The Politics of Access at the Qing Court: the Young Kangxi Emperor and His Personal Advisors

The Institute for Chinese Studies at the Ohio State University presents a talk on the politics in the Qing Dynasty as part of the "China at a Crossroads" Lecture Series.

Michael G. Chang, Associate Professor of History and Art History, George Mason University

Michael G. Chang is a specialist in the history of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911).  He received his A.B. in sociology and East Asian Studies from Princeton University and his Ph.D in Chinese history from the University of California, San Diego. In addition to a full-length monograph, A Court on Horseback: Imperial Touring and the Construction of Qing Rule, 1680-1785 (Harvard, 2007), he has also written scholarly articles appearing in Late Imperial China, Frontiers of History in China, The Qing History Journal (Qingshi yanjiu ????) and an edited volume, Cinema and Urban Culture in Shanghai, 1922-1943 (Stanford, 1999). His current research focuses upon the political and material cultures in and through which High Qing rule (1680-1820) was constituted, especially as revealed in practices of material exchange and network formation at the Qing court. He regularly offers courses on ancient, traditional, modern, and contemporary Chinese history as well as global history, East Asian history, and Chinese nationalisms.

Current Research
“Network Formation at the Imperial Court and the Making of Qing Rule in Eighteenth Century China, 1680-1820.”

Selected Publications
A Court on Horseback:  Imperial Touring and the Construction of Qing Rule, 1680-1785. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center/Harvard University Press, 2007.

"Civil-Military Tensions during the Kangxi Emperor's First Southern Tour." Frontiers of History in China  6.1 (March 2011): 26-52. Simultaneously published in Chinese as: Zhang Mianzhi (Michael G. Chang), Qingshi yanjiu (The Qing History Journal) No. 1 (2011): 78-89.

 “Kangxi’s Imperial Tours:  a Historical Reconsideration.” In The Kangxi Emperor: Conference Proceedings  (Singapore: Asian Civilisations Museum, 2010).

 “Fathoming Qianlong: Imperial Activism, the Southern Tours and the Politics of Water Control, 1736-1765.” Late Imperial China 24.2 (December 2003).

 “The Good, the Bad, & the Beautiful: Movie Actresses & Public Discourse in Shanghai, 1920s-1930s.” In Cinema and Urban Culture in Shanghai, 1922-1943. Edited by Yingjin Zhang. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1999.

Courses Taught
HIST 125: Introduction to World History
HIST 252: History of East Asia, Part 2
HIST 387: Early (Ancient) China
HIST 353: Traditional China
HIST 354: Modern China
HIST 358: Contemporary (Post-1949) China
HIST 555: Chinese Nationalism(s)
HIST 555: Late Imperial China, 1500-1800

Recent Presentations
“The Politics of the Bow and the Brush at the Early Kangxi Court, 1670-1684.” Paper presented at “Past and Present in China: the Influence of History from Empire to Republic.” New York University, New York, NY. 2-3 December 2011.

“The Recruitment of Lower Yangzi (Jiangnan) Literati to the Kangxi Court, 1670s.” Paper presented at “Structures and Legacies of Dynastic Power in Late Imperial China and Early Modern Europe: Servants and Administrators—From the Courts to the Provinces.” Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands. 31 August-2 September 2011.

“The Historical Narratives of the Kangxi Emperor’s Inaugural Tour to Suzhou, 1684.” Paper presented at “Structures and Legacies of Dynastic Power in Late Imperial China and Early Modern Europe: Rulers, Palaces, and Wider Worlds—Ritual and Cultural Connections.” Herzog August Bibliotek, Wolfenbüttel, Germany. 16-18 March 2011.

“The Symbolic Significance of the Kangxi Emperor’s Early Imperial Tours”. Paper presented at the international academic conference on “Qing Politics & National Identity”, organized by the Institute of Qing History, Renmin University of China, Beijing, PRC. 9-11 August 2010.

 “The Kangxi Emperor’s Early Imperial Tours and the Politics of Knowledge Production.” Presentation at the USC Department of History Colloquium Series, the University of Southern California. Los Angeles, CA. 26 April 2010.

“The Political and Material Cultures of Qing Rule as seen through Kangxi’s Southern Tours”. Presentation in Mandarin Chinese at the Institute of Qing History’s Academic Workshop Seminar, Renmin University of China, Beijing, PRC. 17 June 2009.

 “The Flow of Gifts at Kangxi’s Court: a General, a Poet, a Governor, and Their Diaries.” Invited talk at the Department of Chinese Studies, National University of Singapore. 20 March 2009; and at the Center for Early Modern History, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN. 16 February 2009.

In the Media
“Conference Report: 'Reign of the Kangxi Emperor'.” China Heritage Quarterly No. 17, 2009.