How did Emperor Qianlong deal with Vietnamese refugees rushing to the border?

Whether to accept Syrian refugees recently has caused Europe a headache. In the face of refugees, countries such as Britain, France, Germany and Hungary have different attitudes. Compared with the initial attitude of Britain, France and Hungary, Germany is an exception from beginning to end. Most people in China are willing to accept refugees.

In ancient times, especially in the Qing Dynasty, China faced similar refugee problems, but there was no difference between the Qing court and Europeans. If a war breaks out in any country in East Asia and refugees flood into China, local officials will almost always take the same measure: send the refugees back.

1739, civil strife occurred in Guo, and refugees flocked to the border of Yunnan and Guangxi. The local officials of the Qing court originally sent them back to their original places. However, with the increase of refugees, this kind of treatment is unsustainable and more troubles are encountered. Not only Annan refugees, but also China speculators and Annan rebels are all near the border of China. The Qing court faced a more complicated governance test.

One is "soft and far away", treating "foreign" refugees as their own.

1. Eat well, pay for dinner and go home comfortably.

The refugees "sent back" by local officials in the Qing court were caused by the civil war in Vietnam. 1739, the Li dynasty established after defeating the Ming occupation army gradually declined. Zheng He Ruan, the powerful minister of the Tang Dynasty, was divided into two parts. Zheng carried the emperor to make the princes and let Ruan monopolize the power of tribute. The rule of the Zheng family gradually declined, "tyrant" Zheng Gang appeared, and civil strife broke out in the north. A large number of "difficult outsiders" flocked to the border of Yunnan and Guangxi in the north.

Refugees flooded in. 174 1 June, Qing Fu, the governor of Yunnan Province, reported that "the people of Dulong Factory and the displaced men and women of various military stations fled in succession and broke into the border". 1742 In July, Emperor Qianlong learned from Yang Xitun, governor of Guangxi, "The Yi people in lang son in Annan are unemployed and beg in Ningming, Longzhou, Jiang Tu and Tusi."

The number of refugees continues to increase. A year later, 1743, the governor of Yunnan said, "But Dulong No.1 Factory gathered people and laid off more than 100,000 people."

Faced with so many strange refugees, the first reaction of local officials is not to drive them away, but to give them preferential treatment. Qing Fu said in his memorial to Emperor Qianlong: "Although Annan is a foreigner, he is humble and respectful. His territory is adjacent to Yunnan, and the people of other countries fled the chaos and were born in the same paradise. They regard Vietnamese refugees as their own. He also said: "I respect the Lord, with the gentleness of 10,000 square meters, it is also the virtue of integrating Chinese and foreign countries. "According to the emperor's guiding ideology, he set up sheds and factories at the border to receive relief from refugees. He also "inspected and resettled the Yi people and the Han people separately to avoid displacement", so that the refugees had a place to live and something to eat. Emperor Tommy Tam "followed it".

Yang Long, governor of Guangxi, also reported that the government would "keep T-shirts separately" for those refugees who came to Guangxi to seek food, and distribute rations to the elderly, the sick and the hungry, and then escort them home after they recovered. People who are strong enough to walk will get food rations and travel expenses, which will be handled by officials in lang son. Long praised "proper handling".

Sino-Vietnamese border in the early Qing Dynasty. According to Tan Qixiang's Atlas of Chinese History.

2, preferential treatment of refugees, only "not despised by foreigners", there is a big face.

Local officials in Yunnan and Guangxi are very common. In East Asia dominated by the Qing court, Annan had a "suzerain-vassal relationship" with the Qing court. Annan has the obligation to pay tribute to the Qing court, which has to pay tribute to the vassal States many times, and has the power to control the title and endow it with legitimacy. This is a kind of social chaos. If necessary, you can send troops to intervene. They must protect their soldiers when foreign enemies invade.

In addition to the war, there were refugees who drifted to China because of the wind and waves, and the Qing court also had a set of countermeasures. Take Ryukyu as an example. When Ryukyu fishermen accidentally drifted to the coast of China, local officials first found out their identity. When they know that they are citizens of the country, they will first report to their superiors, settle them in Fujian posthouse, and send them rice, pickles, money, clothes, bedding and so on. , which is the so-called "T-shirt". There are also "rewards", including blue cloth, cotton, tea, raw cigarettes, noodles, meat and so on. Before departure, local officials will also repair the ship and help sell the goods carried on board, so that refugees can have money and food and return home safely. Tommy Tam said that only in this way can we "not be looked down upon by foreigners", which is a "soft and far-sighted method".

Second, the identity of "refugees" became complicated and the Qing court closed the door to them.

1. Refugees, bad elements, China speculators and traffickers crossed the border.

The Qing court's practice of sending war refugees back to their places of origin did not solve the problem of border refugees.

First of all, this practice is effective for small-scale refugees, but it is not feasible to meet a large number of refugees who have gathered for a long time. Hundreds of thousands of refugees poured into Dulong factory. If local officials are soft, the price of "please leave" will be very high. If refugees don't listen, it will inevitably lead to mass incidents. Fu Qing is worried that refugees will "take the opportunity to follow thieves." His solution is to temporarily maintain public order: dispatch 750 troops from all over the country to prepare for the danger, and issue a notice to the citizens warning them that they are "unemployed and fearless" until the refugees disperse on their own. This treatment has been recognized by Gan Long.