones and eight "Han-martial" ({{Zh|c=|s=|t={{linktext|??}}|p=Hànjun|labels=no}}) banners manned by Chinese who surrendered to the Qing before the full-fledged [[Qing conquest of Ming|conquest of China proper]] began in 1644. After 1644, the Ming Chinese troops that surrendered to the Qing were integrated into the [[Green Standard Army]], a corps that eventually outnumbered the Banners by three to one.

The use of gunpowder during the [[High Qing]] can compete with the three [[gunpowder empires]] in western Asia.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8FVsWq31MtMC&pg=PA95#v=onepage&q&f=false Millward 2007], p. 95.</ref> Manchu imperial princes led the Banners in defeating the Ming armies, but after lasting peace was established starting in 1683, both the Banners and the Green Standard Armies started to lose their efficiency. Garrisoned in cities, soldiers had few occasions to drill. The Qing nonetheless used superior armament and logistics to expand deeply into Central Asia, defeat the [[Dzungar people|Dzungar Mongols]] in 1759, and complete their conquest of [[Xinjiang]]. Despite the dynasty's pride in the [[Ten Great Campaigns]] of the Qianlong Emperor (r. 1735–1796), the Qing armies became largely ineffective by the end of the 18th century. It took almost ten years and huge financial waste to defeat the badly equipped [[White Lotus Rebellion]] (1795–1804), partly by legitimizing militias led by local Han Chinese elites. The [[Taiping Rebellion]] (1850–1864), a large-scale uprising that started in southern China, marched within miles of Beijing in 1853. The Qing court was forced to let its Han Chinese [[Zongdu|governors-general]], first led by [[Zeng Guofan]], raise regional armies. This new type of army and leadership defeated the rebels but signaled the end of Manchu dominance of the military establishment.[[File:Qing new army 1905.jpg|thumb|The [[New Army]]]]

The military technology of the European [[Industrial Revolution]] made China's armament and military rapidly obsolete. In 1860 British and French forces in the [[Second Opium War]] captured Beijing and sacked the [[Old Summer Palace|Summer Palace]]. The shaken court attempted to modernise its military and industrial institutions by buying European technology. This [[Self-Strengthening Movement]] established [[shipyard]]s (notably the [[Jiangnan Shipyard#Kiangnan Arsenal|Jiangnan Arsenal]] and the [[Foochow Arsenal]]) and bought modern guns and battleships in Europe. The Qing navy became the largest in East Asia. But organisation and logistics were inadequate, officer training was deficient, and corruption widespread. The [[Beiyang Fleet]] was virtually destroyed and the modernised ground forces defeated in the 1895 [[First Sino-Japanese War]]. The Qing created a [[New Army]], but could not prevent the [[Eight Nation Alliance]] from invading China to put down the [[Boxer Rebellion|Boxer Uprising]] in 1900. The [[Wuchang Uprising|revolt]] of a New Army corps in 1911 led to the [[Xinhai Revolution|fall of the dynasty]].

===Administrative divisions===
[[File:China Proper Map William Mackenzie c1866.png|thumb|The Eighteen Provinces of [[China proper]] in 1875]]
[[File:Empire Chinois, Japon (1832).jpg|thumb|Qing China in 1832]]
{{main|Administrative divisions of the Qing dynasty}}
{{further|Administration of territory in dynastic China#Qing dynasty (1644–1912)}}
[[File:Qing Dynasty 1820.png|thumb|upright=1.3|Qing territory {{circa|1820}}, with provinces in yellow, military governorates and protectorates in light yellow, tributary states in orange]]
The Qing reached its largest extent during the 18th century, when it ruled China proper (eighteen provinces) as well as the areas of present-day [[Northeast China]], [[Inner Mongolia]], [[Outer Mongolia]], [[Xinjiang]] and [[Tibet]], at approximately {{cvt|13000000|sqkm}} in size. There were originally 18 provinces, all in China proper, but this number was later increased to 22, with Manchuria and Xinjiang being divided or turned into provinces. [[Taiwan]], originally part of [[Fujian]], became a province of its own in the 19th century,<ref>Davidson, James W. (1903). ''The Island of Formosa, Past and Present : history, people, resources, and commercial prospects : tea, camphor, sugar, gold, coal, sulphur, economical plants, and other productions''. London and New York: Macmillan. {{OL|6931635M}}. pp. 247, 620.</ref> but was ceded to Japan following the [[First Sino-Japanese War]] in 1895.<ref>"Treaty of Peace between China and Japan (Treaty of Shimonoseki)". Ch'ing Dynasty Treaties and Agreements Preserved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan). National Palace Museum. 17 April 1895. 中國將管理下開地方之權並將該地方所有堡壘軍器工廠及一切屬公物件永遠讓於日本...台湾全岛及所有附属各岛屿...澎湖列岛 [China shall yield to Japan in perpetuity the rights to administer the following regions as well as all fortresses, munition factories, and public properties thereof ... the entire island of Taiwan and all appertaining islands ... Penghu archipelago]</ref>

