An Analysis Of The Constitutional Reform In The Late Qing Dynasty From The Perspective Of Political Stability

The Qing dynasty were facing the invasion of western countries since the mid-late 19^thcentury.In order to maintain the feudal rule,the late Qing government was forced to start modernization.In this course,they carried out a series of reforms,including economic,military,education and other aspects.Among them,the constitutional reform played an important role in the political transformation and political development of modern China.The constitutional reform was implemented under the circumstance of the disorder of society which fluctuated the political stability.At that time,the feudal rule of authorities was challenged by both western powers and domestic resistants.Worse still,with the introduction of western learning to the east,traditional political beliefs were gradually collapsed.In order to save the political stability maintained by fedual rule,the Qing government started to push forward political reform after western countries.The constitutional reform begined with bureaucracy reformation which was hindered by factions and corruption.Later,the authorities enacted“Imperial constitution outline”,however,it showed little restrictions on imperial power.In 1909,the policy of local self-government was carried out,but it expanded the local power and weakened the central authority.Factors from different aspects led to the failure of this reform,for instance,the ambivalence of the reformers,a missed opportunity for reform,the clash between traditional and modern political culture,the backward level of the institutionalization of politics and so on.When evaluating and analyzing the constitutional reform promoted by the late Qing government,it is easy to be seen that stability was a significant topic which throughout and greatly influenced the purpose,process and the result of this political reform.