{"title":"Rewriting the Ningshan Mutiny: Changing Conceptions of Military Authority in the Early Nineteenth-Century Qing Empire","authors":"James Bonk","doi":"10.1163/22127453-12341329","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"\nThe Ningshan mutiny, a revolt of recent recruits at the Ningshan Green Standard garrison in Shaanxi in 1806, provides a useful case for exploring changing conceptions of military authority in the early nineteenth-century Qing empire. Focusing on contrasting explanations for the mutiny from the immediate aftermath of the mutiny and the Daoguang reign (1821-1850), this article argues that the first half of the nineteenth century saw a growing embrace among statecraft thinkers, military officers, and the Qing court of what Max Weber referred to as charismatic authority. Rather than posing a threat to central control and military discipline, charismatic officers—including the former brigade general of Ningshan, Yang Fang—were viewed as a potential solution to the structural problems facing the Green Standards, the largely Han branch of the Qing military.","PeriodicalId":38003,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Chinese Military History","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.1000,"publicationDate":"2018-10-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1163/22127453-12341329","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Chinese Military History","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1163/22127453-12341329","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"ASIAN STUDIES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The Ningshan mutiny, a revolt of recent recruits at the Ningshan Green Standard garrison in Shaanxi in 1806, provides a useful case for exploring changing conceptions of military authority in the early nineteenth-century Qing empire. Focusing on contrasting explanations for the mutiny from the immediate aftermath of the mutiny and the Daoguang reign (1821-1850), this article argues that the first half of the nineteenth century saw a growing embrace among statecraft thinkers, military officers, and the Qing court of what Max Weber referred to as charismatic authority. Rather than posing a threat to central control and military discipline, charismatic officers—including the former brigade general of Ningshan, Yang Fang—were viewed as a potential solution to the structural problems facing the Green Standards, the largely Han branch of the Qing military.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Chinese Military History (JCMH) is a peer-reviewed semi-annual that publishes research articles and book reviews. It aims to fill the need for a journal devoted specifically to China''s martial past and takes the broadest possible view of military history, embracing both the study of battles and campaigns and the broader, social-history oriented approaches that have become known as "the new military history." It aims to publish a balanced mix of articles representing a variety of approaches to both modern and pre-modern Chinese military history. The journal also welcomes comparative and theoretical work as well as studies of the military interactions between China and other states and peoples, including East Asian neighbors such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.