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Yee, Ki Yip (2017) The late Qing Xinzheng (new policies) reforms in Mongolia, 1901‐1911. PhD thesis. SOAS University of London. http://eprints.soas.ac.uk/26678 Copyright © and Moral Rights for this thesis are retained by the author and/or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non‐commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder/s. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. When referring to this thesis, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given e.g. AUTHOR (year of submission) "Full thesis title", name of the School or Department, PhD Thesis, pagination. The Late Qing Xinzheng (New Policies) Reforms in Mongolia, 1901-1911 KI YIP YEE Thesis submitted for the degree of PhD 2017 Department of History SOAS, University of London Abstract The aim of this thesis is to analyse the nature, imposition and effects of the late Qing xinzheng 新政 reforms in Mongolia, and to analyze the episode from its historical roots till the dynasty’s demise in 1911. Put simply, xinzheng was a modernization drive implemented throughout the Qing empire in order to save the dynasty from irreversible decline and, to a certain extent, to emulate the astounding success of the Meiji reforms in neighbouring Japan. For the purpose of this thesis, the analysis has been subdivided into the categories of agrarian policy, administrative reform, training of new armies, establishment of modern schools, introduction of new enterprises, exploitation of natural resources, construction of railways, and establishment of postal and telegram services. The xinzheng were very much the product of macro-historical forces, such as the weakening of the Qing empire since the mid-nineteenth century, the presence of imperialist powers on China’s soil, and the relative rise of Han Chinese officials and decline of Mongolian nobility in late Qing politics. The reforms not only failed to save the Qing empire, but they further intensified the inter-ethnic tensions between Han, Manchus and Mongols. Coupled with historical contingencies (e.g. personal ambitions of Qing officials, the attitudes of Mongolian leaders), the xinzheng reforms eventually led to the independence movement of Outer Mongolia, and the parting ways between Outer and Inner Mongolia. Many scholars of Mongolian history have not considered the xinzheng reforms in Qing Mongolia as having had any lasting impact upon the region, apart from triggering the independence movement. Consequently, this important event has been largely neglected and generally treated only as a short chapter in Mongolia’s history, or as a 3 side aspect in the relations between China and Russia. Conversely, the reforms in Mongolia magnified the division between Inner and Outer Mongolia, and altered the geopolitical situation in Inner Asia. To date, no study has been attempted which charts the modernization of Mongolia as a direct consequence of the late imperial reform policies. This thesis therefore fills an important lacuna in the historical gestation of inner Asia. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract 3 Table of Contents 5 Acknowledgements 7 Introduction 9 Chapter 1: Mongolia in the Early Qing Period Subjugation of Mongolia 25 Mongolian Influence on Qing Formation 30 Qing Policy towards Mongolia 33 Conclusion 47 Chapter 2: Decay of Mongolia in the Nineteenth Century Spread of Agriculture 50 Penetration of Han Chinese Trade 57 Management of Han Chinese Migrants 60 Han Chinese Moneylending and Mongolian Poverty 62 Growth of Monastic Establishment and Wealth 67 Conclusion 72 Chapter 3: Growing Russian Presence in Mongolia Russian Extension to Mongolia before Mid-nineteenth Century 76 Russian Presence in Mongolia during Mid-nineteenth Century 77 Sino-Russian Rivalry in Mongolia 82 Conclusion 84 Chapter 4: Xinzheng in Inner Mongolia (I) Rise of Han Chinese Officials and Xinzheng 89 Debt and Threat 91 5 Chapter 4 (Cont’d) Fangken Mengdi 放墾蒙地 (Reclaiming Mongolian Lands for 92 Agriculture) Expansion of jun xian zhi 郡縣制 (Chinese-style Administration) 116 Choumeng gaizhi 籌蒙改制 (Reforming Mongolian Institutions) 120 Chapter 5: Xinzheng in Inner Mongolia (II) Military Revitalization 133 Educational Reforms 140 Modern Transport and Communications 151 Modern Enterprises 157 Conclusion 162 Chapter 6: Xinzheng in Outer Mongolia Limited Xinzheng Reforms in Kobdo and Uliastai 166 Xinzheng Reforms in Urga before 1910 169 Sando’s Modernization Drive in Urga 171 Khalkha Mongols’ Reaction to Xinzheng 177 Mongolian Secret Mission to Russia 180 Mongolia Proclaimed Independence 184 Why Outer Mongolia? 