On the basis of the Kangxi and Yongzheng dynasties, the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty single-handedly created the "Kangqian Prosperous Era" that attracted worldwide attention. At that time, China was strong, with a vast territory and rapid economic development, which can be called the last heyday of the feudal dynasty. However, in this glorious era of seemingly renewed Vientiane, a British envoy came to China and only said three seemingly ordinary words, but it pierced this false appearance of prosperity and indicated that China's "dilapidated warship" was about to decline. Who is this British? What did he say? Why can only three sentences give insight into the essence of the prosperous Kangqian era? Let's find out.
1. Emperor Qianlong greeted the British envoy with great hospitality, and it was difficult to hide internal and external troubles
In the 57th year of Qianlong (1792), the British Empire sent Magalny to lead a delegation to China. Although Emperor Qianlong was known as a "humble gentleman", he still attached great importance and enthusiasm to the arrival of the British envoy. After all, Magalny carried a birthday gift specially given to Qianlong by King George III, and his identity was not trivial.
Qianlong issued an edict and ordered officials from all over the country to properly entertain British guests, and the daily reception cost should not be less than 1,500 taels of silver. Many Qing officials were moved by the news, and all the way from Gyeonggi to the coast, they gave the British mission extremely meticulous and thoughtful hospitality. The group set off from Macao, Guangdong, and traveled north along the coast to Beijing. Qianlong made another promise to place a large congratulatory gift from the British mission in the Old Summer Palace, and Magarny and several others were welcomed to the summer resort to meet the royal driver.
There are two main reasons for this hospitality. One is Qianlong's vanity, he attaches great importance to the visit of envoys from distant countries, and has the side of showing off his national prestige. Second, although the national strength of the Qing Dynasty was strong in the middle of the Qing Dynasty, there were already signs of internal and external troubles, and the so-called "prosperous era" was just a manifestation of prosperity.
In the Qing court in Qianlong's later years, the Qing court became increasingly authoritarian and corrupt politically, coupled with the constraints of the old policy of valuing agriculture and suppressing commerce, which hindered the development of the commodity economy, and lagged behind the West in science and technology, not to mention that it was inferior to Muslim countries such as Arabia. At the same time, the struggle in the northwest ethnic minority areas and Taiwan has never stopped, and the imperial court has been troubled by the outside world. The so-called "prosperous era" of the Qing Dynasty was actually just a superficial phenomenon of internal and external troubles. In order to maintain this false appearance of "prosperity", the Qing court attached great importance to the visiting British mission, in an attempt to gain prestige and cover up the flaws of the system.
It was against this background that Magalny was appointed to China for the purpose of opening up new economic and trade markets for Britain in China, and at the same time to observe and explore China's national conditions and military strength, and to carry out strategic planning for future infiltration. In addition to vanity, Qianlong also tried to win the trust of the British side in China and at the same time probe the other side. However, relying on the ragged posture of the Qing court alone, it was difficult to hide the crisis of the country's demise after all.
Second, the Qing Dynasty in the eyes of the British envoy was vain
After a short stay in Beijing, Magalny left for the Rehe Palace where Qianlong had taken refuge in the summer. Before leaving, he had a preliminary impression of Emperor Qianlong's prosperous court life. After arriving in Rehe, Magarny was shocked by the splendor of the Garden of Ten Thousand Trees, and could not help but sigh that "the luxury of the life of the Chinese emperor is far from being comparable to that of the European princes". Emperor Qianlong was really attentive and thoughtful, and sent important ministers and Shen to personally accompany the British envoys, arranged special singing and dancing entertainment and tributary operas, and also rewarded a precious jade Ruyi.
But in this grand court meeting, Magalny keenly captured some clues of the Qing Dynasty's internal and external troubles. The first thing that caught his attention was the ceremony of kneeling three times and bowing nine times. According to the etiquette of the Chinese dynasty, foreign envoys must perform this great ceremony when they meet the Chinese emperor. The British Mission, on the other hand, wanted to use the British etiquette of kneeling on one knee to show the dignity of the British Empire. The two sides disagreed on this point, and Emperor Qianlong was furious and questioned the "arrogance" of the British.
This contradiction was eventually resolved by threats and intimidation, but it made Magalny see clearly the arrogance and authoritarianism of the Qing Dynasty. How can a powerful country be so small and thirsty that a disagreement in rituals and etiquette can be expanded into a matter of national majesty? This kind of mentality of bullying the weak and empty-eyed shows that today's Qing Dynasty has sunset, and it is only reluctant to guard the sunset.
