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 . The White Lotus is a syncretic religious and political movement which forecasts the imminent advent of the "King of Light" , i.e., the future Buddha Maitreya. This page was last updated at 2022-12-21 05:40 UTC. 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]. In 1775, a chief of the White Lotus Society, named Liu Sung, was banished from Anhwei to Kansuh after sending people to the area under pretext of healing diseases by prayer and incantation, to gain adherents to his cause in Western China. The government had to depend on more Han Chinese recruits (Green Standard) since there were not enough Manchu. [1] 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 settlers into rebellion, promising personal salvation in return for their loyalty. Qing control weakened and prosperity diminished by the 19th century. "Reluctant guerrillas in early nineteenth century China: the White Lotus insurgents and their suppressors. Bailianjiao (www.chinaknowledge.de) History & Facts of The White Lotus Movement - China Underground Used Lotus Evora 400 for Sale in Frisco, TX | Edmunds When the last Chinese dynastythe Qing dynastyfell in 19111912, it marked the end of the nation's incredibly long imperial history. 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. The Red Turban Rebellion which took place in 1352, was led by the White Lotus group. [3] According to Ter Haar, it is clear that the "White Lotus" rebels of the uprisings that occurred between 1796 and 1804 did not voluntarily use the term "White Lotus" to refer to themselves or their movement. 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. Update now. The rebellion was ended by the deaths of some 100,000 rebels. Bailianjiao (www.chinaknowledge.de) White Lotus Rebellion 1796-1804 - globalsecurity.org In 1794, one instance of a derivative sect of the White Lotus, the Eight Trigrams arose in the form of underground meditation teachings and practice in Shandong province, not far from Beijing (Zhili) near the city of Linqing. Instead, Britain began a lucrative, illicit trade in opium, traded from British imperial India into Canton, far from Beijing. Some of these militia groups were further trained as attack armies to seek out the rebels, whose forces were thinned by offers of amnesty to the rank and file and of rewards for the capture of the leaders. Barend Joannes Ter Haar has argued that the term "White Lotus" was used primarily by Ming and Qing imperial bureaucrats to disparagingly explain a wide range of unconnected millenarian traditions, rebel movements, and popular religious practices. "Civilians Go into Battle: Hired Militias in the White Lotus War, 1796-1805. As one Qing official complained:[9]. Corrections? The White Lotus Rebellion 1796-1804 - Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia Vast sums of money earmarked for the campaign against the rebels, however, were embezzled by the imperial favourite Heshen and his friends. Dr. Kallie Szczepanski is a history teacher specializing in Asian history and culture. Soon the new migrants began to outnumber the indigenous people, and conflict over local leadership grew and grew strong. Though he passed through an area inhabited by almost a million peasants, his army never measured more than four thousand soldiers, many of whom had been forced into service. The grew in number and power and eventually, into a serious concern for the government. This took place during the Qing Dynasty, and lasted from 1796 to 1804. In the stockades they were organized into local militia defense corps. Local disaffection broke out in the so-called White Lotus Rebellion of 1796-1804, which was centerd in the Szechwan- Shensi- Hupeh- Honan border regions. The White Lotus Rebellion 1796-1804 In the deeply forested border area between the provinces Hubei, Sichuan and Shaanxi, a lot of homeless "floating" people (liumin ) had gathered to escape the grip of landowners, creditors and tax collectors. Definition 1 / 6 - rebellion began in 1794; rebellion initiated by followers of the White Lotus movement during the Qing dynasty of China - large groups of rebels claiming White Lotus affiliations rose up within the mountainous region that separated Sichuan province from Hubei and Shaanxi provinces The Rebellion is estimated to have caused the deaths of some 100,000 rebels.[1][2]. When they congregate and oppose the government, they are rebels; when they disperse and depart, they are civilians once more. In 1805, the imperial authorities suppressed the White Lotus Rebellion by instituting a combination of military and social policies. Since then, this book has become an invaluable source because it has enabled scholars to understand the beliefs of these groups. White Lotus Rebellion - Wikipedia 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. Tibet has been an independent country throughout the historical period and since time immemorial according to Tibetans' own myth-based sense of, Xinjiang (shnjyng) or Sinkiang (shnjyng, snkyng) [Chinese,=new frontier], officially Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Mandarin Xinjiang U, For more information on Chinese history and culture, seeVol. Motivated by millenarian Buddhists who promised the immediate return of the Buddha, it erupted out of social and economic discontent in the impoverished provinces of Hubei, Shaanxi, and Sichuan (including modern Sichuan and Chongqing). 