Tongzhi Restoration

The Tongzhi Restoration (simplified Chinese: 同治中兴; traditional Chinese: 同治中興; pinyin: Tóngzhì Zhōngxīng; c. 1860–1874) was an attempt to arrest the dynastic decline of the Qing dynasty of China by restoring the traditional order. The harsh realities of the Opium War, the unequal treaties, and the mid-century mass uprisings of the Taiping Rebellion caused Qing courtiers and officials to recognize the need to strengthen China. The Tongzhi Restoration was named for the Tongzhi Emperor (1862–1874), and was engineered by the young emperor's mother, the Empress Dowager Cixi (1835–1908). The restoration, however, which applied "practical knowledge" while reaffirming the old mentality, was not a genuine program of modernization. Academics are divided as to whether the Tongzhi Restoration arrested the dynastic decline, or merely delayed its inevitable occurrence.

The Tongzhi Restoration was a direct result of the Self-Strengthening Movement led by the statesmen Zeng Guofan (who became viceroy) and Li Hongzhang to revitalize government and improve economic and cultural conditions in China. A number of reforms were implemented such as the development of an official foreign ministry to deal with international affairs, the restoration of regional armies and regional strongmen, modernization of railroads, factories, and arsenals, an increase of industrial and commercial productivity, and the institution of a period of peace that allowed China time to modernize and develop.

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