Green Standard Army

Common card · No. 263848

The Green Standard Army (Chinese: 綠營兵; pinyin: Lǜyíngbīng; Manchu: niowanggiyan turun i kūwaran) was a category of military units under the control of China's Qing dynasty. It was made up mostly of ethnic Han soldiers and operated concurrently with the Manchu–Mongol–Han Eight Banner armies. In areas with a high concentration of Hui people, Muslims served as soldiers in the Green Standard Army. After the Qing consolidated control over China, the Green Standard Army was primarily used as a police force. Despite its name, by the 19th century the Green Standard Army mostly served as paramilitary police force rather than as an army. After the formation of "brave battalions" in response to the mid-19th century rebellions in China, who were mercenaries hired and financed by provincial governors, the Green Standard were relegated for local security only, while the braves became the Qing dynasty's rapid response force. There was an effort starting in the 1860s to modernize Green Standard units to...

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