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 broke out in 1794, and was at full height in 1796, among impoverished settlers in the mountainous region that separates Sichuan province from Hubei and Shaanxi provinces. [6], A systematic program of pacification followed in which the populace was resettled in hundreds of stockaded villages and organized into militia. In particular, the court marked itself off from its subjects in certain religious, linguistic, ritual, and social characteristics, always presenting themselves as outside conquerors. He did not distribute captured wealth or food supplies, nor did he promise to lessen the tax burden. In its last stage, the Ch'ing suppression policy combined pursuit and extermination of rebel guerrilla bands with a program of amnesty for deserters. 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. Main article: White Lotus Rebellion Beginning in 1794, two decades after Wang Lun's failed uprising, a movement also arose in the mountainous region that separates Sichuan from Hubei and Shaanxi in central China as tax protests. If mathematical, chemical, physical and other formulas are not displayed correctly on this page, please useFirefox or Safari, For the 14th-century rebellion also related to the White Lotus, see, Conscientious objection to military taxation, List of historical acts of tax resistance, National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee, The Cold War and the Income Tax: A Protest, Royal and noble ranks of the Qing dynasty, Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Convention Between Great Britain and China Respecting Tibet, Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory, Banknotes of the Ta-Ching Government Bank, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. The rebellion began in 1794, when large groups of rebels claiming White Lotus affiliations rose up within the mountainous region that separated Sichuan province from Hubei and Shaanxi provinces. Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Due to their brutality, the Qing troops were soon nicknamed the "Red Lotus" Society. The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. . Having attained the Mandate of Heaven and the status of Emperor, he took the title Hongwu and founded a new dynasty - the Ming. Civil conflicts including the White Lotus Rebellion (1774-1805), Xinjiang wars (1820s and 1860s) and Taiping Civil War (1850-64) broke out across Qing China. . Sun Yat-Sen was elected the first president of China, and the Republican era of China had begun. 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. 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. }, Page last modified: A decree by the Daoguang Emperor admitted, "it was extortion by local officials that goaded the people into rebellion" By threatening the arrest of people who engaged in sectarian activities, local officials and police extorted money from people. After the strnggle had lasted six years, Lin Chi-hich was captunredd. In the period after about 1680 the introduction of corn (maize) and sweet potatoes, followed in the 18th century by the introduction of the Irish potato, made upland farming possible. A major contribution to the downfall of the last dynasty were external forces, in the form of new Western technologies, as well as a gross miscalculation on the part of the Qing as to the strength of European and Asian imperialistic ambitions. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. Wang Lun likely failed because he did not make any attempts to raise wide public support. The Tipng Rebellion (1850-1864), a large-scale uprising that started in southern China, marched within miles of the capital in 1853. The White Lotus bands mainly used guerrilla tactics, and once they disbanded, they were virtually indistinguishable from the local population. The White Lotus Rebellion was initiated as an antitax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society. White Lotus Rebellion, (1796-1804), large-scale uprising in the mountainous regions of central China that contributed to the decline of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911/12). . They are not like some external tribe . Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/fall-of-the-qing-dynasty-195608. With its weaknesses exposed, China began to lose power over its peripheral regions. 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 War - University of Washington Press Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The White Lotus continued to be active, and it might have influenced the next major domestic rebellion, the Eight Trigrams Uprising of 1813. Members of the society were not ethnically different from Han Chinese, but subscribed to a belief based on a mixture of Taoism, Buddhism, and Manichaeism. [1] 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. At the . As you might expect, the collapse of China's Qing dynasty was a long and complex process. Asia for Educators, Columbia University, 2009. The White Lotus rebellion began when large groups of Chinese rioted in 1794. The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. . Due to their brutality, the Qing troops were soon nicknamed the "Red Lotus" Society. The Qianlong Emperor (r. 173596) sent Helin (, brother of Heshen) and Fuk'anggan to quell the uprising. - the imperial authorities suppressed the White Lotus Rebellion in 1805 using a combination of military and social policies. These militia groups were later instrumental in defeating the Taiping rebellion. ", in, Zhang Shucai (1992). The government had to depend on more Han Chinese recruits (Green Standard) since there were not enough Manchu. The term was only used by the millenarian rebels under intense pressure during government interrogations. 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. The nine-years long White Lotus war had devastated a large number of districts in Central China. Beginning as tax protests, the eventual rebellion gained growing support and sympathy from many ordinary people. 