186 Conclusion 192 Chapter 7: Parting Way Han Chinese Views on the Frontier Ethnic Groups 195 China Seeks to Woo the Mongols 199 Inner Mongols’ Response 205 China’s Unsuccessful Attempt to Woo Outer Mongolia 209 Khalkhas’ Consolidation of Outer Mongolia 212 Khalkhas’ Overture to Inner Mongolia 213 Russo-Mongolian Agreement 215 Military Campaigns in Inner Mongolia 217 Conclusion 218 Conclusion 222 Bibliography 231 6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I started to work on the present topic in 2011. Yet my interest in Chinese frontier studies began in 2009. In this regard, I have to thank Dr. Wing-on Yeung 楊永安 , Honorary Associate Professor of the University of Hong Kong. Dr. Yeung was the first scholar to draw my attention to the far-flung corners of China’s realm, in particular the significance of the interactions between Han Chinese and non-Han peoples in the frontier regions on the shaping of modern China’s history. I am also indebted to Prof. Hon-ming Yip 葉漢明 , Adjunct Professor of the History Department, Chinese University of Hong Kong. As the supervisor of my MPhil. study, Prof. Yip has had a profound impact on my intellectual development. As anyone who studies Chinese history knows, documentary records are voluminous and most of them are kept in the archives on both sides of the Strait. In my case, the materials maintained in Inner Mongolia were also relevant. Getting access to these archival materials required me to make fieldwork trips to Beijing in 2013, Taipei in 2012 and 2014, and Hohhot in 2016 . In this connection, I would like to thank the staff at the First Historical Archives in Beijing, the Archives in the National Palace Museum in Taipei, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Archives in Hohhot for their unfailing assistance and useful suggestions, without which my work would not have been possible. I owe special gratitude to several Taiwanese scholars. Without their help and encouragement, my fieldwork trips to Taipei would not have been as fruitful. Dr. Mei- hua Lan 藍美華 of National Cheng Chi University not only tutored me in the Mongolian language, but also provided me with Mongolian books related to my research. I benefited greatly by her article on the New Administration in Mongolia and her dissertation on the Mongolian independence movement of 1911. I am also grateful 7 to Dr. Chung-fu Chang 張中復 , chair of the Ethnology Department, National Cheng Chi University. Though himself not a specialist of Mongolian history, Dr. Chang shared with me his profound knowledge of China’s Inner Asian frontiers, and provided me a lot of encouragement. I owe my gratitude to Prof. Chi-hsiung Chang 張啟雄 , Adjunct Research Fellow of Institute of Modern History, Academia Sinica. In addition to offering me valuable academic advice, Prof. Chang also gave me his book on the Qing court’s deliberations regarding the provincialization of the Mongolian region. I would also like to acknowledge the hospitality and warmth of Dr. Shih-hsuan Lin 林士鉉 and Dr. Min-shu Liao 廖敏淑 , who introduced me to many scholars in my academic field. Last but not least, I benefited greatly from my meeting with Prof. Chi-fa Chuang 莊吉 發, an accomplished scholar of Qing history, during which I had the chance to gain fresh perspectives on the history of the last imperial dynasty of China. I am deeply indebted to my supervisors, in particular Dr. Lars Laamann and Dr. Andrea Janku, for their much-needed counsel and consistent support. They read each chapter of my thesis, and made many detailed and penetrating comments, which have greatly improved my thesis. Needless to say, neither of them should bear the blame for any errors of facts or interpretation that this thesis may contain, as I am the only person who is responsible for its contents. I also thanked Dr. Anders Karlsson, the other member of the supervisory committee, for his approval of this thesis. Throughout my years of post-graduate studies, I owe my deepest gratitude to my parents. Without their continuous encouragement and financial support, I would not have been able to complete the degree. 8 Introduction Xinzheng studies: A Brief Survey This thesis scrutinizes the Qing court’s implementation of xinzheng 新政 reforms, also known as New Policy/New Policies or New Administration in English, in the Mongolian region during the first decade of the twentieth century and its aftermath. It seeks to investigate why and how the Qing state carried out the reforms in Inner and Outer Mongolia; what were the constraints on the reforms ; how the ascendency of Han Chinese officials in late Qing politics influenced the reform process; and, finally, why the Mongols on both sides of the Gobi Desert reacted so differently to the reforms, leading to the permanent split of the Mongolian region into Mongolia and the Autonomous Region of Inner Mongolia (now belonging to the People’s Republic of China). The xinzheng reforms, which were implemented throughout the Qing empire between 1901-1911, were initiated by the Manchu court as its last-ditch attempt to save imperial rule from collapse.