Uncertianty in the Empire of Routine: The Unexpected Adminstrative Revolution of the 18th Century Qing State

Based on her latest book, history Professor Maura Dyskstra's lecture will introduce the concept of the "distributed imperial archive" of the Ming and Qing Chinese bureaucracy. This information-centered mapping of the administration of the late empires will provide a new perspective from which to consider the histories of centralization, decentralization, corruption, and modernization in the Qing dynasty.