Back When the Gates Were Open: The Settler Recruitment Policy in Early Qing Manchuria

During the first two centuries of their rule over China, the Qing sovereigns either strictly controlled or even forbade Chinese migration to Manchuria (present day Northeast China). Yet in the early years of the dynasty, for a very brief period (1653–1668), the rulers not only allowed Chinese immigration to their motherland, but actively encouraged it by establishing various incentives for settlers and settler recruiters. However, only one case of the full application of such regulations is documented in the sources, suggesting that either the court and the authorities were reluctant to implement the policy or that there were other obstacles. Previous research on this topic only focused on the launching and termination of the settler recruitment program. This paper will inquire into the process of its implementation, so to be able to better evaluate the importance of such policies and interpret the rulers’ attitude toward the migratory phenomenon in this phase.