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15 July 2020, Volume 0 Issue 4 Previous Issue    Next Issue

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Re-understanding the "Legitimacy" of the Qing Dynasty: Thinking Beyond Sinicization and the Inner Asia Theory YANG Nianqun 2020, 0(4): 1-42.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1659KB) ( )   The orthodox theory of most dynasties in China is based on Confucian concepts such as "inheriting the mandate of heaven" and "transforming people to virtue", and this orthodox theory was mainly inherited and interpreted by the Han nationality. In that respect, the Qing Dynasty was different from its predecessors. The territory of the Qing empire extended to areas inhabited by a variety of nonHan people, especially the vast areas in the northwest and southwest. Clearly, the Confucian orthodox view could not fully accommodate the beliefs and customs of the people in these areas. Thus, how the Qing Dynasty ruled its frontiers remains an important research topic. This article seeks to elucidate a new model of legitimacy formed respectively in the heartland and the frontier of Qing territory. The Qing emperors relied on the Confucian moral education in the heartland but utilized the belief in Tibetan Buddhism in the frontier areas where the inhabitants were mainly minorities. A new system was thus established to adapt to the unique situation in which the concept of legitimacy needed to be amended. In this respect, the meaning of "rule” can be distinguished from that of "governance." "Rule" mainly refers to the utilization and respect of the imperial power in a set of imaginary symbolic metaphors, while "governance" bears more technical meaning supported by a profound ideological background. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Planting Peas in Xinjiang during the Early Qing Dynasty HENG ZongLiang 2020, 0(4): 101-111.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1479KB) ( )   During the Qianlong reign, the Qing government successfully conducted trial plantings of peas and promoted pea planting in the process of unifying Xinjiang. In the early period of Qing rule in Xinjiang, the pea planting areas were along the North Tianshan Route, and included Hami, Bar Kun, Urumci, Ili and Tarbahatai, and along the South Tianshan Route, and included Haraxari, Yerkim, Khotan and other places. The cultivation of peas in Xinjiang played an important role in the Qing dynasty’s control of its northwestern frontier. Pea cultivation supplied the military, saved money, promoted agricultural production, and enriched the residents’ diet. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Attribution Research on a Text of Dubious Authorship: Hui Dong’s Shangshu Zheng zhu ZHAO Sifang 2020, 0(4): 125-136.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1608KB) ( )   Since the mid-Qing dynasty, many scholars have realized that Hui Dong might have compiled three commentaries on the Confucian Canons, namely Zuozhuan Jia Fu zhu, Lunyu Zheng zhu and Shangshu Zheng zhu, for the purpose of intentionally attributing these works to the South Song?scholar?Wang?Yinglin.?This?opinion?has?been generally?accepted?regarding?the?first?two?works.? As for Shangshu Zheng zhu, however, there has been a controversy whether it was directly linked to Hui Dong, since this book has only been noticed by very few modern scholars. Based on the evidence of his intentionally incorrect signatures, this article demonstrates that Shangshu Zheng zhu, which was compiled under the name of Wang Yinglin and collected in Shanghai Library and Notional Library of China, was exactly the same work complied by Hui Dong. The supportive evidence also comes from Hui Dong’s works and Duan Yucai’s commentaries on Hui Dong’s work. Moreover, this article demonstrates that the two versions of the book held in the Shanghai Library and Notional Library of China and another version, which was revised by Li Tiaoyuan and developed into Zhengshi Guwen Shangshu, are all of the same origin. Hui Dong’s Shangshu Zheng zhu was widely circulated among Qing scholars and Li Tiaoyuan made a great contribution to the revision and publication of the book. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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An Analysis of the Protocol for Conferring the Title of Ruler of Bhutan by the Qing Dynasty—— Case Study of the Seventeenth Deb Raja's Title Conferment 扎洛 2020, 0(4): 43-52.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1475KB) ( )   Based on the newly disclosed Manchu and Mongolian materials in the Archives of the Tibet Autonomous Region, this article investigates the protocol of conferring Erdene sde-pa of Bhutan by the Qing Dynasty, taking conferring the seventeenth Deb Raja, Byams-pa dpal, as an example. The whole procedure can be summarized in five parts: Bhutan requested the title conferment, the Tibetan  local Government (bkav-shag) and the Amban reviewed and reported to the Qing court, the court issued the charter, the Tibetan authority sent a special envoy, and the Deb Raja expressed gratitude. The article also discusses the position of Bhutan in the foreign relations structure of the Qing Dynasty, the rank of Deb Raja and the significance of conferring the title on the legitimacy of Deb Raja. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The Struggle over the Power to Control Jiangsu and Zhejiang between the Qing Central Government and the Xiang-Huai Clique in the Xianfeng and Tongzhi Reigns QIU Tao 2020, 0(4): 53-66.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1491KB) ( )   This essay discusses the struggle to control Jiangsu and Zhejiang between the Qing Central Government and the Xiang-Huai Clique during and after the suppression of Taiping Rebellion and Nian Uprising in the Xianfeng and Tongzhi reigns. The author concludes that although the local power clique of Xiang and Huai gained a partial right to exercise control that the central government formerly held, it was not obvious that the authority of the central government was weakened profoundly, at least in the reigns of Xianfeng and Tongzhi. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The Expired Examination System in the Tongzhi-Guangxu Period and the Reconstruction of the General Selection System LIN Haobin 2020, 0(4): 67-70.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1495KB) ( )   In order to deal with the impact on the official selection system that the group recommendation and donation methods of appointment had during the suppression of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in the Tongzhi-Guangxu period, the Qing Dynasty formulated the “expired screening system” which had the dual functions of assessment and reduction. This was an attempt to reconstruct the official selection system together with the division of ranks and vacancies. Afterwards, when the donation system was suspended, the orientation of expired screening system gradually shifted from screening to elimination. There were differences among provinces in the targets of screening, the methods used, and the follow-up measures. The expired screening system evolved over time, and its actual effect was not good. This reflected the differences between the efficacies of the orthodox and irregular methods of recruitment, as well as the differences between the imperial examination based on ability and the recommendation and the donation methods. It was difficult for the Qing Dynasty to reconstruct effective standards and assessment methods equivalent to the imperial examinations.The actual reason lies in the lack of reliable measures to deal with the aftermath of the group recommendation and donation methods, as well as the actual demand for the system of recommendation and donation, which meant that the Qing Dynasty's efforts to reconstruct the selection system were frustrated. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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The Replacement of Small Cash and the Transformation of "Copper Cash Relief" in the Late Qing Dynasty: A Case Study of Jiangbei Famine Relief in 1906 HAN Xiang 2020, 0(4): 79-91.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1499KB) ( )   After the Boxer Uprising, the official small cash casting of the Qing government changed from traditional copper coin (one-cent) to the new one (ten-cent), at the same time the currency circulation mechanism in the famine relief of the late Qing Dynasty also changed greatly. In the famine relief of Northern Jiangsu Province in 1906, the shortage of copper coins became the primary difficulty that hindered the relief, and the Official Regulations for Famine Relief, which followed the idea of "guiding grain by copper coins" and “guiding the people by copper coins” further increased the pressure on the exchange of silver for copper cash and the transportation of cash. The Jiangsu authorities mainly raised the new copper coins by requesting increased casting of copper coins, buying copper and copper coins from other provinces, soliciting private donations, and implementing famine relief by using the copper coins obtained from selling relief grain. These measures basically alleviated the difficulty of supplying copper coins. Taking this famine relief case as an example, it can be seen that the "copper cash relief" in the late Qing Dynasty had an obvious transformation, that the exchange of new copper coins became the core link in the circulation chain of relief funds. Meanwhile, the control of small cash. References | Related Articles | Metrics

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Experimentation of Cotton Cultivation in Jilin in the Qing Dynasty GAO Zhichao 2020, 0(4): 92-100.  Abstract ( )   PDF (1521KB) ( )   In the Qing Dynasty, cotton was second only to grain as a necessity of life, and cotton was cultivated throughout the empire. To solve the problem of the banner people's livelihood, the Qing rulers tried to popularize cotton cultivation in the Jilin area during the Yongzheng and Daoguang reigns, but both efforts failed. The meteorological conditions unsuitable to cotton cultivation in Jilin resulted in high costs, low yields, and poor quality of locally produced cotton. The lack of competitiveness in the national cotton market in the Qing Dynasty resulted in the failure of both trial plantings and promotion of cotton cultivation. References | Related Articles | Metrics