A Study Of Green Standard Army And Society In Zhaotong Prefecture During The Qing Dynasty

After the Qing Dynasty unified the country,the old Ming army and the Han Chinese army were integrated into the old Ming army system and formed into a national standing army with the battalion as the basic unit,which was known as the Green Banner and Green Battalion because of its green flag.Zhaotong was extremely important in the geopolitics of Yunnan,known as "the key to southern Yunnan,the throat of western Shu",is the gateway to the mainland of Yunnan,its military position is self-evident,and has an important impact on the social stability of northeastern Yunnan.Zhaotong Township Green Battalion was first set up during the Yongzheng Dynasty to reform the land and return to the stream,and the Qing Dynasty set up Green Battalion soldiers in Zhaotong to suppress the residual power of the Tusi and control the local area.The governance and control of Zhaotong and northeast Yunnan played an important role in stabilizing the frontier society and maintaining the great unity in the Qing Dynasty.There are certain achievements in academic research on green battalions,but few studies have explored the governance of green battalions and frontier society on a town-by-town basis.This paper examines the governance and control of the southwestern frontier in the Qing dynasty,taking the town of Zhaotong’s green battalion soldiers as the object of study.Starting from the establishment of Zhaotong town,the following aspects are discussed.First,the geopolitical importance of Zhaotong is analyzed.The establishment of the Green Battalion in Zhaotong during the Qing Dynasty was mainly based on the importance of Zhaotong’s geographical location and the complexity of Zhaotong’s social situation.Secondly,using the contents of the Zhaotong town battalion atlas,we analyze the establishment of Zhaotong town,the changes of military personnel,military equipment,the distribution of flood ponds,etc.,and clarify the rise,development,decline and causes of the green battalion in Zhaotong town.Finally,we analyze the influence of Zhaotong town’s green battalion on local society in consolidating rule,developing economy,spreading culture and education,and ethnic changes to explore the relationship between the two,and gain some understanding of the role played by the green battalion in frontier social governance.