As we all know, the late Qing Dynasty became more and more decayed, and although it thought it was a great power, it had long been out of touch with the world, and it was very backward in terms of economy and science and technology. During this period, foreign powers not only opened the gates of the Qing Dynasty with opium, but also launched many wars. For example, on May 28, 1900, the Eight-Power Alliance invaded China, and they invaded with artillery and firearms in the name of helping to suppress the Boxers.
At this time, Guangxu and Empress Dowager Cixi fled into the wilderness, without the slightest resistance to the invaders. The officers and men guarding the city did not fire a single shot, and soon abandoned the city, and the Eight-Nation Alliance army wantonly burned and looted in the city, causing a large number of innocent casualties. This war will always be remembered for us. Of course, the reason for the failure of the Qing Dynasty has a certain relationship with its own military strength.
Then many people are curious, if the Invasion of China by the Eight-Power Alliance occurred in the heyday of the Qing Dynasty, such as the Qianlong Period, what would be the result? The question is actually very complicated, after all, the rule of the Qing Dynasty is not optimistic, even in the more powerful Qianlong years, it is not as good as the progressive Western countries, when they have completed the first industrial revolution.
But from an economic point of view, there is still a certain chance of winning during the Qianlong period, after all, the GDP at that time was among the best in the world, if you want to fight a war, with this financial resource, you can still support it for a period of time. It is just that they will suffer those ordinary people whose lives are not very good in the first place, and they will surely usher in another major catastrophe. After all, war, which was not a good thing for the civilians and the Entire Qing Dynasty.
Then, from the perspective of military talents, the Qing Dynasty still had several more famous generals, such as Fu Heng and others, who may be able to resist the invaders for a period of time for the Qing Dynasty. However, in terms of weapons and equipment, the Qing Dynasty was still relatively backward, and no matter how powerful the Qing army, which was mainly based on cold weapons, it was difficult to stop the power of artillery. In general, if it is the Qianlong period, the chances of winning are not great, and the most important thing is that the disparity in their strength with the outside world is too great.
At that time, the Qing Dynasty was still mainly based on agriculture and did not vigorously develop industry, which was a very obvious drawback. Although the Qianlong period was prosperous, it has actually gradually become a decline. Some people think that the Eight-Nation Alliance can be open to the Qing Dynasty, each has certain advantages, and perhaps the outcome will be better than imagined. However, history has not been, and the defeat of the Qing Dynasty was the result of the eight-nation alliance's invasion of China, which has become an immutable fact.
After the end of this war, the Qing Dynasty signed the "Xinugu Treaty", which not only needed to pay huge reparations, but also degenerated into a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society. This also hastened the end of the Qing Dynasty. In addition, there are incalculable cultural losses. In particular, the "Four Libraries Complete Book" compiled by 360 scholars during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, with a total of 79,309 volumes, a total of 7 sets of the whole book, was destroyed by the Eight-Power Alliance in tens of thousands, which makes people feel regret and pity.