The Qing Dynasty, also known as the Ching Dynasty in English, was the last imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912. It was established by the Manchu people, who overthrew the Ming Dynasty in a series of conflicts culminating in the fall of Beijing.
The Qing Dynasty was founded by Nurhaci, a Manchu leader who unified various Jurchen tribes into the Later Jin Dynasty in 1616. His son, Hong Taiji, renamed the dynasty Qing in 1644 after the conquest of Beijing. The Qing rulers adopted many Han Chinese institutions and maintained the Confucian bureaucracy to govern their vast empire.
Under the reign of emperors like Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong, the Qing Dynasty expanded significantly. The empire reached its zenith during the Qianlong Emperor's rule, encompassing not only modern-day China but also parts of Central Asia, Mongolia, Tibet, and Xinjiang. These expansions were often facilitated through military campaigns, strategic marriages, and treaties like the Treaty of Nerchinsk with Russia.
The Qing Dynasty saw significant cultural flourishing, particularly in the arts, literature, and scholarship. The Kangxi Dictionary was compiled, and the Complete Library in Four Sections was an extensive literary project. Economically, the dynasty experienced growth due to agricultural advancements, the expansion of trade, and the introduction of New World crops like maize and sweet potatoes, which helped feed the growing population.
The decline of the Qing Dynasty began in the late 18th century, exacerbated by internal corruption, natural disasters, and foreign pressures:
The Qing Dynasty was overthrown during the Xinhai Revolution of 1911-1912. The revolution was led by Sun Yat-sen and the Kuomintang (KMT). The last Qing emperor, Puyi, abdicated on February 12, 1912, marking the end of over two thousand years of imperial rule in China and the beginning of the Republic of China.
The legacy of the Qing Dynasty is mixed. While it expanded China's borders to their greatest extent and saw cultural and economic peaks, it also left China weakened, facing internal strife and foreign incursions. The dynasty's fall set the stage for the tumultuous events of 20th-century China, including warlordism, Japanese invasion, and the eventual rise of Communist China.