Formation of Manchus
before 1644
Manchus, descendants of the Jurchen, were a minor population in China who were originally from Heilongjiang and Jilin. At first, they were separated into many tribes and led by their chieftains. However, around 1582, a war broke out between their tribes and Nurhaci was able to come out on top. Therefore, he unified many Jurchen tribes and proclaimed himself as Khan, the leader. For the sake of expanding their power, the Manchus declared independent from the Ming dynasty so they can wage wars and conquer the remnants of the Jurchens who were still allied with the Ming dynasty. With the ambition of conquering the Ming, Manchus tried to gain more powers through the intermarriage with the Mongols. However, their power was still not enough to realize their ambition as they were defeated by the Ming in 1626 while trying to siege Ningyuang. After this campaign, their leader passed away and was succeeded by his son, Hung Taiji. With the new leadership, the Manchus went to war with the Ming and suffered another defeat due to the Portuguese cannon acquired by the Ming. As the Manchus retreated, they captured Ming artisans who were experts at creating cannon in order for them to create their own artillery squad. Furthermore, they reformed their military by dividing their large forces into banners for mobility and self-strengthen. With these reforms, the Manchus invaded Korea and won many battles against the Ming. As the reward, they gained control over the region of Songshan and the Ming had to withdraw from the north of the Great Wall. In 1635, Hung Taiji adopted the name Manchus for all the Jurchen people and declared his state as the Great Qing with him as the emperor.
Achievements
Government
As conquerors, the Manchus didn't treat other people as a lesser but an equal, The people who they conquered were able to hold important jobs in the government as well as joining the military to further expand the territories. With this policy, the emperor can utilize power from the conquered cities and lessen the dependence on his original force. On the other hand, the administration policy encouraged the Ming citizens to surrender when they fought against the Manchus. During the conquest, the Manchus still used the Ming officials to overlook their territory. However, most of the top government positions were in the possession of the Manchus.
Multiethnic State
The Manchus origin was the Jurchen people who were a minority in China. However, they were able to acquire an enormous power through marriage with the Mongolians. With ties to their neighbors, they were able to further expand their land through the conquest of the Ming and Korea. Even as the dominant force, they lived peacefully with other people so they didn't have to face rebellions during their early and middle stages of the empire. Under their rule, everyone was the same under the law of the administration. As a result, it enabled the Great Qing to exist until just about 100 years ago.
