China had been fragmented for decades, a process of degeneration that had roots in the last century of the Qing 清 Dynasty. Historians speculate endlessly about the particular mix of causes for this degeneration, but no one can argue that central, coordinated authority in China had disappeared by the early twentieth century. Because the concept of sovereignty is so important in this analysis, it is explored in detail here. How then did the Chinese state reach such a dire condition?.
The loss of central control was caused both by external and internal problems. The final stages of the Qing Dynasty were rife with internal rebellions and the existence of self-contained kingdoms. The Qing was what is called a "conquest dynasty." In the middle of the 17th century, Manchu 滿族-tribesmen overwhelmed the faltering Ming明 Dynasty and established a new dynasty, the Qing. The Chinese empire had existed for millennia, and this was not the first time that outsiders had taken control. But taking control meant taking over the existing bureaucracy and institutions. Part of this meant accepting the Dynastic Codes, reworking them into the Qing Code 大清律例, a marvellous compilation that could trace its lineage back to the Han 漢 Dynasty. It meant persuading native Chinese, Han Chinese, to serve as functionaries. It meant adopting the Confucian rituals that were so important to the Empire's structure. This was the genius of the Chinese Empire. It absorbed its conquerors. The Chinese culture was so developed and so strong that those who could vanquish Chinese armies became trapped in Chinese culture.
The Qing did all these things, and some of the early Qing Emperors were talented leaders. But even in the best of times there was resentment of the "barbarians," and a yearning for the truly "Chinese" Dynasty that the Qing had supplanted. It is hardly surprising that these resentments sharpened when things grew rocky in the nineteenth century.
