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The Chinese Journal of International Politics 2007 1(3):405-445; doi:10.1093/cjip/pom004
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Reproduced from the Science of International Politics, with kind permission of the authors and the Institute of International Studies, Tsinghua University

The Late Qing Dynasty Diplomatic Transformation: Analysis from an Ideational Perspective

Zhang Xiaomin* and Xu Chunfeng

* Corresponding author. Email: zhangxm95@126.com

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

During the 19th century, the Imperial Qing Dynasty gradually waned, as the power of Western capitalist states surged and consolidated.1 The formidable military force commanded by the Western powers gained them entry into China's vast territory, wherein to extend their power parameters. Yet, the constant pressure exerted by Western gunboats, and this eminently advanced civilization as a whole, did little to sway the Qing government from its traditional mode of Chinese Dynastic diplomacy. This raises the questions, why should the Qing government seriously imperil state security throughout its two-decade, persistent adherence to outmoded statecraft? And why did the transformation in foreign policy that lead to the Qing government's diplomatic modernization occur so rapidly after the signing of the Treaty of Peking?

A rationalist approach within the academic field of international relations (IR) generally cites power and interests as the primary causes or determinants of a state's external behaviour, ideas . . . [Full Text of this Article]


   Explanatory Models of the Late Qing Diplomatic Transformation
 

   Ideas, Their Functions, and Paths
 

   Qing Dynasty Traditional Ideas of Foreign Relations and their Impact on Diplomacy
 
Inheriting and Sustaining Traditional Ideas

A. Geographical Self-centredness

B. Civilizational Self-centredness

C. Huayiguan

Diplomacy under the Influence of Traditional Ideas


   Transformation of Traditional Ideas and the Impact on Diplomacy46
 
Transformation of Traditional Ideas

A. Recognition of the New Situation

B. Transformation of the Sino-centric Worldview

C. Transformation of China's Huayiguan Value System


   Late Qing Faithfulness and Justice Diplomacy and Efforts to Reconcile with the West
 

   The Emergence of Modernity and the Modernization of Late Qing Diplomacy
 
The Introduction of International Law to China, the Rise of the Concept of Sovereignty and their Influence on Late Qing Diplomacy

A. International Law Introduced to China

B. Emergence of the Concept of Sovereignty

Use of International Law to Protect the State's Sovereign Interests


   Late Qing's Recognition of the need to Establish Foreign Legations
 
The Emergence of the Idea of Modern Diplomatic Missions in the Late Qing Government

Establishment of Legations Abroad


   Conclusion
 

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