In 2014, with the publication of White Lotus Rebels and South China Pirates: Crisis and Reform in the Qing Empire (2014), Wensheng Wang challenged the perception of the Jiaqing reign (1796-1802) as a "dead middle hiatus" between its past and present by arguing that the emperor successfully carried out policy reforms that readjusted the priorities of governance and enabled the dynasty to . Forty-eight years later, Zeng Guofan, leader of Hunan-based Xiang Army studied the Qing government's methods during the White Lotus Rebellion and he was inspired by them while he was considering ways to suppress the Taiping Rebellion. Since then, this book has become an invaluable source because it has enabled scholars to understand the beliefs of these groups. The group later reemerged in the late 18th century in the form of an inspired Chinese movement. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. Matt, I think religion played an important rule in peasants' rebellion in ancient China. The balance of power had tipped decidedly away from the imperial court and toward the foreign powers. The White Lotus peasant rebellion broke out in 1795 (White Lotus was the name of a secret society that had first fought against the Mongols). It took nine years of warfare and great loss. [citation needed]. The ethnic Manchu rulers of China's Qing dynasty reigned over the Middle Kingdom beginning in 1644 CE, when they defeated the last of the Ming, up until 1912. Due to their brutality, the Qing troops were soon nicknamed the "Red Lotus" Society. It apparently began as a tax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society that forecast the advent of the Buddha, advocated restoration of the native Chinese Ming dynasty, and promised personal salvation to its followers. How did the Rebellion impact Qing society? "Broken Passage to the Summit: Nayanchengs Botched Mission in the White Lotus War." Kublai Khan (1215-1294) was the greatest of the Mongol emperors after Genghis Khan and founder of the Yan dynasty in China., Tibet [6], The Qing commanders sent to repress the rebellion had a difficult time putting down the White Lotus. //]]>. The dynasty had to resort to a strategy of removing all food supplies from the countryside and collecting the peasants into a series of armed stockades. Update now. Approximately 7,000 Banner troops were sent in from Manchuria in combination with Green Standard Army soldiers from Guizhou and Yunnan as well as tens of thousands of local mercenaries.[6]. . Only after 1800 did the Qing government adopt new tactics that established local militias (tuan) to help surround and destroy the White Lotus. Dr. Kallie Szczepanski is a history teacher specializing in Asian history and culture. Although the rebellion was finally crushed by the Qing government after eight years of fighting, it marked a sharp decline in the strength and prosperity of the Qing dynasty. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. He did not distribute captured wealth or food supplies, nor did he promise to lessen the tax burden. In the stockades they were organized into local militia defense corps. At first the Ch'ing administration, under the control of Ho-shen, sent inadequate and inefficient imperial forces to suppress the ill-organized rebels. Administrators also seized and destroyed sectarian scriptures which were used by the religious groups. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. A smaller precursor to the main rebellion broke out in 1774, under the leadership of the martial-arts and herbal-healing expert Wang Lun in Shandong province of northern China. The White Lotus led impoverished slaves to freedom, promising personal salvation in return for their loyalty. [8] The leader, herbalist and martial artist Wang Lun, led an uprising that captured three small cities and laid siege to the larger city of Linqing, a strategic location on the north-south Grand Canal transportation route. "Issues and Trends in China's Demographic History." The Rebellion is estimated to have caused the deaths of some 100,000 rebels.[1][2]. Though he passed through an area inhabited by almost a million peasants, his army never measured more than 4,000 soldiers, many of whom had been forced into service. Led by Lin Qing (; 1770-1813) and Li Wencheng, the revolt occurred in the Zhili, Shandong, and Henan provinces of China. White Lotus Rebellion, Chinese anti-Manchu uprising that occurred during the Ch'ing dynasty. Grandmother. }, Page last modified: Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. "The Fall of China's Qing Dynasty in 19111912." By 1900, foreign powers including Britain, France, Germany, Russia, and Japan had established "spheres of influence" along China's coastal areas. Asia for Educators, Columbia University, 2009. It broke out (1796) among impoverished settlers in the mountainous region that separates Sichuan prov. ThoughtCo. Write in the blank the verb and tense indicated in parentheses. 