As far as the British envoy could see, not only the gold, silver and jewelry, but more importantly, the root cause of the growing corruption within the Qing Dynasty. The incompetence and stupidity of the ruling group can be seen from the narrow and stubborn temperament of the supreme ruler; From how corrupt officials blackmail the mission, we can see the greed and corruption of the regime; From the fact that the soldiers of the Eight Banners of Manchuria guarded with iron swords and spears instead of firearms, it can be seen that the military strength is outdated and backward.
At that time, the Qing Dynasty was certainly an incomparable bright pearl, but this pearl had been eaten away by the process of internal festering. Beneath the dazzling exterior lies an inner body full of filth and decaying. The prosperous scene of Qianlong's prosperous era is like the appearance of a fine piece of porcelain, which is full of mud, and is destined to be crushed at some point.
With a brief personal experience, Magalny had already seen the signs of the decline of the Qing Dynasty. This once glorious dynasty is now reduced to a fictitious royal power, where those in power are arrogant, lascivious, incompetent, and corrupt as the norm. He had a hunch that sooner or later, the Chinese warship would sink completely, and Britain would surely profit immensely from colonial expansion.
3. Three sentences of judgment that conceals murderous intentions
At the banquet in the Wanshuyuan in Rehe, Magalny said three seemingly ordinary words to Emperor Qianlong, but in fact they pointed to the fundamental crux of the Qing Dynasty. These three sentences of judgment have broken through the hypocritical cloak of the "prosperous Kangqian era" and indicate that the dilapidated warship of China is doomed to be destroyed.
In the first sentence, Magalny talks about China's technological backwardness. He said: "The progress of the Chinese in astronomy, surveying and other sciences lags far behind that of Europe. Although Qianlong was interested in the telescopes and other instruments brought by the mission, he did not delve into the importance of scientific and technological progress to the country's development. In contrast, Western countries such as the United Kingdom have forged ahead in the tide of the Industrial Revolution.
In the second sentence, Magalny pointed out that the Chinese live in poverty. "Everywhere we traveled, we saw that most of the people were living in very poor lives," he said. "Although Qianlong was the world's largest power for a time, this prosperity was only concentrated in the upper echelons of the government and the opposition, and the vast number of grassroots people were still living in dire straits. The increasingly hollowing out of national strength was an important cause for the fall of the Qing Dynasty.
In the third sentence, Magalny questioned the military strength of the Qing army. He said: "The army of the Qing Dynasty, although it is numerous, does not look like a real army. This sentence hits the nail on the head. At that time, the Eight Banners Manchurian Army was seriously ossified, with soldiers holding outdated weapons and loose military discipline, which was far from a modern army. Once you encounter a strong enemy, you will definitely be vulnerable.
These three sentences are not amazing, but they hit the nail on the head and point out the root cause of the decline of the Qing Dynasty. If science and technology are outdated, they will not be able to make progress, if the people's livelihood is poor, the foundation will be unstable, and if the army is broken, there will be external troubles.
It is worth mentioning that these three comments of Magalny are not unfounded. Behind them was Britain's colonial ambitions. The British have insight into China's weakness and are plotting how to divide this huge piece of fat. Therefore, these three sentences not only reveal the shortcomings of the Qing Dynasty, but also conceal the murderous motive of the country.
Although Emperor Qianlong was furious when he heard this, he was helpless after all. A dynasty that was once powerful and proud of all directions was so clearly and brutally unstruck by an envoy from a distant country. This is nothing less than the greatest mockery of the hypocritical "prosperous Kangqian era." From then on, the Qing Dynasty accelerated its decline under the foreshadowing of Magalny's judgment.
Fourth, Magalny has insight into the signs of China's decline
Magalny, the British envoy, who had only stayed in China for a few months, had a keen insight to accurately point out the root cause of the decline of the Qing Dynasty. The three major viewpoints he put forward are interlocking and go straight to the point, indicating that China's dilapidated warship is doomed to be destroyed.
First of all, Magalny saw through the decadence and incompetence of the Qing regime. In Qianlong's later years, autocracy intensified and corruption was rampant. The excessive concentration of power in the individual, coupled with the incompetence of the latter part of Qianlong's rule, led to the increasing rigidity of the entire ruling group. Cultural ideas were extremely suppressed, and the spirit of innovation could not be cultivated, which was an important reason for the backwardness of science and technology in the Qing Dynasty.
Second, Magalny pointed to the crisis of internal and external troubles in the Qing Dynasty. Internally, the old policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing business has restricted the development of the commodity economy, and the hardship of people's livelihood has brewed the root cause of riots. Externally, in addition to the continuous struggle in the northwest, Taiwan and other places, there are also Western powers eyeing and eager to carve up China's big fat meat. However, the Qing Dynasty and the opposition generally lack a sense of crisis, and insist on the practice of self-isolation and arrogance, which is destined to fall into a situation of isolation and helplessness.
Thirdly, Magalny had a deep insight into the decay and incompetence of the Qing army. At that time, the Eight Banners Manchurian Army had long since ossified into a veteran gang of battle-hardened soldiers, armed with outdated firearms and loose military discipline. Although Qianlong tried to rectify it, it was basically to no avail. Once the external invasion hits, the Qing Dynasty is powerless to fight back, and can only be slaughtered by others.
The reason why Magalny was able to see the shortcomings of the Qing Dynasty so thoroughly was not only due to his natural intelligence, but also due to the fact that Britain was an expanding colonial empire with rich experience. The British know how to dismantle a country and swallow its land, step by step. Therefore, as soon as the British envoy saw the Qing Dynasty, he immediately discovered its fatal flaw.
This trip to Magalny was originally to prepare for trade in China. But what he saw and heard on the way had convinced him that the Qing Dynasty was falling into hopeless decay and incompetence, and was doomed. If you want to get a piece of China's fertile land, now is the best time. As a result, Magalny returned with three sentences and drew a blueprint for British colonial expansion in China.
Sure enough, after returning home, Magalny's report caused a great shock in British political circles. Then, Britain began to expand in China, which eventually led to the outbreak of the Opium War. Since then, the Qing Dynasty has entered the countdown to the demise of the country, and the once prosperous era no longer exists. Magalny's visit can be said to be the fuse that pushed China to colonize.
5. The Opium War and the Fall of the Qing Dynasty
Magalny's three sentences opened a breakthrough for the British Empire's expansion in China. Soon after returning to China, the British began to plot to use the opium trafficking as an entry point to achieve economic plunder and political infiltration into China. Finally, in 1839, the contradictions caused by the opium problem were condensed to the extreme, and the famous Opium War broke out.
In June 1840, the British army captured the city of Guangzhou, and then went north along the coast, occupying Ningbo, Zhenjiang and other places. In the face of the British army's ironclad ships and new artillery, the Qing army was defeated and retreated, and there was no way to fight back. In 1842, the Qing dynasty and the opposition finally reluctantly accepted the Sino-British Treaty of Nanjing, ceded Hong Kong, opened the five ports to trade, paid an indemnity of 21 million silver dollars, and foreigners had the right to have offices in China.
The signing of the Treaty of Nanjing marked the end of the Opium War and the end of the Qing Dynasty. After that, Britain, France, Russia, Japan and other powers pounced on the old system on the verge of collapse like hungry wolves, and threatened China with force one after another, forcing China to sign a series of unequal treaties that humiliated the country.
In this catastrophe, the prosperous Kangqian era ceased to exist, and China's dilapidated warship was completely destroyed. Magalny's three sentences proved his foresight and became the fuse that promoted the collapse of the Qing Dynasty. As Magalny said, the three evils of backward science and technology, poor people's livelihood, and incompetent military have finally pushed Chinese civilization into the abyss of no return.
The unequal treaties with the Western powers suffered an unprecedented blow, plunging the Qing Dynasty into an unprecedented crisis in all aspects of economy, politics, and military. Economically, the forced opening of ports, the outflow of large quantities of silver, and the flooding of foreign goods into the interior have dealt a heavy blow to the national industry and commerce, which has been stagnant. On the political front, it was forced to accommodate privileges such as foreigners' offices and consular jurisdiction in China, and the foreign concession became a "state within a state". Militarily, the Qing army had no strength to fight back, and only relied on Manchu and Han civil and military personnel to form a guard to barely maintain.
Under the double blow of internal and external troubles, the Qing Dynasty rapidly declined and collapsed. Peasant uprisings arose one after another, and eventually evolved into the Taiping Rebellion, the first act of modern history. At the same time, ethnic contradictions in various localities have intensified, and the independence forces in Xinjiang, Yunnan, and Taiwan have been separated one after another. Since then, the Qing Dynasty has been in a state of collapse and has become the target of colonial plunder in China by Western powers.
It is worth mentioning that the roots of the fallen country have long been brewed under the appearance of vanity and prosperity in the prosperous Kangqian era. Magalny saw through this, so he could see the signs of China's demise. To a certain extent, the defeat in the Opium War was only the trigger for the fall of the Qing Dynasty, and the root cause was rooted in the internal accumulation. From this point of view, the fall of the Qing Dynasty is destined to be a bell that rings late.