Warfare in Qing China

by

Ulrich Theobald

• LAST MODIFIED: 20 August 2024
• DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199791279-0258

Introduction

The topic of warfare in Qing China (1644–1912) can be approached from two different angles, namely event history, and the military system in a wider sense. The great wars of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries have been analyzed in numerous studies with regard to their origins, course, and consequences. In addition, there is research on rebellions and uprisings which, although they provoked military action, these events were not usually perceived as “war,” as such. In addition, there were several conflicts with foreign powers that only led to a few short battles, but they must be placed in the wider context of imperialism. In addition to the history of events, the organizational apparatus of the military system with the transition from a traditional military to modern armies has also been studied for some time. In addition, the modernization of armaments, logistics, and war financing as well as the field of military culture have also been examined.

Overviews

A reliable, English-language book providing an overview of the wars of the whole Qing period has not been published so far. Basic information can, however, be found in several books, but even then, only part of the whole period is covered, be it the early and high Qing era, as in Lococo 2002, or the “modern” period from the Opium War onward, like Elleman 2001. This is indeed a veritable gap in the literature on Qing-period warfare, which is perhaps due to a lack of concrete studies of the numerous military campaigns or from the many “software” aspects of military culture and the military system. Chinese literature on the topic shows that through the decades ideology has played a role in the interpretation of the aim of military campaigns. This can be clearly seen in the historiography that focuses on revolution and anti-imperialism (in Zhang, et al. 1983 and Junshi Kexueyuan Zhongguo jindai zhanzheng shi bianxiezu 1984), or the protection of suzerainty over territory (in Li and Yang 2020). Zhongguo lidai zhanzheng shi bianzuan weiyuanhui 1976 is a comprehensive and neutral but in some places incorrect and superficial account.

• Elleman, Bruce A. Modern Chinese Warfare, 1795–1989. London and New York: Routledge, 2001.

  Parts 1 and 2 give a brief overview of the most important wars of the late Qing period, including the problem of secret societies. It treats the two Opium Wars, the Taiping Rebellion, the Nian, Dungan and Muslim rebellions, the Ili Crisis, the Sino-French War, the Sino-Japanese War, the Boxer Rebellion, and the Revolution of 1911.

• Junshi Kexueyuan Zhongguo jindai zhanzheng shi bianxiezu 军事科学院《中国近代战争史》编写组, ed. Zhongguo jindai zhanzheng shi (中国近代战争史). Beijing: Junshi kexue chubanshe, 1984.

  (History of wars in modern China.) Traditional Marxist account of the origins and outcomes of the wars Qing China had to fight against the imperialist powers, and revolutionary groups against the Qing dynasty. Special focus on revolutionary movements like the Taiping, Nian, the Heaven-and-Earth Society (Tiandihui), and rebellions in Southwest and Northwest China.

• Li Zhiting 李治亭, and Yang Dongliang 杨东梁, eds. Qingdai zhanzheng quanshi (清代战争全史). 9 vols. Guangzhou, China: Zhongshan daxue chubanshe, 2020.

  (A complete history of Qing-period wars.) Overview of Qing-period war in seven volumes, from the “war of unification” by the Manchus and the generations-long conquest of the West (including the “safeguarding” of Xinjiang), the southwestern borderlands, and Taiwan (to which a whole volume is dedicated) to the fight against the imperialists, the renewed safeguarding of the Northwest in the nineteenth century, and the 1911 Revolution.

• Lococo, Paul, Jr. “The Qing Empire.” In A Military History of China. Edited by David A. Graff and Robin Higham, 115–134. Boulder, CO: Westview, 2002.

  Very brief overview of Qing wars and military institutions until the end of the eighteenth century.

• Zhang Yushi 张玉田, et al., eds. Zhongguo jundai junshi shi (中国近代军事史) Shenyang, China: Liaoning renmin chubanshe, 1983.

  (History of military affairs in modern China.) Event history of military affairs from the Opium War on until the early Republican period. The book bears a heavy Marxist touch by putting stress on revolutionary tendencies.

• Zhongguo lidai zhanzheng shi bianzuan weiyuanhui 《中國歷代戰爭史》編纂委員會, ed. Zhongguo lidai zhanzheng shi (中國歷代戰爭史). 21 vols. Taibei: Liming wenhua shiye gongsi, 1976.

  (History of wars in China.) A multi-volume book on war through Chinese military history, with vols. 15–18 focusing on the Qing period. Covers all important wars and military campaigns, often not very precise, but with many simple, hand-drawn maps.