22 Feb. 2023 . When they congregate and oppose the government, they are rebels; when they disperse and depart, they are civilians once more. How might this yearning relate co Milton's mention of "the thought of lost happiness" in lines 545554-555455? Omissions? With its weaknesses exposed, China began to lose power over its peripheral regions. By 1387, after more than thirty years of war, their leader, Zhu Yuanzhang had liberated all of China. Having attained the Mandate of Heaven and the status of Emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang named his period of reign "Hongwu" (thus he was known as the Hongwu Emperor) and founded a new dynasty the Ming dynasty. _____ us amazing stories about her youth in Hong Kong. His rule covered a span of 63 years, a reign lo, Kublai Khan After both died in battle in 1796, Beijing sent new officials but none were successful. Retrieved February 22, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/white-lotus-rebellion. https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/white-lotus-rebellion, "White Lotus Rebellion Administrators also seized and destroyed sectarian scriptures used by the religious groups. What should be done with these revolutionary cultists? That history stretched back at least as far as 221 BCE when Qin Shi Huangdi first united China into a single empire. ThoughtCo, Aug. 27, 2020, thoughtco.com/fall-of-the-qing-dynasty-195608. The White lotus (Bailian Jiao, ) was a Buddhist political and religious movement that believed in a universal female divinity, the "Unborn Old Mother" who would gather all of her children towards the end of the millennium, into one large family. [12] The experience of suppressing the rebellion led to improvement in the organization and training of the militia, as many of their leaders wrote extensively on mobilization, enlistment and local defense methods. A CHOICE OUTSTANDING ACADEMIC TITLE The White Lotus War (1796-1804) in central China marked the end of the Qing dynasty's golden age and the fatal weakening of the imperial system itself. All our content comes from Wikipedia and under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. The feared Manchu banners, since their conquests of the early 1700s, showed they were no longer a military force of much value, and the emperor had to recruit a new army made up of Chinese militia. ." The White Lotus Society is traditionally considered to have first appeared during the 14th century under the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. Having attained the Mandate of Heaven and the status of Emperor, he took the title Hongwu and founded a new dynasty - the Ming. Southern Shensi, with its great amounts of vacant land, attracted immigrants on a large scale after severe famines and crop failures had occurred in Hupeh and Szechwan provinces in the 1770s. The White Lotus Rebellion 1796-1804 In the densely forested border area between the provinces Hubei, Sichuan and Shaanxi, a lot of homeless peasant refugees(liumin, see also shed people) had gathered to escape the grip of landowners, creditors and tax collectors. The White Lotus society (Bailianjiao) was a religious cult already in existence in the Nan (Southern) Song dynasty (1127-1279). ", in, Zhang Shucai (1992). In 1805, the imperial authorities suppressed the White Lotus Rebellion by instituting a combination of military and social policies. "White Lotus Rebellion The grew in number and power and eventually, into a serious concern for the government. This Liu Chi-hieh set up a youth named Wang Fa-sheng, whom he represented to be a member of the Chu family and a descendant of the Ming emperors, as the rightful sovereign of the people. [2][3]. Beginning as tax protests, the eventual rebellion gained growing support and sympathy from many ordinary people. Qing Dynasty, China's Last Imperial Family, The Boxer Rebellion in Editorial Cartoons, Biography of Sun Yat-sen, Chinese Revolutionary Leader, The Fall of the Ming Dynasty in China in 1644, Tibet and China: History of a Complex Relationship, The Complex Structure of Ethnic Conflict in the Frontier: Through the Debates Around the 'Jindandao Incident' in 1891, The Monarch and Inner/Outer Court Dualism in Late Imperial China, 'Revolution': Conceptualizing Political and Social Change in the Late Qing Dynasty, Moving to the Right Place at the Right Time: Economic Effects on Migrants of the Manchuria Plague of 191011, Size and Dynastic Decline: The Principal-Agent Problem in Late Imperial China, 17001850. In addition to the MLA, Chicago, and APA styles, your school, university, publication, or institution may have its own requirements for citations. Qing control weakened and prosperity diminished by the 19th century. [6] The group forecast the advent of Maitreya, advocated restoration of the native Chinese Ming Dynasty, and promised personal salvation to its followers while promising the return of the Buddha.[7]. The Qing had forbidden agriculture in the northern regions, which were left to the Mongol pastoralists, but the introduction of new world crops such as potato and maize opened the northern region plains farming. It had cost the lives of countless civilians and regular troops, including more than 400 high officers, and consumed more than 200 million liang /tael, which corresponded to four times the annual revenues of the state treasury. The Qing commanders who were sent to repress the rebellion had a difficult time putting down the White Lotus. