The Ming and Qing Dynasties
3
Ming Foreign Policy
Ming Foreign Policy
During the early period the Ming Dynasty [late 1300 early 1400] the chinese were the most skilled sailors in the world. The built large sturdy ships that Europeans called junks. Some junks were longer than 400 ft long.
Other voyages of trade and discovery took place almost 100 years before Vasco da Gama sailed from Portugal to India by going around the tip of Africa.
Attitdes toward trade
After defeating the Mongols in 1368 the Ming emperors tried to rid China of all Mongols influences.The Mongols wanted the China to be as great as in the Han, Tang, and Sung dynasties. Ming emperors restored Confucianism as the official philosophy of the government. Confucian philosophy divided society into four classes.
Ming Foreign Policy
After the Ming Dynasty ended emperors had little interest in sea-power or foreign trade.
They stopped financing naval expeditions.
They also outlawed over seas trade.
Decline of the Qing Dynasty
In 1796 discontent over increased taxes and growing government inefficiency led to a peasant rebellion. Members of a Buddhist cult called the White Lotus Society led the revolt. which was called the White Lotus Rebellion. After a difficult struggle the government restored order i n the early 1800s. Though it survived it was seriously weakened. Rebellions occurred frequently after about 1850. The Qing dynasty was clearly in decline.
Founding the Qing Dynasty
Attitudes toward trade
In the early 1600s a new serious threat to the Ming Dynasty came. In Manchuria to the northeast of China a chieftain named Nurhachi combined many tribes into a single people the Manchu. Nurhachi's son captured eastern Mongolia and Korea. He then declared the start of a new dynasty, the Qing.
The Qing dynasty ruled China from 1644 to 1912. In 1644 the Manchu captured Beijing with help of a Chinese general. The Qing emperors were not Chinese but they adopted Chinese culture and ruled the country with traditional Chinese techniques.
The four classes
- Scholar-gentry
- Farmers
- Artisans
- Merchants
The Ming dynasty wanted Chan to be self sufficient. They refused to rely foreign trade as a source of government revenue.In the minds of the emperors foreign trade didn't benefit to China to make it a worthwhile endeavor.This view was different from the view of European monarchs who were strongly influenced by the ideas of mercantilism.
Ming Foreign Policy
Decline of the Qing Dynasty
In 1405 the Ming empire financed a fleet that sailed around Southeastern Asia to India
Another Chinese fleet sailed across the Indian ocean.
This fleet reached the Southern coast of the Arabian peninsula in 1415.
Under Qing rule China's population grew rapidly. Chinese farmers planted more crops making making it possible to feed more people. From about 1750 to the mid-1800s, China's population grew to more than 400 million people. Qing China's rapidly growing population placed increasing pressure on the government. Qing found it to be increasingly difficult to meet the challenges posed by change and growth. Corruption at court and government inefficiency became more widespread. Growing numbers of bureaucrats demanded bribes in return for government services. The farmers also found it difficult to hold their small farms and to support themselves and their families. Disastrous floods and famine in various parts of China made the substitution worse,as did growing pressure by the Western powers to gain economic control in China.
Qing Dynasty
The northern frontier
Qing emperors tried to keep the Manchu people a minority in the empire, separate and distinct from the far more numerous Chinese. All Manchu people had to study the Manchu language and cultural traditions. Qing emperors could only marry Manchu women. Further emigration of Chinese to Manchuria was banned. All Chinese men had to wear their hair in queue a style that was common among the Manchu.
Popular culture and society
When Ming emperors first came to power Nanjing, in central China, was their capital.
In 1421 the imperial capital was relocated to Beijing. Ming emperors tried to prevent nomadic tribes in the north from uniting into a powerful fighting force.
Tribes that gave in to the Ming sent tribute to Beijing. In return the Ming gave nomadic leaders honor,gifts, and titles.
Defending the frontier and the overseas expeditions were a great deal of money. The Ming didn't have enough money to revenue both. They chose to use the money to ddefend the frontier over trade and sea travel.
As early as 1300s city people reed novels and plays in the common everyday language. During the Ming and Qing dynasties these popular novels and plays increased in number. Old tales about bandits and corrupt officials, once recited by street storytellers, now appeared in novels by professional authors. The writings of this period realistically portrayed Chinese society and family life.
Scholarship also grew under both Ming and Qing. Scholars wrote detailed histories of earlier dynasties and essays on Confucian ethics. They studied ancient writings, much like the Renaissance humanists in Europe had.
Popular culture and society
Economy
Qing scholars studied philology the history of literature and language. In the 1700s Chinese scholars began to organize a manuscript library of rare works from the past. China's society was based on the family. The family, like the state, reflected the Confucian belief that each person had a role in life. The male head of the family directed the activities of family members for the good of the family as a whole.
The Northern Frontier
As they had during the Sung dynasty Chinese cities continued to grow. Though the cities grew most of China's people lived in the countryside. Which increased the amount of land used for farming. The Chinese and Qing rulers still looked down on merchants. Though they needed merchants to supply city dwellers clothing and food and other essential items. Chinese sent goods such as tea and silk by caravan to central Asia and Russia. The increase of trade within China's borders was contributed by the peace and urban growth. In addition to rice, wheat, and tea, the rural Chinese planted new crops such as peanuts, sweet potatoes, and tobaccowhich was introduced by the Americans.
The Ming emperors also wanted to make sure that no Central Asian people ever conquered China again. Efforts was focused on the long northern frontier. To protect this frontier the Ming strengthened the Great Wall of China. They encouraged soldiers to move with their families into the frontier zone by offering free land. Peasants and city dwellers were also encouraged to move there.
The Ming and Qing Dynasties Chapter17 Section 1
Quiz
1. What were large sturdy ships called?
2. Who sailed from Portugal to India by going around the tip of Africa?
3. What was one of the four classes of society?
4.When was the imperial capital relocated to Beijing?
5. Ming emperors could only marry what kind of women?
6. What two people looked down on merchants?
7.What was the Buddhist cult that led a revolt?