1850–1864 CE · Asia · War
The Taiping rebellion and the crisis of Qing rule
Hong Xiuquan’s movement challenged the Qing state with a rival religious and political programme. Civil war devastated large parts of China.
Gary Lee Todd, Ph.D. / City Museum, Changsha / Wikimedia Commons · CC0 1.0 · Converted to WebP · Source and rights ↗ · Licence terms
A rival vision of society
Hong Xiuquan and his followers sought to overturn Qing rule and establish a Heavenly Kingdom. Their programme combined religious ideas with proposals about property, land and social organisation. The movement attracted people who saw an alternative to their existing circumstances.
War on a vast scale
The rebels controlled substantial territory, including their capital at Nanjing. The Qing eventually defeated the movement in 1864, relying increasingly on regional military forces. The damage to communities and agriculture outlasted the fighting.
Dates and death estimates
Accounts date the movement’s beginnings to 1850 or the proclamation of its kingdom in 1851. The end date refers to the fall of the principal regime, not an instantaneous end to all violence. Mortality estimates are reconstructions; a precise total should not be presented as an enumerated count.