In 1644, the Manchus, a relatively unknown people inhabiting China-s rude northeastern frontier, overthrew the Ming, Asia-s mightiest rulers, and established the Qing dynasty, which endured to 1912. From this event arises one of Chinese history-s great conundrums: How did a barely literate alien people manage to remain in power for nearly 300 years over a highly cultured population that was vastly superior in number? This problem has fascinated scholars for almost a century, but until now no one has approached the question from the Manchu point of view.
This book, the first in any language to be based mainly on Manchu documents, supplies a radically new perspective on the formative period of the modern Chinese nation. Drawing on recent critical notions of ethnicity, the author explores the evolution of the -Eight Banners,- a unique Manchu system of social and military organization that was instrumental in the conquest of the Ming.
The author argues that as rulers of Chin
