Taiping church service, around 1860.While Feng Yunshan was building up the God Worshipers in Guangxi Province in 1845 and 1846, Hong Xiuquan living was back in his hometown of Guanlubu, Guangdong province working as a school teacher. He als

1.17 - The Society of God Worshipers

Dec 10th, 2023 37m 1s

This is a statue of a deity in Fujian province, with offerings placed in front of it.Feng Yunshan preached and spread Shangdi's good word. For nearly 3 years, he worked tirelessly to grow the movement that worshiped God and recognized Hong

Episode 1.16 - Thistle Mountain

May 28th, 2023 50m 25s

Not exactly Thistle mountain, but an example of what the area north/north-west of Guiping, Guangxi looks like.In this episode, we look at the region where the Society of God Worshipers took root and grew, and what life was like there in the

1.15 - Smashing Idols

Dec 27th, 2022 40m 43s

Posthumous portrait of Liang Fa, author of "Good Words for Exhorting the Age"Hong Xiuquan finally lost his faith in ever becoming a Confucian scholar in the aftermath of the Opium War. After reading a set of Christian pamphlets composed by

Hong's Opium War

Jul 29th, 2022 41m 30s

The story of the Opium War is usually told as part of a wider narrative of European colonial expansion, and the beginning of a “century of humiliation” from the perspective of the modern Chinese state. Last episode, we covered the main narrativ

1.13 - The Opium War

Mar 21st, 2022 1h 1m

The idea of the Opium War carries a great deal of meaning in modern memory. For many flavors of Chinese nationalist, it is the beginning of their century of humiliation at the hands of exploitive foreigners. For the British, it is another miles

Episode 1.12 – Drug Bust

Oct 3rd, 2021 38m 33s

Lin ZexuIn 1839, Lin Zexu makes history's largest drug bust when he secured more than 1,600 tons of opium from European traders in Guangzhou. At first it was a triumph against the plague of imported opium. But unfortunately for Lin & the Qi

Episode 1.11 – Food Poisoning

Jun 26th, 2021 43m 8s

"Canton Factories" in Guangzhou, c1830Qing dynasty “foreign policy” operated quite differently than it is commonly understood today, or as it was understood by contemporary states in Europe and West Asia. Going all the way back to the Han,

Episode 1.10 - Faith and Free Trade

Apr 5th, 2021 36m 5s

This episode looks at the rise of the East India Trade Company through the triangle trade between British India, Qing China, and the British Isles. Opium fueled the Company's rise. It took a combination of opium smugglers, Free Trade ideogues,

Episode 1.9 - Legalize It

Feb 12th, 2021 22m 57s

In the second episode of the "mini season" on the Opium War, we'll look at how the highest officials of the Qing Empire debated the problem of opium in the 1820's and 1830's. Specifically, what was the best way to prevent trading of Chinese sil

Episode 1.8 - Less Money More Problems

Nov 9th, 2020 25m 16s

The name “Opium War” was first given to the war by a British newspaper opposed to the conflict. It was a derogatory label that implied the great British Empire, emancipator of slaves, was being lowered to doing the bidding of a bunch of British

Episode 1.7 – The Vision

Sep 2nd, 2020 16m 14s

In this episode, a young Hong Xiuquan fails the provincial exam in Guangzhou for the third time. The experience breaks him, and his family fears for his life. It's then, as his family fears he might be dying, that a group of small children in g

Episode 1.6 - Portrait of God’s Son as a Young Man

Jul 27th, 2020 39m 2s

In this episode, we get to know Hong Xiuquan and the world he grew up in. Hong's early life was defined by his experience as a Hakka in Southern China, aspiring to join the ranks of the Confucian scholar-officials.

Episode 1.5 - Not Your Uncle's White Lotus

Jun 9th, 2020 21m 41s

The White Lotus Rebellion at the end of the 18th century foreshadows the later crisis of the mid-19th century.

1.4 - Rise of the Qing

May 10th, 2020 35m 42s

The Qianlong EmperorThis episode we'll look at the rise of the Qing, China's last imperial dynasty. We'll look at some of the major decisions Qing rulers made in the dynasty's first 150 years. The reigns of Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong

1.3 - Ming China and the Silver Mountain

Apr 14th, 2020 35m 16s

At the beginning of the 17th century the Ming empire was the largest and most powerful on earth. But in a newly global world they soon found themselves tied to the whims of global trade and a silver mountain half way around the world.

1.2 - The Voyages of Zheng He

Mar 30th, 2020 18m 42s

This episode we're going to take a bit of a scenic detour to learn about early policies of Ming expansionism and the tremendous voyages of Zheng He.

1.1 - What is China?

Mar 12th, 2020 31m 26s

Popular conceptions of Chinese history usually follow the lead of Confucian ideology that held that China was the eternal "Middle Kingdom", always existing in its essential essence at the center of the world. Dynasties may rise and fall, but Ch

1.0 - Introduction

Mar 11th, 2020 7m 12s

“From the cry of a tiny insect, one can hear the sound of a vast world.” - Zhang DayeTiny Insect is a history podcast about the creation of the modern world. It takes a global perspective to tell the story of the world between 1206 and 1914

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