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The Taiping Rebellion #1
The Taiping Rebellion: History and Documents, Volume I: History
The Taiping Rebellion, one of the greatest upheavals in modern Chinese history, is a fascinating example of the interplay of Chinese and Western ideas in the middle of the nineteenth century. This movement arose at a time when the Manchu regime was weakened by decay and corruption and trembling under the impact of foreign influence.
Beginning in Kwangsi Province in South China, where the economic effects of the Opium War were most profoundly felt, the rebellion swept through the central part of the country. The revels ultimately established their capital in Nanking and, until overwhelmed by Manchu imperial forces in 1864, very nearly succeeded in establishing their rule over all China.
The Taipings preached a strangely fanatic and distorted form of Christianity, a revolutionary doctrine that evolved from the limited and fragmentary knowledge of Christianity by their leader, hung Hsiu-ch'üan. appealing primarily to the poor and the dispossessed, then suffering from the chaos and insecurity of the times, the movement promised to bring about a Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace on earth in which all men would be brothers, all property would be held in common, and all women would be equal to me. Worshiping a Heavenly Father and a Heavenly Elder Brother (Jesus), they believed their leader to be the younger brother of Christ. Although they prescribed self-denial for their followers, the leaders often possessed large harems and lived in considerable luxury.
Why this movement arose and why it failed, whether it was the first Chinese revolution in the modern sense or only another of eh unsuccessful rebellions in Chinese history, are questions directly connected with the absorbing and difficult problem of why China failed to adapt itself successfully to the modern world.
In this new analysis, Franz Michael draws particular attention to the totalitarian nature of Taiping doctrine — a doctrine which ruled every aspect pf the lives of its followers and which centralized political. economic, religious, and intellectual authority in the hands of its leaders. he explains in depth how this challenge to the traditional Confucian system was met and defeated by the leaders of the Confucian gentry.
Essential for students of Chinese history, this first full history and analysis of the Taiping Rebellion will be of considerable interest as well to students of the institutional and intellectual development of the modern world.
Volumes II and III in this series present all known Taiping documents with comments and notes.
Beginning in Kwangsi Province in South China, where the economic effects of the Opium War were most profoundly felt, the rebellion swept through the central part of the country. The revels ultimately established their capital in Nanking and, until overwhelmed by Manchu imperial forces in 1864, very nearly succeeded in establishing their rule over all China.
The Taipings preached a strangely fanatic and distorted form of Christianity, a revolutionary doctrine that evolved from the limited and fragmentary knowledge of Christianity by their leader, hung Hsiu-ch'üan. appealing primarily to the poor and the dispossessed, then suffering from the chaos and insecurity of the times, the movement promised to bring about a Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace on earth in which all men would be brothers, all property would be held in common, and all women would be equal to me. Worshiping a Heavenly Father and a Heavenly Elder Brother (Jesus), they believed their leader to be the younger brother of Christ. Although they prescribed self-denial for their followers, the leaders often possessed large harems and lived in considerable luxury.
Why this movement arose and why it failed, whether it was the first Chinese revolution in the modern sense or only another of eh unsuccessful rebellions in Chinese history, are questions directly connected with the absorbing and difficult problem of why China failed to adapt itself successfully to the modern world.
In this new analysis, Franz Michael draws particular attention to the totalitarian nature of Taiping doctrine — a doctrine which ruled every aspect pf the lives of its followers and which centralized political. economic, religious, and intellectual authority in the hands of its leaders. he explains in depth how this challenge to the traditional Confucian system was met and defeated by the leaders of the Confucian gentry.
Essential for students of Chinese history, this first full history and analysis of the Taiping Rebellion will be of considerable interest as well to students of the institutional and intellectual development of the modern world.
Volumes II and III in this series present all known Taiping documents with comments and notes.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 1966
34 people want to read
About the author
Franz H. Michael
15 booksFranz Harold Michael (1907–1992) was a German-born American scholar of China, whose teaching career was spent at University of Washington, Seattle, and at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 6, 2018
This was, if I remember correctly, the fifth book I read on the Taiping and the fourth true secondary work, following those of Spence (1996), Platt (2012) and Reilly (2004). What struck me at first was that it was somewhat dry, especially compared to the prior three. However, I came to appreciate the substance despite its stylistic shortcomings. Michael and Zhang were aiming to produce a synthesis of their work compiling and translating virtually all the Taiping sources then known, with the natural addition of information from Western and Qing sources to fill in the gaps, and so this work covers quite a bit of information absent from Spence and Platt's (especially on the period between 1856 and 1859). At the same time, when it comes to their areas of focus Spence and Platt are far more detailed. What are implicitly included in this Goodreads entry are the two volumes containing the aforementioned Taiping sources, which I was only able to acquire for well over USD 120 (making my failure to read them as of writing this review all the more embarrassing.) For Volume I alone I'd have given it a 3, but with all 3 volumes in mind I've given it a 4 - the source collections, whilst not completely exhaustive (and especially less so as documentation is occasionally discovered), are close enough to complete that they may as well be, the most glaring omission being the confession of Li Xiucheng, which can be found with detailed commentary by C. A. Curwen as 'Taiping Rebel'.
February 15, 2018
I read this for a college course in 1981. I wrote a paper on the subject and so I had to read at least three books to come to any sort of synthesis. I have never forgotten the experience. I did a terrible job, which helped me decide not to become a scholar.
May 4, 2018
comprehensive background of the Taiping Rebellion that is worth checking out. wish the documents portion of this set was easier to find, though :(
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews