The fall of Beijing to Li Zicheng's Shun forces ended the Ming dynasty and opened the path to Qing rule over China until 1912.
Key Facts
- Date of fall
- 25 April 1644
- Ming dynasty founded
- 1368
- Southern Ming resistance ended
- 1662
- Rebel leader
- Li Zicheng, founder of Shun dynasty
- Last Ming emperor
- Chongzhen Emperor (died by suicide)
- Resistance in Beijing
- None; city gates opened by Ming eunuch official
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Decades of internal instability, peasant uprisings, and administrative collapse weakened the Ming dynasty. Li Zicheng, a peasant rebel leader, built a rival Shun dynasty and marched on Beijing from two directions. The eunuch official Du Zhizhi compounded the crisis by ordering Ming defenders to open the city gates, allowing the rebel army to enter unopposed.
Li Zicheng's Shun forces entered Beijing without armed resistance in April 1644, effectively conquering the Ming capital. The Chongzhen Emperor, the last Ming ruler, refused capture and hanged himself on a tree at Mount Mei near the Forbidden City, marking the definitive end of Ming rule in northern China.
The Shun dynasty's hold on power proved brief; Manchu-led Qing forces swiftly defeated Li Zicheng's army and seized Beijing. The Qing dynasty subsequently ruled China proper until 1912. Remnants of the Ming imperial family established the Southern Ming in southern China, but that regime was extinguished by 1662.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Li Zicheng.
Side B
1 belligerent
Du Zhizhi (surrendered Ming eunuch official), Chongzhen Emperor.