Customs of the Four Southeastern Provinces Before the Opium War

Author: Huang Guosheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2000-03-01
Features: How to understand the status and interrelationships of closed and open policies during the early Qing Dynasty? What kind of system were the customs in the four southeastern provinces during the early Qing Dynasty? What were the achievements and lessons of opening ports and establishing customs during the early Qing Dynasty? These questions have long been highly valued by academia. In-depth research on them helps us better understand the evolution of China's feudal society in its later period, especially the changes in economic and trade systems and management in coastal areas. It also helps reveal the underlying laws of China's economic and social development.
The opening of ports and establishment of customs in the Qing Dynasty were the result of various internal and external factors. Key domestic factors include:
(1) The unification of Taiwan by the Qing Dynasty was a crucial prerequisite for opening ports and establishing customs.
(2) As a maritime nation, China's expansion into the ocean was an inevitable trend of economic and social development.
(3) The social crises caused by maritime prohibitions forced the Qing authorities to reflect, leading to a pro-commerce tendency during the Kangxi period.
(4) The private maritime activities of merchants and the continuous opening of "private ports" objectively became driving forces for the ruling class to relax policies.
From an external perspective, the formation of the world market marked a new era where humanity could no longer live in isolation or closure. China, drawn into the world trade system as a vital part of it, inevitably stimulated the further development of its maritime trade.
During the early Qing Dynasty, significant transformations occurred in maritime economic and trade management systems, with the formal establishment of customs in China's history. Compared to the former Maritime Trade Supervision Offices, this was a historic progress. The main functions of early Qing customs included: managing foreign trade and related foreign affairs, regulating maritime trade of Chinese merchants, overseeing ship and fishery policies, receiving tributary envoys and managing tributary trade, and more.
Early Qing customs can be seen as a complex management system, reflecting the characteristics of the Chinese nation's large-scale maritime development at that time. The primary function of early Qing customs was the management of maritime trade. In terms of foreign trade management, early Qing customs already possessed many functions similar to modern customs. For example:
- The customs tariff gradually became standardized, including import and export duties, ship duties (tonnage tax), surcharges, exemptions, reductions, restrictions, and prohibitions. The tax system became more complete and gradually followed established rules.
- From the perspective of tariff system evolution, early Qing customs had relatively complete management systems for pilotage, declaration, and customs clearance for port entry and exit. They used international currencies, established anti-smuggling systems, and more.
Many of the management rules of early Qing customs were similar to internationally recognized management practices at the time and directly influenced the later development of modern Chinese customs. These management measures were not borrowed from other countries but largely reflected the creativity of the Chinese nation in managing modern international trade.
Early Qing customs underwent continuous reforms, such as strengthening supervision and assessment of customs officials, publishing tariffs, increasing ports for cross-strait trade between Fujian and Taiwan, attracting foreign merchants by reducing taxes, simplifying procedures, and establishing commercial offices, and more. Through these reforms, early Qing customs gradually evolved toward a modern maritime economic and trade management system.
Over the 150 years of maritime trade opening, Chinese society and economy underwent eight profound changes:
(1) Through the two methods of foreign merchants coming to China and Chinese merchants going abroad, Chinese society and economy established an inseparable connection with the world economy. Famous Chinese products such as tea, silk, cotton cloth, porcelain, and medicinal herbs were consumed not only domestically but also globally.
(2) Promoted the development of domestic shipping industries and economic exchanges between coastal provinces. During the early Qing Dynasty, major shipping routes formed between Fujian and Taiwan, Fujian and Guangdong, Fujian and Jiangsu-Zhejiang, Fujian and northern ports, Guangdong and Jiangsu-Zhejiang, Guangdong and northern ports, northern ports and Jiangsu-Zhejiang, and Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
(3) Fostered the formation of a unified coastal market and division of labor and cooperation between coastal regions.
(4) Provided broader livelihood opportunities for coastal residents.
(5) Promoted the development of fisheries.
(6) The formation of a new coastal economic and trade port network. During the early Qing Dynasty, along the thousands of miles of coastline in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong, there were nearly 200 ports. The distribution of customs tax offices in Qing provinces formed a giant chain, linking the economies of coastal provinces and serving as a liaison and intermediary between coastal and inland economies, as well as between China's economy and the outside world, creating a closely connected complete port system and network in the southeastern coastal region.
