Beijing - Beijing - page 410

QING-DYNASTY B Ě IJ Ī NG
The Manchus Move In
The Manchus established the Qing dynasty in 1644, although it took several decades before
they completed the conquest of the Ming empire. As a foreign dynasty, they took great
pains to present themselves as legitimate successors to the Chinese Ming dynasty. For this
reason they kept Běijīng as their capital and changed very little, effectively preserving
Yongle's city. The Manchu imperial family, the Aisin Gioro Clan, moved in to the Forbid-
den City, and imperial princes took large courtyard palaces.
Summer Palaces
Soon the Aisin Gioro family began to feel that living inside the confines of the Forbidden
City was claustrophobic. The great Emperor Kangxi (1654-1722) effectively moved the
court to what is now called the Old Summer Palace, a vast parkland of lakes, canals and
palaces linked to the city by the Jade Canal. The Manchus, like the Mongols, enjoyed hunt-
ing, riding, hawking, skating and archery. In summer, when Běijīng became hot and
steamy, the court moved to Chéngdé (formerly Jehol or Rehol, and now in modern-day
Héběi province), a week's ride to the north. At Chéngdé the court spent three months living
in felt tents (or yurts) in a walled parkland.
Bannermen
The Manchu army was divided into regiments called banners, so the troops were called
Bannermen (Qírén). Each banner had a separate colour by which it was known and its
troops settled in a particular residential area in Běijīng. The Embroidered Yellow Banner-
men, for example, lived near the Confucius Temple, and some of their descendants remain
there today. Only a minority were actually ethnic Manchus - the rest were Mongols or Han
Chinese.
Policing a Divided City
Běijīng at this stage was a Manchu city and foreigners called it the 'Tartar City' ('Tartars'
being the label given to any nomadic race from inner Asia). The Han Chinese lived in the
'Chinese city' to the south of Tiān'ānmén Square. This was the liveliest, most densely pop-
ulated area, packed with markets, shops, theatres, brothels and hostels for provincial visit-
ors. If Chinese people wanted to get to north Běijīng, they had to go all the way round the
outside walls. The Bannermen posted at the gates prevented anyone from entering without