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. Snow Lotus | Frisco TX While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. 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. Although the rebellion was finally crushed by the Qing government in 1804, it marked a turning point in the history of the Qing dynasty. Qing rule gradually collapsed during the second half of the 19th century and the early years of the 20th, due to a complicated interplay between internal and external factors. [9], A systematic program of pacification followed: the populace was resettled in hundreds of stockaded villages and organized into militias. [13], 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. window.__mirage2 = {petok:"uAtwiiQKDz3pej8tikjjXf8qtftBywxw48FuRjxp2JM-86400-0"}; Unable to build up a support base, he was forced to quickly flee all three cities that he attacked in order to evade government troops. One Qing response was to suppress the word "revolution" by banning it from their world-history textbooks. It took almost ten years and huge financial waste to defeat the badly equipped White Lotus Rebellion (1795-1804), partly by legitimizing militias led by local Hn Chinese elites. In its last stage, the Qing suppression policy combined the pursuit and extermination of rebel guerrilla bands with a program of amnesty for deserters. Without a clear enemy to fight against, brutality against civilians became more common. The White Lotus Rebellion was initiated as an antitax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society. It apparently began as a tax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society that forecast the advent . Rapid and often reckless development of the Shensi uplands, however, often led to soil erosion, rapid loss of fertility, and declining crop output. An introduction to 19th-century China | British Museum Led by Lin Qing (; 1770-1813) and Li Wencheng, the revolt occurred in the Zhili, Shandong, and Henan provinces of China. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. The river flooded constantly, and other natural disasters also occurred. White Lotus Rebellion, (1796-1804), large-scale uprising in the mountainous regions of central China that contributed to the decline of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911/12). "Broken Passage to the Summit: Nayanchengs Botched Mission in the White Lotus War." The White Lotus society (Bailianjiao) was a religious cult already in existence in the Nan (Southern) Song dynasty (1127-1279). How did the Rebellion impact Qing society? Yingcong Dai. The White Lotus War: Rebellion and Suppression in Late By 1387, after more than 30 years of war, their leader, Zhu Yuanzhang conquered the North China Plain and occupied the Yuan capital Khanbaliq (present-day Beijing). 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. Other White Lotus spinoffs include the Eight Trigrams, the Tiger Whips, and the Yihequan (Boxers). Buddhist sects, such as the White Lotus sect, a group that attracted many followers among the Chinese lower classes. Consequently, a person's actual participation in sectarian activities had no impact on his or her arrest; what really mattered was whether monetary demands were met or not. Red Turban Rebellion | Military Wiki | Fandom However, the date of retrieval is often important. Szczepanski, Kallie. However, the rulers were afraid that White Lotus Society might menace their rules. #ga-ad {display: none;} List of battleships of the United States Navy, Articles containing Chinese-language text, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, http://www.scribd.com/doc/37359117/Bodycount-Final, http://books.google.com/books?id=Md801mHEeOkC&pg=PA9, History of Chinese Culture on History.com. Decline and Fall of China Yuan Dynasty The White Lotus bands mainly used guerrilla tactics, and once they disbanded were virtually indistinguishable from the local population. Surprisingly, the ill-organized rebels managed to defeat the inadequate and inefficient Imperial forces. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia.com cannot guarantee each citation it generates. When the White Lotus Rebellion (1796-1804) occurred, the dynasty was forced to turn to peasant soldiers to suppress the rebels in central and southern China, since the regular army lacked the necessary strength and morale. Eventually, the rebellion was crushed by the Qing elites; but the White Lotus organization remained secret and intact, and advocated for the overthrow of the Qing dynasty. In the closing years of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty, they organized resistance to the foreign overlords, and now they are doing so again, but against the reigning Ming Dynasty! 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 members dedicated themselves to the overthrow of the alien Manchu and to the return of the previous Ming dynasty (13681644). Therefore, its best to use Encyclopedia.com citations as a starting point before checking the style against your school or publications requirements and the most-recent information available at these sites: http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html. The White Lotus Rebellion was initiated as an antitax protest led by the White Lotus Society, a secret religious society. Nothing is known of his end. "The Fall of China's Qing Dynasty in 19111912." Here, the White Lotus led impoverished settlers into rebellion, promising personal salvation in return for their loyalty. Many partisans joined and the society grew rapidly until 1794, when it broke out into the rebellion that subsequently spread over Hupeh and Western China under Liu Cbi-hieh and cast a gloom over the close of the long and brilliant reign of Kien-lung.