===Territorial administration===
{{More citations needed section|date=March 2022}}
The Qing organisation of [[Province (China)|provinces]] was based on the fifteen administrative units set up by the Ming dynasty, later made into eighteen provinces by splitting for example, [[Huguang]] into Hubei and Hunan provinces. The provincial bureaucracy continued the Yuan and Ming practice of three parallel lines, civil, military, and [[censorate]], or surveillance. Each province was administered by a [[Provincial governor of Imperial China|governor]] and a [[provincial military commander]]. Below the province were [[Prefecture (China)|prefectures]] operating under a prefect, followed by [[Zhou (country subdivision)|subprefectures]] under a subprefect. The lowest unit was the [[Counties of the People's Republic of China#History|county]], overseen by a [[county magistrate]]. The eighteen provinces are also known as "China proper". The position of [[Viceroy (China)|viceroy]] was the highest rank in the provincial administration. There were eight regional viceroys in China proper, each usually took charge of two or three provinces. The [[Viceroy of Zhili]], who was responsible for the area surrounding Beijing, is usually considered as the most honourable and powerful viceroy among the eight.

By the mid-18th century, the Qing had successfully put outer regions under its control. [[Amban|Imperial commissioners]] and garrisons were sent to Mongolia and Tibet to oversee their affairs. These territories were also under supervision of a central government institution called [[Lifan Yuan]]. [[Qinghai]] was also put under direct control of the Qing court. Xinjiang, also known as Chinese Turkestan, was subdivided into the regions north and south of the [[Tian Shan]] mountains, also known today as [[Dzungaria]] and [[Tarim Basin]] respectively, but the post of Ili General was established in 1762 to exercise unified military and administrative jurisdiction over both regions. Dzungaria was fully opened to Han migration by the Qianlong Emperor from the beginning. Han migrants were at first forbidden from permanently settling in the Tarim Basin but were the ban was lifted after the invasion by [[Jahangir Khoja]] in the 1820s. Likewise, [[Manchuria]] was also governed by military generals until its division into provinces, though some areas of Xinjiang and Northeast China were lost to the [[Russian Empire]] in the mid-19th century. Manchuria was originally separated from China proper by the Inner [[Willow Palisade]], a ditch and embankment planted with willows intended to restrict the movement of the Han Chinese, as the area was off-limits to civilian Han Chinese until the government started colonising the area, especially since the 1860s.

With respect to these outer regions, the Qing maintained imperial control, with the emperor acting as Mongol khan, patron of [[Tibetan Buddhism]] and protector of Muslims. However, Qing policy changed with the establishment of Xinjiang province in 1884. During the [[Great Game]], taking advantage of the [[Dungan Revolt (1862–1877)|Dungan revolt]] in northwest China, [[Yakub Beg of Yettishar|Yakub Beg]] invaded Xinjiang from Central Asia with support from the British Empire, and made himself the ruler of the kingdom of [[Kashgar]]ia. The Qing court sent forces to defeat Yaqub Beg and Xinjiang was reconquered, and then the political system of China proper was formally applied onto Xinjiang. The [[Kumul Khanate]], which was incorporated into the Qing dynasty as a vassal after helping Qing defeat the Zunghars in 1757, maintained its status after Xinjiang turned into a province through the end of the dynasty in the [[Xinhai Revolution]] up until 1930.{{sfnp|Millward|2007|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=8FVsWq31MtMC&pg=PA190 190]}} In the early 20th century, Britain sent [[British Expedition to Tibet|an expedition force]] to [[Tibet]] and forced Tibetans to sign a treaty. The Qing court responded by asserting Chinese sovereignty over Tibet,<ref>{{Cite news |date=19 January 1906 |title=<untitled> |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1906/01/19/101830147.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200326005354/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1906/01/19/101830147.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2020 |access-date=13 June 2018 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> resulting in the 1906 Anglo-Chinese Convention signed between Britain and China. The British agreed not to annex Tibetan territory or to interfere in the administration of Tibet, while China engaged not to permit any other foreign state to interfere with the territory or internal administration of Tibet.<ref>{{cite wikisource |title=Convention Between Great Britain and China Respecting Tibet |year=1906}}</ref> The Qing government also turned Manchuria into three provinces in the early 20th century, officially known as the "[[Northeast China|Three Northeast Provinces]]", and established the post of [[Viceroy of the Three Northeast Provinces]] to oversee these provinces.