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Throughout the 1820s and 1830s, the area of the boundary between Henan and Anhui was perpetually plagued by White Lotus revolts, the White Lotus rebels were frequently in league with the area's brigands and salt smugglers. Snow Lotus | Frisco TX [2][3], The White Lotus Rebellion was initiated as an antitax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society. Having attained the Mandate of Heaven and the status of Emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang named his period of reign "Hongwu" (thus he was known as the Hongwu Emperor) and founded a new dynasty the Ming dynasty. When they congregate and oppose the government, they are rebels; when they disperse and depart, they are civilians once more. They are not like some external tribe . ", Without any clear enemy to fight, brutality against civilians became more common. In response, the Qing Empress Dowager Cixi clamped down hard on reformers. - systematic program of pacification followed, Causes and effects of internal challenges; Wh, taiping (Taip'ing) rebellion: reasons for the, taping rebellionconsequences for Chinese soc, tongzhi restoration and self-strengthening mo, collectivisation (maintenance of power, stali, John Lund, Paul S. Vickery, P. Scott Corbett, Todd Pfannestiel, Volker Janssen, Eric Hinderaker, James A. Henretta, Rebecca Edwards, Robert O. Self. Vast sums of money earmarked for the campaign against the rebels, however, were embezzled by the imperial favourite Heshen and his friends. - rebellion began in 1794; rebellion initiated by followers of the White Lotus movement during the Qing dynasty of China, - the ill-organized rebels managed to defeat the inadequate and inefficient Qing imperial forces, - was initiated as a tax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society. The White Lotus Society is traditionally considered to have first appeared during the Jin dynasty founded by Huiyuan in Mountain Lu, Jiujiang. When Chinese peasants raised a huge anti-foreigner movement in 1900, called the Boxer Rebellion, they initially opposed both the Qing ruling family and the European powers (plus Japan). The White Lotus society (Bailianjiao) was a religious cult already in existence in the Nan (Southern) Song dynasty (11271279). There the foreign powers essentially controlled trade and the military, although technically they remained part of Qing China. When the last Chinese dynastythe Qing dynastyfell in 19111912, it marked the end of the nation's incredibly long imperial history. At the . Contents 1 Daze Village Uprising 2 Rebellion of the Seven States 3 Llin 4 Chimei 5 Yellow Turban Rebellion 6 Five Pecks of Rice Rebellion 7 An Shi Rebellion 8 Red Turban Rebellion 9 Li Zicheng's Rebellion 10 Revolt of the Three Feudatories in, Gaustad, Blaine C. "Prophets and pretenders: inter-sect competition in Qianlong China. One Qing response was to suppress the word "revolution" by banning it from their world-history textbooks. Inventions When the Manchu tribes of Manchuria (now Northeast China) conquered China some 500 years later in the 17th century and proclaimed the Qing dynasty, the White Lotus Read More Yuan dynasty In China: Foreign religions The Cult of the White Lotus, a secret revolutionary society, has once again become popular among the common people. It took nine years of warfare and great loss of life before the rebellion was put down. The grew in number and power and eventually, into a serious concern for the government. Encyclopedia.com. In particular, the court marked itself off from its subjects in certain religious, linguistic, ritual, and social characteristics, always presenting themselves as outside conquerors. The White Lotus Rebellion was initiated as an antitax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society. One of the tools they used to stay in power was a very strict restriction on trade. The end of the White Lotus Rebellion in 1804 also brought an end to the myth of the military invincibility of the Manchus, contributing to the increasing frequency of rebellions in the 19th century. And so the war was waged. Nevertheless, where can you catch hints that the -angel longs for his former state? Although the Manchu finally crushed (1804) the rebellion, the myth of the military invincibility of the Manchu was shattered, perhaps contributing to the greater frequency of rebellions in the 19th cent. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Sun Yat-Sen emerged as China's first "professional" revolutionary, having gained an international reputation by being abducted by Qing agents in the Chinese Embassy in London in 1896. In its last stage, the Qing suppression policy combined pursuit and extermination of rebel guerrilla bands with a program of amnesty for deserters. Kublai Khan [10], The Qing commanders who were sent to repress the rebellion had a difficult time putting down the White Lotus. A decree from the Emperor Daoguang admitted, "it was extortion by local officials that goaded the people into rebellion" Using the arrest of sectarian members as a threat, local officials and police extorted money from people. //