Ma Yong Talks About the Late Qing Dynasty

Name: Ma Yong Talks About the Late Qing Dynasty
ISBN: 9787547042694

Ma YongVolumes Publishing Company · ChinaApr 2026

3.8

Word count: 149K words
Chapters: 32
ISBN: 9787547042694

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Summary

What if the preparatory constitutional framework had been completed smoothly? What if the Qing court had not formed a Royal Cabinet? What if the Guangxu Emperor had lived another decade... Let Professor Ma Yong guide you through these counterfactuals!

Ma Yong on the Late Qing is a work by the modern historian Ma Yong, gathering decades of his research findings and spanning the period from the Opium War to the Xinhai Revolution, insightful and profound.

The book is divided into four parts:

Part One, National Past, focuses on historical facts under study, including “The Empress Dowager Cixi Returns Power” and “The Advisory Council: A Tragedy in the Chinese Mode”;

Part Two, Hearsay, focuses on fresh investigation of historical mysteries, including “Who Took Guangxu’s Life” and “Did Yuan Shikai Conceal What He Knew”;

Part Three, Tentative Words, focuses on biographical assessments of figures, including “The Regent: Praise and Blame” and “Li Hongzhang and Ito Hirobumi”;

Part Four, Opinions, focuses on historical commentary and political essays, including “Whose Cheese Did Constitutional Monarchy Move” and “The Gravediggers of the Qing Dynasty”.

Editor's review

Ma Yong on the Late Qing is not a conventional general history but a collection of incisive historical essays by the renowned historian Ma Yong. A senior researcher at the Institute of Modern History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Ma Yong has formidable scholarly credentials, yet the tone of this book is unexpectedly warm, plain, and even colloquial in its liveliness. He sets aside textbook-style grand narrative and rigid conclusions, entering instead through specific figures, events, memorials, and even social mentalities, recounting the complex and turbulent late Qing like a learned friend. His assessments of key figures such as Li Hongzhang, Cixi, and Guangxu strive for objectivity and roundness, and his readings of major events such as the Hundred Days’ Reform, the Boxer Movement, and the Late Qing New Policies are imbued with an “understanding sympathy,” seeking to restore the limitations and choices of historical actors in their own contexts. This approach renews a seemingly distant period with settled verdicts, restoring rich detail and room for thinking about alternative possibilities. For readers, its value lies not only in acquiring knowledge but in absorbing a calm, inclusive method of historical thinking and learning to examine a critical turning point in the nation’s fate amid conflicting accounts.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in late Qing history who are not satisfied with simple judgments of right and wrong and want to delve into details
Readers who enjoy scholarly essays and take pleasure in gaining professional insight through accessible prose
Thinkers who wish to step outside the textbook framework and understand the dilemmas of modern China’s transformation from multiple angles
History enthusiasts, especially those who prefer narratives where personal fates intertwine with the tide of the times

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking a systematic, complete chronological history of the late Qing or a textbook-style reader
Readers expecting a wealth of sensational unofficial anecdotes or startling, subversive claims

Reading tips

It is not necessary to read from cover to cover; begin with a figure or chapter that interests you and get a feel for the author’s narrative style
It helps to consult basic background materials on key events as you read; the experience will be more rounded
Many views in the book are the author’s own; read critically and compare with other historians’ accounts

About the publisher

Volumes Publishing Company China · Founded in 2003

Volumes Publishing Company is a comprehensive publisher known for its titles on Chinese classics and literature and the arts. Its publishing covers classical literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, folk literature, foreign literature, and exam preparation books. Judging from the 269 titles in the database, the company emphasizes making classic works accessible to a broad readership. Representative books include Letters from Fu Lei to His Son, The Four Great Classical Novels, Teahouse, The Classic of Mountains and Seas, Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk, and Camel Xiangzi, with authors including Fu Lei, Cao Xueqin, Luo Guanzhong, Shi Nai'an, Wu Cheng'an, Lao She, Liu Xiang, and Liu Xin. The company has also developed series brands such as the Volumes Studio Chinese Classics and the Science Fiction Library, giving it a distinctive profile in organizing Chinese classics and promoting literary reading. Public information on its other publishing activities is limited.

版权信息
辑一国故
慈禧归政记
甲午：1895—1915
误国、伤国、灭国
一本书与中日师生易位
皇族内阁错在哪儿
资政院：中国式悲剧
辑二听闻
谁要了光绪的命
恭亲王之死
罢免翁同稣是光绪的意图吗
袁世凯是不是“有密未告”
真假“衣带诏”
东北亚，一触即发
争夺南京
辑三姑言
千古莫辩是慈禧
毁誉摄政王
严复的难题
两个人的甲午——李鸿章与伊藤博文
那些忧伤的年轻人
绅商：革命与妥协
别了，皇上
辑四说法
谁摘了袁世凯的顶戴
谁终结了帝制
回看“不平等条约”
君主立宪动了谁的奶酪
辛亥年的棋，段祺瑞的子
大清王朝的掘墓人
革命与改良的赛跑

FAQ

How does this book differ from the author’s other works (such as Twenty Years of the Late Qing and Turbulence: Twenty Years of the Late Qing)?

This book is a collection of articles, emphasizing short, focused pieces and exploratory ideas, with a more essayistic character; works such as Twenty Years of the Late Qing are more rigorously structured thematic histories, with continuous narrative and more systematic analysis.

Are the sources and views in this book reliable?

The author, Ma Yong, is a professional modern historian, and the discussion rests on solid historical sources. The views are his personal conclusions from long-term research and fall within serious historical interpretation, but as one scholar’s perspective, readers may absorb them critically.

Is this book suitable for history beginners?

Yes. The language is accessible and the entry points are concrete, which can spark interest. But because it is not a systematic general history, beginners are advised to use it as supplementary reading alongside basic factual works for best results.

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About the author

Ma Yong Author · China · 1956

Ma Yong, born in 1956 in Suixi, Anhui, is a researcher and doctoral supervisor at the Institute of Modern History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He has long studied modern Chinese history, modern Chinese cultural and academic history, and the history of Confucianism, and has published more than one hundred articles, with major works including Studies in Han Dynasty Spring and Autumn Scholarship, Three Thousand Years of Chinese Confucianism, Four Books on the Late Qing, and A General Survey of Chinese Civilization. His writing is distinguished by a broad historical vision, examining political upheaval, intellectual change, and social transformation within a single framework. The collection includes forty-one of his works, spanning historical nonfiction, biography, and philosophy. Representative titles include A General History of Modern China, Volume 4: From the Hundred Days' Reform to the Boxer Uprising (1895–1900); A Republican Remnant: A Biography of Zhang Taiyan; Rediscovering Modern China; and The Great Transformation of the Late Qing: Disorder, Conflict, and Decline. He has also written history for young readers and general audiences, such as Chinese History Lessons for Children and The Master Class in Chinese History: Selected Works of Ma Yong, balancing scholarly depth with readability.