World-changing1616 – 1683 · 67 years
Manchu Conquest of China
China · Manchuria · Ming Empire
Jurchen invaders overthrew the Ming Dynasty, founding the Qing Empire that ruled China until 1912.
Estimated casualties
500K – 3.0Mestimated dead
HEADLINE3.0M — the single figure used on the map
1618-1683; transition period
SOURCEQing dynasty records; Clodfelter
What happened
The Jurchen people, based in Manchuria, were organized by the Nurhaci and his son Hong Taiji into a confederation rivaling the Ming Dynasty. The Shunzhi Emperor, a child, was controlled by his Manchu regent. After the Ming collapse in 1644, the Qing armies poured south, conquering province by province. Chinese resistance under the southern Ming lasted until 1662 (Zheng Chenggong). The Qing consolidated power through the Kangxi and Qianlong reigns, suppressing internal rebellions (Three Feudatories War, 1673-1681) and extending borders to their largest extent. Military technology, including early cannons, played a key role.
Why it mattered
The Qing became China's last imperial dynasty, ruling 268 years. Qing expansion created the territorial boundaries of modern China. The conquest prompted the adoption of Han administrative practices by the Manchus. The Qing's internal stability and expansion made it a dominant Asian power until Western imperialism challenged it in the 19th century.
Belligerents3
- Qing Dynasty
- Ming Dynasty
- Manchu
ON THE MAPQing DynastyMing Dynasty
Conflict graph
SUB-CONFLICTS · 10
Sources
- Wikipedia: Qing conquest of Ming
- Britannica: Qing Dynasty
- Clodfelter, Warfare and Armed Conflicts (4th ed., 2017)
- Wikipedia — text reused under CC BY-SA 4.0
Open in the atlas →Seeks the timeline to 1616 and opens this record.
Cite as: Manchu Conquest of China (1616 – 1683). War Atlas. https://waratlas.org/c/manchu-conquest-china · Sources & methodology