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- The history of the Qing dynasty began in 1636, when Manchu chieftain Hong Taiji (Emperor Taizong) founded the dynasty, and lasted until 1912, when Puyi (Xuantong Emperor) abdicated the throne in response to the Xinhai Revolution. The final orthodox imperial dynasty of China, the Qing dynasty reached heights of power unlike any of the Chinese dynasties which preceded it, engaging in large-scale territorial expansion. However, the Qing dynasty's inability to successfully counter Western and Japanese imperialism ultimately led to its downfall, and the instability which emerged in China during the final years of the dynasty ultimately paved the way for the Warlord Era. Though he did not officially found the Qing dynasty, Later Jin ruler Nurhaci (then a nominal vassal to the Ming dynasty) laid the foundation for its emergence through his policies of uniting various Jurchen tribes, consolidating the Eight Banners military system and conquering territory from the Ming and Joseon dynasties. His son, Hong Taiji, who officially founded the Qing dynasty, consolidated the territories that he had inherited control over from Nurhaci and laid the groundwork for the conquest of the Ming dynasty, although he died before this was accomplished. Under the rule of the Shunzhi Emperor, the Qing dynasty conquered most of the territory of the Ming dynasty, chasing loyalist remnants into the southwestern provinces, and establishing the basis of Qing rule over China proper. His regent Dorgon implemented the infamous queue decree, forcing the Chinese to adopt the hairstyle. The Kangxi Emperor ascended to the throne in 1662, ruling for 61 years until 1722. During is reign, the Qing dynasty entered into an era of prosperity known as the High Qing era. The Revolt of the Three Feudatories was suppressed under his reign, and various border conflicts were resolved. Succeeding him was the Yongzheng Emperor, who proved to be an able reformer. Under the reign of him and his son, the Qianlong Emperor, the Qing military engaged in the Ten Great Campaigns on the Chinese frontier. During this period, the Qing dynasty, through its military conquests, reached a territorial extent never seen before in Chinese history. However, the large size of the Qing empire and its stagnating economy would soon start to take its toll. Corruption began an increasingly widespread issue, as Chinese officials such as Heshen regularly stole tax revenue and public funds, leading to widespread starvation among the Chinese public. The Jiaqing Emperor attempted to stamp out corruption, and suppressed the White Lotus and Miao rebellions. His successor, the Daoguang Emperor, attempted to suppress the opium trade in China, which brought the Qing dynasty into conflict with the British in the First Opium War. The war resulted in a Chinese defeat and the Treaty of Nanjing, an "unequal treaty" which ceded Hong Kong Island to the British and opened several ports to foreign trade. In 1856, further tensions between the Qing dynasty and foreign powers led to the outbreak of the Second Opium War, which resulted in further "unequal treaties" being signed by the Chinese government. Amidst a backdrop of rising economic issues, sectarian tension and foreign interventions, the Taiping Rebellion broke out in 1850. Led by Christian revolutionary Hong Xiuquan, the rebels established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The rebellion ultimately became one of the bloodiest conflicts in history, killing roughly 20 to 30 million people, and proved to be a pyrrhic victory at best for the Qing dynasty, as it would collapse less than 50 years after the rebellion. The rebellion resulted in increased sectarian tension and accelerated regionalism, in what would prove to be a foreshadowing of the Warlord Era that would come after the fall of the Qing. Despite these issues, the Qing dynasty carried on after the rebellion, with Empress Dowager Cixi as its effective head from 1861 to 1908. She was a moderate reformer, overseeing the Tongzhi Restoration. The turn of the century Boxer Rebellion exemplified popular discontent, and led to an international coalition invading China to protect foreign citizens and interests. Cixi sided with the rebels, and was dealt a decisive defeat by the combined forces of the coalition. Cixi's death in 1908 left the country in deep trouble and without an effective leader. The emperor, Puyi, was a toddler, and the control of his regency was fiercely contested. Yuan Shikai maneuvered himself into power as president of an ineffectual Republic, and forced the abdication of Puyi, the last emperor, in 1912. This brought an end to the Qing dynasty, and over 2,000 years of imperial rule in China. Shikai briefly ruled as a dictator, but proved incapable of ruling all China, and the country splintered apart, not to be fully reunited until 1928 under Chiang Kai-shek. A brief and ineffective restoration of the dynasty occurred in 1917 with Puyi at its head, emblematic of the chaotic and inconclusive conflicts that would wrack China until Kuomintang rule. (en)
- 清朝歷史，若从1616年清太祖努尔哈赤称汗并建立后金开始，到1912年宣统帝退位结束，则历经十二帝，有296年的历史；如果从皇太极1636年称帝并建立大清开始，有276年的历史；若从1644年清军入关，统一全国开始，有268年的历史。 (zh)
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