What impact did the population growth in Qing Dynasty have on society?

First of all, the expansion of population has aggravated the tension between man and land and contributed to the intensification of class contradictions. This is a very important related factor that triggered the Anbaili Uprising in Qing Dynasty and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement.

Generally speaking, in the Qing dynasty, four acres of land per capita could support life. By 1766, the per capita land fell to 3.52 mu, and by 18 12, it fell to 2. 19 mu. After hundreds of years, the private ownership of large land in Qing dynasty developed to Qianlong period, which made the land possession very unbalanced and the population increased by more than 45%, which aggravated the tension between people and land and intensified class contradictions.

If the "rebellion" in the early Qing Dynasty was a struggle against the Qing Dynasty and regained sight with national consciousness, then the Anbaili Uprising of 1796- 1804 was mainly a struggle for living space. The Anbaili Uprising, which lasted for nine years and spread to nine provinces, reduced the population of China by11030,000. 1968+0850 The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement was also the result of population pressure. "As far as the social and economic background of modern China is concerned, the most noteworthy reason leading to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's revolutionary movement is the problem of population oppression" (Zhuang: Textual Research on the Origin of Heaven and Earth Societies in Qing Dynasty, Forbidden City Series 198 1 Edition, p.14). After the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement, the population decline was even more alarming.

Although the statistics of many experts are inconsistent, for example, Hu Huanyong thinks that from the first year of Xianfeng (185 1) to the third year of Tongzhi (1864), the population of China decreased by1.700 million; 2 1 Kelly Y Zhou and thought that from the first year of Xianfeng (185 1) to the decade of tongzhi (187 1), the population of the whole country decreased by1.60 billion. 22 Chen believes that during the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, "the deceased accounted for almost one-third of the country's total population, about10 million"; Ge Xiongjian thinks that "the total population has decreased by1.654,38+0.24 in the fourteen years from 65438 to 1.865". No matter which number it is, it shows that the population loss after the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement is very alarming. Reducing population through war is the cruelest way to relieve population pressure.

Secondly, population expansion has aggravated ethnic contradictions. The rapid increase in population has caused many Han people to flood into ethnic minority areas and compete with them for living space, thus triggering ethnic conflicts.

Third, the expansion of population has led to the change of tenancy relationship. From "escaping from tenancy" in Song Dynasty to "dominating tenancy" in Qing Dynasty, it reflects the historical process of the contradiction between population growth and land shortage. The Song Dynasty "enriched the people, recruited tenants, and lent them at the end of the harvest every year. I lost my care and went to see him next year. " (Song Hui Yao Bian Shi 13-2 1) "Although there are many guests, the migration is uncertain." Song Wenjian (106 discussion at the National People's Congress of Shandong University) That is to say, it was not difficult for a tenant farmer to find a landlord who hired him and a piece of land for farming in the Song Dynasty, but it was more difficult in the Qing Dynasty. Compared with land, the supply of tenant farmers has exceeded the demand. In this case, landlords often either raise rents or reclaim land and hire tenants at higher rents. In addition, the emergence of "permanent tenancy system" and "mortgage rent system" reflects the phenomenon of population increase and the tension between man and land.

Fourth, the population expansion led to the long wave of immigration since the middle of Qing Dynasty. In the past, the migration tide was mainly caused by war, such as the southward crossing in Yongjia, the southward migration of northerners after the Anshi Rebellion and the migration after the Jingkang Rebellion. The migration in Qing dynasty was caused by the pressure of population growth, so the floating population became a social norm at this time.

There are three major trends in domestic population migration in Qing Dynasty: one is to move to Sichuan via Huguang; Second, immigrate to the northeast; Third, immigrate to Taiwan Province Province and surrounding islands. The so-called "Jiangxi fills two lakes, and the two lakes fill Sichuan" is such an immigrant who seeks living materials and living space.

Overseas immigration has also increased rapidly. /kloc-in the first half of the 20th century, the number of workers going abroad in China was estimated to be 320,000, with an average of about 6,400 per year. In the 25 years after 1850, it soared to1280,000, with an average of more than 5 1000 people per year, eight times that of the first half of the year. 25

Fifth, population expansion leads to the increase of unemployed refugees and the prosperity of gang organizations. With the increase of population and surplus labor force, many people have been driven out of their homeland and become refugees. The difference between these refugees and those who fled their homes because of war and famine in the past is that the latter can return to the land to rebuild their homes after the war has subsided and the famine years have passed, while the former is homeless even when the weather is good. They are scattered in every station, pier, canal port and corner of town, helpless. It is neither clan society nor government protection and control. In order to get collective protection and survive in the fierce competition for survival, a fake relative structure such as a secret society is needed to provide protection and mutual assistance for them, so gang organizations are unprecedentedly prosperous.

Sixth, the living space is getting tighter and tighter, and the resource allocation is getting tighter and tighter. Governments at all levels have become more and more attached to the imperial examination professional army, administrative agencies at all levels are full of redundant staff, and the reserve team is still queuing outside the official office, which seems to have no end in sight. The result is that "there are too many scribes, the competition in officialdom is fierce, and corruption and bribery are prevalent".