Absolutism in China under Kangxi
Kangxi ruled China longer than any other ruler in its history. His reign, from 1661 to 1722, was generally a time of peace and prosperity in China. Kangxi was not the founder but the consolidator of the Qing Dynasty. Although he was an absolutist, he was generally considered a conscientious and fair ruler.
The Manchus, a minority Chinese ethnic group in northeastern China, established the Qing Dynasty when they defeated the Ming Dynasty in 1644. Early in his reign, Kangxi faced a civil war, called the War of the Three Feudatories. He defeated the rebels and so firmly consolidated Qing power within China. Kangxi further secured the borders. In 1661, at the inception of his rule, he had 150,000 soldiers and by 1684 there were 315,000 people in his army. Kangxi frequently held meetings with his military leaders because he believed that a general who occasionally bowed to the emperor remained humble and “properly fearful.” This act of a deep bow before the emperor, where one touches their head to the ground nine times, was known as kowtow. All subjects as well as foreigners had to perform kowtow when meeting the emperor. With his strong and well disciplined army of Manchu warriors he expanded Chinese control to the south and west, conquered the island of Taiwan, and secured the borders from nomadic attacks.
Kangxi walked the fine line between convincing the Manchus (who still valued the nomadic, warrior ideal) of his soldierly skill, while proving to the Han Chinese, which composed an overwhelming majority of the Chinese population, that he respected their refined, traditional, Confucian-based culture. Kangxi was not an innovator. He used the same governmental setup of the Ming, the previous rulers, as he paired a Manchu official in the provinces with a Chinese official. The Manchus supervised while the Han Chinese did the work. He gave Han Chinese important jobs because he needed their support to help him ruler efficiently and effectively. He reduced taxes, an obvious benefit to the peasants. He also stopped the practice of allowing Manchus to take over good Chinese farms. He went on many tours during his reign to see firsthand how his subjects lived and fared under his rule.
He did, however, follow the Qing policy of requiring Chinese men to shave the frontof their heads and grow a ponytail a queueas it is called, which was a visual and humiliating sign of submission to the Manchus. The policy was “lose your hair or lose your head.” In addition, Han Chinese were not allowed out after dark, they could not marry Manchu women, travel to Manchuria, or even enter a business partnership with a Manchu. Although the Han could become high level government officials they were denied access to the military for obvious reasons.
Kangxi was a dedicated ruler. He arose before dawn, and his first order of business was to hear a lecture on the Confucian Classics. He spent most of the day meeting with various officials. He created the equivalent of the modern American CIA where secret agents throughout the empire reported to him daily in palace memorials. These detailed special reports were only seen by the emperor and bypassed official channels of communication. These secret agents sniffed out would be plots, corruption, and basic information useful to the emperor. Sometimes the letters were about local harvests, the problems of the people, and the problems faced by local governor.
Close supervision of the foodstuffs and silk production was important to a ruler who relied on a closely regulated economy. The textile factories at Najing, Hangzhou, and Suzhou were monopolies run by the government, which provided funds and established production quotas. During his reign, Kangxi tried to strengthen these government controls over trade. In 1699, for example, a statute ended private rights to purchase copper and gave the copper monopoly to merchants from the imperial household.
He spent most of the day meeting with various officials, but he also devoted time to practicing calligraphy and writing poems. His activities kept him busy until midnight. I-lis example extended to those around him. The imperial court lived a relatively frugal existence, and corruption was kept to a minimum.
Kangxi was a strong supporter of the Confucian scholarly ideal. He sponsored a famous dictionary, an encyclopedia, and a history of the previous dynasty. In 1670 he issued "The Sacred Edict," a collection of 16 maxims that emphasized the traditional Confucian virtues of submission to hierarchy, generosity, obedience, thrift, and hard work. tIe strengthened the Confucian exam system and ensured its fairness. I-Ie himself was an artist, and he supported the arts. It has been claimed that he so loved learning that "his hands were never free from books." This is probably an exaggeration, since the writings that he left are not very sophisticated, but it is certainly true that he was a strong supporter of education and the arts. He was a horseman and hunter, known for his vigor.
Kangxi died in 1722 without naming an heir. He was succeeded by his son, Yongzheng, who struggled to ensure his grip on power. He ruled for 13 years and was succeeded by Qianlong, who ruled from 1735 to 1792. Many consider the time from Kangxi's accession in 1662 until Qianlong's death in 1792 to be a Chinese golden age. On the whole, Kangxi left a wonderful legacy of peace and prosperity.