What was the Qing Dynasty?
The last empire of China was not Chinese. Manchu horsemen from the northeast conquered the Ming, doubled China's size, and ruled the largest state on earth for nearly three centuries — until opium, steamships, and revolution ended two thousand years of imperial rule for good.
Last updated: October 2026
Beijing ★ Canton Hong Kong Xinjiang Tibet Mongolia Greatest extent — stylized map 1644 Conquest 1683 South subdued 1735 Qianlong's reign 1839 Opium Wars 1912 Qing falls Rise · zenith · fall The rise The Manchus were Jurchen descendants from beyond the Great Wall who had built a formidable banner army — Manchu, Mongol, and Chinese banners fighting as one machine. In 1644, invited through the Wall to crush a peasant rebellion, they took Beijing for themselves, and the child Shunzhi Emperor was proclaimed. The guests kept the house.