The Qianlong Dynasty Garrison Research In XinJiang

With the Central Government of the Qing Dynasty during Qianlong period recovered Xinjiang, Xinjiang’s strategic position was enhanced further and played an important role in the maintenance of the stable situation of northwest border of the motherland.In order to consolidate the unification and strengthen the northwest frontier, the Qing government implemented the military government system led by Yili generals in Xinjiang. At the same time, to establish its rule in Xinjiang, the Qing government gradually dispatched the officers and soldiers from the mainland to Xinjiang,Urumqi, Yili, Kashi and other places to set up cantonments.From the twenty-fourth year of Qianlong Period(1759), the Qing government dispatched the Eight Banners of Manchuria, Mongolia, Chahar, the eight banners and green camp to Xinjiang in succession. As a result, the garrison pattern which focused the north of Xinjiang and took Yili and Urumqi as its center came into being.The number of the whole territory of Xinjiang cantonment forces continued to rise. At the end of Qainlong period, the number of the Yili garrison was up to about18200, those of Urumqi region about 20000 and those of Kashi garrison about 5200.The garrison in Xinjiang finally had a size of about 45000 people, becoming a significant military power in the northwest frontier of China.Locating in the border, being distant from the mainland, the cantonment in Xinjiang had many limitations, with the food supply and soldiers’ salaries being its bottleneck problem.As a result, to solve the problems, the court formulated a military garrison and promoted the productions; however, the measures failed to fundamentally settle the problems.Due to the national prosperity during Qianlong Period of Qing Dynasty, Various unfavorable factors to maintain the garrison were not clear. However, since the beginning of the Daoguang Period of Qing Dynasty, with the declining national prosperity, the control government weakened its support to the Xinjiang garrison, which rendered Xinjiang in turmoil.