William T. Rowe

A sound introduction to the much-maligned Qing dynasty.

A popular perception, at least from some mainlanders, is that the Qing were an inherently corrupt and decrepit set of foreign invaders, doomed to fail immediately.

Doctor Rowe instead notes that there may have been no such unified group of 'Manchus' in the 1600s, instead various groups in the northeast which were somewhat sinicized, and some more nomadic than others. Such is the amorphous nature of 'race'. Nevertheless, the idea of a unified 'Manchu' people may have been created as a means for the ruling dynasty to establish itself.

The chief difficulty in Chinese history, in Dr. Rowe's view, is governance. That is, how can a central dynasty rule hundreds of millions of people and have their decisions make genuine impact in the local level? In some aspects, they succeeded. This included land-based taxation, as well as reform of the examination system for the scholar-bureaucracy.

The Qing were also not the total victims of imperialism which they were in the 19th century. In the earlier stages of the dynasty, they were able to expand into Xinjiang and Tibet(the former at great expense) and expand (again with difficulty) into Taiwan.

There is also time spent of Qing dynasty culture, art, science, home life, economics, and so forth. Although the Tang, song, and Ming are especially renowned in art, the early Qing were no slouches. The Chinese economy was still the single largest in the world until the industrial revolution.

Why, then, did the Qing fall? Rowe heavily cites Pomeranz in stating that the Qing economy, as stable as it was earlier, was regionalist, small-handicraft based, and had several structures in place which made industrial-capitalist reform especially difficult. The economic system was at 'maximum efficiency', where the land had the most value squeezed out of it. (E.g. Agricultural terracing). Hence the difficulties of market reform.

Then there is Opium and imperialism which is a mess. But again, the fact that they fell in the 1900s rather than 1860 is a sign of their tenacity.

Near the end of the book, there is a telling anecdote from a working woman who only knew the dynasty fell because the money now said 'Republic' on it. The 'long Qing dynasty' may have ended later than 1911, and it is still too early to tell what effects it has had on history. This introduction is a fine demonstration of the complex situation and that the jury is out.… (más)