page_title: List of rebellions in China
section_title: Nian Rebellion
hierarchical_section_title: List of rebellions in China / Qing dynasty / Nian Rebellion
caption_attribution_description: A scene of the Nien Rebellion (1851-1868).Probably represents the Battle of Inlon River,1867
context_page_description: This is an incomplete list of some of the rebellions, revolts and revolutions that have occurred in China.
context_section_description: The Nian Rebellion (t 捻軍起義, s 捻军起义, Niǎnjūn Qǐyì; 1851–1868) was a large armed uprising that took place in northern China. The rebellion failed to topple the Qing dynasty, but caused immense economic devastation and loss of life that became one of the major long-term factors in the collapse of the Qing regime.
  The Nian movement was formed in the late 1840s by Zhang Lexing and, by 1851, numbered approximately 40,000. Unlike the Taiping Rebellion, though, the Nian movement initially had no clear goals or objectives aside from criticism of the Qing government. However, the Nian rebels were provoked into taking direct action against the Qing regime following a series of ecological disasters. In 1851, the Yellow River burst its banks, flooding hundreds of thousands of square miles and causing immense loss of life. The Qing government slowly began cleaning up after the disaster, but were unable to provide effective aid as government finances had been drained during the Opium War with the British, and the ongoing slaughter of the Taiping Rebellion. The damage created by the disaster had still not been repaired when, in 1855, the river burst its banks again, drowning thousands and devastating the fertile province of Jiangsu. At the time, the Qing government was trying to negotiate a deal with the Western powers, and as state finances had been so severely depleted, the regime was unable to provide effective relief aid. This enraged the Nian movement, who blamed the Westerners for contributing to China's troubles, and increasingly viewed the Qing government as incompetent and cowardly in the face of the Western powers.
  In 1855, Zhang Lexing took direct action by launching attacks against government troops in central China. By the summer, the fast-moving Nian cavalry, well-trained and fully equipped with modern firearms, had cut the lines of communication between Beijing and the Qing armies fighting the Taiping rebels in the south. Qing forces were badly overstretched as rebellions broke out across China, allowing the Nian armies to conquer large tracts of land and gain control over economically vital areas. The Nian fortified their captured cities and used them as bases to launch cavalry attacks against Qing troops in the countryside, prompting local towns to fortify themselves against Nian raiding parties. This resulted in constant fighting which devastated the previously rich provinces of Jiangsu and Hunan.
  In early 1856, the Qing government sent the Mongol general Sengge Rinchen, who had recently crushed a large Taiping rebel army, to defeat the Nian. Sengge Rinchen's army captured several fortified cities and destroyed most of the Nian infantry, and killed Zhang Lexing himself in an ambush. However, the Nian movement survived as Taiping commanders arrived to take control of the Nian forces, and the bulk of the Nian cavalry remained intact. Sengge Rinchen's infantry-based army could not stop the fast moving cavalry from devastating the countryside and launching surprise attacks on Qing troops. In 1865, Sengge Rinchen and his bodyguards were ambushed by Nian troops and killed, depriving the government of its best military commander. The Qing regime sent general Zeng Guofan to take command of Qing imperial forces, providing him with modern artillery and weapons, purchased from the Europeans at extortionate prices. Zeng's army set about building canals and trenches to hem in the Nian cavalry — an effective, but slow and expensive method. Zeng was removed from the post after the Nian rebels broke one of his defense fronts. Generals Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang were put in charge of the suppression. In late 1866, the Nian movement split into two — east Nian stayed in central China and west Nian sneaked close to Beijing. By late 1867, Li and Zuo's troops had recaptured much territory from the Nian rebels, and in early 1868, the movement was crushed by the combined forces of imperial troops and the Ever Victorious Army.
caption: A scene of the Nien Rebellion. Probably represents the Battle of Inlon River, 1867
exif: {}