#297 - Qing 32: Tea, Trade, & Thunder

The balance holding the steppe together didn’t shatter because of an army. It shattered because of a funeral.

When the Jungar khan dies, a brutal succession crisis leaves an ambitious, low-ranking prince named Amursana desperate enough to invite the enemy inside. He flees to the Qianlong Emperor, offering to guide a massive Qing invasion into his own people's heartland. Amursana thinks he’s using the empire to win a crown. But Qianlong has already decided to abolish the throne entirely.

• 1739 – 1755 CE

  
  

The Jungar Khanate & Allies

• Galdan Tseren, Khan of the Jungar Khanate [d. 1745]

• Tsewang Dorji Namjal, second son and short-lived successor to Galdan Tseren

• Lama Dorji, eldest son of Galdan Tseren and usurper khan

• Dawachi, Choros prince and rival claimant to the khanship

• Amursana, prince of the Khoit, grandson of Tsewang Rabtan, and Qing ally

• Ablai, Sultan of the Middle Jüz of the Kazakhs

Qing Dynasty

• The Qianlong Emperor (Aisin-Gioro Hongli), ruler of the Qing Empire

• The Yongzheng Emperor (Aisin-Gioro Yinzhen), late father of Qianlong

• Ban Di, Manchu general and commander of the Northern Route army

• Perdue, Peter C. China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia.

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