Why did the Qing dynasty insist on recovering and losing the western regions for nearly a thousand years?

The western regions broke away from the rule of China's central dynasty as far back as the Tang Dynasty. Accurately speaking, since the Anshi Rebellion, the influence of the Tang Dynasty on the western regions has been minimal, and the western regions began to break away from the jurisdiction of the central dynasty. Later, after the Five Dynasties, the Song Dynasty and the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the western regions broke away from the rule of the central dynasty for nearly a thousand years. During the Kangxi period, the Qing government decided to unify the western regions, which were actually semi-independent, by force, because there was a powerful Zhungeer khanate in the western regions at this time, and Zhungeer khanate invaded various ministries of Mongolia in the Qing Dynasty many times, which caused a serious threat to the territorial integrity of the western regions in the Qing Dynasty. This was the fundamental reason for the Qing government's decision to recover the western regions, and the strong strength of the Qing government was the objective reason for recovering the western regions. ?

First, Zhungeer Department repeatedly invaded the border:

After many years of campaigns in the early Qing Dynasty, until the Kangxi period, the Qing Dynasty had completed the unification of the Central Plains and the south of the Yangtze River. At this time, the western regions were occupied by Zhungeer Khanate. Compared with other Mongolian ministries that surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, Zhungeer Khanate was quite unfriendly. Instead of surrendering to the Qing government, it repeatedly invaded the border areas of the Qing Dynasty and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty.

Second, recover the western regions and defend Mongolia:

The western regions are strategically located, connecting the Hexi Corridor to Guanzhong and the mainland in the east and Central Asia to Europe in the west. The Western Region was the barrier of Mongolia in Qing Dynasty. As we all know, the foundation of the Qing dynasty was actually the joint dictatorship of Manchuria and Mongolia. The number of the real Manchu Eight Banners is very small, with a total of about 1, people. It is impossible to control the vast majority of Han people with such a small number of Manchus! Therefore, Manchus need to find their trusted allies, and Mongolia (mainly refers to Monan Mongolia) is a reliable ally. The history of Mongolia is much longer than that of Manchuria, and the degree of social development is relatively higher than that of Manchuria. The population, financial resources and military strength of Mongolians are much more than that of Manchuria. Coupled with the geographical advantages of the Mongolian plateau, it was one of the pillars for Manchu to firmly control the Central Plains. Therefore, the emperors of the Qing Dynasty should spare no effort to strengthen their ties with Mongolian tribes and try their best to strictly control the Mongols from top to bottom. For the rulers of the Qing dynasty, Mongolia can never afford to lose. This is another important reason why Kangxi decided to recover the western regions.

Third, the Qing Dynasty was prosperous and its military strength was strong:

During the Kangxi period, the Qing Dynasty ended many years of war, the economy began to recover, agriculture began to develop greatly, and the comprehensive national strength of the Qing Dynasty was significantly improved. At the same time, the Qing army's combat effectiveness was greatly improved after years of war, such as destroying Ming Dynasty in the south, annihilating Li Zicheng and pacifying the San Francisco rebellion. Therefore, the Qing government wanted to take the opportunity to go west to solve the Zhungeer problem, which not only lifted the problem.

in fact, the unification of the western regions was not completely solved in the reign of Kangxi. The problem of the western regions began in the reign of Kangxi, and it took more than 15 years before and after it was completely solved. The Qing Dynasty completely solved the problem of the western regions, which played a positive role in maintaining the territorial integrity of China and promoting the development of multi-nationalities. The unification of the western regions also brought Xinjiang and other vast areas under the direct rule of the Central Plains Dynasty, laying the map of China today.