The formation and development of China's customs port system in the Qing Dynasty was a significant milestone in the history of China's economic and social development. The development of China's modern coastal ports has largely followed the basic framework formed during the early Qing Dynasty.
(7) To a certain extent, it drove the economic development of inland and mountainous areas.
(8) Promoted the emergence of capitalism.
In the 50 years before the Opium War, the economy of southeastern coastal regions showed accelerating trends. For example:
- The scale of foreign economic exchanges continued to expand.
- Customs duties at the Guangdong Customs surged.
- The number of Chinese sailing ships engaged in overseas trade increased.
- Economic exchanges between coastal regions also expanded, with the continuous establishment of Fujian-Taiwan ports.
- Lin Zexu's ban on opium also brought new vitality to China's economy and society.
From the perspective of maritime trade opening and customs establishment during the early Qing Dynasty, it was clear that Chinese society at the time harbored new vitality and dynamism. Particularly in the southeastern coastal region, the economy showed characteristics of transition and transformation toward modernity, and to some extent, it became involved in the operation of the new world economy. Chinese society had internal driving forces for modernization.
However, when comparing the achievements of Qing maritime trade opening and customs establishment with those of Western countries at the time, a different picture emerged. Since the mid-18th century, the gap between China and Western countries widened, and the transformation of Chinese society ultimately took a tragic turn, with backwardness and subjugation becoming inevitable.
The opening of ports and establishment of customs during the early Qing Dynasty had historical limitations and profound lessons. To a large extent, the early Qing Dynasty implemented a highly restrictive maritime trade opening policy, with the six most harmful aspects being:
(1) Restrictions on Chinese merchants' shipbuilding.
(2) Restrictions on Chinese merchants' overseas development.
(3) Restrictions on Chinese merchants' use of domestic resources.
(4) Tariff policies that hindered exports.
(5) Prohibitions on foreign merchants trading with inland merchants.
(6) Since 1757, only European and American merchants were allowed to trade in Guangzhou.
The superstructure of the Qing feudal regime (including political systems and ideologies) was primarily based on the vast natural economy in the interior, making it exceptionally resilient. Its negative constraints on maritime trade systems were particularly prominent, mainly manifested in:
(1) Early Qing customs management systems being derivatives of the feudal bureaucratic system.
(2) Endless exploitation and oppression of merchants.
(3) Corrupt feudal officials who could not resist bribery from Western merchants, gradually leading to the loss of customs' national defense functions.
(4) The ruling class's slow response to global trends and difficulty in changing their mindset.
(5) Difficult reforms.
(6) The Qing rulers' oppressive policies exacerbated ethnic conflicts domestically, which in turn constrained the development of maritime trade.
The increasingly severe predatory actions of Western colonialists against China (including opium smuggling) were the objective reasons for the Qing government's tightening and refining restrictions on foreign trade after the mid-18th century. However, from 1757 to the outbreak of the Opium War, there were still over 80 years, a strategic window that could have determined the future destiny of the Chinese nation. The Qing government did not seize this opportunity to actively open ports, develop the economy, and strengthen national defense. Instead, it feared contact with the outside world, restricted exchanges, and adopted a defensive stance.
One of the greatest shortcomings left by Chinese society in the 18th century was that the Qing Dynasty ultimately failed to solve the historical dilemma of how to actively open ports. Due to the mistakes and delays of feudal rulers in China, Western colonialists eventually forced China onto a painful path of compelled maritime trade opening.
The author examines and analyzes the basic conditions of maritime closure and opening in Chinese society from the late Ming Dynasty to the early Qing Dynasty, as well as the emergence and evolution of the customs in the four southeastern provinces during the early Qing Dynasty, from multiple perspectives and levels. Overall, during the era of social transformation, the Qing Dynasty also played a role, took measures in line with trends, initiated mechanisms for opening ports, and implemented significant reforms, objectively promoting the development of maritime trade. During this period, the Chinese nation demonstrated vitality and creativity in expanding toward the ocean.
The early Qing Dynasty presented China with important development opportunities. However, since the establishment of customs in the four southeastern provinces during the Kangxi period, the contradictions between maritime closure and opening in Chinese society remained and were always particularly acute. Especially after the mid-18th century, Qing feudal rulers, under the influence of closure mentality and Western colonial encroachment, ultimately failed to fulfill their historical responsibility of resolving the issue of opening ports.
The Chinese nation thus missed another opportunity and paid a heavy price. The valuable and profound lessons from this history are worth reflection, consideration, and learning for contemporary Chinese people.